Windward means toward the direction from which the wind is blowing; its opposite is leeward, toward the direction the wind is going. For a beginner, windward is the high side of a heeled boat, the direction you cannot sail straight toward, and the side from which the weather arrives. The experienced sailor knows that on a boat the term has a precise definition that does not depend on which way the bow happens to be pointing: the leeward side is the side on which the mainsail is carried, and the windward side is the other one, even when the boat is head to wind or sailing by the lee. Weather is an older synonym – the weather side, the weather rail, weather helm – and both words are in daily use.
Windward on the Boat
On a heeled boat sailing upwind the windward side is the high side, where the crew sit to counter heel and where the helmsman usually steers from for the best view of the sails and the approaching wind. The windward sheet is the lazy one; the windward runner or shroud is the loaded one; the windward rail is where you hike. Everything on deck is named by its relation to the wind at that moment, and it swaps sides at every tack. Sail shape is judged from windward too: the helmsman on the weather side looks through the slot between genoa and main and reads the telltales.
Sailing to Windward
Sailing to windward – upwind, on the wind, beating – is the hardest thing a sailing boat does, and it is where sails and rig tune are tested most severely. A boat cannot sail directly into the wind; she works to windward in a series of close-hauled legs, typically around forty to forty-five degrees off the true wind for a cruising boat and closer for a racing yacht. Progress is measured in velocity made good (VMG) toward the wind, not simply in boat speed, and every upwind sail is designed around that balance of pointing and footing. It is upwind that a flat entry, a firm leech and low-stretch cloth pay off, and where a stretched sail with its draft blown aft gives away height, speed and helm balance all at once. It is also where UK Sailmakers’ load-path constructions – Tape-Drive®, Titanium™ and X-Drive® – earn their reputation, because holding a designed shape under upwind loads is precisely what they were developed to do.
Windward in Seamanship and Navigation
Windward is the safe side of most hazards. A windward shore is one the wind is blowing off; a lee shore is one the wind is blowing onto, and it is the lee shore that wrecks boats. Keeping to windward of a danger means that if anything goes wrong the wind pushes you away from it, not toward it. Sea room to leeward is the reserve you keep when the weather deteriorates. A skipper who habitually thinks about what lies to windward and to leeward has already made half the decisions a bad night will demand.
Windward in the Racing Rules
The Racing Rules of Sailing define windward and leeward precisely, using the mainsail rule above, and hang several right-of-way rules on them. When two boats on the same tack are overlapped, the windward boat must keep clear of the leeward boat. A windward mark or weather mark is the one reached by sailing upwind, and a windward-leeward course is a beat followed by a run, the standard shape of modern fleet racing.
Related Terms and How They Differ
Leeward is the opposite direction, downwind. Weather is the traditional synonym for windward, surviving in weather helm, weather side and weather mark. Upwind describes a direction of travel toward the wind rather than a side of the boat. Windward should not be confused with the tack a boat is on: a boat on starboard tack has her windward side to starboard, but the two are different ideas. See also lee shore, close-hauled and VMG.
Frequently Asked Questions about Windward
How is windward pronounced?
Traditionally with the second syllable swallowed – closer to “wind’ard” – and leeward likewise as “loo’ard.” Both full and traditional pronunciations are heard afloat, and nobody will misunderstand either.
Which side is windward when the boat is head to wind?
The racing rules resolve this by saying the leeward side is the side the mainsail was on before the boat came head to wind, and windward is the other. On a cruising boat, the practical answer is that you are about to find out.
Why is a lee shore dangerous but a windward shore safe?
The wind blows toward a lee shore, so a boat that loses power or drags her anchor is carried onto it. A windward shore lies upwind and gives shelter; anything that goes wrong pushes you away from it.
Windward is more than a compass direction. It is the side you sit on, the direction you cannot sail, the shore that keeps you safe and the boat that must keep clear. Sail well to windward, keep something to windward of the hazards, and the rest of the voyage tends to look after itself.