Flaking a 130% genoa single-handed ?

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Boo2

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Hi,

Just took the sails down yesterday and found the genoa a huge pita to flake and stow. In fact I've left it until next week as I ran out of daylight...

Can Anyone tell me the best way to flake the genoa on a 34' IOR style boat ? I was trying to flake it parallel with the foot, hopefully that's correct ? The basic problem is getting the folds along the length of the flake while walking up and down the same small bit of sidedeck that sail is on...


Thanks,

Boo2
 
Boo2 said:
Hi,

Just took the sails down yesterday and found the genoa a huge pita to flake and stow. In fact I've left it until next week as I ran out of daylight...

Can Anyone tell me the best way to flake the genoa on a 34' IOR style boat ? I was trying to flake it parallel with the foot, hopefully that's correct ? The basic problem is getting the folds along the length of the flake while walking up and down the same small bit of sidedeck that sail is on...


Thanks,

Boo2
Click to expand...

While the weather was still fine and dry I spread mine out on the boat yard croquet lawn and folded it there.
 
ianfr said:
I cheat, Initially bundle it into a bag and get it ashore.

I am lucky in that I have access to a space big enough to lay the sail flat to fold, but any decent sized living room would be easier than on the boat.

Ian
Click to expand...

We do much the same, drop the genoa into rough flakes on the side decks, roll it up, tie with sail ties,carry it ashore (takes two of us) and flake it on concrete ashore. Yes to the OP, flake it from the foot, dragging the progressively narrower sail over each flake.
 
A word of caution if you are flaking it on the side deck, be very careful if standing on the sail, the multiple layers of material become very slippery.
 
About to use the same procedure on the spinnaker. Surprising how big it looks on the ground!
P1010501.jpg
 
Boo2 said:
Can Anyone tell me the best way to flake the genoa on a 34' IOR style boat ?
Click to expand...

Easiest way is to find a second person to help. Usually better if you can line all the flakes up along the luff - certainly if you're going to do a racing hoist, although in your case the advantage is it'll mean you won't have to be pulling the luff forward as you hoist, making it easier to hoist on your own.

One trick I was taught by a French crew mate was to put a triangle in the foot. Person A holds the clew tight whilst person B puts a flake in luff - means the first flake is triangular in shape. It really does help line the sail up for flaking along the luff. I've rarely seen anyone in the UK or Ireland do it, but it really does help.

Then just flake as normal with person A at the leech working his way to the luff. Once flaked, roll up from the leech.

If you have leech battens however, you'll need to either take them out or flake in such a way you make sure they aren't bent.
 
Virtually impossible on the boat even more impossible on your own on the boat. Stuff it in a bag and take it home.
 
I wrote about this in my singlehanded tips book. Leave it hanked onto the forestay and use that as "the other person" than just work you way from the back, flaking as you go. I've even rehanked the sail back onto the forestay just to do this. Then just fold it from the back to the front.
DSC03069-2.jpg
 
I had to flake mine on my own for a 36 Ft boat on a swinging mooring this year. luckily it was flat calm, if there's any breeze forget about it.
I lowered the sail taking it off the foil then hoisted it again fully flying. Moved the Genoa car fully aft then sheeted the foot straight along the side deck. Lowered the halyard enough for 1 flake then walked from the leach to the luff stretching out the sail to form the first flake which in my case was not parallel, more triangular. ( the width of flake should be the length of sail bag). Then lowered the halyard for 2nd flake and repeated the walk, this flake was parallel. repeated for 3rd and subsequent parallel flakes until the head went roughly in the middle.
Untied the halyard, tack, and sheet, and folded the tack and clew into the middle.repeating the folding and sitting on it until it was small enough to get into the sail bag.
 
My self tacking jib is approx 3.2 m in the foot & 11m in the luff so nowhere as big as my genny, but it is laminate so does not like creases
My solution is to tie foot & clew to a piece of 100mm soil pipe ( holes drilled for tying) then sit at the pulpit & rotate the pipe, which lays down the side deck. Carry ashore stick it on the car roof rack . I leave the mainsail in the sail cover I use with the lazy jacks & put ties around it carry it ashore, lay it on a ladder with sail cover battens & full length sail battens still in place , put that on the roof rack with the jib & lash it up. Take it to the yacht club saloon bar & lay it all out when no one around ( wife has the keys !!)& fold it all up properly for the winter or take to the sailmaker once I have examined for damage
 
