A
sailing term referring to the directions in which a
boat cannot
point and still maintain good
airflow over its
sail. For a sail to work properly it must be pointing at an angle to the wind, and if the boat is pointing at too small an angle to the wind the sail cannot work
efficiently. As the angle of the boat to the wind gets smaller the sail works less and less well until a point where airflow is completely
detached. A boat can usually point at around 45
degrees to the wind and maintain perfect airflow leading to the
90 degree segment around the wind direction being called the “no-go zone.”
A boat stuck in the no-go zone with its sail not working and with very little speed is said to be “in irons.” The no-go zone is also referred to as the wind-widow in power kiting.