Dmitry Shteyn — Spring Stamina: Hiking Mechanics and Cold-Weather Endurance

The Spring Sailing Reality

When we hit the water in late April or early May on Lake Winnebago or Lake Michigan, the air might feel like a pleasant 55 degrees, but the water is often still hovering in the low 40s. As a sailing educator here in Wisconsin, I often see sailors lose races not because they missed a wind shift, but because their legs gave out or their core temperature plummeted.

Spring racing is a physical game. To win, you have to stay flat, and to stay flat, you have to hike. Doing that effectively while your muscles are cold requires a specific approach to fitness and body mechanics.

Perfecting the Hiking Technique

Many sailors think hiking is just about leaning out, but if you're just dangling, you're wasting energy. The goal is to turn your body into a rigid extension of the lever arm.

1. Engage the Quads and Glutes: Avoid 'sagging' over the gunwale. Keep your legs slightly bent at the knees to absorb the chop. If you lock your knees, every wave that hits the hull sends a shockwave through your spine, leading to early fatigue.
2. The Hips are the Pivot: Instead of bending at the waist, try to pivot from the hips. This keeps your back straighter and allows you to use your weight more effectively. When a puff hits, you shouldn't just lean back; you should drive your toes into the hiking straps and push your hips further outboard.
3. Arm Positioning: Keep your tiller hand and mainsheet hand relaxed. Tensing your upper body while your lower body is working leads to rapid exhaustion. Your core should be the bridge, but your extremities should stay fluid for subtle trim adjustments.

Maintaining Core Temperature

In Wisconsin, we have a saying: 'There is no bad weather, only bad gear.' However, gear only works if you have the internal calories to fuel it. When your body gets cold, your fine motor skills are the first to go. You’ll start fumbling the mainsheet or reacting slowly to Rule 11 (Windward/Leeward) situations because your brain is focused on survival rather than strategy.

I recommend a three-layer system: a thin moisture-wicking base, a thermal mid-layer (fleece or neoprene), and a windproof/waterproof outer shell. But the secret weapon is the 'warmth calorie.' Before a spring regatta on Lake Michigan, I tell my students to eat a high-fat, high-carb breakfast. Your body needs fuel to generate the heat that your wetsuit is trying to trap.

Specific Fitness for the Boat

You don't need a heavy weightlifting routine to be a better spring sailor, but you do need functional core strength. A few weeks before the season starts, I focus on two specific exercises:

• Wall Sits: These mimic the isometric strain of holding a hike through a long upwind beat.
• Planks: A strong core prevents the lower back pain that plagues sailors after the first few weekends on the water.

Real-World Example: The Lake Mendota Grind

I remember a regatta on Lake Mendota in mid-May. The breeze was a steady 18 knots, gusting 22. The water was frigid. We were racing C-Scows, which require intense hiking to keep the mast vertical.

About halfway through the second beat, I noticed the boat to our leeward was starting to heel over significantly in every puff. They weren't reacting. Their crew was huddled low in the cockpit, trying to stay out of the spray. Because they were cold, they stopped hiking. Because they stopped hiking, they had to ease the mainsheet to keep from capsizing. By the windward mark, we had gained six boat lengths on them simply because our crew stayed active, stayed warm, and kept the boat on its lines.

Safety and Rules During High-Exertion Racing

Remember that under the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS), specifically Rule 49, you must not use any device to support your body out over the water other than hiking straps or stiffeners worn under your clothing.

More importantly, watch your crew for signs of hypothermia. If a crew member stops talking or starts shivering uncontrollably, the race doesn't matter anymore. Safety is always the priority. A fit, warm crew is a safe crew, and a safe crew is usually at the front of the fleet.