Most races are between you and the boat just ahead of you. Hours of challenge and reward reeling in your competitor. You are both hunter and prey. You develop your strategy and play out your tactics in anticipation and reaction to the rest of the fleet. Imagine playing chess where every piece is a queen, they are all moving at the same time and you have to beat them all to win.
Every race ends with a party.
The winner gets bragging rights for the day, the rest plot their revenge. And in yacht racing every dog has his day. It's all good fun and good friends. After 17 hours of pounding upwind in a gale life's other problems seem very very tiny. Next month we'll discuss how to get started.