Since much of our sailing this season was limited to day sails or short cruises, I had a lot of practice leaving and returning to our slip. I was getting pretty good at it...until I wasn't. We were returning from a few nights at anchor a few weeks ago. As we were approaching our slip the wind was in the high teens coming from the WNW. Those aren't the best conditions for our marina since it isn't protected from NW winds. As we were motoring down the creek I thought about how I could compensate for the wind and I believed I would be okay. I made my usual approach, turning to starboard, then backing toward the slip and turning the bow to starboard to line the stern up before backing in. I told myself not to turn the bow too much, or the wind would catch it and turn it too much. I also told myself not to back up too much or the wind would push me past the slip. Well, in spite of my efforts, the bow was pushed too much and the boat was pushed past the slip. No problem, I wou...