Greenheart
Well-Known Member
...it's said by many capable dinghy racers, and it makes sense...an upright boat presents more sail and must develop more forward thrust...and a hull which is heeled in the water must present a less-than-ideal hydrodynamic profile.
I remember reading of a non-sailing observer commenting on a dinghy race, who remarked that all the boats at the front seemed to be mostly upright, while those at the back perpetually heeled. The uninformed observer wondered why the back-numbers chose to sail at such an angle of heel, when clearly it did them no good.
I seem to remember (I may have read it thirty years ago, or possibly here last year) that the critical things to remember in a breeze are:
a) Get the sail as flat as possible to gain forward thrust, rather than let the sail 'bag' the wind and push sideways, causing heeling;
b) Don't worry about always filling the sail when it's really blowing - it may not seem efficient to have half of the area flapping, but as long as the sail is flat as possible, even half its area will give plenty of drive, and staying upright is most important;
c) Raise the centreboard slightly to reduce lateral resistance;
d) Rake the rig back to help spill wind - and to keep the centre of effort in line over the backed-up centreboard;
e) Get the traveller away from the centreline - because high pointing is less important than steady forward progress in boisterous conditions.
I can't remember if any or many of these apply to yachts as well as to dinghies. But if anyone knows other tips for staying upright when beating...feel free to share.
Please don't include "eat more pies" or similar suggestions. I'm supposed to be dieting, so smart solutions, rather than fatty ballast, are what I'll need. Thanks!
I remember reading of a non-sailing observer commenting on a dinghy race, who remarked that all the boats at the front seemed to be mostly upright, while those at the back perpetually heeled. The uninformed observer wondered why the back-numbers chose to sail at such an angle of heel, when clearly it did them no good.
I seem to remember (I may have read it thirty years ago, or possibly here last year) that the critical things to remember in a breeze are:
a) Get the sail as flat as possible to gain forward thrust, rather than let the sail 'bag' the wind and push sideways, causing heeling;
b) Don't worry about always filling the sail when it's really blowing - it may not seem efficient to have half of the area flapping, but as long as the sail is flat as possible, even half its area will give plenty of drive, and staying upright is most important;
c) Raise the centreboard slightly to reduce lateral resistance;
d) Rake the rig back to help spill wind - and to keep the centre of effort in line over the backed-up centreboard;
e) Get the traveller away from the centreline - because high pointing is less important than steady forward progress in boisterous conditions.
I can't remember if any or many of these apply to yachts as well as to dinghies. But if anyone knows other tips for staying upright when beating...feel free to share.
Please don't include "eat more pies" or similar suggestions. I'm supposed to be dieting, so smart solutions, rather than fatty ballast, are what I'll need. Thanks!
