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Singlehanded Sailing Society

2006 Singlehanded TransPac

Singlehanded TransPac and the Art of Psychological Warfare


It may not be apparent to the casual observer, but the folks in the TransPac engage in some of the most despicable, desperate acts of psychological foul play imaginable - and we do it for fun! Plus you get to needle the other guy. The reason we engage in this foul play is simple - we can't see the other boat, so there's no way to be seen outpointing them, footing off faster, or gybing better; instead we must resort to more fiendish means.

For example, a casual conversation regarding this evening's meal, which may start as, "I'm planning on opening up some lentil soup tonight. How about you?" can result in the immediate come back, "That sounds great! Earlier today I pulled the Harris Ranch new york steak from the freezer, had to shift aside the ice cream to get to it, it's been thawing in the sink and should be just about ready after roll call." The owner of the steak has just committed an egregious act of psychological warfare: not only did he point that he has freezer, he also has ice cream, and probably a sumptuous galley to go with it. The hapless victim is left standing in his own formica-topped galley holding a can of soup and a spoon. You get the picture.
At the moment we are mischievously engaging each other with comments such as, "I had my second shower of the race this morning", the above-mentioned dinner episode, and "Hmm... maybe I should try putting my kite up". But psyops go further than mere on-the-course commentary. In fact, the one-upsmanship started weeks before the race, such as when a competitor mentions that he's hauling out to put on new bottom paint. The proper response is not, "Which paint?" but rather, "Excellent. I had the yard spray on the paint, and will dive the boat and touch up the foil leading edges with 400 grit".
Another most insidious approach is to continually supply the lower end of your speed range at roll call, therefore the other guy can actually see what your instruments are showing and suddenly he knows that he's 0.2 knots faster! Imagine the devastation at the following roll call only to discover that rather than gaining, he has merely held even, or, worse, lost mileage to the obviously slower boat. I personally like this one a lot.

Sleep is a topic dear on our minds, and causally mentioning that you, "Went wing on wing last night and got in a great night's sleep" scores a bulls eye every time.
By far the most damaging psychological blow is the full body slam: wait and wait and wait (you have to time this perfectly) for someone that is clearly chasing you to finally state over the radio, out there for all to hear, "All right! I've been trimming the kite really really hard all day today and made four miles on you." This is when you respond, "Wow! I actually took the morning off, got in some sleep, read part of my book, and have been letting the downwind twins do the work. I'll probably set a kite later on today." This can crush an opponent.
Above all, the psyops approach only works with a group of friends that know none of this is to be taken seriously. And that's what we have out here this race: a bunch of good competitors, trying hard, having fun, and aiming at the finish line. Even if Alchera did dive his boat looking for something wrapped on the keel; I wonder what it was that made him think he was slow?
- rob, Tiger Beetle