When the wind shifts or you change your course, it becomes necessary to haul in the mainsheet in order to keep the sail full. The amount that you haul it in is dependent upon the force of the wind and the angle at which it strikes the side of the canoe. With practice one soon acquires the knack of alternately hauling in and paying out the mainsheet as the wind or your course dictates. Keep the sail full of wind. But don't keep it too full, for that's risky.

Although a piece of driftwood can travel from one side of a lake to the other with the wind behind it, it can't travel back again against the wind. A sailing craft can. That's where skill comes in.

Beating to Windward. -- Sailing against the wind, the nautical term for which is "beating to windward," is the reverse of sailing to leeward. In this case, the boom and sail are very nearly parallel to the direction of the wind. Of course, you don't sail directly against the wind; that would be impossible. You compromise by taking a zigzag course consisting of a series of angles and a number of long tangents known as "tacks" connecting these angles.

Each angle is a turning point in your zigzag course, where you "come about." That is, you reach the end of one tack and wish to turn and start off upon another. To do so, you steer the bow of the canoe head-on into the nose of the wind or, in other words, "luff." The bow swings slowly around to the opposite direction from which it has recently been pointed; the sail, now on the other side of the craft, fills again and you are off on your next tack.

Successfully to sail a canoe to windward during these tacks, you should keep the bow of the craft nosed as much into the wind as possible and still have the sail full. When you nose too much into the wind, the sail begins to shiver and shake -- an indication that the wind pressure upon it has diminished. Therefore, you must "fall off"; one comes to learn how close to the wind one can sail and make good headway. This is the secret of beating to windward.

As in the case of sailing to leeward, one hauls in and pays out the mainsheet as various maneuverings demand. When pointing close into the wind you sail "close-hauled." In other words, you haul in the mainsheet until the boom is almost parallel to the length of the canoe.

A word concerning the operation of leeboards. When you are sailing with the wind, there is no real need for the boards being in the water; in fact, they may even prove a slight hindrance to progress. Whenever they are not needed to prevent side drift, they can be swung upward in much the same manner that a centerboard is raised from the water. Similarly, they should be swung clear of the water if an obstruction is encountered.

It is in beating to windward that special attention must be given to the element of leeway. If the leeboards are not in the water (one, at least) you will drift sideways, crab-fashion at almost the same rate you go ahead.

The most important requirement of canoe sailing is the ability to swim. A cautious paddler may paddle half a lifetime without having an upset, but a canoe sailor, irrespective of how clever he may be, is pretty certain to go over sooner or later. A bathing suit is suggested as appropriate clothing. As regards various types of open canoes for sailing, the sponson canoe is by all odds the safest.

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