Heavy Air Sailing

Just a review of things to do when it starts to blow.

1. Rig Tension - as it starts to build, check your jib halyard tension. Remember that as it builds, add more. To check your tension, get the boat sailing flat and upwind. Let go of the tiller. If you crash-tack, add more halyard. If you have lee-helm, let it off.


2. Outhaul, Cunningham, Vang - You want to pull on more in this order. Flatten out the foot first, then move the draft forward in the main with cunningham. Finally, crank down the vang. Remember, even in moderate breeze you need some vang - enough that when you ease the main in the puffs, the boom should go out parallel to the boat and not up.


3. Hiking Straps - As it builds, you are going to need to loosen these up so that you can hike farther. This is something that we usually ignore.


4. Center Board - This becomes critical on reaches. You can have more up than you think. If you are planing into a jibe, leave it up! Otherwise, the boat trips over the board and capsizes.