Spyro said:
Virtually impossible on the boat even more impossible on your own on the boat. Stuff it in a bag and take it home.
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Aaah you youngsters! another skill that has gone by the board, those of us that are old enough to have raced with multiple headsails of varying weights and sizes in the days before rolly up headfoils would have been be flaking a sail half a dozen times every day, new one up, old one down and along the side deck, packed, tied and down the forehatch. Though when we graduated to a marina berth they were always taken on to the pontoon at the end to be re-done. I agree that it is a two man job unless you are stationary in a flat calm.
On my first overnight offshore crewing in a Ruffian 23, approaching Ailsa Craig I was sent for the number two in the early hours, I was lugging it out of the companionway but was sent back to take it out of the bag and set it up through the forehatch, it was very dark down below, the boat and sail were unfamiliar and I was already feeling queasy, the sail came out the hatch accompanied by my dinner, I told them they should have let me bring it out via the cockpit!
When the no 1 came down it was not properly flaked at all but I was able to deal with it under a lot less pressure.
 
ianfr said:
I cheat, Initially bundle it into a bag and get it ashore.

I am lucky in that I have access to a space big enough to lay the sail flat to fold, but any decent sized living room would be easier than on the boat.

Ian
Click to expand...
Similar here, I make a best effort with it laid on the foredeck, bag it, then drop it into the dinghy to take home.
I use my local village hall to lay it out and flake it, which takes a lot of walking from end to end if you are on your own!
 
lpdsn said:
Easiest way is to find a second person to help. Usually better if you can line all the flakes up along the luff - certainly if you're going to do a racing hoist, although in your case the advantage is it'll mean you won't have to be pulling the luff forward as you hoist, making it easier to hoist on your own.
Click to expand...
Yes, hoisting is another tricky thing to do single handed. I've still got to buy a feeder with rollers to replace the solid stainless feeding claw gadget I've got atm, problem is, as you say, when the luff is not totally aligned the sailrs ruck up before the feeder so it's back forrard to unhitch it and thn back to the halyard winch again. Last time I was back and forth must have been 20 times.

lpdsn said:
One trick I was taught by a French crew mate was to put a triangle in the foot. Person A holds the clew tight whilst person B puts a flake in luff - means the first flake is triangular in shape. It really does help line the sail up for flaking along the luff. I've rarely seen anyone in the UK or Ireland do it, but it really does help.
Click to expand...
OK, I will have a go at doing that next week, can't make a worse mess than I did yesterday...

Foolish Muse said:
I wrote about this in my singlehanded tips book. Leave it hanked onto the forestay and use that as "the other person" than just work you way from the back, flaking as you go. I've even rehanked the sail back onto the forestay just to do this. Then just fold it from the back to the front.
Click to expand...
I have a copy of your book from Amazon, FM, but must admit I missed that part. I don't have hanks but could try to incrementally flake the sail as I drop it down the luff groove I suppose. My problem is that I'm scared to trust any drop in wind to last long enough so once I start to drop the sail I like to get it down as fast as possible.

Quandary said:
Aaah you youngsters! another skill that has gone by the board, those of us that are old enough to have raced with multiple headsails of varying weights and sizes in the days before rolly up headfoils would have been be flaking a sail half a dozen times every day, new one up, old one down and along the side deck, packed, tied and down the forehatch. Though when we graduated to a marina berth they were always taken on to the pontoon at the end to be re-done. I agree that it is a two man job unless you are stationary in a flat calm.
Click to expand...
Sunrunner is a one man boat, sail packing is the worst if not the only bad aspect of that. I was hoping to find out a secret sure-fire way to do this alone in a gale on the side deck but it seems that "stuff it in the bag any old way and wait till you reach port" is the accepted maxim. Is that really what the single-handed round the world yachtsfolk do ?

Boo2
 
If you're single handed and it's not too windy then using a few clothes pegs to hold the bits you've done whilst you do the rest can help.
 
I tried doing this on deck on my rather large (150%, 6m foot or so) Genoa. Didn't really work very well, so i dragged the whole mess onto the pontoon and did it there, with the tack and clew tied to a mooring cleat each to hold it in place, and two weights (already full sailbag and bucket of water) to keep the end i wasn't working on flaked while i ran back and forth. About halfway through this someone came by and helped, which sped it up considerably :)
 
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