Tacking angle

mixmkr

Well-Known Member
So...whats the secret for pointing and not having a digusting tacking angle? Sailing back thru my cove (about 3 miles long) back to to launch site...the wind loves to typically shift around (once off the main lake) and come straight in or out of the cove, funneled by the parallel shore lines. Wind behind.....scoot right back. Wind on the nose, tacking forever, seemingly just going side to side with minimal upwind progress. My custom 52" daggerbaord doesn't seem to help, so back to the glass board for overall better performance and ease at shallow shorelines. I do my best to take advantage of wind angles where it might shift along an uneven shore line or fingers in the cove.
 
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You've reached the limits of a Lanteen Rig which does not like to be close hauled.
Other than making sure your boat is a light as possible you can try rigging the gaff
in the racing position to get it as close to a Cat sail as possible. I'm guessing the channel
is not wide enough for a broad-reach. Maybe someone can sell you a Super Sunfish rig
but if all else fails you can sometimes get a Butterfly for $300 on CraigsList. You can never
have enough boats. I live near a lake where the launch sight is in a cove and getting
it out into the lake involves lots of close-haul tacking along with luck and timing. There was
a thread a few years ago about how to get the Sunfish out of a channel and into the lake.
The consensus was to tow it with a 12 foot aluminum then anchor the aluminum and
transfer to the Sunfish.
 
Yeah... guessing that tacking less than 120 degrees....Im pinching and no forward speed. Two broad reaches just means I'm going shore to shore. The cove is actually huge so I can at least take advantage of middle cove/shoreline shifts.....my saving grace to get me home, the same day I launched!!
 
Oh....not to mention 90 degree wind shifts, being not uncommon at the cove mouth
 
Well you have to read the wind, the current, and any tide if you have it. You might find that yo have a short tack and a long tack, perhaps you make more headway on one tack, then lose ground on the other. Focus on the good tack, make the other a little shorter. Depending on your wind, you may find one shore or the other more favorable, if there are buildings or trees on the upwind shore they will cause turbulence and shifty winds. At other times a fetch may develop on the lee shore, so every day/time will be different.

Take a paddle to get through some of the fluky, light wind areas.
 
Windshifts...generally I can see or read. I'm just whmpering out loud about my horrible pointing abilities with my fish. I thought my exaggerated daggerbaord might help, but I'm thinking not. ...plus I aint paddling...even though I carry one
 
You haven't sailed a canoe or kayak. :confused:

I see two possibilities: both add artificial power:

1) You can fashion-up a rowing kit. (3-knots). A guy (Larry Melat) with a Sunfish-clone did that for a marathon race to the Everglades:
Sunfish (Phantom) Races in Watertribe Ultra Marathon 2005

Excerpt:
Center boards: I use two, the normal sailing board and a smaller board just for rowing that fills the void and sticks out the bottom a few inches. The boat is a pleasure to row and can easily be rowed at 3 knots. If you work hard 4 knots is possible,

When back to sailing, the oars are stowed by snapping them under bungee cords—one long cord, to hold both oars, is behind the bridle.

2) There's space under the deck—at the bridle—for a motorcycle battery strapped-in on one side, and a trolling motor bracket on the other. The two boxes can be made self-bailing. The trolling motor shaft can be cut shorter, and all the [labeled] wires slipped off the hand control/tiller. (To be reconnected later to the control/tiller). Wires can be fed under the bridle area. The connexions can be simplified, as you don't need reverse or variable speeds.

.
 
Today I had 15+ kts right on the nose. Paddling is going to be a major chore, if at all possible. The paddle comes out when I'm becalmed.....not to mention...this cove is 3 miles long, as mentioned above. ....and I've got a gym membership instead :)
 
Oh yeah.....Im known to flip when fixing my shoe, or any other silly distraction. I'd hate to be burdened with all that extra hardware.....which I'm sure would love to rest on the bottom (my lake is 50+ ft deep in places) :)
 
You would have to use a Li-Poly battery. Weight is critical to how well a Sunfish will tack.
I had a 125 lbs. Sunfish that sat up out of the water and would swivel like it was on ball-bearings,
Sold it and the slightly heaver one would given to me would not do the same. Try rigging a
Jib just for the hell of it. The main problem with lakes is the constant wind shear. If you get
a lake about 2600 acres or more you get a nice steady wind.
 
