keiran searle AUS
New Member
when and why do i change my outhaul through the race 
changing outhaul
- Thread starter keiran searle AUS
- Start date
JacksonAUS
New Member
OK, seeing as nobody else has replied, i'll have a go. I'm a self taught sailor by the way, so please correct me if i'm wrong.
This is what i've learnt along the way.... When you are heading up wind (beating) you want the sail to be nice and flat, so pull the outhaul on reasonably tight. This will increase the amount of sail area that is actually being utilised, and creates more lift.
When sailing side on to the wind (reaching) you let off some outhaul depending on how far up or downwind you are sailing. It opens up the sail and allows more wind to occupy it, as the wind is hitting the sail side on. And by pushing into the sail on a diagonal direction it propels the boat forwards.
When going down wind (running) you have the outhaul let off quite a lot. This really opens up the sail a lot and allows as much wind as possible to enter the sail, like a spinnaker.
It's sort of hard to explain, and takes a lot of time and experimenting to master. But the main principles are:
-Beating: on tight
-Reaching: let off a bit
-Running: a fair amount off
Another thing to remember is that it also depends on how windy it is. In light wind you will exagerate how much outhaul you are letting off... and in strong wind you have almost all of the outhaul pulled on while beating, and not let off too much while sailing downwind.
While racing it is also good to watch what other sailors are doing, if they adjust their sails and gain speed it may be wise to adjust your own and see how it affects your own speed.
This is what i've learnt along the way.... When you are heading up wind (beating) you want the sail to be nice and flat, so pull the outhaul on reasonably tight. This will increase the amount of sail area that is actually being utilised, and creates more lift.
When sailing side on to the wind (reaching) you let off some outhaul depending on how far up or downwind you are sailing. It opens up the sail and allows more wind to occupy it, as the wind is hitting the sail side on. And by pushing into the sail on a diagonal direction it propels the boat forwards.
When going down wind (running) you have the outhaul let off quite a lot. This really opens up the sail a lot and allows as much wind as possible to enter the sail, like a spinnaker.
It's sort of hard to explain, and takes a lot of time and experimenting to master. But the main principles are:
-Beating: on tight
-Reaching: let off a bit
-Running: a fair amount off
Another thing to remember is that it also depends on how windy it is. In light wind you will exagerate how much outhaul you are letting off... and in strong wind you have almost all of the outhaul pulled on while beating, and not let off too much while sailing downwind.
While racing it is also good to watch what other sailors are doing, if they adjust their sails and gain speed it may be wise to adjust your own and see how it affects your own speed.
DynaSail
New Member
Just a few more pointers... When adjusting the outhal you are effectively changing mainly the depth of the lower part of the sail. Jackson is quite right with the main principles. The three settings he proposes can be aplied to most weather conditions. If you want to find out the best setting for different weather conditions you have to take the following under consideration.
Measure the distance between the boom and the sail. You can do this with the following ways...
1) Use your hand to measure the depth by alternating the distance between your thumb and your fingers - I prefer this
2) Stick a scaled distance measure sticker at the end of the boom near the outhal grommet - I dont recomment it as stickers can get caught up in the clew tie-down
3) Mark the end of the boom with a waterproof marker at set intervals i.e. every 2 centimeters
With the distance calculated you can try different settings to see what is best under different conditions. Generally, while you are not overpowered or there is very light wind you can try out the following settings...
1) Beating: 10 - 15 cm
2) Reaching : About 15 cm
3) Running : 15 - 20 cm
These settings are not the best ones, just a rough guidline. It is up to you to try the settings and find what is best for you according to your body metrics (weight, height, physical condition...). Try different settings, note the setting you used and try to get a comparison of your performance. You will eventually get a feel of your speed and the right setting for you...
! A couple of things to take under consideration are in the following:
1) When the wind is too strong depower your sail because sailing flat is much faster than having a perfect trim. Start with the cunningham to depower/open the leech, continue with pulling down the boom with the boom vang and finally set the outhall according to the power you can take
2) In very light wind conditions the outhal must be as tight as posible as long as it doesn't deform the sail. This must be so because we want to have as much as posible wind flow on the sail and as litle as posible wing turbulence. This is especially good practice when beating...
Measure the distance between the boom and the sail. You can do this with the following ways...
1) Use your hand to measure the depth by alternating the distance between your thumb and your fingers - I prefer this
2) Stick a scaled distance measure sticker at the end of the boom near the outhal grommet - I dont recomment it as stickers can get caught up in the clew tie-down
3) Mark the end of the boom with a waterproof marker at set intervals i.e. every 2 centimeters
With the distance calculated you can try different settings to see what is best under different conditions. Generally, while you are not overpowered or there is very light wind you can try out the following settings...
