I have been reading alot this winter about racing sail boats and getting around the course faster than the rest of the fleet!!! one of the ways to do this is being able to read the wind ahead of time. Doing your home work ahead of the race,and being able to forcast ahead of time where and when the wind will back or veer!!! Where there will be a persistant shift is also disscused in this book!!! It talked about not tacking in a header if you have predicted a favorable shift!!! This sounds like a lot of voodo to me!!! How often is this guess work accurate??? Do I have to become a meterologist to race competivly? Can't you see the wind changing during a race and adjust accordingly??