Hannah sent these questions from yesterday, so here are the Tip(s) of the Day.
First, downwind, you do want a little bit of vang, right? so that the top batten is parallel with the boom, which would be more vang that in lighter conditions.
Vang gets tricky. You want enough on so that the top batten is parallel, but not so much that it actually makes you capsize. To bear off huge, you want to be able to ease the vang. This means that at the windward mark, you want the vang off. You can then re-set it for down wind. You will see a happy sailing around with absolutely no vang when it is nuking and they will stay up for a while. This is because with no vang on, the sail is totally de-powered. However, with no vang on, it also means that you don't accelerate in the puffs. That said, have the vang on to keep you in control. This means that if you are wing-on-wing, have enough vang so that the boat isn't rocking like mad. On the reaches, when you pump, the whole sail (top & bottom) should come in together. Basically, you are going to have to adjust as you sail. You can't just set it and forget it.
Also, is it better to sail hotter angles and gybe a few times downwind than to sail low or wing on wing?
If you are good, you will be able to hold the wing. Cookie passed 5 boats in the last 50 yards to the leeward mark yesterday because he had the guts to blow the vang and sail low. You can plane a 420 while on a wing. It's scary, but it's fast. An FJ, however, in major breeze is a different beast. You sail angles more in light air than when it blows.
And, when sailing angles how do you know you are sailing too high an angle and losing?
Think about it this way: you always want to feel like you can bear off to the mark. Which gybe will give you the best angle on the breeze and to the mark? If you were sailing up-wind, you'd know that you can't point directly at the mark until you are on the lay-line. It's the same thing down-wind. Yesterday, a group of you all reached on starboard way to the right (down-wind right) of the mark, and then gybed back at a hot angle. If you cannot bear off and point at the mark, then you need to gybe.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Sail Trim
Now that we have new sails, we are going to have to think about how to trim them.
Yesterday, we noticed that these sails are really bladed.
Today, List commented "After messing around with windward sheeting on the jibs in Florida, what should we do differently with the windward sheeting on our boats?"
Thoughts? Add your comments to this post.
Yesterday, we noticed that these sails are really bladed.
Today, List commented "After messing around with windward sheeting on the jibs in Florida, what should we do differently with the windward sheeting on our boats?"
Thoughts? Add your comments to this post.
Tactical Tip #1
Today, we knew that a front was going to come in from the NW. However, at first, the sea breeze was trying to fill from the SE. For the first few minutes on the water, the breeze was oscillating back and forth between those two directions from a westerly direction. As the breeze died down, you may have noticed that it pulled left. The stronger puffs came from the right - the direction of the front.
When you know that a new system is coming in, look for the stronger pressure to come from that direction. Similarly, when the sea breeze is trying to fill, and you are in the Northern Hemisphere, look for the breeze to go right as it builds and then back left as it fades.
There is a decent article by Ed Adams about sailing in a sea breeze in Newport on the Sailing World website. Henry HIll also did some decent illustrations.
When you know that a new system is coming in, look for the stronger pressure to come from that direction. Similarly, when the sea breeze is trying to fill, and you are in the Northern Hemisphere, look for the breeze to go right as it builds and then back left as it fades.
There is a decent article by Ed Adams about sailing in a sea breeze in Newport on the Sailing World website. Henry HIll also did some decent illustrations.
Rigging Check List
Now that we are on the water, just a reminder of what you should check every time you rig your boat. You should also check things in bold before every start.
1. Drain tanks
2. Make sure to have a bow line
3. Check and tape forestay ring-ding
4. Check and tape jib tack pin ring-ding
5. Check and tape shroud pins
6. Check shrouds, forestay, and halyards for frays
7. Use pliers to tighten twist shackle(s) on vang
8. Check jib cleats
9. Check and tape ring-ding on vang shackle (if not a twist shackle)
10. Check and tape ring-dings on mainsheet blocks (2 on the boom + the ratchet block)
11. Check mainsheet for frays
12. Check jib sheets for frays
13. Make sure you have an outhaul and cunningham
14. Check centerboard up-haul and down-haul lines (do not leave the dock without them)
15. Check knots in the vang, mainsheet, and jibsheets (if you are rotating into a boat, check halyard cleats and main halyard head)
16. Check hiking straps to make sure they are tied up to the traveler bar
17. Check hiking strap tie-down line (check the knot and the condition of the line)
18. Check tiller universal for cracks
19. Check rudder pintle
20. Check and tighten rudder bolt
1. Drain tanks
2. Make sure to have a bow line
3. Check and tape forestay ring-ding
4. Check and tape jib tack pin ring-ding
5. Check and tape shroud pins
6. Check shrouds, forestay, and halyards for frays
7. Use pliers to tighten twist shackle(s) on vang
8. Check jib cleats
9. Check and tape ring-ding on vang shackle (if not a twist shackle)
10. Check and tape ring-dings on mainsheet blocks (2 on the boom + the ratchet block)
11. Check mainsheet for frays
12. Check jib sheets for frays
13. Make sure you have an outhaul and cunningham
14. Check centerboard up-haul and down-haul lines (do not leave the dock without them)
15. Check knots in the vang, mainsheet, and jibsheets (if you are rotating into a boat, check halyard cleats and main halyard head)
16. Check hiking straps to make sure they are tied up to the traveler bar
17. Check hiking strap tie-down line (check the knot and the condition of the line)
18. Check tiller universal for cracks
19. Check rudder pintle
20. Check and tighten rudder bolt
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Questions from PJ
Over break, Pete emailed me some questions. Below, I've pasted in most of the discussion. Anyone else have thoughts?
Pete's questions
First question: to reduce weather helm, should you move your weight forward or back?
