You are at the helm of a sailing vessel under sail on the starboard tack, close hauled, and you are instructed to "head up". Which action should you take?
• Head up vs. bear away/fall off on a sailboat • Relationship between wheel direction and bow movement • How a tiller moves opposite to the direction you want the bow to turn
• First, picture a sailboat sailing close hauled on starboard tack. When you are told to head up, which side of the wind are you moving toward: closer to the wind or farther from it? • Once you know which way the bow must turn to head up from a starboard tack, ask: which way do you move a wheel to make the bow go that way? How about a tiller? • Consider what happens to the sails, especially the jib, as you head up. Would you normally keep the helm steady and just let the jib luff if you are actually trying to follow an order to change heading?
• Be clear that head up means change course toward the wind, not away from it • For a wheel, the top of the wheel turns the same way you want the bow to go • For a tiller, you move it opposite the way you want the bow to go—verify whether each choice matches the correct bow movement for heading up on starboard tack
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