What was he doing?

Pamlicotraveler · #1 (**permalink**) 09-30-2008

I don't follow all of the latest trends, but down on Broad Creek off the Neuse River this weekend I saw a guy having a great downwind sail with a tiny little spinnaker. It looked like the spinnaker for a Laser or something....

Has anyone else seen this type of thing or did he just order the wrong spinnaker and decide to use it anyway?

Nector · #2 (**permalink**) 09-30-2008

See John Candy In Family vacation during regatta

philsboat · #3 (**permalink**) 09-30-2008

He probably got it cheap and couldn't afford a new one.When we first started racing we got an old J24 spinnaker for a case of beer.It was a little small for our Sonic 23 but worked fine for years.After that we got a Viking 28 spinnaker for $40.00 .It was too big but really pulled in a big wind.When the wind died it dragged in the water.We paid a penalty for flying it (phrf rating) But it was a hoot to fly!
Everything does't have to be perfect to have fun sailing or racing,especially when you can beat another boat with expensive sails

Delirious · #4 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

Testing his storm spinnaker. ;-)

bobmcgov · #5 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

Where I grew up and learned to sail, people didn't use spinnakers. They were considered gaudy and dangerous: wing-and-wing was good enuf for granddad, by God, it's good enuf for you whippersnappers.

Upshot: I never flew a kite. *cringe* We recently took our SJ21 to Fremont Lake and had a few days to muck about. We brought along the spi from our Buccaneer 18 -- about 60% as big as the stock SJ21 chute -- and used it to learn with. Practised deploying, jibing, reaching, dousing, without the stress of doubling our working sail area. "Chicken chute" ain't a bad way to go when you are learning, although the larger J made it tricky to get the kite out front far enuf.

Probably looked ridiculous to other boats, but hey. When you're sailing a 1973 tub the color of a banana, you don't fret appearances. Up next: buying a full-sized kite for the SJ (used, crummy) and learning to sail the Bucc -- a boat already desperately unstable and overpowered -- with the spinnaker.

LynW · #6 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

What's wrong with a really small spinnaker if you are cruising shorthanded? Doesn't need a lot of twitching, easy to recover, but still keeps the boat moving when a genoa would just be flapping useless. This is mine, crossing the Georgia Straight a month ago ...

lharmon · #7 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

Our current boat was raced by a little old lady who had sailed for many years. She retired from sailing in her low 80's and sold the boat to the people we bought it from.

The assymeterical spinnaker that came with the boat is huge. We have talked about buying something a little more managable as we do not officially race, nor do we have the first owner's 60+ years sailing experience. If we had a smaller asym we would fly it more often and in higher winds. Plus then maybe I could fly it some while singlehanding.

RandyonR3 · #8 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

This brings up some good ideas, as our boat is cutter rigged and it would be really easy to fly a storm spinnaker off the shorter portion of the mast..

Pamlicotraveler · #9 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by RandyonR3

This brings up some good ideas, as our boat is cutter rigged and it would be really easy to fly a storm spinnaker off the shorter portion of the mast..

I hadn't thought about that....that's a great idea!

CharlieCobra · #10 (**permalink**) 10-01-2008

The older classic yachts used Frac rigged spinnakers so they work fine. Some hard core racers carry several A-spins of various sizes for different conditions.