Oh yeah.....I'm known to flip when fixing my shoe, or any other silly distraction. I'd hate to be burdened with all that extra hardware.....which I'm sure would love to rest on the bottom (my lake is 50+ ft deep in places) :)
Shoes? :oops:

How about a rowing rig that appears to fold-up better? This concept has the boat (and the skipper's eyes) going forward:

oar11_zpsb1109a31[1].jpg
 
I don’t think the key to success is motors or oars. Neither will help on a day with a nice breeze. If there is a good breeze you can sail faster than using a motor.

You should optimize your boat for upwind Sailing and then practice, practice, practice. You should read up on racing so you know to tack on headers and stay on the lifted tack. While Sunfish have existed for a long time with the wood daggerboard, the white plastic ones are much better for going upwind. I think your giant board is hampered as it does not have a foil shape, so the extra surface area may just be adding drag. I’d use the white board. And then practice.
 
69 rudder with new bracket and in great shape, Intensity glass daggerboard (and 12"+ lengthened '69 daggerbaord in great shape but minimal foil), and new EBay stars and stripes sail. 69 boat is generally in very good condition, dry and light, and I weigh 190 and have been sailing cruising boats for 40 years and daysailors for 50+. My current fish is my first personally owned for the last two seasons....so Sunfish sailing has been sporadic over the years without ownership. I own a marine canvas and boat repair service company, so no stranger to drilling holes in boats and sailing
 
A fuller sail would be more powerful...right? But inhibit pointing? Like less headstay sag on a sloop rig for pointing but less power.
Any rate....im not displeased with the sail shape. I have an ancient Sunfish sail, but have actually liked this one better once I switched it out.
I'm getting about 50-55 degrees I'm thinking.
 
The new Laser Performance recreational sails and race sails have the optimum draft cut into the foot, they are very powerful and will give you the best opportunity to point high. Some aftermarket sailmakers make great sails as well, we got one from FX recently that was a beauty. Old Sunfish sails are usually blow, soft and don't have the deep foot or "race cut."

Is your rudder the spoon tip or is the blade shape like the current blade.

If you are tied to that one area to sail, how about a kayak paddle?

Merci kayak paddle.jpg


Or Stand Up?

Audrey Sweetness SUP mast up.jpg
 
It does seem like three miles would be an easier drive (with a trailer) than sailing to-windward using a "pretty" sail.

(And it is pretty!) :cool:

You're going to spend most of your sailing-day sailing to windward anyway. Enjoy "working" the lifts. :)
 
Signal Charlie is right, the race sails have power which builds speed for pointing.

Are you roll tacking? The foil board helps a lot in tacking. The old boards would side-slip after a tack, the foil board hold the position much better.
 
Back to sailing fundamentals:
1. Especially on a Sunfish, don't sheet in too much going upwind. On starboard tack one can sheet in a bit more; having the clew above the corner of the stern is about right.
2. Learn to roll tack

3. Use a vane on the upper spar (gaff). Can be as simple as a clothes hanger with tape (remember tape?). With your favorite music of course.
 
2) There's space under the deck—at the bridle—for a motorcycle battery strapped-in on one side, and a trolling motor bracket on the other. The two boxes can be made self-bailing. The trolling motor shaft can be cut shorter, and all the [labeled] wires slipped off the hand control/tiller. (To be reconnected later to the control/tiller). Wires can be fed under the bridle area. The connexions can be simplified, as you don't need reverse or variable speeds..
Here's the shortened trolling motor shaft, destined for a permanent "tractor" canoe installation:
 

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The prevailing wind blows directly on to our beach so an easy tack port or starboard gets me well of the beach then i can reach all day and run home. With a combination of uphaul and gooseneck locations I keep the boom high at the cockpit to allow my old stiff bones to duck under for a good clean tack
 
Sailing my second season against a perfect Viking with the original sail, my Intensity "race-cut" sail gives me about a 1 mph edge. It's almost embarassing to zoom out ahead without trying.

It also might help to stay away from shores, except in places where they help to funnel wind.
 

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