Thanks for all your help. I'll update soon.Joel,
Work on good sail trim. Most boat will track well on a close reach with the helm locked. Balance the sails, lock the helm, sit back and relax. NO autopilot requiredYes, I discovered this early last season after I got my "Tiller Tamer". Love it! In fact at one point, my last time out, I sailed for around 20min before I had to touch the tiller then I bet it was another 20 after that.
Heaving to is great to learn. It's more than just back winding the jib. But that's a start
In general the idea is to set the boat so it make little forward progress. The back winded jib want to turn the boat one way the helm hard over counters this forcing the boat to turn the opposite way. The mailsail is used to adjust the angle to the wind. It varies boat to boat so you have to try and see how your's behaves.
The nice thing is with the jib back winded the mail is in a wind shadow. This makes the main easy to raise, drop, or reef. Again no autopilot or motor required
Storm Tactic's by Lynn and Larry Pardey is an excellent book on the subject.
Joel H.