In the past Don has written detailed instructions for jibing. I'd like your take on the same kind of instructions for tacking. What steps make the best fast, crisp tack? How do you execute it with two people available to handle the jib? How about with just one person available for the jib? Do you backwind the jib a bit? How much? Do you pull in the new sheet by hand at first or on the winch? Give us some tips!
Tacking
- Thread starter Sherry
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tacking by 1 or more
HI, Sherry. Here's how I do it on my 28.5 with my 150% Genoa. While solo-sailing: 1. Get up to max speed. 2. Get my sheets ready on the new tack. 1 wrap on the winch. 3. Remove all but 1-2 wraps from the winch on my "old" tack. 4. Gently turn into and through the wind but don't turn the wheel/rudder so hard that you cause the rudder to act a s a brake. 5. As I'm heading into the wind, I trim the sheet to pull in the slack on the genoa and cause it to back-wind a little which will help avoid the luffing and keep things under control. 6. Once I'm through the wind and on a new tack, I release the sheet from the "old" tack while trimming the sheet on the "new" tack to match the course I want to sail. Sailing with a crew of 2 or more, we do it pretty much the same way. 1 person handles the "old" sheet, another handles the "new" sheet, but we follow the same process of turning into the wind, backwinding a little, and them trimming/coming up to course. Hope this helps (and if I'm wrong, I'd appreciate being corrected!)
HI, Sherry. Here's how I do it on my 28.5 with my 150% Genoa. While solo-sailing: 1. Get up to max speed. 2. Get my sheets ready on the new tack. 1 wrap on the winch. 3. Remove all but 1-2 wraps from the winch on my "old" tack. 4. Gently turn into and through the wind but don't turn the wheel/rudder so hard that you cause the rudder to act a s a brake. 5. As I'm heading into the wind, I trim the sheet to pull in the slack on the genoa and cause it to back-wind a little which will help avoid the luffing and keep things under control. 6. Once I'm through the wind and on a new tack, I release the sheet from the "old" tack while trimming the sheet on the "new" tack to match the course I want to sail. Sailing with a crew of 2 or more, we do it pretty much the same way. 1 person handles the "old" sheet, another handles the "new" sheet, but we follow the same process of turning into the wind, backwinding a little, and them trimming/coming up to course. Hope this helps (and if I'm wrong, I'd appreciate being corrected!)
How to tack - one more step
Hi Sherry...Rick's list sounds dead on. Let me add... I find that with crew who don't sail, the tendency is to immediately let go the jib sheet the minute you yell "Ready about!" (You DO yell "Ready about", don't you??)
It's worth explaining to them that the goal is to have as little fluttering of the sail as possible, and that is why you backwind it a bit, then sheet in as quickly as possible on the new tack. I simply have cleats - no winches - my eager crew unsnaps that leeward sheet with such flair and abandon, usually way too early. If they are the kind of crew that does want to learn a little, I give them some background, as Rick described, so that what they are doing makes sense, and they are more likely to do it right on their own. In addition, my being a small boat sailor where weight distribution matters, I would add a step... 4.5 - crew should begin moving GENTLY across the cockpit, preparing to take new windward position on the new tack. (Here's another fun opportunity for the novices to introduce some interesting heel- in a variety of directions...stress "gentle" movements!) Hope this helps!
Hi Sherry...Rick's list sounds dead on. Let me add... I find that with crew who don't sail, the tendency is to immediately let go the jib sheet the minute you yell "Ready about!" (You DO yell "Ready about", don't you??)
It's worth explaining to them that the goal is to have as little fluttering of the sail as possible, and that is why you backwind it a bit, then sheet in as quickly as possible on the new tack. I simply have cleats - no winches - my eager crew unsnaps that leeward sheet with such flair and abandon, usually way too early. If they are the kind of crew that does want to learn a little, I give them some background, as Rick described, so that what they are doing makes sense, and they are more likely to do it right on their own. In addition, my being a small boat sailor where weight distribution matters, I would add a step... 4.5 - crew should begin moving GENTLY across the cockpit, preparing to take new windward position on the new tack. (Here's another fun opportunity for the novices to introduce some interesting heel- in a variety of directions...stress "gentle" movements!) Hope this helps!I backwind the genny in light airs to help
get the bow started around but otherwise untail the sheet when it luffs.
get the bow started around but otherwise untail the sheet when it luffs.
