Mental training for single-handed offshore sailors

Every part on board has a backup. Or two. Your mind is a one-off.

A second headsail, a second autopilot, a second GPS, plus hand bearing compass and sextant. What there is only one of is the instance that decides which backup goes to work and when. Sailing alone, nobody contradicts you: what a navigator would correct or a bowman would call out runs straight through to execution. Add sleep deficit, which goes for your judgement first, and does so before you notice it has gone.

So we work with decisions that were made in advance: firm rules for reefing, changing course, calling it off and asking for help. At three in the morning you no longer decide, you execute. Alongside that: watch routines that run without willpower, a workable tone in your own head, and a set procedure for the moment things tip.

This page is for anyone sailing a boat alone – on passage or in a solo race. Which kind of support suits you is something we work out in an introductory session.