Second Question: At the start, if you have to come back around the boat from right on its stern (i.e. the same position
as if you were timing it), is it better to foot off, accelerate, and then begin to come up and go around it, or should you take the shorter route and just get the main in and go (or is it more situation dependant than anything)?
Third Question: can we talk about downwind shifts and playing the angles next week?
Fourth Question: When you are sailing in the summer, how do you do you time shifts? I can't seem to figure out the best way to do it... and I don't have a compass... solution?
Beth's Answers
1. Weight and weather-helm: I would ask first, what are the conditions? To be honest, I think that weather helm is more a function of rig tune that weight placement. In light air, weather helm is ok. Moving your weight forward - which is also good - will reduce some of it (think about how the crew hikes forward to bear the boat off). However, if it's choppy, moving your weight forward too far will just fill you with water. I also wonder, if you have too much weather helm, and you think your rig is tuned correctly, are you flat? That could be another factor.
2. Coming around the boat: again, what is the situation? Is it light? Do you want to go right? Where's the fleet? Where is your pair? What are the conditions? This is why it is critical to know the time around the boat! I sailed a J24 race one time where we were over early and came around the boat. The skipper footed off a bit for speed - it was light and lumpy - but then sailed us directly under the fleet. We ended up footing out to the wrong side and got stuck on the wrong side of the shift. However, had he rounded the boat tight, like a mark rounding, and then tacked right away - what I had wanted to do - then we would have been footing out to the correct side of the shift and would have been golden at the top of the course. See, lots of things
to consider.
3. Down-wind shifts - yes! Most important thing is that some one has to be looking backwards the entire time downwind. I've gotten to a point where I ask three questions the whole way to the leeward mark: where's the pressure, where's the fleet, where's the mark. As long as I am sailing DOWN to the mark, in pressure, and in position, we usually do fine. It's not as hard as some people seem to think.
4. First off, if you are sailing long courses in open water - not on a lake - then invest in a compass. We get numbers before every start when we are sailing in places like Long Island Sound, Niantic Bay, etc. Basically, we sail for about 3 minutes on each tack and just watch the compass. We come up with a high, a low, and a median number. Then during the course of the day, we start to watch how long it takes for each shift to move in. However, if we are sailing on a lake - which we do a lot - it just has to do with looking up the course. This could actually mean watching the clouds move in over the land. In one regatta, we realized that when they started to shift, we could anticipate the next shift to come from under the clouds.
To be honest, the only time when I can really say something like "It pulls back to the left after 5 minutes and 43 seconds" is when I'm coaching. You have to be able to watch for a long time to really be able to time it. Usually, it's when you have a gradient and a sea breeze - or a gradient and an incoming front - when this really happens. Usually, you have a persistent shift (like when it pulls right as the sea breeze fills) on top of small oscillations. This means that you can work to stay in phase while also working to the right side of the course. We see this a ton.
Pete's questions
First question: to reduce weather helm, should you move your weight forward or back?
Second Question: At the start, if you have to come back around the boat from right on its stern (i.e. the same position
as if you were timing it), is it better to foot off, accelerate, and then begin to come up and go around it, or should you take the shorter route and just get the main in and go (or is it more situation dependant than anything)?
Third Question: can we talk about downwind shifts and playing the angles next week?
Fourth Question: When you are sailing in the summer, how do you do you time shifts? I can't seem to figure out the best way to do it... and I don't have a compass... solution?
Beth's Answers
1. Weight and weather-helm: I would ask first, what are the conditions? To be honest, I think that weather helm is more a function of rig tune that weight placement. In light air, weather helm is ok. Moving your weight forward - which is also good - will reduce some of it (think about how the crew hikes forward to bear the boat off). However, if it's choppy, moving your weight forward too far will just fill you with water. I also wonder, if you have too much weather helm, and you think your rig is tuned correctly, are you flat? That could be another factor.
2. Coming around the boat: again, what is the situation? Is it light? Do you want to go right? Where's the fleet? Where is your pair? What are the conditions? This is why it is critical to know the time around the boat! I sailed a J24 race one time where we were over early and came around the boat. The skipper footed off a bit for speed - it was light and lumpy - but then sailed us directly under the fleet. We ended up footing out to the wrong side and got stuck on the wrong side of the shift. However, had he rounded the boat tight, like a mark rounding, and then tacked right away - what I had wanted to do - then we would have been footing out to the correct side of the shift and would have been golden at the top of the course. See, lots of things
to consider.
3. Down-wind shifts - yes! Most important thing is that some one has to be looking backwards the entire time downwind. I've gotten to a point where I ask three questions the whole way to the leeward mark: where's the pressure, where's the fleet, where's the mark. As long as I am sailing DOWN to the mark, in pressure, and in position, we usually do fine. It's not as hard as some people seem to think.
4. First off, if you are sailing long courses in open water - not on a lake - then invest in a compass. We get numbers before every start when we are sailing in places like Long Island Sound, Niantic Bay, etc. Basically, we sail for about 3 minutes on each tack and just watch the compass. We come up with a high, a low, and a median number. Then during the course of the day, we start to watch how long it takes for each shift to move in. However, if we are sailing on a lake - which we do a lot - it just has to do with looking up the course. This could actually mean watching the clouds move in over the land. In one regatta, we realized that when they started to shift, we could anticipate the next shift to come from under the clouds.
To be honest, the only time when I can really say something like "It pulls back to the left after 5 minutes and 43 seconds" is when I'm coaching. You have to be able to watch for a long time to really be able to time it. Usually, it's when you have a gradient and a sea breeze - or a gradient and an incoming front - when this really happens. Usually, you have a persistent shift (like when it pulls right as the sea breeze fills) on top of small oscillations. This means that you can work to stay in phase while also working to the right side of the course. We see this a ton.
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