navigating single handed

[Spirit (of Glenans)]

Because of the self-tacking jib? Not sure how you go about backing one to be honest.

I have never encountered one but I feel it should be possible to stop it self tacking with the use of a length of rope, or crossing it to the backed position similarly.

 

[Daydream believer]

Well it's certainly not a Hanse problem. I often sail a 445 and that heaves to easily.

Interesting. What wind strength did you heave too in?
Did the crew go below & totally leave the helm, or sit nearby & make the odd correction

 

[Daydream believer]

What you are describing is caused by the speed you require to complete the tack.Rather than trying to heave-to by tacking and leaving the jib sheeted, try doing it be releasing both sheets and the kicker, going head to wind and allowing the boat to come to a stop. This is called "Lying-to". It's a perfectly good way to stop a boat to perform some task on board, but the sails will flog violently. The answer is to haul the lazy jib sheet across to windward, so that the sail is in the "backed" position. The bow will start to pay off . The boom will swing to the same side as the backed jib. Next, turn the tiller towards, (wheel away from), the boom. The motion induced by the backed jib and the opposed rudder should cancel one another out and the boat will lay at such an angle to the wind that the mainsail will be almost, but not quite, head to wind, having enough tension to prevent flogging, but not drawing enough wind to induce any significant motion.

Do you think that I have not tried that? Actually one does not have a lazy sheet on a self tacker but I did try it with the barber hauler hooked to the car. But I am certainly not going to let my laminate jib & main flog for very long. They cost a fortune.

 

[capnsensible]

Interesting. What wind strength did you heave too in?
Did the crew go below & totally leave the helm, or sit nearby & make the odd correction

All sorts. We have sailed the boat all round the Canary Islands and up to Madeira and back. We always include a bit of sailing practice on the way including heaving to and man overboard procedures. Can't help myself.....

Yes the yacht will heave to and once properly set up, fore reaching slowly, can be left to do its thing.

Especially useful on longer trips as both headsare on the port side of the boat and are more easily used hove to.

 

[Daydream believer]

Heaving too in light airs & sitting by the helm making small adjustments now & then is NOT heaving too. Proper heaving too is setting the boat up in F8 plus. Going below & leaving the boat to its own devices ( lookout excepted)without flogging the life out of the sails & veering all over the place in such a way that it leaves itself vunerable to some waves.

 

[capnsensible]

In sailing, heaving to (to heave to and to be hove to) is a way of slowing a sailing vessel's forward progress, as well as fixing the helm and sail positions so that the vessel does not have to be steered.[1] It is commonly used for a "break"; this may be to wait for the tide before proceeding, or to wait out a strong or contrary wind. For a solo or shorthanded sailor it can provide time to go below deck, to attend to issues elsewhere on the boat or to take a meal break.[2][3] It is also used as a storm tactic.

If the thread is to go all pedantic......

 

[Daydream believer]

so that the vessel does not have to be steered.

Hmmm. Not steered ----- cannot argue with that !!!

 

[capnsensible]

Hmmm. Not steered ----- cannot argue with that !!!

Yes, rudder locked as I'm sure you know.

 

[Daydream believer]

Yes, rudder locked as I'm sure you know.

Cannot recall locking it on my last 2 boats. Long time ago. Never really found a position to lock it on this boat. I did start experimenting with the aeries steering--- pre covid-- but need some rough water & decent wind to play with, which I have not had for a couple of years. So I have not bothered.

 

[capnsensible]

Cannot recall locking it on my last 2 boats. Long time ago. Never really found a position to lock it on this boat. I did start experimenting with the aeries steering--- pre covid-- but need some rough water & decent wind to play with, which I have not had for a couple of years. So I have not bothered.

With wheel or tiller hard over, simply tie it in that position.

 

[jamie N]

Mine's a Folkboat, obviously a long keeler, which I've always imagined is an enormous advantage when heaving too, as it's an entirely simple thing to do without any great skill.
I'd no idea that 'other' keel types would be 'so' different; or am I misreading the thread?

 

[R.Ems]

Mine's a Folkboat, obviously a long keeler, which I've always imagined is an enormous advantage when heaving too, as it's an entirely simple thing to do without any great skill.
I'd no idea that 'other' keel types would be 'so' different; or am I misreading the thread?

They can be shockingly different, if you only sail proper boats.
You disembark wondering, 'why do people buy boats with such poor manners?
1/2 knot faster upwind, with a polished bottom and not loaded-down with cruising gear to achieve the results quoted by the maker, is it worth it though if she won't even heave to?
Although I'm wondering if the OP has missed something.

 

[Poignard]

Mine's a Folkboat, obviously a long keeler, which I've always imagined is an enormous advantage when heaving too, as it's an entirely simple thing to do without any great skill.
I'd no idea that 'other' keel types would be 'so' different; or am I misreading the thread?

My Twister is similar to a Folkboat in her underwater shape.

Heaving to is a piece of cake. Simply let go of the tiller and she luffs up and continues turning until the headsail is aback. Then hitch the tiller into the loop of shockcord attached to the lee guardrail and that's it.

