Communication, a skill that most of us take for granted on and off the water, is the magic powder that transforms a group into a team. Poor communication can singlehandedly turn an enjoyable day of racing into a long drawn out delay in getting to the bar. And in contrast, a few quality exchanges can transform a group of friends into a race winning team. Seems important enough to be worth practicing… but verbal interaction is seldom addressed even by crews that religiously practice spinnaker douses and mark roundings. Fortunately, there are some general rules that will increase your chances of saying the right thing at the right time.

Rule #1: Develop a verbal shorthand about common maneuvers. Boathandling can usually be significantly improved by making common exchanges consistent. For example, calling "ready to tack" every time the skipper is planning to tack, and then saying "tacking" when the helm actually begins to move will significantly reduce the chance of a crash tack. And make sure to clarify whether there is an expected response or not. Most other boathandling maneuvers will also benefit from consistent phrasing, though the exact timing will always have to be adjusted for waves, lanes, and other details.

Rule #2: Boil down standard communication to a few specific categories. One category that can be easily quantified is upwind sail trim. It is important to develop a standard for adjustment terms and amounts before the race starts, since what looks like a nice open leech to the trimmer might look very closed to everyone else. The best way to coordinate jib adjustment is for the skipper to go to leeward before the race and look at the sail with the trimmer. Together they can establish a baseline, so when the trimmer describes the sail the skipper knows what it looks like without leaving the rail.

Spinnaker trimming could take up a whole article on its own, since the communication between the trimmer and helm is so dependent on pressure– which is in turn affected by angle. But a good starting point is for the trimmer to give constant feedback about sheet pressure, in order to optimize sailing angle without sacrificing boatspeed. Again, developing a verbal shorthand is crucial to minimizing the misunderstandings.

Speed and height are another category where effective communication is vital for racing success. Just after the start, or during any pre-race tuning, it is important for the whole team to know how the boat is doing relative to others: are we falling into the boats below us, holding even, or coming up under the boats above? Then trimmer and helm can adjust accordingly to maximize the lane. I prefer everyone to talk about the boat we are sailing ("We’re higher and faster") since otherwise it is very hard to keep track of who is being discussed. ("She’s higher and faster" means exactly the opposite, but sounds annoyingly similar.)

Making the team aware of the boat’s position relative to the course and the weather is another area where communication can make a huge difference. Laylines, mark locations, shifts, puffs, current, and breeze lines are all important details that a specific member of the crew should make sure everyone knows about. Don’t be afraid to state what seems obvious, within reason; it is always better to have an overabundance of information than to miss something important.

Downwind it is crucial to give a countdown to puffs, since they fill from behind where the skipper and trimmer can’t see. But in order for puff information to be useful, there MUST be a committed countdown from one team member. Accurate puff calling is very, very hard; the breeze fills differently every day, and it takes time to learn the conditions. Only by committing (and being wrong a lot, especially at first) will calls improve. That means that the puff caller can’t be jumped on for mistakes, since that will discourage a commitment the next time! The long-term goal of predicting puffs downwind is to get the boat lined up for the next one, but that takes time as a team to perfect.

The final category of communication is the boat’s position relative to the rest of the fleet. During a lull in the action, one of the crew should look around and give a summary of the big picture: are we in the middle of the fleet, or on one side? With a pack, or by ourselves? With the leaders, in the middle, toward the back? Updating the summary a few times during each leg helps to determine which side of the course is paying off, and keeps the whole team aware of progress. Locally, crews need to warn the helm well ahead of time about crossings and lanes of clear air. And presenting information constructively, even if the situation doesn’t look good, will help the entire team stay focused and positive. (My favorite euphemism, when rounding the weather mark toward the back of the fleet, is "We have lots of clear air".)

Throughout the race, it is critical to know what is outside the helm’s line of sight and fill in the blank spots. One way to find out what every team member can and can’t see is to switch positions for a race. That will give everyone a much clearer understanding of how best to keep the information flowing.

The only way to improve communication is to talk about what worked (and what didn’t) after the race is over. Make sure there is some time after racing, perhaps on the way back to the dock, to sort out what could be done better the next time. Every team has room for improvement… which is what keeps us all coming back for more.

The only way to improve communication is to talk about what worked (and what didn’t) after the race is over.