First Swimming Lessons

[alex955]

Queen Mary this morning,

Force 3 gusting 5 from several directions - one capsise and once down the mine

Snapped trapeze elastic stopped play for the moment.....

Only the second time out on a Sprint 15 and the first time was on saturday in zero wind. Needless to say today was with jib furled but hey - I had it fitted at least!

Can someone please help me tack - I'm getting bored with not making it, and resorting to gybing - as good as gybe practice may be it's getting boring.....

Obviously speed into the tack is important but if I'm too slow with the turn it never gets even close, if I'm faster moving the rudders over then the boat stops dead - perhaps weight fore / aft is more important? If so, how do you balance getting enough weight forward to help the tack, while finding something to do with an 8 foot tiller extension that needs to pass behind the mainsheet.....?

Still, I'm still smiling

[Robert]

Hi Alex

Keep up the good work - it does get easier!

Ray Gall helped me with getting a shorter tiller extension that is lighter, easier to tack with and that doesn't get so tangled up with the shrouds downwind. I think it ended up about 7'8". I also learned at the Carsington teach-in last year to move my weight BACK when tacking so that the boat can spin on its skeg. Another tip was to make sure the traveller and the mainsheet are both well in as you go into the tack, releasing some mainsheet as you come out so that you don't capsize (big roll-tack!)

Keep the rudders over as you go round and if it doesn't work and you start to go backwards, reverse the tiller onto "opposite lock" and she should go round and gradually re-start on the new tack if you're careful about straightening up.

Hope this helps.

Robert.

[alex955]

Thanks Robert,

I've tried (somewhat inadvertently) with my weight further back but this way I don't even seem to get head to wind before being blown back onto the original tack - perhaps the rudders are just too far over at this point and I'm killing off too much speed in doing so?

As you suggest - keep up the practice i feel !!

[Gordon]

Alex,

I presume that was sailing at QM Sunday?

I was out for the Bank holiday pursuit race today at QM and I'd of said that was force 5 and up + a bit more!
Don't laugh all you coastal sailors, we even had some waves!

Alex, please send me an email, and we can get together at QM. I can help you with these problems and it's not difficult.
You can reach me via the link on the contact page.

ps.
As you told me that you used to sail an RS600, perhaps you can give me a few tips on capsize recovery. Everyone I've seen sail one seems to get a lot of swimming practice! And I'm not very good at that.

Regards......Gordon

[Steve Willis]

Hi Alex,

Glad you are finding it fun!

I suffered the dreaded stalled tack many times until last year's training weekend. The good old reversal of the rudders nearly always cures it if you do stall but of course leaves you dead in the water for a few seconds which can be very embarassing with the fleet bearing down around you.

The key thing I learnt last year was to keep my weight where it was until head to wind and then as I move to transfer the tiller to let about 2 feet of main sheet out and cleat it in again. This gives the sail some movement to allow it to quickly reshape when the battens pop over.

Try not to put too much rudder on - 45 degrees is plenty or the rudder drag will start the stall.

With regard to the tiller I always toss it astern into the water and hold the con bar until I have crossed past the mainsheet ropes ( I do this for both tack and gybe as it allows me to use one hand to do the mainsheet cleat and then grab the tiller on the other side - stops a lot of confusion for the hands and brain overload for us aged helms).

Waves are another thing to watch for. It is no good getting head to wind in the tack and then being pushed off wind again by a wave. It of course depends if the waves are with or against the turn but most times they will be against you, due to the wind, when tacking . You have to get into the habit of watching the waves interval for several a short time before you start the tack and then time your turn so that you are through the wind before getting hit by one.

Hope this helps.

Steve Willis

[Martin Searle]

Hi Alex,

Queen Mary this morning,

<snip>

Can someone please help me tack - I'm getting bored with not making it, and resorting to gybing - as good as gybe practice may be it's getting boring.....

<snip>

Tacking can sometimes be a bit hit and miss and we all have slightly differing techniques for getting the job done. I'll run you through my way of doing it:

1) Build up speed shortly prior to the tack, in large waves you have to bear off slightly (not too much), but since you are on a pond you probably won't get any . Then when you want to tack head up gently at first too keep the speed.

2) Ensure that you have the traveller and main sheeted in tightly, if the hull lifts start your tack. Push tiller over about 45 degrees (don't slam the rudders over like in a dinghy otherwise you'll slam the brakes on and stop in irons.

3) Now you wait, move towards the stern in preparation for crossing over (helps create the pivot mentioned previously), you are waiting for the boat to go past head to wind but not fully over onto the new tack with the battens popped. Head over into the middle of the boat, and swap hands on the tiller extension and mainsheet, I angle my extension over to the new side as I start to cross to make this easier on the outside of the mainsheet falls of course, I rarely let go of the extension.

4) Once on the new side the battens should just have popped, knock off a few inches of mainsheet to allow the mast too roate fully and then sheet back in and away you go.

You can tack fast and loose little speed especially on flat water, it comes with experience. I'm sure Gordon will get you upto speed.

Once in irons sail backwards and reverse the rudders to put you onto the new tack, carefully bare away since if you put too much rudder on you'll stop again! You can loose oodles of time in a race and one fluffed tack can cost you big time.

Now if you are using the Jib then this is a great boon to tacking since you can leave it backed, which positively yanks the bows round, until the battens pop and quickly sheeting into the new side after crossing will get you back upto speed quickly.

In big waves on the sea with probably quite a bit of wind, you need a slightly different technique:

Steve W. mentions watching the waves and judging when too tack. When you do this you should notice that the waves come in patterns generally speaking I find them to be 1 big wave, 2 smaller ones and then a flat spot and then the pattern repeats at Seasalter. I will try and tack on the flat spot if not go for the top of the third. Never tack into an oncoming wave since it'll stop you dead.

Just my way which I learnt by a bit of trial and error.

Martin S.

[Martin Searle]

Alex,
<snip>

I was out for the Bank holiday pursuit race today at QM and I'd of said that was force 5 and up + a bit more!
Don't laugh all you coastal sailors, we even had some waves!

<snip>

Bank Holiday Monday:

Down at Seasalter we had a North wind (straight off the North Sea) that was gusting upto 40mph (Force Eight), with the normal speed around a constant force 7 with BIG waves. Needless to say NO one ventured out.

Now I did sail a Sprint15 TT in those sort of conditions at Seasalter in the mid 90's but not for the faint hearted didn't capsize though but most did a few times , I did weigh 16stone back then which helped.

Martin S.

[alex955]

I have to say thanks to you all for your advice, and I look forward to putting it into practice at the next opportunity!

Thanks too Gordon for your offer of help - I was at QM on the Saturday in zero wind, and then to the other end of the scale on the Monday morning before you guys arrived for the pursuit race. I was off the water by just after 11 having started at 9 and spent half my time swimming. I have to say though you're quite right - the swimming lessons in the RS600 paid off, as I really found the 15 ever so easy to right !

Perhaps if I could place an order now for a nice F3 at Gurnard.......?

[Brian Phipps]

hi alex,
They are anumber of key actions you need to make a good tack , once those are in place they will serve you well in light medium and strong winds with a little modification.
If you get the chance to read THE CATAMARAN BOOK it has most of the answers. It is best used as a reference book having experieneced a few difficulties on the water. You can see it on the catparts website.
Brian Windsport