The Gale Sail

[Gary Wyngarden]

I'm looking at options to get my sail area small but still efficient for planned trips north. I'm considering the Gale Sail by ATN which mounts over a furled genoa. Has anyone used the Gale Sail? What did you think of it? How easy is it to put up in blowy conditions? I understand you have to furl your genoa with the sheets near the deck so they don't interfere with the Gale Sail. Never done that. What do you do, put your genoa sheet leads all the way forward? Any thoughts will be appreciated.Gary WyngardenS/V Wanderlust H37.5

 

[Jack Tyler]

Gary, this was tackled just a few weeks ago...

...and a search of the archives will produce some info for you (none of it involving owners who used the Gale Sail in storm conditions, as I recall).FWIW my comment at the time was that I was keen to consider the Gale Sail because it seems to be a simple answer to a difficult question. Virtually all of us who go offshore do so with furling genoas, we all want a fall-back option with heavier winds and using the existing furled sail & stay isn't too expensive an option. I began to see a different picture when talking with Etiennne (the former racing sailor and founder of ATN) and hearing how tough it was to get that sail up and flying in really tough going. I'm much more pleased with my solent stay than I think I would have been with a Gale Sail, but then I'm another one of those folks with an opinion but no gale-level offshore experience with a Gale Sail! (BTW I have a ketch, which left me thinking I could have some heavier weather options with a balanced sail plan - Gale Sail and reefed mizzen. I think that's less likely on a sloop).The issue you raise about the jib/genoa sheets will exist whether you sail with an inner stay or use a Gale Sail, as you'll likely have a genoa on the forestay and its sheets will run to blocks far enough aft to foul the set of a small foresail. Consider permanently mounting two simple brass clips, carabiners or similar up forward, either on the inside of your bulwark or top of your caprail. When rigging the storm sail, the jib/genoa sheets are slacked sufficiently for their bights to be pulled down and clipped off, after which the sheets can be tensioned and tied off.Jack

 

[Gary Wyngarden]

Thanks, Jack

I must have missed that discussion and can't find it in the archives (including a search under your name under replies). Oh well.Thanks for the tip on use of the carabiner. That should work well. I think a storm jib on an inner forestay would be a better option. However I don't think the foredeck of my H37.5 was designed to handle the stress of that which has me thinking about the Gale Sail.Gary WyngardenS/V Wanderlust H37.5

 

[Malcolm Young]

I raised the subject but can't find the history...

Jack is correct, this subject was recently discussed. I raised the subject about the end of February and lasted into early March. It received some very well thought out responses from Jack, Henk, a fellow from Duluth and another from Texas. I just searched on the title 'Experience with Gale Sail", Gale Sail and my name as author and could find nothing. The replies covered various options to accomplish the end goal. These varied from the Solent Stay (with a very good explanation of installation), triple reefed main with no main sail (with a good explanation as to why this is advantageous for handling in high wind and ocean waves), the use of a 130% genny roller reefed if necessary coupled with a gennaker for light airs and finally a person who used his Gale Sail while crossing the Gulf of Mexico in winds that blew away his Bimini before he could cut it down.I still have to make my decision. One thing I did since that thread is to go and see a Gale Sail. They do appear to be strongly made. ATN have included some enhancements to make it easier to hank on in heavy winds - larger hanks and I am not sure what else. My opinion is that it would be still definitely harder to hank on than to fasten a Solent Stay (with a quick release lever) and hank on a storm jib. However it looks like it can be done. The Gale Sail would obviously be far, far easier to put on than removing a geonoa and putting on a storm sail. I have not yet made up my mind. My new C36 will go into the water within a couple of weeks and I want to get the feel of it before I make a decision. It would be handy to be able to access the previous thread as the contributors made very well thought out explanations for their suggestions. In the meantime, I will be avidly watching this thread.

 

[Jack Tyler]

Gary, a couple of follow-up thoughts...

One thing I did before beginning my (solent) inner stay design & install was to inspect a sistership (another Pearson 424) that was built as a cutter. It allowed me to not only see what the factory thought was suitable but on a boat that had been cruised at least some amount offshore, so hopefully telltale wear or insufficiently spec'd components would visually surface. In the end, I decided to beef up the anchor locker/forward bulkhead structure with several layers of biaxial cloth (each one, using polyester resin, added the equivalent strength of a 5/8" ply section). I remember a friend's Hunter 40 that came with a factory installed inner stay with a removeable link, and so I wonder if you couldn't find a similar Hunter and benefit by the same inspection. It's always a dilemma with these fully-lined boats to know how to modify the deck structure, but perhaps some visible evidence of how Hunter approached an inner stay is possible...or perhaps chatting with the factory might work.Jack

 

[Malcolm Young]

Gale Sail History

An update - the history I spoke about earlier is now available. Thank you Phil. Search under 'Experience with Gale Sail' in the title and select 'match exact phrase. There were some good posts in answer to my original query.It would be interesting to hear any experience people have had with the recent version of the Gale Sail. It is the easiest option to implement for the question posed.