The pause that refreshes
I agree with all the above but would add: In light winds, I'll backwind the jib like Calif. Ted. In regular winds, I'll pause the turn for a few moments just as the jib comes across the bow - when it's just past the mast but we're still pretty much in irons. The 'old' sheet gets released at this point. The crew (or me if, as usual, I'm single-handed) then pulls the 'new' sheet in by hand, with just a single wrap on the winch. Saves all that winching with the handle! And it's a lot faster. Then a couple more wraps on the winch, complete the tack, fine tune the trim, cleat off the sheet. Dick
I agree with all the above but would add: In light winds, I'll backwind the jib like Calif. Ted. In regular winds, I'll pause the turn for a few moments just as the jib comes across the bow - when it's just past the mast but we're still pretty much in irons. The 'old' sheet gets released at this point. The crew (or me if, as usual, I'm single-handed) then pulls the 'new' sheet in by hand, with just a single wrap on the winch. Saves all that winching with the handle! And it's a lot faster. Then a couple more wraps on the winch, complete the tack, fine tune the trim, cleat off the sheet. Dick
Mates: The most efficient way to tack a boat is a collection of all the comments but there is one piece missing and it is a VERY IMPORTANT one,and the reason it is important is the wind is always changing. Assuming your fairlead adjustment was correct on the loaded side is no guarantee it will be correct on the new side. On most boats the jib trimmer on the loaded sheet things his job is done once he cuts the sheet from the winch. It is if he took the time to note the BREAK of the sail just before the boat came head to wind. What he is looking for is whether the bottom or top of the sail breaks first. With that info, he then tells the other trimmer to either move the fairlead car forward or aft and he also tells him how many holes to go. If the sail breaks evenly, the setting on the other side is correct. How many sailors out there in sail trim forum land take the time to make that fairlead adjustment? If you have a masthead rig and are not using your fairleads your missing a tool that could give your jib maximum efficiency. If you have an adjustable fairlead system like the one sold by my friends at Garhauer Marine this adjustment is a snap. It also makes fine tuning the jib very easy. The adjustable fairlead system allows the jib trimmer to use the fairleads just as you would an accelerator on a car.
Well, I try to remember to adjust the fairlead
before it's under load but probably half the time I need to slack the working sheet & adjust after I've made the tack.
before it's under load but probably half the time I need to slack the working sheet & adjust after I've made the tack.
Adjusting the fairlead
Calif Ted: It is hard doing it with the sheet loaded and that is why the Garhauer Adjustable fairlead system is so great especailly if you have a masthead rig, which I assume you do. Half the time you won't get it right the first time either using the "step on the sheet method". With the Garhauer system, which is only about $200 (I'm guessing as I don't have a catalog in front of me) you don't have to worry about the load - you can tweat it no matter how much it is loaded plus you can move it forwards and backwards (with a simple mod). The advantage of doing that is you can power the boat up coming out of the tack and that is only one use of the adjustable system. The difference in speed between an improperly placed fairlead and a properly placed one can be as much as 1 knot. What always amazes me is that most of the middle to back of the pack boat I go on they don't bother with fairlead adjustment. I think to myself, what are you doing out here and you have just wasted the race fee. Save the money and just sail around!! Most mast head rig sailors are amazed at their performance improvement when I show them how to adjust the fairlead. Most think I just invented sliced bread but it really is just simple, basic stuff.
