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Learning to sail on a 30'

4K views 22 replies 14 participants last post by  SEMIJim 
#1 ·
I have never sailed before. I owned powerboat all my life. I have no problems getting into a dragster and run 200 mph in 660 feet.

But now it time to learn to sail my 30'. I know all the books say to learn on a small boat first, but I don't have one.

I've been reading for a month now. I know some of you will say take a class, and some will say go with some one that know how to sail. That not what I'm ask here.

I've taken the boat out with the motor and got the feel of how she acts in the current and to the wind on her hull. I know the waters and can read and plot the charts, and one of the few power boater that know the rules of the Road. Now to my question.

1. Went do most rookies put to much Load on the equipment like mine? I read that this is one of the things that happen to you when learning to sail on a boat of this size.

I think this would be when the boat is heeled while close hauled and close reach.

Here my plan. :eek:
To motor out to an area I know the waters well, on a week day when there not a lot of boat around. If the wind right.

Motor to a Close reach and raise the sails letting them luff in the wind. Then cut the engine and pull in the main and jib then steer into a Beam reach letting the sail out and trim till they stop luffing. Then steer into a close reach and let the sails out to luff and come to a stop.

How is my plan up to this point?

Do you think I should reef the main my first time?
 
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#2 ·
Take a class or go out with someone who knows how to sail.

Or volunteer to crew in some local races.

I admire your determination to do it yourself, and you can probably get the boat to move, but you will likely teach yourself some bad habits and you will take a lot longer to maximize your boats potential.

If you want to go out yourself and practice, then go for it. You also need to get some practical experience from veteran sailors.

Good luck and have a great time.
 
#6 ·
I'll give ya this: You got moxie. Last I sailed was 25 years ago, but I did crew for two seasons at the time. And my wife has sailing experience. Even with that, I'm a bit anxious about those first few times out.

Good luck.

Btw: You know why they call it a "boom," right? ;)
 
#7 ·
utahkid said:
To motor out to an area I know the waters well, on a week day when there not a lot of boat around. If the wind right.

Motor to a Close reach and raise the sails letting them luff in the wind. Then cut the engine and pull in the main and jib then steer into a Beam reach letting the sail out and trim till they stop luffing. Then steer into a close reach and let the sails out to luff and come to a stop.
Sounds like a plan.
You'll make some mistakes, but nothing like going out and doing it for learning. Nothing wrong with taking some classes, but it sounds as if you want to learn by doing.

The best part of your plan was the part about a week day with not a lot of boat traffic around.

Stay away from everybody.

Play with your sail trim, and have fun.

Sometimes we try to make it into brain surgury, but the basics, are really not that difficult. Fine tuning and the more advanced stages of sailing come with time and experience. You did say you read some books right? There are also some basic sail trim articles right here on this web site.

Do you know how to read your telltails?

Play with your sail trim and feel the boat.
What happens when I do this? Does the boat speed increase or did I just make the boat go slower?

The boat will tell you everything you need to know.
 
#8 ·
Utah...head the boat directly into the wind. Then raise the mainsail first. Then raise the jib.
Go on a day when the wind is not over 15knots and you won't need any reefs and you have zero risk of the boat tipping over. If the wind gets too strong or the boat gets heeled too much...just let go of the main sheet to spill the wind.
Practice on all points of sail and you'll soon have the hang of it. If you've read Sailing for Dummies or something close...the next step is getting out there. Just pick your weather and make sure your radio is working and your life preserver is at hand and that the best thing to do if in trouble is to let the lines go and drop the anchor till you figure things out.
 
#9 · (Edited)
SEMIJim said:
Btw: You know why they call it a "boom," right? ;)
Is that the thing that swing across the cockpit that knocks my beer overboard.:mad:

sailortjk1 I think there be a lot of mistakes maked that first day. and yes I have read about how to read the telltails, Not that I will remember that first time.

camaraderie Thanks for the tip about putting the boat in irons before raising the main and jib. I plan on furling the jib before I'm underway from the slip. Life preserver and anchor with new chain and rode is already on the boat.

