Heavy Air

[Travis Gregory]

Hello U20 Fans,

What is your advice / method for handling wind in the 17- 25 ish range?

I have heard for the Main:

1) Sheet the main hard,  travel down, feather the boat when needed.

2) Ease the main and travel up so that the top of the main twists off.

Other questions:

1) Reef or No?
2) Pull the wrinkles at of the Jib and move the cars aft...anything else for the Jib?


Lastly - what do you prefer to do is survival mode (30 +)?

[Tac Boston]

Hey Travis

Here is what I do, it works for me but some others Brad has a bit different technique so it kind of depends on your "feel"

For me as soon as everyone is hiking and you are starting to get overpowered I cleat the traveler in the middle and don't touch it. I just play the mainsheet. I can drive to this in pretty much any sea state. If it is really short and bumpy I might move the traveler up to the windward foot chalk to get more twist just depends on how I think the boat feels. For me the jib luff gets tightened so the wrinkles are just gone and we never move lead, unless again the waves are short and steep, then my crew have been moving them forward a hole to keep the foot powered up. Now if you do this you have to ease the jib sheet about 3/4" from your normal upwind mark. That opens the top of the leech up again. I have found this to be really fast.

Again it depends on how you like to have the boat feel going through the water. I also drive a lot less then most people I bet, I kid of pick the heel angle that I want and just lock in and trim to that angle. Seems fast but I am not sure many people would like how it makes the boat/helm feel.

Good luck and let me know if I (can) helped.
Cheers

Tac

[Tac Boston]

Forgot to add, if you have to reef go home

[Travis Gregory]

LOL.  Thanks Tac.

Seriously though, what do you do to limp back in when the egg beater won't do the job due to conditions?

And...what if you are light on crew?  Reef?

[Glenn VanHeel]

Tac could you post current rig tune numbers? Using loos pt-1. Aluminum mast.
I haven't put your sails up yet since you used them for NAs. But they will be used for sd noods if things are stil a go with the charterer.
Glenn

[Tac Boston]

@Travis, I would probably dump the main, use the motor and part of the jib. When the squall came through the Holland NA's we sailed with just the clew patch of the jib! actually worked scary good. Kept the boat moving slowly and steady while we got the motor to finally start. I also never like to sail light. If you are light with 3 sail with 4, which is what we did in Holland, awesome at the corners

Glenn, nothing has changed tune wise with the tin rig. We use the silver tuning gauge so the #'s are 24 and 15.
Cheers
Tac

[Travis Gregory]

Thanks Tac.  That sounds consistent with our own survival method!  We had a nice squall at the Great Salt Lake during a beer can race last year.  One of the 20's broke a rudder.  We ripped our jib and had retired.  On the way in it gusted to 45, so we had to run bare poles until things mellowed out.  All and all, I think we handled it well.  But wonder what could have been done differently. 

[Tac Boston]

Travis

I don't think that in 45 there is really anything can be done, if your jib is done. We used that little piece of jib just to keep the moving forward and I was quite surprised how well that worked.

I really don't think that the reef would have helped you at all, would have maybe been more of a safety risk then bare poles?

Tac