Calif Ted: It is hard doing it with the sheet loaded and that is why the Garhauer Adjustable fairlead system is so great especailly if you have a masthead rig, which I assume you do. Half the time you won't get it right the first time either using the "step on the sheet method". With the Garhauer system, which is only about $200 (I'm guessing as I don't have a catalog in front of me) you don't have to worry about the load - you can tweat it no matter how much it is loaded plus you can move it forwards and backwards (with a simple mod). The advantage of doing that is you can power the boat up coming out of the tack and that is only one use of the adjustable system. The difference in speed between an improperly placed fairlead and a properly placed one can be as much as 1 knot. What always amazes me is that most of the middle to back of the pack boat I go on they don't bother with fairlead adjustment. I think to myself, what are you doing out here and you have just wasted the race fee. Save the money and just sail around!! Most mast head rig sailors are amazed at their performance improvement when I show them how to adjust the fairlead. Most think I just invented sliced bread but it really is just simple, basic stuff.
masthead vs. fractional
My H30 is fractional. Are you saying fairlead is not as critical because my head sail is not as much of a driver on my boat? Or are there other factors that make fairlead adjustment not as critical on a fractional rig?
My H30 is fractional. Are you saying fairlead is not as critical because my head sail is not as much of a driver on my boat? Or are there other factors that make fairlead adjustment not as critical on a fractional rig?
Don - Fairleads on smaller fractional rigs
Hi Don, Just got your book and charts Monday, and already gave them my first read. Hope to get out this weekend and see if I can apply what I think I'm learning! My question echos Sherry's. On my H23, a number of the sail controls do not come standard, including any type of adjustable fairleads for the jib sheets. Also, I think you state in your book that the jib trimming you describe is in reference to a masthead setup. Any comments on differences with a fractional rig and any ideas for ways to make adjustments in liu of installing a fair lead/genoa track system would be appreciated. For example, you mentioned that your C30 does not have both an inner and outer track so you rig a barberhauler as a substitute. Hope you move is going well and it's good to see you very active in posting here again.
Hi Don, Just got your book and charts Monday, and already gave them my first read. Hope to get out this weekend and see if I can apply what I think I'm learning! My question echos Sherry's. On my H23, a number of the sail controls do not come standard, including any type of adjustable fairleads for the jib sheets. Also, I think you state in your book that the jib trimming you describe is in reference to a masthead setup. Any comments on differences with a fractional rig and any ideas for ways to make adjustments in liu of installing a fair lead/genoa track system would be appreciated. For example, you mentioned that your C30 does not have both an inner and outer track so you rig a barberhauler as a substitute. Hope you move is going well and it's good to see you very active in posting here again.
Masthead vs. Fractional
Sherry: In general you have hit on it - the smaller headsail is then less of a proportion of the boat's power & so it's fine adjustment is not as critical. A lot depends upon how much of a fractional you have and how big the headsail is (150, 100% or whatever). A 7/8 rig is so close to a masthead that the headsail probably should be considered as critical as if it were a masthead, so it may depend upon how fractional the rig really is. On the J22 that I sail, the class jib is fractional and small - so it is not as much of a difference to be off a bit in track position. So - how important it is will depend upon how much of your sail area is headsail. You can calculate this if you know the IJPE for your boat's rig & combined with your sailing experience on your boat make a decision how important it is and how much time and money to spend on it. The J22 that I sail has very short tracks & no magic Garhauer adjuster - we have to go up and do it manually. I mostly sail with my young kids, I feel that I have more important things to watch than the last degree of headsail trim, especially as it is a hassle to change it. I like knowing the principles of it, and I set it based upon experience with that boat to a reasonable place based upon the winds that day and generally leave it alone. Most of the boats that I have spent a lot of time on have been fractionals - the last time that I sailed on a masthead, I was amazed at the power of the genny. So, if I get a boat with a masthead rig or close to it like a 7/8 rig - I'll install the Garhauer magic and tune it all in. It all depends on: 1. Where the power is on your boat 2. Whether you are racing 3. The sophistication and eagerness of your crew to play with it, or if you want to do it all yourself 4. How much work you want to do when cruising I may catch a flame or two from the more adjustment oriented sailors - but my priorities are safety, fun & learning with my kids over an adjustment that, on the boat that I sail, has a small effect & is hard to do. JMHO, OldCat
Sherry: In general you have hit on it - the smaller headsail is then less of a proportion of the boat's power & so it's fine adjustment is not as critical. A lot depends upon how much of a fractional you have and how big the headsail is (150, 100% or whatever). A 7/8 rig is so close to a masthead that the headsail probably should be considered as critical as if it were a masthead, so it may depend upon how fractional the rig really is. On the J22 that I sail, the class jib is fractional and small - so it is not as much of a difference to be off a bit in track position. So - how important it is will depend upon how much of your sail area is headsail. You can calculate this if you know the IJPE for your boat's rig & combined with your sailing experience on your boat make a decision how important it is and how much time and money to spend on it. The J22 that I sail has very short tracks & no magic Garhauer adjuster - we have to go up and do it manually. I mostly sail with my young kids, I feel that I have more important things to watch than the last degree of headsail trim, especially as it is a hassle to change it. I like knowing the principles of it, and I set it based upon experience with that boat to a reasonable place based upon the winds that day and generally leave it alone. Most of the boats that I have spent a lot of time on have been fractionals - the last time that I sailed on a masthead, I was amazed at the power of the genny. So, if I get a boat with a masthead rig or close to it like a 7/8 rig - I'll install the Garhauer magic and tune it all in. It all depends on: 1. Where the power is on your boat 2. Whether you are racing 3. The sophistication and eagerness of your crew to play with it, or if you want to do it all yourself 4. How much work you want to do when cruising I may catch a flame or two from the more adjustment oriented sailors - but my priorities are safety, fun & learning with my kids over an adjustment that, on the boat that I sail, has a small effect & is hard to do. JMHO, OldCat
Fractional rig
Sherry: OldCat (I wonder how old OldCat is? - my guess he is a young dude!!)is correct as it depends on the size of the jib. In general, this is how it works. If the clew of the jib comes back to about the mast that is called 100%. Most fractional rigs have jibs in the 110 to 120 range, which means they extend 10% or 20% beyond the mast. Either is not much of a sail so that is why manufactures don't include tracks. The real reason is that they are too cheap and want to cut corners where they can to keep their cost down and profits up. Most mast head rigs jibs start at 135. I've seen mast heads rigs with 110 and 120's and the owners always seem to wonder why they don't get any speed from the boat. The reason is they have a VW engine in a 3/4 ton PU!! On a masthead rig with a 135 and beyond all the way up to a 155 you should have the adjustable system. Anyting beyond 140 should have it or they have wasted money on the sail. They can fight the jib sheet to adjust the fairlead but sailors will do what is easy not what is hard. So if you have a fractional rig with a 135 or bigger you should have some kind of a adjustable system. As a point of info on this forum - unfortunately, I have to deal in generalities and can't deal with every boat size so my answers will almost always center around boats in the 30'to 35' range. Smaller boats will not have all the bells and whistles the bigger boats have because they don't need them in most cases.
Sherry: OldCat (I wonder how old OldCat is? - my guess he is a young dude!!)is correct as it depends on the size of the jib. In general, this is how it works. If the clew of the jib comes back to about the mast that is called 100%. Most fractional rigs have jibs in the 110 to 120 range, which means they extend 10% or 20% beyond the mast. Either is not much of a sail so that is why manufactures don't include tracks. The real reason is that they are too cheap and want to cut corners where they can to keep their cost down and profits up. Most mast head rigs jibs start at 135. I've seen mast heads rigs with 110 and 120's and the owners always seem to wonder why they don't get any speed from the boat. The reason is they have a VW engine in a 3/4 ton PU!! On a masthead rig with a 135 and beyond all the way up to a 155 you should have the adjustable system. Anyting beyond 140 should have it or they have wasted money on the sail. They can fight the jib sheet to adjust the fairlead but sailors will do what is easy not what is hard. So if you have a fractional rig with a 135 or bigger you should have some kind of a adjustable system. As a point of info on this forum - unfortunately, I have to deal in generalities and can't deal with every boat size so my answers will almost always center around boats in the 30'to 35' range. Smaller boats will not have all the bells and whistles the bigger boats have because they don't need them in most cases.
