Larry,
I'm learning too. I don't find it relaxing but flying the spinnaker
is not difficult once its up. I do however have a problem getting up
the nerve to hoist it. I would be embarrassed to admit how many times
I have rigged up and gone out, but not had the courage to hoist. I
also have wrapped the forestay. Better yet I actually jibed the whole
mess, main and spinnaker, just not the pole. I think the only reason
I got out of it was because the wind was light, as I am only doing
this in gentle air. For the past month or so I've been using the
asymmetrical instead because it is just so much easier. There's no
comparison. I've cleaned up my cockpit check list and will cut and
paste it here. You may, or may not, find it useful.
Rigging up . . . Set pole on deck first. Pole end to base of mast ,
other end through stbd pulpit. Connect Topping lift at bridle and run
through jaws at mast end of pole, fore guy connected to bridle.
Hank on jib and run jib sheets first, then run after guy and spin
sheet and hook to port bow lifelines. Put spin bag on port foredeck
and secure
The Setup . . . .on port tack . . . Hook up clews outside lifelines,
then halyard, look up, is halyard clear?
Come about
on starboard tack . . . Release fore guy, go forward and connect jaw
to mast ring, Up pole 90deg. to mast, Check in front of forestay. Is
after guy clear of anchor rollers? In cockpit, Cleat fore guy with
pole just off forestay.
Check on the port side . . . spin sheet is outside and clear from
clew to turning block on stern quarter. Give it a couple feet of
slack and then take it to cabintop port winch, 3 wraps, then around
top starboard winch to cam cleat (on my boat this puts sheet, foreguy
and afterguy all close together, and the port sheet winch is already
occupied with the jib sheet)
Boom vang in hard and cleated
Check on the starboard side . . . After guy is clear from pole end to
stern quarter block then to starboard sheet winch, three wraps and cleat
check . . . lines in cockpit are clear. . . . Foreguy cleated . .
Tiller shock cords in place, tiller centered
The Hoist . . .at mark . . . Ease main well out and bare off, deep
broad reach, jib stays put
Spread clews . . . Haul after guy until clew reaches pole end and
cleat. check foreguy is secure
Haul the halyard in quickly, sail slides up the lee of jib, cleat.
Quickly Ease fore guy and haul after guy. Pole comes square to wind
CLEAT After Guy and Fore Guy two hands
Pull in spin sheet
Blow Jib Halyard and pull in down haul
Trim sheet and sail to spinnaker heading
Spinnaker Douse
halyard faked on cockpit floor
Ease fore guy 18", cleat, go forward and snap polestop from chain
plate to bridle.
Hoist jib and sheet in
on deep reach Ease pole forward to end of pole stop, haul and Cleat
Fore Guy
blanket spinnaker
Reach out and grasp spin sheet. Blow After Guy. then Halyard, haul the
leach down to cockpit.
Saves
gust. . . . Blow vang, ease sheets, steer downwind, re-set vang;
Because . . . the gust puts pressure on the main and heels the boat.
The rudder loses it's grip and the boat tries to round up. As the
boat comes around the spinnaker catches wind high from abeam and the
boat may lay over on it's side. Releasing the vang quickly spills
wind momentarily and lets the helm take back control.
wrap . . . steer in the opposite direction from which the wrap came,
towards the main sail. Because, I think, when the sail collapses it
falls into an eddy behind the main and is sucked back around the
forestay. Steering towards the main moves the eddy back towards the
leech and out of the slot.
It is useful to mark the halyard so you know when the sail reaches the
masthead. It is not easy to tell if the sail fills too soon. I have
tried hoisting bareheaded without a jib up but that was a mistake.
Wind pressure or sharp tugs on the afterguy can jam the spinnaker
shackles in the pole jaw. It will take a mallet to release them.
Spin shackle guards are available at West Marine and are very much
worth the small cost.
Nothing in the foregoing is intended to represent or imply that I
have the slightest idea about that of which I speak ;-)
Craig-- In
AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com, "Larry Bissell" albinvega1493@...
wrote:
