de-powering a chute in a hurry......

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There's been a fair bit in the sailing journals and at LIBS recently about managing a cruising chute shorthanded. However I've not seen much in the way of de-powering a chute in a hurry and I'd welcome reading how others deal with this. I only fly our cruising chute/assymetric spinnaker (delete as appropriate) when I'm confident of a stable breeze of less than 15 kts. However one day we're going to get caught out with a gust and I'm not sure how I'd "dump the chute". We've a snuffer so my outline plan is to let the tack fly and snuff as fast as possible. I've learnt that from the YM article; previously we used to let the sheet go and snuff but that isn't as effrective at de-powering the sail.

Your experience would be gratefully received.

Rob
 
Put a quick release snap shackle on the tack line so when you want it to fly, it does. Otherwise concur with the others. With the rather narrow wind angle that a cruising chute works well in, theres a high possibility of a broach when the gust hits - been there & broaching a Vancouver 28 was quite alarming
 
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If you have the sea room/wind angle bear away in the gust and then, if you must, fly the tack line and sock as others have said. Without a sock lead the drop with halyard.
 
RobbieW said:
Put a quick release snap shackle on the tack line so when you want it to fly, it does.
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The idea of letting the tack go completely is rather alarming but I suppose its the only way to depower. Presumably in a strong gust and once released the sail could then be flying perpendicular to the masthead and if one has lost the snuffer line one is knackered! The only solution then is to pull it down via the sheet whilst letting go the halyard I suppose?
 
If its an emergency dump, release the sheet and let it flog. If the boat turns into the wind as the heal builds, if you dump the tack and it jams, you are up the proverbial creek.
 
First reaction should be to bear away. Then blow the tack line and either snuff or pull in the sheet and drop the halyard (under control) and bring it in behind the main, into the cockpit.
If the wind is starting to build, the first thing to do is unfurl the headsail, at least a fair bit. Perhaps not all the way if you've got significantly more than a 100% headsail. This will do three things - first, if you broach, it will give you some sail forward and will help you get the bow down and recover from the broach. Second, it will blanket the chute somewhat and make the take down easier. Third, if things go really bad, it will prevent a wrap around the forestay.
Edit - BlowingOldBoots makes a good point about the tack line. You have to make sure it will run free, and is easy to release. I do this by trailing the lot over the stern.
Also, for the drop (I don't have a snuffer), I trail the halyard over the stern, wrap it once around the halyard winch, then blow the halyard. The friction on the winch means the drop is controlled, and I have to pull the kite down rather than having it go in the water.
 
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Try and get a sail in an assymetric dinghy; a Laser 2000 is a relatively docile version. You learn very quickly that if you're overpowered you bear away, if you want to go faster you luff up. In a heavy gust on a yacht sail as deep as you can to get the chute behind the main then drop by your preferred method.
 
Letting the sheets fly is asking for a whipping - very painful.

If the tackline is led from the cockpit to the snapshackle pin of the tack ,the freeing of the tack becomes simpler and the weathercocking in the lee of the main takes much of the pressure out of the sail.
The sail is then lowered by freeing the halyard under control whilst retrieving both the clews and then straight down into the hatch.,loosely or into the sailbag.

Remember never ever put stopper knots in the sheets of spinnakers or chutes, the two sheets will run through their respective pulleys easily then, as opposed to "kite- sailing"and flying ropes to hit you.

I have never used a chute snuffer so cannot suggest any alternative method for those.

ianat182
 
deep denial said:
what's wrong with letting the sheet fly?
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Because firstly the sheets get a bit wild and dangerous, secondly, you risk a twist in the sheets jamming them in a turning block and ending up with a full kite still, thirdly the sail is out the front of the boat and thus harder to recover and if it rips/halyard parts etc will end up wrapped around the keel and lastly, you don't benefit from any shelter from the main with it blowing forward.... don't understimate the power that still exists in a flogging chute when the wind picks up!
 
What usually happens is that you get hit by a strong gust, boat heels over so bearing away is impossible.

First dump the kicker on the main, so when the main hit the water instead of the main being forced in (like pulling on the main sheet) and making things worse, the boon will rise and de-power.

Second, like others have said, dump the tack line. The tack line should be run back to the cockpit, to be easly reached by the helm/crew and should be about twice the length of the boat. This allows you to spil all the wind out of the gennaker

Third Pull the sheet in to tighten the leach of the gennaker and pull the sail behind the main.

