When entering a foreign port, what does it mean to “request for pratique” and how do you make the request?
Send your answers to cruisingcompass@bwsailing.com. A winner will be selected randomly from the correct answers and will win a one-year subscription to the digital version of Blue Water Sailing magazine.
Congratulations to Leslie Little, San Diego, CA, who correctly answered last week’s Mindbender on a “lee bow” in sailboat racing. “Tacking into a lee bow position against another boat happens when two boats meet on opposite tacks while sailing up wind. As the boats converge, the boat that is ahead, usually by only a boat length or less, can tack just before crossing the other boat’s line setting themselves to be ahead and slightly to leeward. That’s why it’s called a lee bow. In this position, the lead boat will spill dirty air onto the trailing boat and will force it to tack away. The tactic usually gains the lead boat some extra margin and also allows it to protect a favored side of the upwind course.”
