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Reader question: When a coach describes a defending player as someone “who is young and likes to fly close to the wind”, what does he mean? My comments: It’s another way of saying, indirectly, that the defender should avoid fouling opposing players too much. The coach could be more specific, of course, but at any rate, our assessment won’t be far off. Flying close to the wind, you see, is a variation from the idiom “sailing too close to the wind”, which, as you can see, is a maritime term. In the olden days, ships going out to sea were much smaller in size than the mega cruise liners we see today, and much less well built. Therefore, sailors back then often reminded one another “not to sail too close to the wind.” By that, they mean to avoid the big wind, especially a head wind, which may make it impossible for the ship to advance. At worst, strong gusts may sweep a small boat away, as if it were a leaf in the air. Sailors all know how use a wind at sea of course. Make full use of a tail wind and your boat speeds up considerably. Hence, the need to strike a balance. Sail too far from any gusts and you won’t be able to use the wind to your advantage. Sail too close and the risk (even of capsizing) becomes too great. Hence, figuratively speaking, when people say someone is sailing too close to the wind, they are saying that this person is doing something exceedingly risky or improper. | 
