April skills quiz: How did you do?

[Capt. P. Kelly (100tn Master)]

Q9 The final say!

Everyone is correct about this one.... HU? I agree with everyone here. If you don't want to risk broaching, you dump the main a little to ease the heel. If you're on a cat or racing, it's Balls to the Wall and don't let that main luft at all. Outhauls and reefs are "tweeks" made after you round the mark. The point is: It's my understanding that these questions are from the Coast Guard License endorsement for Sailing. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU SAW A COASTY ON A BLOW BOAT!!! Always remember: when taking USCG test, the USCG is always correct. After you pass the test, get your license and get back to your own boat you can go back to what you know is the correct way of doing things.

 

[Tim Long]

Leeway

Peter,You bring up a very intrigueing and somewhat discomforting point. If my compass only tells me for sure which way my bow is pointing, how do I compensate for leeway without a GPS?

 

[Luff Cringle]

Q-9....speed good, broach bad

In my little boat 25 knots is "fun" but in our shifty land breezes my hand is allways very near the mainsheet.Coming from a broad reach to close hauled, as I turn up and the wind comes beam on I would not want to present too much main for obvious reasons and easing it would let the boat keep its speed thru the turn after which I could trim it. Other wise it seems a good recipe for a broach.

 

[Don Tonks]

Re: Battery Testing

The answer in the test is correct. This is the only way to actually see if the battery is fully charged and in good condition. The no load voltage test will read a top charge if the battery was just on a charger, and not give a true state of the battery. The specific gravity test will only tell how heavy the electrolyte is. It will not tell you if the plates are still good and will not tell you if the lead has disolved and sunk to the bottom of the battery. I have seen batteries with a corrected specific gravity of 1300 that could only supply 20 amps at 5.5 volts. Done correctly, a load test will tell that the battery is capable of supplying an ample amount of energy. The starter on most inboard engines draw between 90 and 150 amps while cranking. If you crank the engine for 20 seconds and get a good reading of 10 volts you just used 1500 watts for 1/3 of a minute or 500 watt minutes. Once the engine is started the alternator will supply approximately 20 amps at 14 volts or 280 watts. Running the engine for about 2 minutes will recharge the battery. This is why the battery in your car is not dead after making several short trips. I would mucha rather do a load test if I were going on the water and let the battery charge on the way from the dock to the open water than trust any other test.

 

[Wanderer138]

Respone to Tim re leeway

I usually sail a higher course (closer to the wind) than needed to make the objective, for two reasons:1) it automatically over-compensates for leeway2) If I find that I am upwind of my objective when I get close, all I do is bear off a bit and close-reach the rest of the way. This is infinitely better than being downwind of the objective and having to work upwind some more. This will require at least two tacks and some more sailing, which can be frustrating at the end of a trip when you are so close to port.You can figure out how much leeway your boat has by plotting a course for a fixed mark 45 degrees upwind, holding that course using the compass only then seeing where you end up relative to the original objective. By plotting the start point, original destination and actual destination on the chart, the leeway can be measured and used to adjust course, as in the question on the quiz.I've never actually figured leeway for my boat because it's far simpler just to sail 10 to 15 degrees higher than I need to. I also take bearings to landmarks every so often to fix my position and ensure that I am still on course.PeterH23 "Raven"