 

[Tranona]

They can be shockingly different, if you only sail proper boats.
You disembark wondering, 'why do people buy boats with such poor manners?
1/2 knot faster upwind, with a polished bottom and not loaded-down with cruising gear to achieve the results quoted by the maker, is it worth it though if she won't even heave to?
Although I'm wondering if the OP has missed something.

Good to see all the old prejudices are still there.

People (like me) me buy modern cruising boats because they are near perfect for their requirements and like any product you learn how to get the best out of it. As the capn says modern boats do heave to once you find how to do it for your particular design - and most moderate cruising boats do heave to and track very well. Some of course, particularly the livelier more performance ones are more difficult but the sort of person that buys that type of boat does not have that high on their list of priorities.

I had a traditional long keel boat for 20 years before buying a modern boat - and then another even more "modern". The second one was a real delight and this is what I shall miss now I have decided to go back to a long keel boat of similar design to the first one. Quicker passage times - 6knots+ rather than maybe 5, so 2 hours quicker Poole/Cherbourg and 1 hour less Poole/Solent or Weymouth. ability to tack 5 1/2 tonnes of boat up and down Poole Harbour, lay east Looe from Hurst in one tack, fly a cruising chute in 10 knots of wind to get 7knots through the water with no effort, autopilot on and beer in hand. All of this on my own without moving forward of the wheel. Add to that all pilotage can be done from behind the wheel and if planned properly little need to go below on passage. And of course being a new boat everything was well put together and virtually nothing required repair or replacement for the 6 years I had it. Only downside from the sailing point of view is it did not like going to wind above 20 knots particularly in short seas, but not difficult to avoid this in my modest coastal cruising. On the other hand some have shown that similar boats suitably set up are perfectly capable of long distance cruising.

The decline of traditional boats (and owners was brought home to me today at our monthly club classic Boat meeting. When we started the group 25 years ago we had over 50 members, most of whom had wooden or early GRP boats. Now there were 20 at the meeting, including wives and only 2 of us still own 2classic" boats and in the club there are maybe 4 more, only one all wood.

Times change.

 

[Praxinoscope]

My previous boat, an Invicta 26, similar hull design to Folkboat, Twister etc, hove to beautifully, we were hit by by 55-60knt winds whilst in the Celtic Sea, we hove to and went below and let the winds blow through, the boat behaved perfectly.

 

[zoidberg]

Back in the day, I used to race yachts a bit. Cross Channel quite often. As navigator, I would spend quite a bit of time with my feet up at the chart table..... pretending to be busy. .

Was very good at making tea.

Certainly sounds like the Services Way of Sailing.

I imagine you became a dab hand at passing the assorted mugs of tea 'upstairs' inside a washing up bowl, so they didn't spill everwhere in a lumpy sea. And I'll bet you still marvel at the 'dim lightbulbs coming on' in some students when you quietly demonstrate that for every problem at sea, you.... er, they.... are expected to invent or find an answer.

 

[Daydream believer]

With wheel or tiller hard over, simply tie it in that position.

To give you an idea of what would happen. I did have a mooring for my boat at stone. I still have moorings for my launch & my Squib, which sit quite happily in the wind over tide etc. I stood & watched my Hanse one day. Rules are that we leave tiller tied to port. Thus tied, it was actually doing complete 360 degree turns every few minutes in the mooring. The mooring was no different to all the others that I have been supplying for the last 20 years for boats up to 35 ft.
Tying the helm over has the same effect as when the autopilot (regularly) cuts out. Does a lovely 360 complete with crash gybe .

 

[capnsensible]

Certainly sounds like the Services Way of Sailing.

I imagine you became a dab hand at passing the assorted mugs of tea 'upstairs' inside a washing up bowl, so they didn't spill everwhere in a lumpy sea. And I'll bet you still marvel at the 'dim lightbulbs coming on' in some students when you quietly demonstrate that for every problem at sea, you.... er, they.... are expected to invent or find an answer.

There is still the capacity to surprise.

Me. ' So you don't splash hot water on yourself, when you're making tea, use the sink'.

Always point out that the cups should be put in the sink first.

My mistake...

 

[Daydream believer]

My Twister is similar to a Folkboat in her underwater shape.

Heaving to is a piece of cake. Simply let go of the tiller and she luffs up and continues turning until the headsail is aback. Then hitch the tiller into the loop of shockcord attached to the lee guardrail and that's it.

First boat was a Stella. Same family as the Twister. Size for size it sailed every bit as good as my Hanse. Just felt so good- a proper little yacht. One could let the helm go with the sails trimmed for up wind & forget it. Down wind was another story. It is called "The Holman Roll"
Unfortunately, the comfort, speed & size of a Stella is just not in the same planet as my Hanse.

 

[Poignard]

First boat was a Stella. Same family as the Twister. Size for size it sailed every bit as good as my Hanse. Just felt so good. One could let the helm go with the sails trimmed for up wind & forget it. Down wind was another story. It is called "The Holman Roll"
Unfortunately, the comfort, speed & size of a Stella is just not in the same planet as my Hanse.

"
As a famous somebody or other once said: "Yer pays yer money (in my case not very much money) and yer takes yer choice!"