I have had the standing rigging checked and all new sheets for the running rigging done already.
 
#10 ·
For books, I'd recommend Dave Seidman's The Complete Sailor. I'd also recommend you go out with a friend who knows how to sail a bit, or take some basic lessons.

While learning yourself is a great thing to do, it is generally easier to do on a dinghy, as many dinghies have reduced numbers of controls and are far more sensitive to your actions and accellerate your learning.

Learning on a 30' keelboat may be a bit more difficult, as it is a bit harder to understand what the boat is trying to tell you. Also, any mistakes you make can be a bit more costly. Hitting a rock with $300 Snark, is not a huge problem, hitting same rock with a 30' keel boat can be very expensive. :D
 
#11 ·
Hello,

Sometime you just gotta get out there and try it.

Go for it, you won't regret it.

My only advice is to pick a day with just a little wind, like 5-10 kts and no higher.

As previously mentioned, head directly into the wind, then raise the main. Fall off onto a reach, then unroll the headsail (assuming you have a furler). Experiment with different points of sail, try a few tacks (not no jibes). Then put the sails away and motor home.

I think you should have a checklist of things to do, include things like

remove sail cover
remove sail ties
check that main halyard is clear
ease main sheet
ease topping lift
raise main
etc.

Good luck,
Barry
 
#12 ·
Don't forget the reefing lines need to be loosened... or raising the mainsail can get interesting... ;)

BTW, if something doesn't feel right—something is resisting or too tight... take a good look around, chances are the boat is trying to tell you something.
 
#13 ·
BarryL said:
I think you should have a checklist of things to do, include things like

remove sail cover
remove sail ties
check that main halyard is clear
ease main sheet
ease topping lift
raise main
etc.

Good luck,
Barry
Very good suggestion (except I would raise the main before easing the topping lift :D:D:D)...you think you have it all planned out in your head until you get out there and suddenly there seems to be a million "doh!" things that pop up.

But I think there is no problem with teaching yourself how to sail. Not the fastest way to learn, but if that is how you want to do it than don't let anyone stop you.
 
#14 ·
Great plan. Just a word of advice: be prepared to panic. Then, when it's time, let the main sheet go, let the jib sheet go. If the boat is still standing and you need to get out of the way of that tanker coming through, try using only one sail. It's easier with the main, but most boats can sail all points with just the jib too.
When the wind goes over 15 knots, drop the sails. If things get hary on the first day, just motor back and get on you 200mph dragster to cool down your nerves. Save the boat for the next time the winds are favorable.
 
#15 ·
Umm... You really should only let go of the main sheet and jib sheets if they are not cleated or held firm, like in a self-tailing winch.... otherwise, holding on to them is much preferred. :D
 
#16 ·
You didn't say, but I'll assume your 30' has an inboard aux engine. My advice would be for your first few times to leave it running (in neutral) while you putz around trying to figure out the sailing thing. Murphy's law of sailing says that everything will go fine until you are; a) on a collision course with another boat/dock/etc, b) about to run aground or c) in some other complicating situation. That is the point where you will screw up a tack, or get something jammed or break something that compromises your ability to make the boat go where it needs to. Having the engine running will be enough to overcome those tendencies providing you always leave yourself plenty of room for options.

Just remember sailing is like sex. You don't have to be very good at it to enjoy it, and, while the basics only take a few minutes to grasp, you can spend a lifetime perfecting your technique.
 
#17 ·
Go for it

Utah
Remember, primitive man first "sailed" across a river on a log while holding aloft a branch with lots of foliage on it. The worlds first sail..:D

From that point on, he made it complicated for himself but he impressed all around him.
It is up to you if you want to go the simple route or complicated route.
Start out easy and simple and add to your knowledge as you experience things.
Listen and feel..If it don't feel right, it probably ain't.
Let go and start again.;)

But most of all, have fun.
Good luck and tell us all how you went.

