Reefing

[Glenn Smith]

Could anyone telling me what reefing means.I just purchased a catalina 22 this past Sept. I have read a couple of book on sailing but I have not seen anything on reefing . I have sailed her a few times with no problems . I would just like to know what reefing is .

 

[Pete]

Sail area reduction

It means making your sail smaller when the wind picks up and causes excessive heeling and control problems. Your main sail should have a pair of grommets about one-quarter or one-third of the way up with lines going thru them that permit them to be tied to the boom, after the main halyard has been lowered corresponding amount. This reduces the area of the main. If you have a furling jib, you can roll it up part way and achieve the same effect for that sail. For a Cat 22, you should think about this when the winds exceed about 12-15 knots.

 

[LaDonna Bubak - Catalina Owners]

Most good How To Sail books will include tips on reefing. It's a major part of sailing, so I can't figure out why your books don't mention it. Look around & find a book that has a good chapter on it and then find someone (on the web or in person) to tell you how to do it on your boat specifically (it's basically the same procedure, just slightly different for each boat).LaDonna

 

[George]

Great Saiiling book

I found that David Seidman's book, "The Complete Sailor" was a great book for someone starting out sailing. It seems to cover just about everything in it. You can get it from Amazon.com. It was the book that really taught me about the fundamentals of sailing when I started three years ago. I still turn to it now and again. . . . .George