1) Beating: 10 - 15 cm
2) Reaching : About 15 cm
3) Running : 15 - 20 cm
These settings are not the best ones, just a rough guidline. It is up to you to try the settings and find what is best for you according to your body metrics (weight, height, physical condition...). Try different settings, note the setting you used and try to get a comparison of your performance. You will eventually get a feel of your speed and the right setting for you...
! A couple of things to take under consideration are in the following:
1) When the wind is too strong depower your sail because sailing flat is much faster than having a perfect trim. Start with the cunningham to depower/open the leech, continue with pulling down the boom with the boom vang and finally set the outhall according to the power you can take
2) In very light wind conditions the outhal must be as tight as posible as long as it doesn't deform the sail. This must be so because we want to have as much as posible wind flow on the sail and as litle as posible wing turbulence. This is especially good practice when beating...
When beating in heavy weather and large waves and you are overpowered! pull on the kicker and downhaul to depower the rig and if u find u are hitting alot of waves let the outhaul out a few cm and the boat will rise over the waves! i disagree with jackson's comment on the tight outhaul in strong winds! i never have my sail tighter than finger length from between the boom and the sail! however this is because i do sail in fairly choppy seas! come on its england! i might be wrong and if am someone please tell me but it works for me!
JacksonAUS
New Member
Cool, like I said, i'm pretty much self taught, so there's still a lot that i don't know. I'll have to try out that tip of yours James, as we have massive waves in Port Phillip Bay, which can really slow you down on the upwind leg.
in essence the outhaul moves the draft of the sail up and down, and by doing that will change the position of your CE. the main use wis to balence the CE and CLR.
Like in a situation where your have your centerboard up (except sailing by the lee) your CLR will become higher in the water, therefore to make the boat more balenced you want to let your outhaul off to bring the CE (draft) of the sail closer to the hull to balence it out with the CLR
Like in a situation where your have your centerboard up (except sailing by the lee) your CLR will become higher in the water, therefore to make the boat more balenced you want to let your outhaul off to bring the CE (draft) of the sail closer to the hull to balence it out with the CLR
GeoffS
Member
james17 said:
CLR = Center of Lateral Resistance (of the hull/daggerboard)
GeoffS
Member
james17 said:
CLR is actually the same concept as CE. Where the CE involves the point where all the aerodynamic sail forces can be imagined to push on the rig, the CLR is the point where all the hydrodynamic forces can be imagined to push on the hull.
Often people think of the CLR as the point the boat spins around when it's turned hard.
When CE and CLR are lined up vertically the boat is balanced, with neither lee or weather helm. If the CE is aft of the CLR (fairly common) the boat will have some weather-helm (i.e. the boat wants to head up). If the CE is forward of the CLR then the boat will have some lee-helm (i.e. the boat wants to turn off the wind).
I'll try and find a diagram; I saw a good one *somehwere* just yesterday...
Cheers,
Geoff S.
GeoffS
Member
CE/CLR diagram
Windsurfers have to pay close attention to CE and CLR because that's all they have to steer with:
http://ist-socrates.berkeley.edu/~wprinz/windsurfing/Steer.html
Cheers,
Geoff S.
Windsurfers have to pay close attention to CE and CLR because that's all they have to steer with:
http://ist-socrates.berkeley.edu/~wprinz/windsurfing/Steer.html
Cheers,
Geoff S.
Well put geoff, i think many people dont understand the concepts of CE and CLR, or they do but do not think they aply to a laser because it has a non piviting centerboard.
One book i sudjest reading if you want to understand CE and CLR is "Advanced sailing skills" put out by canadian yachting association.
CLR can actually be a great asset to your speed when set up right, changing your seating position in the boat and bringing the centerboard up both affect the placement of your CLR. EX: sitting beside the daggerboard trunk and raising your centerboard will put your CLR very far forward, where as having your centerboard all the way down and sitting far aft, will oviously move the CLR aft.
i see many sailors doing things like changing their seating position in lighter winds but do not realize why, it's always if your coach tells you something on the water, ask them about it when you come in, get them to explain why they told you to do it and how it effected the boat
- Alex
One book i sudjest reading if you want to understand CE and CLR is "Advanced sailing skills" put out by canadian yachting association.
CLR can actually be a great asset to your speed when set up right, changing your seating position in the boat and bringing the centerboard up both affect the placement of your CLR. EX: sitting beside the daggerboard trunk and raising your centerboard will put your CLR very far forward, where as having your centerboard all the way down and sitting far aft, will oviously move the CLR aft.
i see many sailors doing things like changing their seating position in lighter winds but do not realize why, it's always if your coach tells you something on the water, ask them about it when you come in, get them to explain why they told you to do it and how it effected the boat
- Alex
keiran searle AUS
New Member
i actually sail 4.7 so any numbers for that?