Don, Garhauer website does not have a picture,
are these ball bearing cars ? Do you move them by hand or do you set up lines fore & aft maybe with a little mechanical advantage like a small traveler ?
are these ball bearing cars ? Do you move them by hand or do you set up lines fore & aft maybe with a little mechanical advantage like a small traveler ?
Garhauer EZ Glide
Calif.Ted: I have not had a chance to check out their web site re: the EZ glide but the cars are ball bearing and they machine the races about 4 times so they are very smooth. I know some of the guys on this forum have their set up and perhaps they can chime in. The set up comes with the ability to move the car forward only. There is a tang on the rear of the sliding car and I merely modified the setup by adding a short line so I had the ability to move the car aft. It is now like a mini traveler. Some guys use bungee cords on the aft tang but in my opinion they are useless. The bungees only keep the lazy fairlead from moving around. Here's why I added the line which enables me to move the car aft. Say your tacking and the jib flips over to the other side and you take up the slack and you might think the car would automatically set up at the optimum spot. I thought that until I stabilized the car so it could not move and then I checked the jib by coming almost head to wind to check the brake of the sail. What I found on my boat was I was about 2 holes off. One might say that is close enough for government work but those two holes can represent about 1/2 knot. To compensate I just added the aft line and now I can adjust the system all over the place. If any of you decide to investigate the Garhauer product, ask for guido or Mark and tell them Don G told you to call. You will get good service, which you would get anyway, but it will be better if you use my name.
Calif.Ted: I have not had a chance to check out their web site re: the EZ glide but the cars are ball bearing and they machine the races about 4 times so they are very smooth. I know some of the guys on this forum have their set up and perhaps they can chime in. The set up comes with the ability to move the car forward only. There is a tang on the rear of the sliding car and I merely modified the setup by adding a short line so I had the ability to move the car aft. It is now like a mini traveler. Some guys use bungee cords on the aft tang but in my opinion they are useless. The bungees only keep the lazy fairlead from moving around. Here's why I added the line which enables me to move the car aft. Say your tacking and the jib flips over to the other side and you take up the slack and you might think the car would automatically set up at the optimum spot. I thought that until I stabilized the car so it could not move and then I checked the jib by coming almost head to wind to check the brake of the sail. What I found on my boat was I was about 2 holes off. One might say that is close enough for government work but those two holes can represent about 1/2 knot. To compensate I just added the aft line and now I can adjust the system all over the place. If any of you decide to investigate the Garhauer product, ask for guido or Mark and tell them Don G told you to call. You will get good service, which you would get anyway, but it will be better if you use my name.
Garhauer Rigid Vang
Calif.Ted: My curiosity got the best of me and I just checked their site. It says click on the picture but there is no picture!! Weird. Call and ask them to send you a catalog. Their is a lot of good stuff in it. Take a look at their snatch blocks. There is nothing on the market like them.
Calif.Ted: My curiosity got the best of me and I just checked their site. It says click on the picture but there is no picture!! Weird. Call and ask them to send you a catalog. Their is a lot of good stuff in it. Take a look at their snatch blocks. There is nothing on the market like them.
Ease main after a tack?
Don wrote: "I wonder how old OldCat is? - my guess he is a young dude!!" Well - I'm not getting any dates with any 18 year old bikinis any time soon! And it is not just because my wife would clobber me! A few grey hairs, a few barnacles . . . Now the question part - as the boat - especially a light weight boat - may slow down some in the tack - would you ease the main a bit, not fully sheet the genny and perhaps bear off a bit until you have gotten back up to speed?
Don wrote: "I wonder how old OldCat is? - my guess he is a young dude!!" Well - I'm not getting any dates with any 18 year old bikinis any time soon! And it is not just because my wife would clobber me! A few grey hairs, a few barnacles . . . Now the question part - as the boat - especially a light weight boat - may slow down some in the tack - would you ease the main a bit, not fully sheet the genny and perhaps bear off a bit until you have gotten back up to speed?
