Tack is a term used in sailing that has different meanings in different contexts. Sailing at sunset Wooden sailing boat Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or smaller boat, across a body of water. ...

Sail

The tack is the lower corner of the sail's leading edge. On a sloop rigged sailboat, the mainsail tack is connected to the mast and the boom at the gooseneck. On the same boat, a foresail tack is clipped to the deck and forestay. A sail is any type of surface intended to generate thrust by being placed in a wind —in essence a vertically-oriented wing. ... A sloop-rigged J-24 sailboat In sailing, a sloop is a vessel with a Fore-and-aft rig. ... A mainsail is the most important sail raised from the main (or only) mast of a sailing vessel. ... mizzen mast, mainmast and foremast Grand Turk The mast of a sailing ship is a tall vertical pole which supports the sails. ... Boom may refer to: Look up boom in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Categories: Move to Wiktionary | Stub ... A foresail refers to one of several types of sail set on the foremost mast (foremast) of a sailing vessel: Any triangular sail set forward of the foremast, such as a jib. ... A permanent covering over a compartment or a hull[1]. On a boat or ship, the primary deck is the horizontal structure which forms the lid of the hull, which both strengthens the hull and serves as the primary working surface. ... On a sailing vessel, a forestay is a piece of standing rigging which keeps a mast from falling backwards. ...

Maneuver

A tack or coming about is the maneuvre by which a sailing boat or yacht turns its bow through the wind so that the wind changes from one side to the other. This is contradictory to a jibe which is turning the stern of the boat through the wind. A modern yacht A yacht (From Dutch Jacht meaning hunt(er)) was originally defined as a light, fast sailing vessel used to convey important persons. ... The bow is the foremost point of the hull of a ship or boat: the point that is ahead when the vessel is underway. ... A jibe (also spelled gybe) is when a sailing boat (yacht) turns its stern through the wind, such that the direction of the wind changes from one side of the boat to the other. ...

In small boats with low booms, the skipper should generally announce, "Ready about" to prepare the crew for the tack and the swinging of the boom, which can otherwise cause serious injury to an unprepared crew member. Upon the acknowledgement of the crew, the skipper announces, "Coming about". or alternatively "Helm's a-lee", "Hard a-lee", or "Lee Ho" during the actual tacking.

Before tacking, it is in good practice to have a considerable amount of speed before doing so in order to complete the tack. If a vessel hasn't enough speed to complete a tack, the wind may overpower the boat's turn, thus forcing it back on its previous course, or the vessel may become in irons, not moving at all.

An auto tack is when a sailboat turns its bow through the wind by accident. This is usually occurs when a steady hand is not kept on the tiller or steering wheel. Auto tacks are more likely to occur when a sail boat is close hauled. Points of sail is the term used to describe a sailing boats course in relation to the wind direction. ...

Tacking or beating to windward may also refer to the process of beating a course upwind, back and forth, without actually coming about.

Position

As a noun, tack describes the position of a sailboat's bow with respect to the wind. If the vessel's bow is positioned so that the wind is blowing across the starboard (right) side of the vessel, then the vessel is said to be on a port tack. If the wind is blowing across the port (left) side of the vessel, then the vessel is said to be on a starboard tack. By definition, this is the side on which the boom is carried, since it can be difficult when a boat is sailing downwind or nearly downwind from which side the wind is coming. A sailing vessel on a port tack always has the right-of-way over another sailing vessel on "starboard tack" by both the rules of the road and racing rules. Starboard is the nautical term (used on boats and ships) that refers to the right side of a vessel as perceived by a person facing towards the bow. ... Port is the nautical term (used on boats and ships) that refers to the left side of a ship, as perceived by a person facing towards the bow (the front of the vessel). ... The International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972 are published by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and set out the rules of the road to be followed by ships and other vessels at sea. ...