Jim.:cool:
 
#18 ·
SailorJim..."Remember, primitive man first "sailed" across a river on a log while holding aloft a branch with lots of foliage on it. The worlds first sail."

As Giu will tell you...it was the Portuguese who were the first sailors. Actually one of his ancestors was standing on a raft in his overcoat when a virgin walked by. You might call it a "flash" of inspriation!:D:D:D:D

(I know I'm gonna get photoshopped but I couldn't resist! :rolleyes:)
 
#20 ·
Our first trip sailing

Well I thought I let you know how everything went my first trip out.

My first plan to motor out during the week ended about mile from the slip. Motor started to over heat, so dropped anchor and replaced the impellor. Let me tell you that it can get very hot working over a hot engine on the water during the afternoon. But all went well and back in the slip for the night. A 6-pack and off to bed.

My wife will be the helmsman today for our first sailing adventure. Wind was 10 to 15 knots coming up the river and very little traffic on the river.

The next morning I was up early and check over the equipment, and headed out with the tide. Motored out of the creek to the river channel and headed her in the wind

Raise the main sail and she steered into a close reach (Port tack) the boat heel very little so I released the Jib sail the boat heeled a little more, not as much as I had expected. (Motor sailing) Everything check out ok so we cut the engine Sailing for the first time (GPS Speed 4.3 Knots).

Now the river channel not that wide so we had to change tack about every two minutes. We were able to tack without getting stuck in irons, and 3 n miles down the river we was ready to try a run back up the river.

We steered to a beam reach and then a broad reach as she was steering to a run the jib started to luff and I haul in the sheet to get it to the port side the jib filled with wind and I easy the main out to starboard.

Now we had average 3.8 knots going into the wind per the gps and now on a run we only going 2.9 knots and then 2.5 knots. (And I had to look at the GPS to tell if we were moving) Then I realize that the tide was going out and the wind had died to 5 to 10 knots.
We made it back to the creek at and average speed of 2.8 knots all was well till I tried to furr the jib and found it was lock up on something at the top. (No choice but to lower the jib. I could just see my sail falling into the water. I untied the halyard and let the sail down with no problem. My lucky day. I secured the sail and went back to the cockpit.

We steered to port with only the main came around to a close reach and tacked once with only the main and on the second attempt to tack with the main only we was stuck in irons, (I believe the tugboat pushing the barge stole our wind) not to bad for our first time I thought to myself. I lower the main and started the engine and back to the slip. We reinstalled the jib sail and repaired the furling, install the sail covers and tidy up some loose line had a drink. Overall we had a great time. And can't wait to do it again.

Things we learned today:

1.That the boat was slow to act to steering but when it did we could tell we had over-steered.
2.I need to replace the rigging on the outhaul.
3.Need to look at the way the jib rigging (sheets was dragging across my shrouds while change tack)
4. Main sail need a good cleaning.

:) Thanks to you guys for all the good info. That made this possible. I now have 6.82 mile under my belt in 2 hours 32 minutes. No world record. But a great time.

:eek: I not sure my dog liked it for when we got back to the slip she jump off the boat and went to the truck as if she was ready to go home.
 
#22 ·
Utahkid-

1) The boat may have been slow to react to steering if you kept the main sheeted in and were trying to bear off... since the main sail will tend to keep you head to wind and prevent or resist bearing off—so ease it as you bear off to get the boat to react faster

2) I'd do this sooner, rather than later, since the outhaul is one of the more important controls in de-powering the mainsail. If it breaks... the mainsail will be a nightmare to control in high winds. :D

3) That's pretty normal, especially if your shrouds are in-board and your jib tracks are outboard of them.

4) Send them off to Sailcare or a local sail loft next winter... don't worry about it for now.
 
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