
Brain Food by Dave Perry
Dave Perry, 4x US National Champion, on what to do when you are leading back and are early
Leading is stronger…Leading is harder! The best match racers try to lead a high percentage of the time. A winning mantra: “Light Air…Lead Back!”
Which problem would you prefer to solve: leading and being early, or pushing and being late? There is no solution for the latter. Here is a paper that discusses what to do when you are leading and are early.
Below is a video of a prestart between America’s Cup champion David Dellenbaugh (yellow) and World champion Taylor Canfield (blue). It begins with a classic Dial Up and then some circling, with Dellenbaugh initially leading back. He then lets Canfield take the lead at around 1:00 minute to start (3:00 on the counter). Canfield is early, so at around 3:35 on the counter he “Asks the Question” (luffs head to wind about 2/3rd of the way down the line), and lets Dellenbaugh choose which side of him he wants to start on. It turns into a classic Split Start with Dellenbaugh winning the right and Canfield winning the left.