While most small-boat sailors have a good sense of how wind speed affects their boats—when to reef, when to run for shelter—the more data-minded among us like to know the absolute wind speed. There are also times when knowing the actual speed can be useful, such as standing ashore before setting out, when it can be difficult to judge what the wind speed is out on the water. The Kestrel 2000 comes with a lanyard and a protective case.
Photographs by the author
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I’m not convinced that any instrument held near the body can produce an accurate reading. The lack of clear air around you, and your proximity to the ground, means that your measured airspeed is going to be less than the general wind speed for the area. And, as a sailor, I ask “to what end? Fun, perhaps, but knowing that is 15 knots vs 17 isn’t going to alter the way I sail; that’s going to be by feel, the way we’ve always done it.