Stormy Crossing

I am just glad I wasn't in an AWB!!!!! If we had been sensible we would have turned right and gone into L'abervrach when we had got the Falmouth Forecast, but I actually wanted more experiance of the boat in nasty weather. - last year we didn't even put a reef in.

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Van de Stadt designs are really good in a blow. Whenever I crew for Humperdinck on his VdS 33 Seacracker it seems to blow F9! When I'm not there he suffers from calms .

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Re: enclosed wheel house

I recall similar conditions in a Sailar 40 on a delivery trip from Plymouth to Beaulieu and she behaved very well. All the crew were seasick apart from self and the owners 12 year old son and we managed her between us. She was also fitted with radar and I found this a great help in standing off Portland Bill in poor viz.

Don't know if this helps, but in any wind I now always bear away onto a broad reach when furling the headsail as the main blanklets it and takes all the power out. This saves any winching and makes furling a doddle.

Great sail and well told.

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Pls Expand

"I was worried about running before the wind with the steep rollers on our oppostite beam."

Why wd it matter which gybe you were on? Prhps its Monday but I am missung something. You'd be rolling - maybe the boom wd be submerged on each roll - but youd have a preventer rigged so why is it worse on port than starboard gybe?

Interesting account - I do recognise the rounding Ushant/Chenal du Four comment, but it's usually travelling south and the rollers are from the South West!

<hr width=100% size=1>A pontification from the Panjandrum of orotund bloviation AD2003
 
Re: enclosed wheel house

Having recently installed the furling Genoa, I'm still discovering the best way to handle it. Can high luff tension make the thing harder to roll in???

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trouble furling

Wouldn't have thought so if all is well with the bearings. Have you got an adjustable backstay? If so you might try cracking that off an inch or two before furling - it will take some of the weight off the genoa luff without fiddling with halyard tension.

BTW - I've found that the way you unfurl the sail has a lot to do with how easily it furls. If it is let go in a rush, it can be a b*gger to furl, but if it is surged out under strict control it comes back in like a lamb.

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Furling Problems..

We found that our furler when new suffered similar problems. Tweaking the halyard tension did make a difference - the angle between luff track and halyard at the top bearing is important to ensuring that everything works. Now ours has had some use (and is now presumably "run in"), we haven't had any problems.

Regards, Jeff.

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Re: enclosed wheel house

Hi Chris

Yes, if you have a really tight luff it will be much harder to furl and you can ease the halyard a little to improve matters. On the other hand, if your forestay is slack this will also make it difficult and on my previous boat tightening the backstay to put a little pre-bend and forestay tension made a huge difference.

Furling hard on the wind is difficult and should be avoided, as should winching on the furling line. As mentioned previously, blanketing the jib makes life very easy and saves the flogging you get when furling to windward. Allows for a much tidier stow also.

I've now marked the furling line with coloured whippings at each of 3 'reefing' points and have marked the sail with coloured vertical tapes (spinnaker repair cut in half lengthwise) at each corresponding point on the foot. Also marked the car positions for each reef. This makes life much easier and takes out some of the guesswork.

The final reef takes the clew just clear of the babystay. In this position, I can put the clew midships by hauling both sheets. The genoa is then self-tacking which is great for solo work to windward.

Furling genoas do take a bit of getting used to, but they're great for short-handed sailing. I'm sure you'll soon get the hang of it.

Regards
Tom

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Re: Pls Expand

Expansion - With a very large short sea from the east, I was not sure how the boat would react to having the steadying infuence of the sails coming from the west. Also - given the nature of the Thundery showers forecast, I didn't believe that the wind would last long from this quarter - so I thought it best to go due east and wait for the wind to settle - as it did - from the SE at 40 Knots!

As for the boom - it is high and would be unlikely to touch the waves. A preventer - I hate them, I will use them in light sloppy weather but never when it is blowing hard. Perhaps I am wrong - I'll start another thread about it later today - or if you get there first - go for it.

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Re: trouble furling

I think I need to do some experiments! I normally let the sail go under tension, as I can see that a loose wind on the roler would not be helpful.

Anyway - they are a great improvement on hanked on headsails! we would have been on the foredeck half a dozens times during the night, as it was we never even had our ollies on. Despite the loss of wind sence in a wheel house, I wouldn't change for anything!

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Welcome Home Chris

Nice to see your back home :) your account of the trip is excellent, it sounds that you enjoyed every second. Drop in for a tipple on "Nell" when your down at your boat next.

"Motor Sailers do it in the dry, standing up" :)

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The great thing about the Victory - is that it runs straight, no matter what angle of heel you are at. The under water profile is more like the flights of an arrow, with a cut away forefoot, but with the keel and balanced rudder extending right to the stern.

There is therefore no tendancy it seems to broach, which is wonderfully reassuring downs wind on a black night, when you can't feel the wind because of the wheelhouse.

Where is Humperdinks boat now -

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Re: Welcome Home Chris

Yes I should be about on Saturday, I need to scrub the green off the teak, you can give me a hand if you like :) and tell me more of your trip :) over a tipple or two..

<hr width=100% size=1>David
 
He is in Poole now

I believe he's had enough of being ripped off at Penarth

this is what he writ on BYM
''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Crest Nicholson are Greedy Bas*ards

No, the title is not libelous: just read the price increases for my (ex)marina on the Bristol Channel. Such increases defy all logical reasoning.


While the RPI (Retail Price Index) is running at <3%,

· A 6.5% increase in fees
· A 15% increase in lift fees
· A 53% increase in cradle hire fees
· A 31% increase in chocking fees
· A 15% increase in inspection lift fees
· A 19% increase in storage fees
· A 18% increase in hull wash off fees
· A 20% increase in boat movement fees
· A 20% increase in weekly lift out package fees


Small wonder so many people are buying new 40 footes if the relative increase in cost is small compared to keeping a 36 footer.


<hr width=100% size=1>David
 
>>>The great thing about the Victory - is that it runs straight, no matter what angle of heel you are at. The under water profile is more like the flights of an arrow, with a cut away forefoot, but with the keel and balanced rudder extending right to the stern. There is therefore no tendancy it seems to broach..

Pretty much what I'd expect from sailing the Seacracker. Sailing a VdS Ocean 71 in a real ocean blow has just been added to my list of sailing ambitions.



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Re: trouble furling

>>>>Anyway - they are a great improvement on hanked on headsails! we would have been on the foredeck half a dozens times during the night, as it was we never even had our ollies on. Despite the loss of wind sence in a wheel house, I wouldn't change for anything!

Sounds great - you're not recruiting crew at the moment are you?

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Re: trouble furling

I to have a 'wheelhouse' and have to agree despite the various issues discussed. Being comfortable in bad conditions is worth a hell of a lot in any situation (and about 4 shots on opponents on a golf course!)

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