How not to capsize while learning?

RyanDe

New Member
Got my boat, learned to rig her and buying some minor accessories (bungie for dagger board, paddle, cup to bail) and now I'm planning my first adventure. The water is still cold (50-65) so I'd prefer to not go in especially since I have yet to practice recovering so what can I do to limit my chances of capsizing? Wind speed? Rig a different way? Sit someone on the boat? Should I maybe tie a jug to the mast too so if I do go in it doesn't turtle and make it harder?
 
Skipper says "Always plan to capsize. Plan on where you want to be when the boat goes over. Sail close to shore, within a short swim to land, and where other people can see you."

We always tack into the wind first, so that we come home on a run. Or reach out and reach back. Know your wind, is it going to pick up or die? Winds out in the middle are usually 5-10 knots higher that at the shore. Take a collapsible paddle with you, in the cubby or wedged under the halyard by the cleat.

I think I read recently that if the air temp and water temp don't add up to 120F, you should be in a wet suit or dry suit. You are going to get wet on a Sunfish, even if you don't capsize. Our "Frostbiters" will have more guidance, but keep in mind they are VERY experienced on the Sunfish. You might consider gloves at a minimum, as cold hands can lose their grip quickly. Our experience is in warm/hot shallow water, most places we sailed we could walk back to shore if the boat broke.

-Get a good low profile PFD, without a lot of bulk around the neck. Kayak or canoe PFDs usually work. Put it on, sit down and see how much it rises as you bend forward, as you will when ducking under the boom.

-I'd make or order sheet hangers, that help keep the sheet from snagging on the PFD or your head when you are tacking.
A pair cost $3.99 Intensity Sails Sheet Hangers

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-We rig what we call "The Geezer Rig" as you see in the photo above. Gooseneck is approx 22-24 inches back, and the halyard around 60 inches down. This gives a nice rise aft to the boom, so ducking under the boom is minimized. Don't wear your favorite hat, or don't wear a hat at all, losing a hat can be distracting. Or as Capn Jack says, take two hats.

-Jug at the top of the mast is a good idea until you get a chance to practice capsize recovery. You can practice a capsize recovery by standing next to the boat in waist deep water, pulling the boat over on its side with the halyard, and then climbing back aboard.

Part 1: Move faster than I did to get around to the bow and swim the boat into the wind, then move to the daggerboard, but make sure the sheet is clear and not cleated. I did get back on board after two tries in the video below, but Skipper stopped filming. Don't use a cam cleat or ratchet the first few times out, and don't cleat off the sheet. That is the fastest way to get surprised and capsize.


Part 2: On a Sunfish you have the cockpit edge to grab onto. It might be easier to board over the stern if you get tired. And if you can't get back on, you can still sail the boat back to shore from the stern


-Wind speeds at or gusting above above 10 knots will be challenging, so if you get to your launch spot and it is starting to whitecap, just practice rigging, take a break and head back home.

-Don't take a second person unless they are an experienced Sunfisher. They can sit on a sheet or a tiller at the wrong time, or not move at the right time when tacking, causing the capsize.

A risk assessment acronym I use when flying is PAVE, I assess People Aircraft enVironment and External Pressure. You are new to the Sunfish, but the Sunfish is a perfect boat for someone to be new to. Take a long hard look at the environment that you plan to sail in, and as for external pressures there may be folks who want to go sailing, but there will be another day if conditions are not good for the first trial. Better to be on shore wishing you were sailing, than out on the water wishing you were ashore.

Once you have assessed risks, you take TEAM actions to reduce the risk, Transfer, Eliminate, Accept or Mitigate. You mentioned a lot of mitigations, most were good except for taking another non-Sunfisher with you. And continue to see if your plan is working once you launch. Talk to locals who sail similar size boats in the area you are headed to, sail around other folks when you can, and at a minimum file a Float Plan if you intend to go out to your spot by yourself, letting family or friend know where you are and when they should hear back from you. Skipper only took off once without me for a 6 mile round trip to her parents townhouse, but I knew where she was going and had my little Runabout handy in case I needed to launch as SAR.

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Once you get to know your Sunfish in your waters and are properly equipped, you can go most anywhere, most anytime. And take photos!
 
