Using a Flying Jib or similar + not unfurling the Genoa ??

[carrswood]

Hi all
Roller furlers are great and for convenience suit our family use of my 32' Pioneer 10. But too my mind in a blow (say 25-35 knots) and on the wind the resulting furled Genoa is not an ideal set for efficient upwind sailing is it? Its also not very nice seeing your brand new sails being pulled and stretched into a shape I'd rather they weren't !!

In summary thats what I was doing in the solent on Saturday. Had a cracking sail but I couldn't help but think i'd rather leave the Genoa furled and fly a flying jib, blade or something effective which isn't as small as a storm sail!

SO, to all those keen sailors with roller furling headsails and not those who hank on the correct sail in the first place!!: ......do you fly an alternative when it blows??

Or do you choose to throttle the life out of your Genoa and end up with a sail thats not very efficient??

Interested to read your thoughts

 

[Kelpie]

A free-flying jib isn't going to have enough luff tension to be good on the wind in a blow, unless you perhaps release the standing rigging tension, at which point it is probably more sensible to fit a removable inner forestay instead.

I recently replaced a saggy old 150% genoa with a 130% with padded luff, and it has completely changed the boat's heavy weather performance. I don't let myself worry too much about stressing the sail in heavy conditions because, well, if you start thinking like that you'll end up never leaving the mooring.

 

[sailor211]

I have an inner forestay and no 3 genoa for conditions 25 kts plus and it works well above 20 kts so should use it more and change faster.

if you do not want an inner forestay, a dyneema halyard on a 2:1 porchase and a winch may work.

On our contessa 32 with wire luff on the genoa we cound take the load off the forestay fairly easily. That was hanked on but should work if you haul it up quickly enough.

FI it was wire with three turns around eth winch and rope tail from there

 

[webcraft]

.
I intend to fit a removeable inner forestay this Winter to fly a blade jib from. It will also require new tracks inboard of the shrouds, otherwise the sheeting angle would render the new set-up useless.

- W

 

[Kurrawong_Kid]

I have recently fitted a 110 degree blade genoa for 4-5-6 wind strength-works very well-far better than the previous 135 degree. Am thinking of going the other way to the above i.e setting flying a multi purpose lightweight genoa for force 2-3 on a dyneema halyard just behind the furled sail, or perhaps in front.

 

[PeterR]

I bought a roller No1 and a roller No3 blade for my Dufour 34. Like you I hate the idea of going to windward with the No1 heavily reefed so I intended changing for each trip depending on the weather but more and more I am just leaving the blade No3 up and keeping the No1 for racing. I have just got back from sailing round UK and after about one third distance the No1 never saw the light of day. However I do have a fairly big main so the performance loss on the wind in light weather is not too dramatic and off the wind we use a chute if progress is slow. Above 16K true wind the No3 really comes into its own and above 30K, with two or three rolls in, it retains its shape and takes us to windward without any worries of sail distortion. The added benefit is that short tacking in confined waters is a doddle.

If I did get caught with the No1 up and had to go to windward in very strong winds, rather than reef it heavily or try and take it down and switch to the No3 I have a wire inner forestay I can hoist on a dyneema spinnaker halyard and a storm jib to clip onto it.

 

[charles_reed]

Hi all
Roller furlers are great and for convenience suit our family use of my 32' Pioneer 10. But too my mind in a blow (say 25-35 knots) and on the wind the resulting furled Genoa is not an ideal set for efficient upwind sailing is it? Its also not very nice seeing your brand new sails being pulled and stretched into a shape I'd rather they weren't !!

In summary thats what I was doing in the solent on Saturday. Had a cracking sail but I couldn't help but think i'd rather leave the Genoa furled and fly a flying jib, blade or something effective which isn't as small as a storm sail!

SO, to all those keen sailors with roller furling headsails and not those who hank on the correct sail in the first place!!: ......do you fly an alternative when it blows??

Or do you choose to throttle the life out of your Genoa and end up with a sail thats not very efficient??

Interested to read your thoughts

I use my #3 genoa, on the roller reefing, for heavier winds (F5 to windward and F7 off-wind).

It rolls up to a very much more practical foresail than the storm jib, in really heavy weather.

Your desire is, IMHO, impossible in practice, so you'd better acknowledge the fact that sailing requires some sail-handling.

 

[carrswood]

thanks for all the replies
The removable inner forestay would be an ideal solution. Some of you mention a No.2 & No.3 Jib. What would be the typical sail area for one of these sails on a 32-34' boat