Time to Reef?

[Dave Marin]

15 degrees Rudder Angle

I have my rudder marked, so when my rudder is at 15 degrees of rudder angle for consistant period of time, then it's time to reef. Anything more than 15 degrees and you are not only putting extra wear and pressure on the rudder, but the boat is slower, dragging the equivalent of 3 or 4 two by fours behind you.

 

[David Hart]

when the dime falls over

As a cruiser, comfort of boat and crew is paramount..I've lost a mast off Newfoundland..too much sail....that was then(1993)....now with roller furling jib...I tend to reef the main very early...I use two sets for the main full and last furl....the boat stays comfy and fast enough...next stop a roller furling main...

 

[s/v Sweet Laraine]

Don't wait!!

It's better to reef too early than too late. I've thrown a reef in with 25 knot winds and 4 and 5 foot seas. On the plus side, though, it is exciting.

 

[Tom Monroe]

drop the traveller

I agree wholeheartedly with the "reef early" philosophy. But just to nitpick a bit, I see a lot of responses here that talk about dropping the traveller first. My last action before reefing is usually to ease the sheet rather than drop the traveller. That twists off the top of the sail where the majority of the healing moment comes from. On lighter boats like we sail on inland lakes, enough wind to talk about reefing creates some very steep-faced close period waves which stall you out and knock you off the wind (heeling you more) unless you keep some good power up). Dropping the traveller seems to me to depower the main in addition to reducing healing.Just my experience ... I'm sure no expert.Tom MonroeCarlyle Lake

 

[Critter]

Depends

I am of the opinion that if I think about doing something, like reefing, I do it. My maxim is, "do it the first time you think about it". If, on the other hand, I had shortened up on the traveler earlier, under lighter winds, then I would probably ease the traveler first, and see how the boat is handling. If necessary, then I would reef. Having both main and foresail roller reefing, making it somewhat easier, I generally reef a little later than on previous boats with manual reefing. One more caveat; if it's approaching darkness with a freshening breeze, I wiill put one reef in the main as insurance. I hate knockdowns in the dark!

 

[Randy]

Racing or Cruising?

When Racing, reef when overpowered all the time (even in the lulls). Windspeed varies depending on crew weight.When Cruising if depends on conditions. In a steady breeze, reef when average heel is over 15 degrees. In gusty conditions I play the main until Auto gets confused and doesn't want to steer. Then shorten sail until Auto is happy.

 

[RDO]

That's why I sail a ketch

On my Allied Seawind, it takes about 5 seconds to drop the entire mizzen sail, eliminating the weather helm and instantly reducing sail area by about 25 percent, all from the comfort of the cockpit using lines that don't run through a gazillion blocks, pulling down on the luff of the sail also from the comfort of the cockpit. If I'm feeling energetic and the gusts seem permanent, I'll spend another 20 seconds putting sail ties on the mizzen; otherwise I just let it droop scandalously to leward. If the wind drops the sail goes back up even quicker.

 

[Rich]

Where to reef?

Question to add to the reefing responses; when reefing the sail, do you tie the reef lines "around" the boom or pass the lines between the boom and the sail and tie off the excess sail that way? A book I have says to absolutely pass between the sail and boom but the owners' manual of the boat says to tie around the boom. Which is it?

 

[Steve Pappas]

Time to reef.

My decision to reef takes in a number of factors.1. The type of crew is very important. If I am out with a group of risk takers I will reef well past the 18 knot limit I set for casual day sailing.2. If I do not have to go to windward I will also reef later. 3. My limits for heel are around 25 degrees with about 10 - 15 degrees weather helm.4. If the wind is combined with choppy, steep waves.5. If the gusts are excessive and present a clear risk to the safety of the crew. 6. If I am sailing in a confined area.7. If anyone for whatever reason expresses any concern for their safety or shows any signs of anxiety.8. Whenever very young or very old people are aboard.

 

[Bruce Bates]

When to reef

My OC 430 is very stiff and high sided so the need to reef is rare. With my new UK tape drive genoa I can roll up a few feet with -out sacrificing headsail shape and keep the boat driving.

 

[bawgy]

HOW TO REEF

How do I reef the main properly ? I have a Doyle sail on My Venture 24 with a line of grommets spaced about 12" apart . Do I run a single line through all of them and pull it down or do I tie the leech and luff down good and use the other grommets to contain the reefed part of the mainsasil ? The boom has a cleat on each end to use and a block on the aft part of the boom

 

[THE PHANTOM]

Listen, Look, Ask, Gut Feeling

Listen, Look, Ask, Gut Feeling; I listen to the weather conditions before I leave the house for the slip... I then update my weather information aboard " MY GIRL " and from the Bosum House weather station... I take a gander at the lake conditons, gulls flying, number of boats out and how they are handling the weather conditions, flag stance, slip windage, Crew, ask other sailors their opinion, consult my LOG, Gut level feeling... Make a commitment... I don't want to fight the tiller, put " MY GIRL " in harms way... I have nothing to prove to myself or to anyone else... There is always another day... Messing about aboard " THE PHANTOM " is always an accepted alternative... Happy sailing...Bring them back alive...

