Getting Out Of Irons

[Don Guillette]

Jack W of NY made me think of the above subject as part of how he gets out of heaving to.Inevitably, a sailor will one day get stuck in irons. There are a couple of ways to get out of irons. What are they? The simplest and quickest ways are always the best choices. Starting the engine is not one of them!! You've bought a sail boat to sail it and you may as well know how to use the sails to get out of situations you find yourself in.Once we get the answers from our group of expert sail trimmers, do yourself a favor and take the info and put yourself in irons and see how easy it is to sail out of it. Do it when you have friends on board - they'll think your Dennis Conner!!!

 

[Paul Z]

Amusing thought

I remember a story about one of the Americas Cup boats getting in irons. The competitor sailed around them throwing garbage. The boat in irons was not able to recover on her own.As far as a cruising boat; I don't know if it was the current or the jib which got us sailing again! Or it could have been the Capt. jumping about screaming.

 

[Seattle Scott]

Push the boom out, rudder to same side

and away you go .. .. the other way.

 

[r.w.landau]

Fall off and jibe through to your new point

of sail.I think that the jibe is so feared that people avoid it. The jibe has many advantages and with practice in light air can be mastered to a high confidence level. With practice you can learn to follow the main sheet (sheeting it in and easing it out ) so that hard torques, stresses and those slamming booms can be avoided. This can all be done single handed while keeping the jib from hourglassing the forestay. The question asked how do you get out of irons. (For us Lake sailors) It did not say how do you keep from running aground when in irons. For us lake sailors, we try to get as much out of a tack as possible and wind shifts ( then again sometimes the wind is deflected down a tree lined shore enough to gain as much as 100 yards of even to clear a point to continue the tack) can put you in irons right now. When I am trying to get the most out of a tack near shore, if I have a wind shift and know it will put me in irons, I let everything run (Jib and main sheets)to stop forward speed so that I still have room to fall off and jibe.All of this is assumming that you were in irons either due to a wind shift with forward momentum or going to irons by lack of speed trying to tack.r.w.landau

 

[Andy]

Dumb Questoin

Hate to ask...but what does it mean to be in the irons?

 

[Rick Macdonald]

Getting unstuck

I had to read R.W.'s post a few times to realize that he's not describing how to get unstuck, but how to _avoid_ getting stuck in the first place.That's fine, but it won't help you if you or a crew gets you stuck when you least need it.I haven't been in irons in my boat (Hunter 23.5) or any other big boat come to think of it, but it happened several times in dingies last October at a resort in Mexico. They had Hobie Cats and Sunfish and I got stuck every time until I discovered that you really have to crank the rudder and turn fast before the speed was all gone. I assume that's standard dingy sailing technique?To get out of irons, I just sat until the boat started drifting straight backwards, then cranked the rudder one way or another to turn the stern while "backing up". Then sheet in the main a bit so the wind catches it and off you go, sailing forwards.Pushing on the boom didn't work for me, but I didn't know about pushing the rudder (or is it the tiller?) to the same side. (Thanks, Scott for that one!)I need to try both methods on my boat to see what works. Like heaving-to, one should go out and perfect these simple but crucial techniques so you have them when you need them....RickM...

 

[Rick Macdonald]

No such thing

...as a dumb question!"In irons" is when you get stuck exactly head to wind, so the jib and main are luffing down the centerline of the boat, and you've lost all forward movement. The sails and rudder are all useless and you're stuck, as if chained in irons.I guess it can happen for various reasons in various conditions. For me it's from a very slow tack in a light boat as I described in a previous post. I sail on a lake but I expect that wave action can be a factor?There are various ways to help not getting stuck, such as turning more quickly. Another is to not let go of the jib sheet so early. Let the back-winded jib help push the bow through the tack before letting go....RickM...

 

[Bill4867]

Backwind

Set the jib to one side to backwind it, release the main, set the rudder straight. The bow should blow off the wind. After the bow is far enough off wind reset the main and jib.

 

[Mike]

R. W.

I was scrolling thru the posts, without reading who the author was, and immediately thought to my self...." That describes Lake Arthur"!Was up there last week with my father-in-law, and had a terrific sail up around 422 then up Big Run to the boat ramp at the end. If the wind is right, that's a nice scenic sail.

 

[Paul Akers]

Way Back When...