Wind. Watch your direction and speed..don't gybe..if you have to, chicken gybe until you can practice your gybes. Don't take someone else with you. Pick a real mellow day..and take a paddle. I have the aero south mast float..its not the easiest to attach everytime but it works great..I have a spar bag and it doesn't fit so im.always attaching removing..I need to make marks on the spar for it or start taking an Allen wrench set.

First thing I did was flip the boat at the ramp and let it float a bit to test.

This weekend I took some random kids who were swimming at the park for a shirt ride across the cove..just off the beach. Bunch of cub scouts..I was picking them.up in thigh deep water. They were around 9-10 years old or so. 2 climbed on and i.pushed off and hopped on. Wind shifted and blew the boat sideways instantly before I could get the board down and trimmed etc..they didn't know what do..I hiked as much as I could while trying to steer and i dumped it in waste deep water.. lol. So expect to be in the water and or wet.

And just buy a 3/2 shorty. They're really cheap. Gloves and some sailing boots. If its 70 air, you'll be perfect with 60 water. You have to plan to be in the water for a long time though (Read catastrophic failure) you want to be able to swim back or potentially wait til someone picks you out of the drink. We don't casually sail until the bouy says 60 and the water temp can still fluctuate 5 degrees day to day so im often in a long sleeve heavier rash guard with shorts. This weekend the water hit 75 and air was low 80s. Rash shorts, board shorts, water shoes and my pfd. It was perfect.

But agree with the wind comment..always go up wind first. And if you see consistent caps, probably wait.
 
My silly opinions (mostly just seconding everything signal charlie says):
Practice a capsize first thing next time you put the boat on the water. It's a lot easier to practice near shore in little/no wind then out in the middle of a lake when it's windy and you're tired. I had a big dread of capsizing before I just pushed the boat over and back up and saw how relatively easy the whole thing was.

Get a wetsuit. I didn't used to sail with one but now I wear a shorty almost all summer long (in MI), even when it's not strictly required for safety it makes time spent in the water more comfortable and means my shoulders never burn :). My fear of turtling and being unable to recover is greatly reduced knowing that I'd be comfortable bobbing around for an hour while I wait for someone to come help me out. Shorty and thin full suits are relatively affordable, no need to buy a sailing-specific one (although I think a sailing suit might be nice if that's an option for you, they're cut a little different and have padding in sailing-convenient places sometimes). Used suit is a good option too and often available at local 2nd hand stores and craigslist/fb marketplace for peanuts depending on your location.

I sometimes prefer to tack instead of jibe even if I'm going downwind (i.e. I'll do a 360). If you're not racing and not in a hurry, I think the tack can be a lot more predictable with less chance of capsize-causing surprise (or getting whacked in the head on a surprisingly fast jibe).

I also often go to "Safety Position" (or as close to it as I can manage) when the wind is gusty and I feel like I'm about to take a spill. Often I end up there when things are happening a little too fast and I just need a break to calm down and remember how to sail. Usually amounts to "let the sheet out and turn upwind".
 
I also had chats with people I took out over the weekend..mostly my adult friends. I discovered in my first few capsizes on the laser2 things happened fast. That boat turtles pretty quick..so there's a sort of panic to get to everything quick. Shits floating you have to go get ( water bottles etc) and then you're dealing with rigging and another person. So my point was take your time when you go over..assess. breath. And like I said, you're buoyant for days in the jacket..you'll die of starvation or will be eaten by crabs before anything else. So don't over tire yourself freaking out. Mast float for the sunfish is a great thing to have.

Hospadar I think has the right approach. I think I picked up.my wetsuit new from wetsuit warehouse for around 200 bucks. It's a full suit so only for late fall and early spring. If you've never bought one, there are youtube vids on tricks to get them on and off. I wanted a big zipper specifically so thats what i startwd off woth looking. I don't use any lube but a rashie works great. Some are making padding you can put in too. I haven't seen for the butt though..you could wear hiking shorts over them though.
 
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Got my boat, learned to rig her and buying some minor accessories (bungie for dagger board, paddle, cup to bail) and now I'm planning my first adventure. The water is still cold (50-65) so I'd prefer to not go in especially since I have yet to practice recovering so what can I do to limit my chances of capsizing? Wind speed? Rig a different way? Sit someone on the boat? Should I maybe tie a jug to the mast too so if I do go in it doesn't turtle and make it harder?
All good questions. As to wind speed, you could find "white caps" too much for cold water sailing. Work your way up to white cap winds, as it's a very desirable wind for Sunfish sailing.

