Jibing The Mainsail

[Don Guillette]

This subject is dear to my heart because it almost seriously injured or killed me. I was on a Newport 30 for a race between Redondo Beach to Long Beach. The owners girl friend was driving. I was standing on the cockpit seat and noticed she was starting to "sail by the lee". I placed my foot gently on the tiller but it was too late - the end of the boom passed by just inches in front of my face!! To make matters worse, I didn't have a self inflating life jacket (at the end of the race my 1st stop on the way home was West Marine).

With a little planning and practice a jibe can be a smoothly executed maneuver. A poorly planned or surprise jibe can turn into a CF (charley foxtrot) with serious injury and damage to rigging.

So, lets assume your sailing in moderate wind and a flat sea - higher wind and rougher sea only complicates the maneuver. What steps start to finish would you go through to jibe the mainsail?

 

[DArcy]

That really depends on the boat. Years ago a friend raced his Nonsuch 30 and really only need crew to keep the mainsheet from picking him up and throwing him off the boat.

My boat is pretty simple. In moderate wind, with the dodger front window open (mid-boom sheeting) I just reach through and pull a couple parts of the sheet between the blocks and haul the boom in then ease it out once it passes center. In higher wind, or when the dodger is closed up, I pull the sheet on the winch until it is close to center, then make enough of a turn to get the sail to jibe, then ease out again. The boom is high enough there are no concerns with decapitation as long as no one is standing on the seats or coaming.

 

[kappykaplan]

Prepare to jibe. At helms to weather, mainsheet is swiftly hauled in to centerline main. As the sail comes through the wind, helmsman says jibe ho. Mainsheet is quickly eased.

 

[tfox2069]

Prepare to jibe. At helms to weather, mainsheet is swiftly hauled in to centerline main. As the sail comes through the wind, helmsman says jibe ho. Mainsheet is quickly eased.

I would also add that the traveler should be centered (if needed) as well when the main is hauled to centerline, and then reset on the opposite side after the jibe, as necessary. But Interested in hearing other thoughts on the proper sequencing.

 

[markwbird]

I had a similar experience except that the owner's girlfriend was nowhere in sight because his wife was aboard. In my case, I was walking back to the cockpit after helping to stow the spinny. I was looking down and wearing a ball cap so I did not see the boom come across and hit me right in the face. Stitches in my forehead and a broken nose.
When it it comes to jibing the main it's all about bringing it across quickly but in a controlled manner. Too slow and you risk rounding up. Too fast and it slams into the sidestays.

 

[DArcy]

Too slow and you risk rounding up.

Very good point, if there is a good breeze you need to ease quickly after the jibe to avoid rounding up.

 

[Stu Jackson]

As the sail comes through the wind, helmsman says jibe ho.

WADR, by then (As the sail comes through...) it's already too late (..says...).

For the purpose of this discussion, let's forget completely about the jib.

Say you're on port tack (i.e., wind over port quarter, boom out to starboard).

1. Advise crew that a jibe is coming sometime soon. Always good to plan ahead.
2. Assign responsibilities - helm, mainsheet, traveler
3. Initiate the process by advising crew that the jibe is about to begin, assure that all crew know what your particular string of commands will be.
4. Center traveler, adjust mainsheet if necessary; this is not the start of the jibe itself; unless you're already sailing heavily by the lee.
5. Begin slow turn to starboard,this is the time to use the command jibe ho or whatever term you use.
6. Continue slow turn to starboard. As main sail comes across, tighten up on the mainsheet as it comes across to avoid a slam
7. As the main sail comes across, adjust mainsheet
8. Complete turn and adjust to new course
9. Drop traveler to port side, adjust mainsheet

I've jibed my way across SF Bay singlehanded many, many times, in both my Catalina 25 with aft boom sheeting and this C34 with mid-boom. I've also done it with from one to three additional crew members during races.

Analyzing the steps necessary to do it properly and safely, both for crew safety and stress free rigging, is essential.

Thanks for the reminder, Don.

Happy New Year

 

[kappykaplan]

I would also add that the traveler should be centered

Agreed. I was typing with one finger on my smartphone, so abbreviated as much as I could. Tks.

 

[shemandr]

The thing that is most important in a jibe in windy conditions is that the mainsheet has to be flaked and ready to be released. A hockle or snag around some piece of hardware can be a disaster as we all know. I know of a fatality for that very reason.
I wouldn't really care about the traveler position but centered is good. The traveler is down the list a bit in priority.
Elbows fly as the main is hauled in - stay clear of the main trimmer. As main trimmer I like to have the sheet in the cam cleat the instant the boom crosses midline and immediately release the sheet and let it run. Wear sailing gloves.
One thing that helps in heavier air is a reef in the main which prolly should be rigged anyway.
Jibing a Nonsuch is scary s**t.

