Can you reef a Laser sail?

I felt this topic needed its own thread, so I've created it, CJ.

You can reef a Laser sail. I've never done it, but I hear that you take out the top batten and then wrap the sail 3 times. I think you lose the fine tuning with the sail controls with this method.
 
Thanks merrily, we just had a super windy day in Kansas. winds blowing 40 plus and i know it would be impossible to sail with an un reefed sail so I was just wandering if it was possible.
 
From “The Complete Book of Laser Sailing” Dick Tillman:-

“Occasionally you may run into conditions so severe that no matter how good your technique, you are simply overpowered. At these times, you might consider reefing the sail. Reefing should be particularly appealing to anyone weighing less than 150 pounds who finds the boat overpowered in winds over 20 knots.
To reef the Laser sail, first pull the Cunningham as tight as you can; pull the Cunningham grommet down so that it is almost touching the gooseneck fitting. Instead of leading the Cunningham line down through the deck fairlead, as usual, tie it off on the mast mounted boom vang bail. Then with the outhaul, vang, and boom disconnected from the mast, tightly wrap the sail around the mast two or three times in a counterclockwise direction. One turn only tightens the leech and does not significantly reduce sail area. For three turns, you must remove the top batten. Then reconnect the boom, outhaul (you may need a longer outhaul line), and vang. You now have a rig that is not only controllable in strong winds, with no excessive helm, but one that is also responsive and seaworthy.”
 
like more than usual there will be more creases and wrinkles and if you dont tighten the cunningham enough itll start spining lose and you have to tighten the outhaul.

On my best experiense with it I was using a full and i kept the top batten in. i had the mast in like normaly, then i started spining it keeping it tight by pulling it down and holding the gromet, i think i did 3 spins then connected the cunningham pretty tight but not like krazy and went sailing.
 
Another option would be to get a radial rig -- it's just one spar and one sail different from the fullsized rig -- and use it on windier days. Obviously it races the cost of sailing a bit, but since lots of junior programs are probably using radials it might be possible to pick up a used setup pretty cheap.
 
I've wrapped the sail round the mast, as described above, when it was so cold that I definitely didn't want to end up in the water but still wanted to go for a sail, and so windy that going for a swim would have been a certainty with a full rig.

Works quite well I found.
 
Remember to set the cunningham quite tight. If the luff is too loose it doesn't cling to the mast and creates nasty creases.
 
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