Thanks Don, Sounds like a good idea,
I think I'd like to run the control lines into the cockpit like everything else, I solo a lot in the winter, and like the idea of being able to adjust easily without spending a lot of time on deck.
I think I'd like to run the control lines into the cockpit like everything else, I solo a lot in the winter, and like the idea of being able to adjust easily without spending a lot of time on deck.
Jib cars...
Here's a pic of my garhauer jib car system. I have bungees to pull the car back, but they're not strong enough when the lead is heavily loaded, so I attached a lanyard to the car so I can pull it back by hand. If the jibsheet's angle is steep from the lead block to the winch, you will have trouble even pulling the car back by hand when the sheet is loaded. Notice that I routed the sheet through a turning/foot block to make it easier for the car to move backwards. To power up the jib after a tack, move the lead block forward a couple notches. As you get up to speed move the car back to normal and re-trim the sheet. When tacking, I usually bear off a bit to get my speed up, then start trimming the main and the jib in as I head up to my optimum pointing angle. Regarding Don's comments on headsail sizes, my Cat 27 is very comfortable with the 110 and a full roach main. When single handing, the 110 is very easy to handle and the visibility is good because of the high clew. I can easily attain hull speed with this configuration in anything over 10 knts. In San Diego, however, the winds are often much lighter so with a crew, the racing 150 is a delight, but I always have someone at the mast to help the sail through the fore triangle. The C27's forward lowers can do a lot of damage to an expensive sail.
Here's a pic of my garhauer jib car system. I have bungees to pull the car back, but they're not strong enough when the lead is heavily loaded, so I attached a lanyard to the car so I can pull it back by hand. If the jibsheet's angle is steep from the lead block to the winch, you will have trouble even pulling the car back by hand when the sheet is loaded. Notice that I routed the sheet through a turning/foot block to make it easier for the car to move backwards. To power up the jib after a tack, move the lead block forward a couple notches. As you get up to speed move the car back to normal and re-trim the sheet. When tacking, I usually bear off a bit to get my speed up, then start trimming the main and the jib in as I head up to my optimum pointing angle. Regarding Don's comments on headsail sizes, my Cat 27 is very comfortable with the 110 and a full roach main. When single handing, the 110 is very easy to handle and the visibility is good because of the high clew. I can easily attain hull speed with this configuration in anything over 10 knts. In San Diego, however, the winds are often much lighter so with a crew, the racing 150 is a delight, but I always have someone at the mast to help the sail through the fore triangle. The C27's forward lowers can do a lot of damage to an expensive sail.
OldCat: My goal is to tack the boat in under 30 seconds and to not lose more than 1 knot of speed. Personally, I would not ease the main because you are changing the angle of attack and the boat will slow down and that defeats the purpose as you want to keep as much speed as you can get. I would not bear off either. The key to a succesfull tack is the mate on the new sheet plus getting the boat at top speed before attempting the tack. It is also important that the trimmer on the loaded sheet cuts it at the proper time and that is when the sail has backwinded and is pushing the bow over thus helping you complete the tack as quickly as possable. The trimmer on the new sheet should have taken in all the slck that he can. Here's what happens normally. The tack starts and the old trimmer cuts the sheet right away. The jib flops all over the place and the new trimmer madly cranks in. Generally the boat slows way down and it is hard to get it up to speed. Doing it the way I suggest, the new trimmer should crank in slowly (there is a knack to it and you have to practice on your particular boat. What he is trying to do is use the sheet as an accelerator allowing the sail to power up.
Garhauer Jamb swivel
Calif.Ted: Garhauer sells a swivel jamb cleat that mounts on the aft end of the track. It is a pricey little bugger but I felt it was worth the money. With that mod you don't have to find some place to tie off your line or drill holes for a cleat.
Calif.Ted: Garhauer sells a swivel jamb cleat that mounts on the aft end of the track. It is a pricey little bugger but I felt it was worth the money. With that mod you don't have to find some place to tie off your line or drill holes for a cleat.
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