Slalom Gybes
Run a line of marks dead downwind, gybing at every one — broad reach to broad reach, like a ski slalom.
Four or five marks set in a line straight downwind, a few lengths apart. Boats run the course weaving between them: broad reach across to a mark, gybe, broad reach back across to the next. Every gybe happens at a fixed point — no putting it off until the boat feels ready — and the next mark arrives before the crew has finished congratulating themselves. It's the highest-rep gybing format there is, and in breeze it doubles as a capsize-prevention clinic: flat boat, smooth boom, helm steering through the turn rather than past it.
Setup
Four to five marks in a line dead downwind, 6–8 lengths apart. Boats start in turn at the top with a clear gap, run the slalom, then sail back upwind outside the course and rejoin. RIB at the bottom mark to score clean vs swimming gybes.
Opens the animation on the boat-length grid — run it well, then brief it from the same picture. Free, no account needed.
What to call out
- Steer through the gybe in one smooth arc — hesitating dead-downwind in breeze is where capsizes live.
- Boom across with the boat dead flat; in a blow, heat up slightly out of the gybe before squaring back.
- Hands: tiller behind your back, sheet hand throwing the boom — no pause to swap.
- Line up the NEXT mark before the gybe, so you exit on course instead of correcting after.