Getting Out Of Irons

[Don Guillette]

BobM brought up an interesting situation on another thread. He indicated he lost headway. Most every sailor I know have been in this situation. It is how they get out of it that is interesting.

The term "irons" come from the early days of sailing ships. When they couldn't move they were said to be handcuffed and the other ship circled them for the kill.

Most beginners panic in this situation. I know I did especailly since I was drifting backwards toward a sea wall in Long Beach, Ca harbor. You need to get the boat moving backwards and you can do this by pushing the boom out until it fills. This is called "backing the mainsail". Once you start to drift/sail backwards you are half way out of the problem and the first thing you need to do is start steering backwards. At this point you've got the boom over say the starboard side of the boat and your rudder is centered. The next thing you want to do is move the tiller over to the same side the boom is on - remember you're steering backwards. The bow will move to starboard and then trim the mainsheet and off you go.

It is much easier to get out of irons by using the jib. Simply "back the jib" by holding it to the side until the boat starts to sail backwards. The bow is going to be pushed to the opposite side. Once the boat get onto a reach attitude just trim the main and jib and off you go.

Like anything this may seem complicated until you try it a couple of times. Once you try it you'll see how easy it is. Obviously, try it in open water and don't wait until you get into the situation to learn how to do it.

 

[Alan]

I race on a fleet of Swedish Match 40's. These boats are used for match racing. During the 'dial up' in the pre-start boats will usually hunt eachother and chase one another in an attempt to gain an advantage. Inevitably this will wind up having both boats sailing next to eachother and directly into the wind and holding that position for minutes at a time. The way we maintain this position is to have a crew member on the bow move the jib clew from one side to the other as needed to maintain the boats position into the wind. All the time being prepared to quickly push the jib to windward and drive the bow down to gain way and speed. It's an excellent practice of ultimate boat control.

 

[RichH]

I also have been deeply involved in match racing and simply moving the clew of the jib/genoa is a bombproof tactic.

This is not only good for when 'in irons' but think about losing your engine and you HAVE to SAIL the boat into its dock or slip ... and you need to STOP the boat. Aircraft pilots spend HOURS performing/practicing 'dead stick landings' for when the engine quits .... sailboaters should do this also, as such 'backwinding' can be your BRAKE, ...... so you dont expose your arms/legs to the vulnerability of breakage.

So, too is being able of BACK DOWN the boat in a reverse direction and keeping it totally under control and heading STRAIGHT BACK over a fairly long distance .... more practice sessions so one can quickly learn to 'finese' and master sail trim and control.

 

[LuzSD]

this is such good information,thank you all. I am going to print this conversation for my husband and we will start practicing. Really nice, thanks!

 

[Joe]

It's very easy to get a lightweight beach cat into irons... so it is fundamental to know what to do to keep the boat turning... backwinding the jib and reversing the rudders will allow the vessel to litterally spin on its daggerboards... if you simply backwind the jib and keep the rudders straight the boat stops and moves slowly in reverse...