 

[Sailfanatic]

 

[Joe]

The most important element is communication. Intention...then action.
Using Don's stated conditions " moderate wind and a flat sea" on my 27 footer there's very little concern about the mainsail because after centering the traveler, I simply grab a handful of mainsheet and pull the boom across by hand. You have a lot of leverage with end boom sheeting... you can control the boom quite easily... trust me you can avoid any threat of accidentally gybing the boom or slamming it against the rigging by grabbing the sheet.

I transfer the boom as soon as the wind comes across so I can pay attention to managing the headsail, something that requires more attention than gybing the boom, especially if it's a spinnaker.

 

[justsomeguy]

Chicken gybe!

 

[RoyS]

We use a permanently attached and simple preventer. Lock it on when going down wind until time to tack. It makes a controlled jibe graceful if you simply ease it out while tacking. Probably not for racers but good for cruisers, especially old ones like us.

 

[shemandr]

In lightish air and on smaller boats I definitely use the throw the mainsheet over by hand method Joe described. I was thinking of more wind.

 

[Don Guillette]

Stu/Joe from San Diego/Shemandr/Justsomeguy: That's the stuff I was looking for.

The source of this topic was the result of a conversation I had with a FL sailor (Catalina 34), who told me the jibe was just "slam, bam and thank you" - in other words, just get it done. Have you ever had a conversation with some one who asks you a question and then answers their own question - incorrectly. A few times I was invited on a boat to solve a sail trim problem and the owner proceeded to insist on his version of the solution - my thought was "why am I here?".

Anyway, back to the topic. I asked him if he thought it might be a good idea to discuss (less than 5 minutes) the maneuver with the crew especially if they were inexperienced. Should someone be assigned to remove/attach the preventer? Is there anything he, as the boat driver, should do to stabilize the boom before the jibe? I asked him his plan in dealing with the traveler? Suppose the jibe was in heavy weather - would reefing be a good idea? Should he as the driver issue commands - prepare to jibe etc? How about cautioning the crew to keep their head down? Once the jibe starts things happen rapidly but the driver can slow the process depending on the experience level of the crew. I asked him what instructions he'd give to the mainsheet trimmer? I asked if he'd ever "chicken Jibed" the boat - he never heard of a chicken jibe!! I rarely jibed in the traditional manner. Since 95% of the time I was single handling the boat I preferred the chicken jibe.

I had a MENTAL STEP BT STEP CHECK LIST of just about every function performed on a boat - docking, tacking, jibing reefing, sail trim sequence etc. My wife says I'm anal!! I can't help myself. Directly out of high school I enlisted in the Air Force. My specialty was bomb disposal. From day one there was a step by step procedure for EVERY disposal and there was NO deviation or skipped steps allowed. That was my culture and it followed me in my personal, business and sailing life. I don't know any other way.

One last point - the FL sailor mentioned he uses a bungee cord as a preventer. That is the worse possible choice because if the metal end snaps off it becomes a dangerous projectile.

 

[Calif. Ted]

Speaking of dangerous projectiles, have you seen the vid of a guy doing a "launching" gybe ?

 

[Don Guillette]

Speaking of dangerous projectiles, have you seen the vid of a guy doing a "launching" gybe ?

Ted: That reminds me - the maneuver that is at the absolute top of my MENTAL CHECK LIST is the man overboard procedure. I could do it in my sleep without even thinking about it - it's automatic.

 

[Calif. Ted]

Got a surprise once Don with 3 boat owning friends aboard my boat when we chanced upon a couple whales and I did a "quick stop" and hove to so we could watch. They said: "neat trick, what do you call that?" and "you'll have to show us how some time". Made me wonder what their plan was for a MOB.

 

[Rick]

Great reminder of the dangers of the jibe. On our tanker 420 Passage, only an aft deck ornament can get hit by the boom on a jibe, however with respect, we go nowhere fast. So its always center the boom and traveler... start the jibe with all crew aware... and try not to rip the rig off the boat. Ripped a traveler off our first boat being rookies. Great thread Don

 

[IllinoisJim]

I've always sheeted the main all the way in and then steered though the jibe being prepared to immediately let out the main sheet once the wind was on the other side of the sail. If the wind is pretty strong I will even head up a bit before I jibe to insure that I will control the jibe with the helm. I was recently watching a YouTube video by Christian Williamson where he's sailing from LA to Hawaii and back on an Ericson 38. He appears to be very experienced and knowledgeable but there are a couple of jibes he does from 19:00 to 20:00 that just made me nervous to watch. What do you think?