the gooseneck chart that Tag posted is pretty accurate. I only go back to 22" in winds above 20 mph. I feel like it doesn't point upwind as well in medium winds that far back and I have to sit too far back to relieve the pressure on the tiller. The only way to know the perfect setting for you is to mark the boom every 2 inches and buy a seat quick release from a bicycle shop for the gooseneck.Thanks, I will change the halyard position to 60” from the top. It’s now at 70” The gooseneck is at 20”, I will move it back to 22”. Thanks for the recommendation, should be ok for a beginner!
I'd like to better understand what is different about the plastic boards over the older wooden ones. Also, the impact that the plastic daggerboard has on the behavior of the boat. My understanding is that adjusting the gooseneck position moves the Center of Effort (CE) of the sail. Where the CE is, relative to the Center of Lateral Resistance (CLR) of the daggerboard causes either lee helm or weather helm. (i.e. If the CE is forward of the CLR then the boat will want to turn away from the wind. If the CE is aft of the CLR, then the boat will want to turn into the wind). When you say that the plastic boards lets you set the gooseneck further forward, that says to me that the CLR for the plastic boards must be further forward than the wood boards. Is that correct? For reference, I'm looking at this visual in Steve King's excellent video on rigging a sunfish.And that chart was developed in the days of the racing sail but wooden daggerboards. The new plastic boards let you set the gooseneck further forward in light to medium breezes. Racers go for 14 or 15 inches in up to 10 knots or so. For cruising a bit back from there works just fine.
You describe this so vividly that it brought back memories of a similar day of tough sailing for me a year ago. The high waves Contributed to my difficulty in coming about. Since then, I’ve added a Cunningham and Outhaul to let me flatten the sail to depower it a bit during heavier winds. That, and the gooseneck adjustment reduced my weather helm. But in heavy winds I dont think you can ever Completely eliminate weather helm in a sunfish. Let us know how your adjustments work out.... I was on a starboard tack and I was really heeling. I tried changing tacks to get back to the protected part of the bay but every time I tried to come about, I got into irons. The only way I could stay upright was to continually let out the sheet and spill wind. On the other end of the bay there's a long beach. I sailed the whole way across and was able to beach the boat and drop sail.
Needless to say, I was exhausted. My arms were like rubber and I was shaking. The other motor boaters around me thought I was nuts but I figured that I could turn the boat on the beach and head back in the opposite direction on a port tack which is what I did after resting for a bit....
In place of "coming about", try a "wear-about", used by square-rigged ships.Coming about in high winds IS harder and requires good speed at the outset.