Shortening Sail
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On Shortening Sail
by
Mike (Al) Merrithew
I am of the opinion that we often sail with too much sail. I remember a great day last summer, sailing on a close reach, in a fresh breeze. I had the 150 rolled out and a full main. The wind angle was 45 to 50 degrees and the apparent wind speed was about 18kts. I started rolling up the headsail about 10% at a time. The more I rolled up, the faster I went. The boat was heeling less, there was less angle on the rudder, and the motion was far more sea kindly. It wasn't until I was down to about 80% that the loran began showing a slowing.
Over the last 20 years, I have used this theory as a guide to decision making, particularly when I am alone: Shorten sail early.
A few years ago we were on the leg to Goderich. I could see the storm coming off the tip of the thumb of Michigan, and wondered if it was going to angle over our way. Murphy's Law says it will, so I kept a constant vigil.
A couple hours later I could see a greenish, low cloud coming in from the west. I ran up to the bow, dropped the 150 and put a reef in the main. My competitors, who were sailing within a couple hundred yards of me, likely thought me quite mad. We were sailing in fair wind, making about 5.5 kts. when Cap'n Al starts running around his deck like a crazy man, dropping sails.
It was only 2-3 minutes or so, however, when the wind hit. It wasn't terrible, but the other guys were now dropping their sails, and they had to do it on decks heeling 45 degrees.
Another time I was sailing dead downwind near Presque Isle. I was making great time, moving along at 6 to 7 kts. I hadn't a worry in the world. What could be better? Suddenly, I felt the slightest breeze on my shoulder coming from the port side of the boat. It was nothing, really. Just a little breath of air, slightly cooler than the Southwest breeze in which I was sailing. It was just enough to prick my senses a tad. A few minutes later the skirt on the spinnaker began to flip back toward the boat. And I could feel the cool breeze on my shoulder again. Wind shift coming!
I grabbed the heavy 150 from down below and ran to the foredeck, hitched it up and ran it part way up the forestay. Once again the spinnaker skirt bobbled, only this time a little more. Still, Black Magic was headed north at 6-7 kts. Though I was flying along, my gut told me to shorten early. I doused the chute, and ran the headsail up, or vice-versa. Just as I got the headsail ready, I looked up ahead and here came the wind-line on the water, directly out of the north! Nearly a 180 degree wind shift. I turned to starboard about 60 degrees, then as the wind hit, rounded up to point.
The point is, the guy behind me had his spinnaker in his rigging. This scenario has repeated itself numerous times during the fifteen years I have been doing this race, not that I have won every time, but sometimes the little battles between you and Mother Nature can be as much fun.
I try to adhere to this rule as much as possible. A boat that has a herky-jerky motion, high rudder angles, and excessive heel is telling you a story. You just need to listen. Things break, things fall out of shelves, pillows get mussed up, the boat is slow, and sails get torn. Battles are lost simply because we didn't listen. And we can't have our pillows all mussed up, now can we?
Shorten early.
Big Al