I’ve raced sailboats for over six years now. However, my time is typically spent in pit and trimming jib or guy. I was taught how to do foredeck a long time ago when I took a J World class on a J-80. Yet, I haven’t really done foredeck in a racing situation. Tonight, I got to the boat (J-24) and realized that our usual foredeck person was not able to make the race. I totally believe that everyone on […]
In Chapter 11 of his book Racing Trim, Bill Gladstone talks about spinnaker trim. The following post shows a short summary of that chapter. When flying a spinnaker, remember that optimum true wind angle changes with wind speed. The optimum ranges from somewhere around 140 – 145 degrees in light wind to 165 degrees in 14 knots. At winds higher than that, steer directly for the mark. However, planing boats and sport boats can benefit from sailing higher angles There are […]
Have you been to Block Island? Last week, I had the opportunity to sail in Block Island Race Week for the first time. The regatta rotates hosts every other year. Odd numbered years tend to have more participants than even numbered years. The lower number of participants is partially due to the fact that the even year regattas take place the same week as the Newport to Bermuda race. Even though the race week was fairly small — […]
Wednesday night was a great night for racing in Annapolis. It was one of few Wednesday nights this summer that we’ve had good wind to sail. At first, it didn’t look like there were going to be many boats out on the course, but the fleet filled out in time for an active start. Course B6 was posted with the R flag. Remember, the R flag has the red background with the yellow +. It signifies that the race course […]
In Chapter 10 of his book Racing Trim, Bill Gladstone talks about asymmetric spinnaker handling. The following post shows a short summary of that chapter. Asymmetric Spinnaker Handling For asymmetric spinnakers, two sheets are attached to the clew. A tack line controls the tack and holds it against the sprit when sail is hoisted. An asymmetric spinnaker doesn’t use a guy. Asymmetric Spinnaker Sets For a bear away set, the pole is extended first. Then, the tack line pulls the sail […]
I had been sailing for a while, coiling lines the “usual” way. Then, a friend introduced me to the figure 8 coil. It’s pretty much as it sounds — the line is coiled in a figure 8 pattern. By now, you may be asking yourself why you should care about this. In a regular coil, it is easy for the loops to shift and get tangled with each other (think bad knots, twists and kinks that don’t help the boat […]
I write this post in the spirit of the warm sunny weekend weather. Whatever your drink of choice, it’s SO important to stay hydrated. Its even more enjoyable when your drink stays cold on a hot day. I have a bunch of water bottles — the Sigg metal ones and the plastic ones. However, I started looking for a bottle where the drinking surface is covered by an additional lid. This is actually driven by some kayaking that I’ve […]
OK — admittedly, this is kind of a weird post for a sailing blog. What I’m actually talking about here is laser hair removal. My skin is really fair and my hair is dark brown. So, I always felt like I had obvious stubble in my underarm area. That made me really self conscious wearing any kind of a tank top or sleeveless shirt — especially when I had to lift my arms over my head to jump a sail, […]
In Chapter 9 of his book Racing Trim, Bill Gladstone talks about downwind boat handling. The following post shows a short summary of that chapter. Spinnaker Sets Pre-Rig — Plan everything for the spinnaker before the race starts. Run the spinnaker tapes, connect the halyard, and sheets (or sheet and guy), and pre-rig the downhaul and topping lift on the pole. Set Up — Know whether you will hoist the spinnaker from the hatch or the leeward rail. Pole Up — […]
America’s Cup World Series
On the way back from Block Island, I stopped in Newport to watch some of the America’s Cup World Series Practice. That was my first time seeing those boats in person. It was an impressive sight to watch how quickly they moved — and the crew members’ racing attire, which includes helmets and body armor. I was lucky enough to arrive at the America’s Cup village in time to see Oracle #5 put in the water by the crane. […]
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