Dear Arda: The weather forecasts cannot forecast individual gusts, but they can forecast if an area, such as a front, where the wind will change direction rapidly, will have gusts, and they can suggest how strong the gusts might be, above the forecast average wind velocity.

Hopefully, we can cope with the gusts, but because they are a surprise, sometimes one might be napping, or eating, and not on deck, or maybe making a repair to something in the boat, and suddenly it is lying way over. So by the very nature of a gust being a surprise, perhaps the boat defends for you, and then you have to defend the boat as soon as you can.

Question submitted by Arda, Milan, Italy