can you raise your sail before you get started? then you might be able to start out on a reach, at a right angle to the direction of your wind arrow?
I'm no expert, but if you are new, I'd be cautious about heading out in super heavy winds anyway. what happens if you capsize? turtle the boat? have you tried flipping a turtled Sunfish in heavy wind/waves?
hopefully someone w/ more experience than I will also chime in some thoughts!
For many years, I've owned a ½" bungee cord about 25' long. (Stretches to almost double that). If you can get one, you could "self launch" after raising your sail in the lee of the pier.
Hi, I launch from a floating dock which is exactly next the the shore, in the shade, so you cannot see it from the picture I posted. I will usually walk the boat to the end of my pier, and paddle out from there. However, to the right (in the picture), you can see a large green square roof to a pier. That is where I get blown into! lol Thankfully, my neighbor is usually there so he is drinking a beer on his pier, watching me look like a fool, and laughing. After he gets a few chuckles in, he will come to my rescue. haha
View attachment 19653
Above, a sketch of what I had in mind. Have you tried using a kayak paddle?
The "pull line" I use doesn't get me out past the neighbor's dock, boat lift (and its sharp-edged roof), but I don't have to get wet, either.
The bungee is quite powerful, and I'm not suggesting anything bigger. If it's doubled around a block—as in the sketch—you'll get a "catapult action" that might do the trick.
Better... and less likely to break things....
Learn to do an anchor toss and drag yourself out.
I've used this to get a "beached" 17 ft bass boat off of a sandbar.
You toss your anchor out in the desired direction, let it hit bottom and then start pulling the line.
Success depends on how well you can toss the anchor and how well it holds vs your strength to haul in the line.
The Sunfish won't need the 20 lb Danforth style anchor + 3/4 inch nylon line I was using for the bass boat... Probably one of the small folding grapple anchors + 1/4 or 3/8 nylon for kayaks will do.
Stow the anchor and line in a canvas bag tied to the mast, or if you have an inspection port with stowage bag, put them in there.
This should be a bit more successful than paddling... but you may lose progress when you pull up the anchor for another toss...
A sailboat launch! Man..you're trying to kill me! hahaha The neighbors sure would enjoy watching that! lol