Hi, I was wondering what my fellow sailors' opinion is regarding racing the Hunter 23.5. I am a member of a local sailing club and we race frequently. Is the 23.5 a good boat to race? Also, I find the jib sheet takes two hands to cleat. This seems wrong. Is there something I'm missing. Thx.
Racing a Hunter 23.5
- Thread starter Rasemans
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Rasemans;
First, are you in Sanford, NC? If so, I am just around the corner from you and would be glad to help.
You must have the jam cleats which came as standard on that boat originally. They are probably secured into the deck with machine stainless steel bolts as there is an aluminum plate encapsulated in the fiberglass. If racing, I would remove those and go with a fixed mounted cam cleat that swivels. This way, you could pull the line to you which secures the line or let it go quickly with a "pop" or quick movement of the wrist as I would say.
When I initially introduced this boat for Hunter, I was racing against many boats to include the J24. I found that heeling no more than 12-14 degrees with little tension on the rudder was most important. This was achieved via reduced sail coverage and/or spilling the sails depending on the wind. I got quite a few stares when coming in first.
If you are from Sanford, NC, please email me at davecondon@mindspring.com and include your phone number. I will be glad to give you a call.
crazy dave condon
First, are you in Sanford, NC? If so, I am just around the corner from you and would be glad to help.
You must have the jam cleats which came as standard on that boat originally. They are probably secured into the deck with machine stainless steel bolts as there is an aluminum plate encapsulated in the fiberglass. If racing, I would remove those and go with a fixed mounted cam cleat that swivels. This way, you could pull the line to you which secures the line or let it go quickly with a "pop" or quick movement of the wrist as I would say.
When I initially introduced this boat for Hunter, I was racing against many boats to include the J24. I found that heeling no more than 12-14 degrees with little tension on the rudder was most important. This was achieved via reduced sail coverage and/or spilling the sails depending on the wind. I got quite a few stares when coming in first.
If you are from Sanford, NC, please email me at davecondon@mindspring.com and include your phone number. I will be glad to give you a call.
crazy dave condon
Ah Shucks. Hope you were in my area as I live in Zebulon, NC but in a few years will be roosting on a hill top with 360 views of the mountians oustide of Clifton Forge, VA. I will be looking at the start of the James river but not deep enough except for a canoe if the water is up high enough.
Update 2: Raced in much heavier air, 10-12 gusts, with 15mph gusts. In preparation for the race, I changed the boomvang so, the control end was hanging off the boom instead of the mast step (maybe it was supposed to be this way), Tensioned the outer and lower shrouds and reefed the main. We did well, including one tie for first against a well sailed Precision 23. We did try to keep our boat as flat a possible, including only sailing on the back half of the main. Still very unhappy with the jib sheet controls. Ended up using the winch and horn cleat (maybe its supposed to be this way). Cam cleats might be nice in lighter days. I was thinking of adding risers to them, so the didn't need two hands to cleat. Any thoughts? Thanks
the key to the clam cleats is the risers underneath with the cam cleats angled upwards toward the cockpit.
the trick is too pull the sheets in onthe other side as the sail comes over and then you can let the sheet out slowly to desired position
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