The sail will then act like a flag, with little resistance and the totally de-powered.

This will work with or with out snuffer.

Just remenber to put some kicker back on once in control, you don't want to induce a chinese gybe.
 
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Twister_Ken said:
If it really does goes titzup, I'd leave blowing a corner as the last resort. I'd prefer to unfurl the genny to blanket the chute, then (because the snuffer probably won't work behind the genny, recover the chute under the genny and down the forehatch
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Snuffer always works behind the jib. We always do and have been doing so for years. In fact if things are getting a bit iffy, jib out soonest is the best preventative for a wrap. Rule 1 is to get the jib out. If having a panic dump the main. V important to have a proper tack line. Amazing the number of boats that fix asym to the stem. Leaves you a bit of a hostage to the gods!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Clive said:
What usually happens is that you get hit by a strong gust, boat heels over so bearing away is impossible.

First dump the kicker on the main, so when the main hit the water instead of the main being forced in (like pulling on the main sheet) and making things worse, the boon will rise and de-power.

Second, like others have said, dump the tack line. The tack line should be run back to the cockpit, to be easly reached by the helm/crew and should be about twice the length of the boat. This allows you to spil all the wind out of the gennaker

Third Pull the sheet in to tighten the leach of the gennaker and pull the sail behind the main.

The sail will then act like a flag, with little resistance and the totally de-powered.

This will work with or with out snuffer.

Just remenber to put some kicker back on once in control, you don't want to induce a chinese gybe.
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The voice of experience - sounds spot on !

Clearly in the ideal world one tries to anticipate the gust and bear off just BEFORE the gust. But in the real world when cruising, even with an Olympic crew on board, one can relax and not pay attention towindward, and leave too late. Hence the real world dump of kicker first, whch may recover, and then dump (or "spike" if have snap shackle) the tack line second
 
Clive said:
What usually happens is that you get hit by a strong gust, boat heels over so bearing away is impossible.

First dump the kicker on the main, so when the main hit the water instead of the main being forced in (like pulling on the main sheet) and making things worse, the boon will rise and de-power.
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My vote goes with Clive. Dump the kicker, the boom will rise even before it hits the water, the sail twists off and you dump power from the top of the mainsail and you'll drastically reduce heeling. Get your timing right and you can have the kicker back on in a couple of seconds with virtually no deviation from your intended course.

Bear off to ease the force on the sails when dropping or snuffing the chute and blanket it behind the main. Spiking the shackle at the clew is a last resort but you'd better have a strong crew ready to catch the chute.

I'm also for knots in the guy/spinnaker/tack line and none in the halyard. Dump the halyard and the kite will come down. OK, you might have to re-run the halyard, but dumping the sheets/guys/tack line gives you a spinnaker flapping from the top of the mast.

Interestingly Clive, regarding your comment about the chinese gybe, a serious racer was teaching me to sail by the lee in a F6 and he reckon that a tight leech made you more vulnerable to a gybe, so the kicker was relatively eased. I managed about thirty miles sailing by the lee in a F6 and mod-rough seas so it seemed to work.
 
Ease Sheet In An Emergency De Power

There are two situations being talked about here: -

1. Taking the cruising chute down in windy conditions.
2. Emergency de powering.

In my experience of both Spinnaker and Cruising Chutes in a situation where you have to de power in an emergency you give the sheet a big ease out until the sail partially collapses of flaps. The sail will just flap from its tack / head and everything is still in control, just noisy.

Dumping from the Tack Line / Guy is a potentialrecipe for disaster in an emergency de powering situation. Tying knots in sheets and guys is an ingredient in that disaster recipe and it is not something I would recommend or do on my own boat. There is no sense in dumping the sail by letting go the halyard as it can very rapidly escalate the situation by running over a sheet, tack line, sail and fouling your keel, prop, rudder. Easing the sheet until the sail flaps in an emergency maintains control of the sail with two corners closely connected to the boat. Nothing else needs to be sheeted in or pulled, just ease out the sheet in an emergency de powering situation.

Once de powered and it is decided that you dont want the cruising chute drawing again, position the boat downwind (if you have sea room), ease the main, then take in the slack on the sheet and feed out on the tack line (so that the sail does not reset) and lower as normal.

Anyway, that's my experience, it works for me with no drama except noise.
 
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