An important point:
When a capsize appears imminent, just let go of everything, and the boat will "snap" right up.

As for a sitting, consider sitting in the bottom of the cockpit. One member liked arranging his legs "Indian Style", which i took to mean crossed. Maybe I'm taller, as I rest my heels on the splash guard. If your back needs easing, use a thin cushion or life preserver (PFD). In light air, it's like touring the lake in a mobile chaise lounge. :)

You still have to stay "heads-up", but it's harder to capsize that way.

Speaking of light air, a Sunfish doesn't need much wind to make a wake... There may not be a ripple out there, but you can still surprise your neighbors!

The jug is mentioned often here, and I sure wish I'd had one when I was a dedicated catamaran sailor! :confused:

The search function ("Indian") turned up a lot of info for more reading:
 
Great advice, I took a bunch of the tips and tried to use those yesterday. I came close to going over, but was able to stay dry during my maiden voyage! :) I'll get another chance in a couple of weeks and the water should be warmer so I'll probably have someone follow me in a kayak while I try my first recovery. Thanks, everyone.
 
Glad you managed to stay dry but I would echo what others are saying here. Capsizing is a core aspect of learning to sail. You should do it a lot and become comfortable with getting your boat back up and getting back in. Pretty easy with a sunfish. Kayak backup sounds like a good plan!
 
Sunfish purists often seem to recoil in horror at the idea, but in my view the best way to avoid capsizing is to mount outriggers on your boat. I taught myself to sail from books a year ago, with a mail-order sail-rig from Sailboats-to-go that I mounted on my kayak and canoe, This included outriggers, which are normal for sailing canoes and kayaks, with their narrow tippy hulls. So when I bought my Minifish last Fall, I moved my outriggers over to that. So what if Sunfish sailors work hard to master the arcane skill of balancing their boat by hiking out, so they don't capsize. I already have this handy piece of equipment that will do that job for me, so why shouldn't I use it? I can imagine a different world, where everybody learns to sail first in a boat with outriggers, just like a bicycle with training wheels, and only takes them off later, when they want to go faster. Or maybe they never take them off at all, if like me they prefer staying dry to going faster. (I only sail in winds of 10 mph or less, at speeds of 5 mph or less.) But for some reason we live in a different world, where canoe and kayak sailors use outriggers but Sunfish and Laser sailors do not, and instead expect everyone to capsize a lot until you learn this skill (several people say as much in this thread above), even while acknowledging that this skill is unreliable and even the experts who have fully mastered it will still capsize sometimes. I really don't get this at all. People who sail larger monohull boats aren't horrified by catamarans or trimarans, yet for some reason sailors of smaller monohulls like Sunfish and Laser seem to just reflexively reject the idea of mounting outriggers on those boats, even though they acknowledge that they will inevitably capsize sometimes without them. It's like building a deck without a handrail, and expecting people instead to learn how to fall onto the lawn without getting hurt.

Here is a picture of my Minifish with its outriggers. They are set far forward, to leave room for my 10-foot kayak paddle, also visible in the picture (one end white, one end black). Signal Charlie showed his "geezer rig" above. This is my is my super-geezer rig, with the sail tilted as far forward as possible, to give even more headroom under the boom, making the gaff spar as nearly vertical as possible, like a Bermuda rig with a Gunter hoist, as the Grumman sailing canoes use, except with a tilted boom. You can't do this on a stock Sunfish, because it moves the center of the lateen sail back far enough behind the daggerboard to cause what is called "weather helm", where the boat keeps trying to turn into the wind. I fixed that by using the STG movable mast step to move the mast forward 16 inches, restoring proper steering balance. The Sunfish mast is sleeved over the top of the STG mast step. You can see by eye that the center of the sail is right over the daggerboard. Also I am using a folding stadium seat sitting on crossbars over the gunwhales; with this rig the boom clears my head even when sitting that high, and balance is not an issue due to the outriggers. There is a small GPS speedometer mounted on an extra STG mast step that I am using as an instrument post. You can add outriggers without any of this; I only mention it to explain the picture.