...I bought my first sailboat, a Sunfish, a book described how to get out of "irons".First, with a large boat, I would personally suggest starting the engine if you are in an uncomfortable situation without room to maneuver.Otherwise, the book said to cock the rudder to what would be the leeward side. Let the wind blow you backwards until the stern shifts and the sails catch wind and send you on your way. I do this with my L37 when sailing off of a mooring and it works fine. Hint: just account for some sideslip until you get moving.

 

[Ranger Paul18580]

Aim Tiller/Rudder Where U Want to Go

I have trouble remembering which way to turn the tiller when sailing backwards. Then I read or heard somewhere that you simply point the tiller (or rudder for those boats with wheels) in the direction you want to go. Far easier to remember. I do this all the time in my Geary 18 dinghy when backing away from a launch dock. Not so easy in my Hunter 216 as the large bow freeboard tends to blow the bow downwind and I find it hard to sail backwards without the bow simply deciding on its own to turn the boat.

 

[r.w.landau]

Rick you are right. I was pointing out ways to

avoid IRONS. Lake sailing is an all concentration type of thing where I sail. So, Irons does not often occur. I am talking tacking every few minutes or more( if the wind is up).This only make me more anxious to hear Don's response. Mike, Lake Authur is unique is it not? It is very fun lake to sail because the wind is never in favor of anyone. Good sailors, new sailors, when it comes to the wind there is never a consistant answer. Shorelines, valleys, the wind choses to change from 90 to 180 degrees at any moment. As frustrating as it is, it is a wonderful teacher. This lake makes you work at sailing every second you are sailing if you are racing (fun or not). Then again there are days I proclaim to be a trawler and go fishing. It is a great lake for both sailing and fishing. My boat is an O'Day 25 and the name is "CONTINUANCE" if you see it, stop by! I assume you were racing with the SCOTTS last weekend. They are fun boats. You own the boat I want!EDITED: Don owns the boat I want. the Catalina 30. My brother just bought one in FLA.r.w.landau

 

[r.w.landau]

Mike, like I said....

Some times you need to chill. Last weekend I anchored near the rental area and took this picture then lured four boats into tieing together . At one time, all 8 people were floating in the water trying to cool down from the over 90 degree heat. The lake surface temp was about 80 degrees.Sorry the boom tent was not trimed.r.w.landau

 

[Don Guillette]

Mates: How this subject came up was a while back I met a young couple at a sail trim discussion and they asked me if I could explain how to get out of irons as they had gotten stuck in that situation a couple of times and did not know what to do other than start the engine. They said they were too embarrased to ask the question during the presentation. I felt bad about that and told them more sailors than they could imagine don't know how to get out of irons. Even America Cup boats sometimes get stuck and have an awful time getting out of irons. I've seen a lot of racers get stuck at the start line and it is interesting watching them get out of the situation they got themselves into. Primarily, getting stuck happens when you don't have enough speed to get through a tack. There are a couple of ways to get out of irons. Assume your sailing with just the main as a lot of mates like to do. What you do is physically push the boom out about half way until the mainsail fills with air. The boat will start sailing backwards but don't let that worry you. What is happening is called "backing the main" and all you have to do is steer in reverse. By that I mean, turn the rudder the opposite way you want to go. Soon the wind will come over the side of the boat and you'll start moving forward. Now trim the mainsheet, but not too much. If you trim in too much you'll be back in irons again. How much is too much - I don't know, you'll have to experiment with your boat.Assume you are sailing with the main and jib and you get in irons. Simply back the jib by physically holding the clew out to one side. Again, you'll start to sail backwards but shortly the jib will push the bow over and you will start sailing forward. Trim the jib and main to pick up speed. Actually, if you have enough hands on board, you can back both the jib and main at the same time and you'll get out of irons much quicker.Another method is to do nothing!! The boat will start to sail backwards by itself and you can use the rudder to get yourself going forward. You can use the "nothing method" if you have sea room. In my case, I could not do nothing or I'd have sailed backwards into the breakwater. If you are going to use the nothing method I suggest you practice it once or twice. It is a funny feeling sailing the boat backwards!!My suggestion is that the next time your on the water, put yourself in irons on purpose and practice how to get yourself out - use all 3 methods. You may never need it but it just adds to your sailing knowledge. I don't care how good a mates thinks he can sail, he will someday get into irons - it is inevitable and we all have at one time or another.