L.A. SPEAK

If the movie “Wind� left you confused, here’s a bit of yacht yak--random slang of the sailing set: bad air: n . wind disturbed by another boat’s sails. “We’ve got to tack out of this bad air. “ blade: n . small sail. “It was blowing so hard we had to put up a blade. “ bulletproof: adj . made of strong material. “Time to change to the bulletproof genoa.� crush: v . to win a race. “We crushed out there today.� fall off: v. to angle the boat away from the wind so that the wind fills the sails. foulies: n . foul-weather gear. “It was really wet so we broke out the foulies. “ furniture store: n . a boat that is lavishly decorated. “His boat is a real furniture store below deck.� gagger: n . very windy day. “The wind is really blowing; looks like a real gagger today.� gear buster: n . tough race in windy conditions. “The windward leg of this course is a real gear buster. “ hammered: v . to lose a race. “We got hammered today.� harden up: v . to point the sailboat closer to the wind. “Trim in the sails so I can harden up. “ header: n . a sudden wind shift. “We tacked into a header and had to fall off.� hobbyhorse: v. to rock from bow to stern. “The boat behind us is really hobbyhorsing. “ hole: n . a windless area. “We sailed into a hole and lost the race.� knockdown: n. a strong gust that levels the boat, and can even send the mast into the water. “We hit a knockdown and I thought we would never get up.� rail meat: n . people invited onto the boat solely to act as ballast. “Move some of the rail meat to windward.� rock star: n. a good sailor who is very aware of his or her abilities. “Yeah, that guy thinks he’s a real rock star. “ sewer: n . the area below deck. “He’s in the sewer packing the sails.� slam dunk: v. to tack right next to another boat and take all its air. veggies: n . seaweed. “You’re heading right for a patch of veggies .