In the year I have been sailing (now on five different boats: kayak, canoe, 8-foot Nelson sailing dinghy, this Minifish, and now also a Sailfish) I have never capsized in open water, due to my outriggers. I really don't get why people are so opposed to them. Why sail with a constant risk of capsizing, when a simple device can greatly reduce that risk? In the tradition of Polynesian outrigger canoes, the outriggers are called 'amas' which means friends.

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@bhm is that your normal sail setting? the gooseneck should not be at the tack of the sail, but roughly 14" to 20" or so back from the tack, where the two booms are connected.
Yes, I know everyone says that, and I suggested at least one reason why: namely, because with the mast and daggerboard in their standard positions, moving the gooseneck that far forward will move the center of effort of the sail far enough aft to cause heavy weather helm, as I found out when I tried it that way:

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But as I said, I fixed that by using my STG gear to move the mast forward 16 inches, bringing the center of the sail back over the daggerboard. As I said, I do this to get even more headroom under the boom than with Signal Charlie's geezer rig, and also (I didn't mention), to get 360 degree visibility in all directions on all points of sail, rather than having the sail block your vision on the downwind side as in all standard dinghy rigs. (Which of course is why they sometimes put a vinyl window in the sail, but the view through a window is still pretty limited.) I find that very irritating since I like to sail across the lake and then tack upwind along the farther shore while admiring the view of the shoreline (houses, docks, boats etc.), and for a standard rig the sail is blocking this view half of the time.
 
The BoatKeep document is an impressive piece of work but leaves out important issues because it tries to cover too much (from small dinghies to relatively big boats). Here are a few important issues to keep in mind for our beloved 14 footers.
  1. If your Sunfish or Laser capsizes and you go overboard, free yourself from lines. It's relatively easy to get caught with the sheet around your leg or body.
  2. Once you are free from any entanglements, and it's windy (which is likely since you capsized), turn the boat into the wind. This will make it much easier to right it.
  3. If the sheet was cleated, make sure to release it
  4. Pull the board out all the way for leverage
  5. On a Laser, release the vang.
  6. On a Laser, and you have capsized downwind, you may have to pull the sheet in prior to attempting to get the boat back up.

There's more, but these are issues that came to my (old) mind right away.
 
I cannot agree with the comment above:
When a capsize appears imminent, just let go of everything, and the boat will "snap" right up.

The problem is if you do end up going over, you can get separated from the boat, which can be a problem if it is windy. Best practice is to hold on to the end of the sheet. That way, you can pull yourself back to the boat if necessary.
 
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I cannot agree with the comment above:
When a capsize appears imminent, just let go of everything, and the boat will "snap" right up.

The problem is if you do end up going over, you can get separated from the boat, which can be a problem if it is windy. Best practice is to hold on to the end of the sheet. That way, you can pull yourself back to the boat if necessary.
if you go off the highside with the sheet in hand and youre going up wind, that will trim the sheet in and probably accelerate the boat. ive been drug through that water on the laser2. i mean, it did capsize from my body weight and the resistance. but i heard the ratchet go as i went over and was literally at the end of the line when i came up for air. lol. i had to hold my hat on my head as i was pulled along behind for a moment.

i guess if youre capsizing and are actively bailing out and jumping in, then sure, hanging onto the sheet works. but most of my crashes the last year or so have been pretty epic uncontrolled wipeouts. now my crew on the laser has all kinds of time to do stupid things while im being put into orbit. i caught him trying with all his might to go over the highside to get to the dagger, he was hanging by the gunwhale when i looked over before jumping in myself.

im usually hanging on a few seconds later than i should have. trying to save it. i honestly probably dont have the experience yet to know its a lost cause and i better start doing something different to save it all. i can probably honestly say 90pct of my capsizes have been accidental gybes.

i havnt capsized the sunfish yet in a really uncontrolled manner. i was actually trying to this past weekend but not quite enough wind.
 
I cannot agree with the comment above:
When a capsize appears imminent, just let go of everything, and the boat will "snap" right up.

The problem is if you do end up going over, you can get separated from the boat, which can be a problem if it is windy. Best practice is to hold on to the end of the sheet. That way, you can pull yourself back to the boat if necessary.
Correct.

Among other sailboat types, my suggestion was for a Sunfish sailor who has seated himself inside the cockpit.
 

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