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Rules Of The Road...who Has The Right Of Way?
By Linda Cullum, Thu Dec 8th
The Right of Way rules do not technically come into effectbetween boats until there is the possibility of collision.Sailboats should never get so close to each other so that a riskof collision exists. vessels should pass portside to portsideand as far to starboard as water depth permits. When two sailboats meet there are three rules to follow: 1. The boat on the port tack gives way to the boat on thestarboard tack. 2. When on the same tack, the windward boatgives way to the leeward boat. 3. The overtaking vessel keepsclear of the slower vessel.
To learn more about the rules of the road, download a Free!"Rules of the Road" article with graphics at our website athttp://learntosail.net/ Piloting- Deviation and Variation There are two types of Poles; the Geographic North and SouthPoles, also called True North and True South, and the MagneticNorth and South Poles. The Geographic poles are stationary. Theearth is a big magnet with magnetic lines of force running fromthe magnetic north pole to the magnetic south pole. The magneticpole is located in northern Canada; somewhat west of theGeographic Pole. It's location changes over long periods of time. Variation is the angle between the magnetic north and the truenorth. This is indicated by a compass when it is free of anynearby magnetic influences. A magnetized pointer, or needle,that is allowed to spin freely, will point to the magnetic northpole. On a boat compass, this needle is situated in the middleof a ring which shows 360 degrees. Now matter in which directionthe boat heads, the compass still points to Magnetic North. Deviation Boats with lots of metal have their own magnetic fields and thecompass may respond to it and be pulled somewhat away from thedirection of magnetic north. When this happens, it is calledcompass deviation and needs to be compensated for. This can bedone by installing
small internal magnets in the compass, or,you can make up a deviation chart for your boat and refer to itwhen figuring out what course to steer by your compass. Thisespecially applies to the small boat sailor who won't be using amounted compass with magnets. Variation Often you will be given a course to steer from one place toanother in true directions. This means that you will have toconvert this to magnetic in order to steer this course with yourcompass. There is a very consistent and simple rule to followwhen going from true to magnetic. In the Eastern US and Canada,to go from a true course to a magnetic course, you add a westvariation. To go from a magnetic course to a true course, yousubtract a west variation. In the Western US and Canada, to gofrom a true course to a magnetic course, you subtract an eastvariation To go from a magnetic course to a true course, you addan east variation. Sailing Terms Piloting-Navigation performed using visual references such asaids to navigation. Aids to Navigation-Established markers on land or sea that aidsailors to avoid danger and fix their position. Bearing-The direction of an object to an observer, such as abuoy or other boat. Chart-A nautical map. Demarcation-Boundary. Nun- A buoy that is not lit but numbered, red and pointed, andalways on the starboard side when returning from seaward, portside when going out. Can- A buoy that is not lit but numbered, green and flat, andalways on the port side when returning from seaward, starboardside when going out. Happy Sailing! __/)_
About the author:Linda Cullum is from Cape Cod, MA, with a second home inVermont. She is the author of Learn to Sail! with Multimedia! anInteractive training CDROM which teaches all aspects ofSailing including Knots, Piloting, Rules of the Road, Weatherwith digital video from Sail Magazine, narration, animation andquizzes. Visit her site at http://learntosail.net HappySailing_/)__
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