Sailing in strong wind

Tub-O-Lard

New Member
Ok, so we finally had super awesome winds at my club (Jericho, Vancouver) and it was blowing between 15 and 20 knots all day.

I found beating to be really challenging, and could barely keep the boat flat, and had to constantly pinch - often to the point of bubbling the luff.
I know my sail was overpowered for the conditions, but how do you guys find sailing in this kind of wind?

And how do you deal with the waves that form which are very close together? I tried shifting my wieght around, but the waves are too close for that, and I kept smashing into waves, or my boat just fell and crashed into troughs.

The reaching was
FUN, SO MUCH FUN. There was so much spray and surfing down waves is so fast. I also drove right into a wave that was infront of me at full speed and completely buried the front half of the boat underwater and filled the cockpit with water (I think its about as close as a laser can get to pitch-poling)
Starting to ramble now...
 
For a start, sit as far back as you can so that you don't submarine the boat.

Watch for gusts and just before they hit bear away a little. You don't always have to be pointing as high as you can. Sometimes it's faster to bear away a little as the boat will stay flatter. Constantly work the main - the entire time you are sailing you need to be working the main - don't just leave it and just let it out on a gust - the idea is to keep the boat flat so that you don't need to have a mad panic and let it out just before you capsize.

I know there is some method for sailing in waves but to be honest I can't remember what it is - maybe one of the others can help. I think it's something to do with bearing away before you hit the wave and then bearing up (or is it the other way around?)
 
To de-power the sail in heavy weather you need to pull on as much cunningham as you can - people talk about getting the eye in the sail down as far as the boom. To do this you need to have all the cunningham control lines on one side of the boom. It also helps to have the upgraded purchase on the cunningham, for 2 reasons:

1. The extra purchase makes it easier to pull it on (downside is you get more line in the cockpit, but I think it's a good trade-off)

2. Letting the cunningham off with the new controls (esp. the Harken) when you reach the windward mark is a LOT easier - I remember when i was learning with the old controls fogetting to ease the cunn., then not being able to ease at all as I bore away because the boom by then had swung round and made it all but impossible to un-cleat the cunningham. Disaster usually ensued shortly thereafter.

But the reaching in a good breeze? Hey, welcome to Laser-land - I guess that's why we all do it! Slogging up the beats is all made worthwhile by those few minutes (hopefully a bit more if the course is laid right..) of blasting down the reach with the spray everywhere.....!
 
in really strong breeze 25+ knots its best to foot rather than pinch. This allows you to keep flow over your sails and prevent your foils from stalling out. Also crank on that outhaul and vang.
 
Best thing i ever learned from sailing when it is windy:

1. pull your cunning ham all the way.
2. set outhaul based on wave conditions.
3. go block to block with your mainsheet.
4. Tighten the vang past block to block. This means when your sail is in all the way you are pulling on more vang tension.
5. point close hauled.
6 if you begin to get blown over, hold your course and sheet out. When the gust ends sheet back in. over and over and over.

A flat boat is more important than a full sail. Flat boat = speed. this works for me, i am a lighter radial sailor.
 
I was sailing Sunday in ~15kts, gusts higher and 1st 2 races had very tight cunno and could not point with the other lasers. 3rd and 4th race I let most of it off and was able to point much better. Of course on the 4th race I had my sheet wrapped around my foot as I ducked a boat at the start and promptly went over!!

Just my experience but be careful with cunningham - I think you can get it too tight when the winds are strong but not insane.
 
Originally posted by Mullet Time!
6 if you begin to get blown over, hold your course and sheet out. When the gust ends sheet back in. over and over and over.

A flat boat is more important than a full sail. Flat boat = speed. this works for me, i am a lighter radial sailor.

However, if you watch for the gust and see it coming then you are able to bear away a little before it hits. Then you won't get blown over so much = hence not losing so much speed. You also may need to sheet out but not to the extent you would if you had maintained your course.

I don't believe sailing is just about adjusting your sails and maintaining your exact course. I think it's about adjusting your sails and course accordingly to get the most speed.

It's also sometimes quicker cause after the gust has gone you can just bear up again, while there are all the other people faffing about pulling their mainsail back in.
 
laser2_9804 said:
I don't believe sailing is just about adjusting your sails and maintaining your exact course. I think it's about adjusting your sails and course accordingly to get the most speed.

You are in the minority.

Ease, hike, trim.

Adjusting your course with the rudder slows you, because the rudder acts as a brake. Only easing the sail adjusts your course anyway, because that makes you fall off the wind. Besides that, when you are hit with a gust, who's got time to think about more than letting the sheet run through their hand?

Ease, hike, trim!
 
Obviously we sail very differently, so I guess it's just about whatever works for each person.

If I'm hit by a gust that is totally unexpected then I do just sheet out - I agree Merrily - who has time to think about anything else.

However, that rarely happens as I usually spot the gust before it hits and have time to think about what I'm going to do.
 
Today I sailed in strong gusts, very shifty, and at the same time the water was flat. The reservoir is narrow and the wind was coming from the short axis, so it couldn't build waves. We only get waves on the long axis. Anyway, I was whipped by a woman who explained her sailing method afterwards. When she sees a gust coming, she pinches steering using her body weight and also two blocks. The boat doesn't heel and she is still fast. She heads off a bit after the gust is done. She said it doesn't work if there are waves, and I believe that. I'm anxious to try it.
 
Merrily said:
When she sees a gust coming, she pinches steering using her body weight.....


Just to make sure I understand this: pinch = sail a tiny bit closer to the wind?? So pinching using body wieght means moving body weight inwards slightly to encourage the boat to point up....?

Wouldn't this increase leeward tilt, and make you more vulnerable when the gust hits?

I have no idea, am just trying to work out the physics!
 
chrisfsi said:
Merrily said:
Just to make sure I understand this: pinch = sail a tiny bit closer to the wind?? So pinching using body wieght means moving body weight inwards slightly to encourage the boat to point up....?
Wouldn't this increase leeward tilt, and make you more vulnerable when the gust hits?

She's flattened the boat before the gust hits. She's good! I just meant she steers a lot using body weight, because the rudder acts as a brake.
 

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