Ducking Stbd Tackers In A Strong Breeze

G

Gene Ho

New Member
Most of my racing to date has been in light air. In last Sunday's race in Newport the forecasted strong breeze actually materialized. My usual technique, when on port tack, for ducking starboard tackers is to just let off a bit of mainsheet while aiming for the stern of the crossing boat.

This didn't work. Letting off even several feet of mainsheet and tugging on the tiller had no impact. The boat continued on its upwind course. After the ensuing crash tack, I couldn't get to the high side fast enough and promptly capsized to leeward.

I'm doing something wrong but what?
 
Not to sound like a jerk, but you've got to keep your eyes open and prepare to duck sooner. Any heel at all in a breeze and you completely lose your ability to steer. You just about have to drop the mainsheet to steer down.
 
if you can, try an ease on the vang. it may help with a bit more leeward steerage. only if you can see the problem and prepare for it. after you flop onto starboard, throw the vang on again.
 
Both Torrid and Stick are right. The Laser (of course) won't fall off in a breeze if it's heeled to leeward, so dumping a bit of sheet in advance helps. Dumping sheet before you need to fall off-- several seconds before you yank on the tiller-- will heel the boat to windward and actually do most of the work for you. (Easier said than done, of course). Letting off vang helps because the leach of the sail won't be hooked when you dump sheet-- and won't try to round you up-- but the other trick I've learned (and please correct me if you think this is wrong) is to make sure you have a lot of outhaul on. I find that a boat falls off much easier if the sail is quite flat, and outhaul seems to help with this. This must be because when you sheet out and your sail is deeply cambered, then the leach keeps working, shifting the CofE aft. On the other hand, a sail with very little camber stops working-- even towards the leech-- when you sheet it sharply out.

I'm sitting at my computer typing these things because I live in Southern California and I haven't seen more than 6 knots in the last two months. I've been reduced to practicing my form while sitting in front of the mainsheet block. Lucky you!
 
Yep. Sounds like you need to plan your duck more in advance. Otherwise you should hold it up and tack under the Starboard tacker.
 
You failed to mention why you are ducking transoms.

If the guys coming at you are good sailors (who are going the right way), the answer is to go with them . Tack!!! Lead them to their leeward and ahead of them and you will hit the next shift first and cross their bows when you tack again.

If they are "idiots" and you are certain of that, they are going the wrong way about 50% of the time and you need to decide whether you are on the right tack or they are on the correct tack.

The dip?? Let out as much mainsail as necessary to make your boat turn well below their transom...
Then trim when you can trim and point up and sail at full speed just crossing behind by an inch or two.
You MUST be back up to close hauled or even slightly above close hauled as your bow crosses the starboard boat's transom. There is always a slight lift off the other boat's sail and you need to use that lift to get back some lost distance.
Since your boat accelerates as you reach off and dip and you also get to "shoot" a bit to weather as you fly around the other boat, you should gain back some or all the distance you lose by dipping and even be able to tack to starboard and pin any boat you dip.

All it takes is great boat handling!!!


Now get off the computer and go practice your dipping!!!
 
I'll repeat what others have said, but in big caps because it's so important: POP THE VANG!
It's probably cranked on since it is windy and you'll never be able to bear away to duck a transom without letting it off some. Same goes for when you round the windward mark, get some of the vang off before you try to bear off downwind.
 
To put the comments about popping the vang in a little context: in a clinic I heard Ryan Minth elaborate on how important it was to really crank on the vang going upwind in heavy air. So the next time, I tried it. I have seldom been so slow, unable to clear under the boom on tacks, frequently going into irons, ... The point is that smaller people (150-160 lbs) sail with a lot more vang than bigger people (190+ lbs). If you are on the smaller side, I expect the comments about the importance of popping the vang really apply to you. If you are on the heavier, 200lb, side, see the other boat early, hike hard, and ease the mainsheet enough, and voilà you've accomplished the duck.
 
Bill is right: the tighter the vang is on the harder it will be to bear off. If you're not two-blocked or vang-sheeted you can probably bear off without releasing it more. You don't want the vang totally loose; just to the point where you can bear off.
 
gouvernail said:
You failed to mention why you are ducking transoms.

If the guys coming at you are good sailors (who are going the right way), the answer is to go with them . Tack!!! Lead them to their leeward and ahead of them and you will hit the next shift first and cross their bows when you tack again.
Click to expand...

How should I be positioned with respect to the starboard boat for this strategy to work? Can my bow be pointing midway at the starboard boat or should my bow be further ahead, maybe as far as pointing at the bow of the starboard boat? Executing the tack will take some time and put me behind a bit; won't it?
 
gouvernail said:
You failed to mention why you are ducking transoms.

If the guys coming at you are good sailors (who are going the right way), the answer is to go with them . Tack!!! Lead them to their leeward and ahead of them and you will hit the next shift first and cross their bows when you tack again.

If they are "idiots" and you are certain of that, they are going the wrong way about 50% of the time and you need to decide whether you are on the right tack or they are on the correct tack.
Click to expand...

Maybe you need to get clear air, maybe you're port tacking the whole other than this single boat after a good start and the right is going to pay. Maybe you've decided that the next shift has already arrived, and they are waiting a second to see if it goes back...

Maybe you've seen a weather feature that's going to cause a permanent shift and you need to get on the correct side of the fleet to take advantage.

If racing was as clear cut and obvious as you suggest, then it would be rather easy and rather boring ;)
 
Thanks all for your comments.

The situation that prompted my question was my trying to get to the outside of the starboard layline parade before getting too close to the weather mark. In the strong breeze with the big fleet, the starboard layline was a high speed conveyor belt of boats being dumped into a pileup of capsized, entangled, and outta-control Lasers at the weather mark.

The intent was weave through the line of boats to the outside, then avoid the train wreck at the mark by sailing outside the whole mess. It half worked. I avoided the weather mark but created my own personal navigational hazard for the downwind fleet.

At the time, blowing off the vang seemed an appealing idea. But, the tail was about two feet farther away than I could reach from my fully hiked stance. I'll have re-think how tight the vang should be in a breeze. Typically it's set snug with the blocks about one foot apart in light air. In enough wind to hike, it's set snug when the mainsheet is two-blocked. I may try easing a bit more the next time there's real breeze. And maybe feathering a bit more, at least when I'm trying to ease the main. Unfortunately, we can't just dial up the breeze when we want to practice.
 
Gene Ho said:
At the time, blowing off the vang seemed an appealing idea. But, the tail was about two feet farther away than I could reach from my fully hiked stance.


If you put the end of the vang through the hole in your centerboard and tie a stopper knot in it you'll never have to reach more than half way across the boat to adjust it. I know this is still difficult when you're fully hiked, but it's better than having to reach all the way forward when the tail of the vang is on the leeward side.
Click to expand...
 
Going back to the original question, I often find myself in situations like this, and I have to agree with Ross: Ease, Hike, Trim. If you haven't planned ahead (oh no god forbid you should make a mistake) try letting out your mainsheet and steering down while throwing your weight out as hard and as far as you can. Generally the boat will respond in an acceptable manner. Good luck.
 
Personally, I can't understand the idea of dumping the vang just for a bear-away. Unless you're suuuuuper slick with the vang, you'll lose much more time winding it off and on than you'll gain - just dump sheet.

Down here we're lucky enough to get to play with Slingsby, Blackburn, Bethwaite and Beyer and I've never seen them dump vang to duck anyone.
 
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