Don, What do you mean 3 to 10 knots of wind: Sail 40 degrees above dead downwind. IO to 14 knots of wind: As the wind increases, sail gradually from 35 ° down to 15 ° above dead downwind. Sail off in puffs and up in lulls. Most of my air is in these catagories. Is it X degrees off the wind on either side? Thanks Cole
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DDW
Cole: Yes, sail off the wind. DDW is the slowest point of sail. Next time your sailing downwind record your time and speed say for a mile or two and then sail off the wind for the same distance as I suggest and see what happens. The only time I ever liked sailing downwind is when racing. In So Ca, the downwind leg is when mates break out the sandwiches and beer and while I enjoy both I don't have time to eat or drink on that leg as that is the time I go to work. I can generally pick off at least 2 boats, maybe 3, before they know what is happening. Whether I can hold them off after we turn the mark is another matter but I see races in a series of legs and rate my success on each leg. The funny thing about some of the guys I picked off on the downwind leg was I did it time and time again and they never seemed to catch on as to what was happening. I'd see them at the YC after the race and they would ask how it happened and I'd tell them I don't know, just luck I guess and that would end the conversation. Next time out I'd do it again.
Cole: Yes, sail off the wind. DDW is the slowest point of sail. Next time your sailing downwind record your time and speed say for a mile or two and then sail off the wind for the same distance as I suggest and see what happens. The only time I ever liked sailing downwind is when racing. In So Ca, the downwind leg is when mates break out the sandwiches and beer and while I enjoy both I don't have time to eat or drink on that leg as that is the time I go to work. I can generally pick off at least 2 boats, maybe 3, before they know what is happening. Whether I can hold them off after we turn the mark is another matter but I see races in a series of legs and rate my success on each leg. The funny thing about some of the guys I picked off on the downwind leg was I did it time and time again and they never seemed to catch on as to what was happening. I'd see them at the YC after the race and they would ask how it happened and I'd tell them I don't know, just luck I guess and that would end the conversation. Next time out I'd do it again.
Above dead downwind
If I'm not mistaken, 40 degrees above dead downwind is 120 degrees off the wind. 35 to 15 degrees above dead downwind is 125 and 165 degrees from the wind direction on either jibe. Dead downwind is 180 degrees from the wind direction. At least that's how my wind instrument reads. It doesn't read in degrees above dead downwind.
If I'm not mistaken, 40 degrees above dead downwind is 120 degrees off the wind. 35 to 15 degrees above dead downwind is 125 and 165 degrees from the wind direction on either jibe. Dead downwind is 180 degrees from the wind direction. At least that's how my wind instrument reads. It doesn't read in degrees above dead downwind.
I learned the hard way
that sailing DDW with my Hunter B&R rig is (1) slower than jibing downwnd and (2) tough on the the main (as at least one, if not two, of the spreaders poke the main on a DDW leg. As a result, I now jibe downwind on very broad reaches. I've found that, although the distance covered is greater than sailing a rhumb line downwind, the boatspeed is faster and so time to reach the same destination is shorter. Sort of like how you evaluate pinching vs. footing when sailing on a close reach upwind.
that sailing DDW with my Hunter B&R rig is (1) slower than jibing downwnd and (2) tough on the the main (as at least one, if not two, of the spreaders poke the main on a DDW leg. As a result, I now jibe downwind on very broad reaches. I've found that, although the distance covered is greater than sailing a rhumb line downwind, the boatspeed is faster and so time to reach the same destination is shorter. Sort of like how you evaluate pinching vs. footing when sailing on a close reach upwind.
use your gps to tell you what to do.
put your gps on vmg and put in a direct down wind way point. go straight at it and read the vmg. that velosity made good to the mark. then turn up 10 degress up the vmg will probably go up. if youkeep doing that untill it starts to go down then you know what the fastest angle is for your boat.
put your gps on vmg and put in a direct down wind way point. go straight at it and read the vmg. that velosity made good to the mark. then turn up 10 degress up the vmg will probably go up. if youkeep doing that untill it starts to go down then you know what the fastest angle is for your boat.
GPS cautions
GPS VMG is not Velocity Parallel to Wind. VMG to a racer is VPW (Velocity Parallel Wind) VMG to a GPS is Waypoint Closure Velocity (over ground) The only time GPS "VMG" and true VMG are the same is when the waypoint is very far from the boat and directly down (or up) wind and there is zero current. To measure true VMG you need to have an accurate knotmeter and a wind instrument that can compute VMG. Anything else is guessing. In light air the fast downwind angles can be very surprising ... in 6 knots the best VMG downwind for my C30 puts the True Wind at about 144 degrees and the Apparent Wind at 103 degrees ... almost a beam reach!
GPS VMG is not Velocity Parallel to Wind. VMG to a racer is VPW (Velocity Parallel Wind) VMG to a GPS is Waypoint Closure Velocity (over ground) The only time GPS "VMG" and true VMG are the same is when the waypoint is very far from the boat and directly down (or up) wind and there is zero current. To measure true VMG you need to have an accurate knotmeter and a wind instrument that can compute VMG. Anything else is guessing. In light air the fast downwind angles can be very surprising ... in 6 knots the best VMG downwind for my C30 puts the True Wind at about 144 degrees and the Apparent Wind at 103 degrees ... almost a beam reach!
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