 

[Ab Vlotman]

when to reef ?

Thanks for the VERY interesting subject as when to reef.First of all it's very interesting to read all those different remarks (very learnfull)I am a generally Quick reefer (due to my H 336 I think) When she is reefed, she sails very comfortable (first reef at about 20-22 knots and second reef at about 29-30 knots)However, a couple of weeks ago i was sailing with somebody who had never sailed before (so a was practically sailing the boat by myself) and wind reached 32-33 knots and due to my poor crew i decided not to reef. The boat was sailing like shit, but it was a VERY good experience to see how she (H336) held herself in these kind of winds (normally I wouldn't sail out with this kind of windstrength but since this experience I feel very comfortable about my H336 and her performance in any weather-typ) I now even want to try her in stronger windstrength but ofcource with a double reef (sorry for the poor english, but anyhow greetings from the Netherlands)And of course happy sailing to you all.

 

[tom Wanderer]

learned the hard way

Those grommets are only to keep the sail out of the way. Tie down at the leach and the luff.

 

[Shippy]

Hard way - Explain

Why the hardway Tom.....did your mainsail rip? Please explain

 

[Pelicaneer]

Depends on the boat and the crew

General rule - keep the hull in the water, not the deck. First, ease the traveler. Tighten the cunningham, the outhaul, bend the mast if possible to flatten mainsail.If you still take knockdowns, head up and tie in a reef.On our Mac 26, the reef line went from the Starboard side of the boom exerting a little pressure aft, on the clew of the sail, to a block well aft on the port side, thru the reef grommet on the sail. From the block the line ran through pvc pipe secured to the boom, forward to a set of blocks (for mechanical advantage, and to a cleat near the gooseneck.Forward, the hook usually used for the Cunningham was moved up to the reef grommet. The sail could quickly be pulled down to the reef at both ends and firmly secured. The bunt of the sail could hang below the boom, causing no problem, or could be rolled up and secured with shock cord or reef points.If you used sail slides, tying the sail under the boltrope is best, but if using a grooved boom, simply tie the sail up loosely. The strains are taken by the tack and clew.With working jib and reefed main the Mac (which is a rather tender boat) could sail through anything we would consider being out in.Now, with a Lightning, we can't reef (at least not yet, having no reef points). However proper attention to the traveler seems to do the job nicely.

 

[Gary Wyngarden]

Reefing is for Wimps!!!

There, I said it. I don't agree with it, but I said it to hopefully stimulate another dimension of this dialog.My son lives out of state, but on the infrequent occasions he sails with me and I insist on reefing, I get an "Oh, Dad. You're such an old fart." The wilder the conditions, the more he likes it despite the heeling and excessive weather helm. Who has not heard a comment in a slightly derisive tone, "Gee, that boat is certainly undercanvassed."With a 100% foretriangle my Hunter 37.5 has a sail area to displacement ratio of 17.4. With my 130 % genoa that ratio gets kicked up to somewhere between 19 and 20 which is toward the high end of the scale. Some would say that makes her a "tender" boat.My view is that my boat sails very fast in light wind becasue of that high sail area to displacement ratio. But another feature of that ratio is that the sails need to be reduced early to keep things in balance. With full sails up at 20 knots apparent, I'm heeled more than 25 degrees and there's too much weather helm to sail efficiently. Reducing sail in that situation actually makes us sail faster and more comfortably, not to mention safer.That's also why I invested in a very deep third reef and a gale sail which give me options to regressively alter sail down to about 125 square feet (versus 800 with full sails) which in theory gives us the capability to handle 45-50 knots of apparent wind.If this all makes sense, why is there this macho bias against shortening sail?Gary WyngardenS/V Wanderlust H37.5

 

[sailskiten]

Keep the cockpit dry

Reefing is required when the consistent winds exceed 25 kts. The main concerns are crew pleasure and preventing the dousing of the cockpit with Dark and Stormies.

 

[ryan]

powering for conditions

In the situation described I would easy the sheets some....then reef if conditions did not improve. I always check conditions and reef early. I try to avoid conditions where the vessel heels more than 20 degrees. Reef early and reef deep. it is always easier to put up more sail than to reef. I think of the sails as the engine...I only use as much throttle as needed. ryan

 

[Rick]

reef ? never

Reef.. never... ease it out maybe.. flatten it certainly.. but only if the crew turns green..