I was trapped UNDER the boat

[The Regatta Queen]

Originally Posted by JeffC_

Queen,

The so-called "chicken gybe" is another term for wearing sail, the manuever whereby an actual gybe is avoided by turing into the wind, across the eye of the wind, and then easing onto the new desired downwind course. You may find that it is necessary to haul in the sheets in order to drive the boat into the wind if you want enough boatspeed to accomplish the tack, then ease sheets after the tack.

Depending on your crew, your experience, and the particular boat, you can perform this manuever in one graceful turn: helmsman slowly bringing the bow into the wind and handling the mainsheet & crew on the jibsheets; or in stages, momentarily achieving a close reach, then going for the tack, since a lot is going on all at once.

In a dinghy, tacking from a close reach means that just when you get the bow across the wind, you will likely have lost most of your boatspeed, which has the effect of "pivoting" the boat through the tack, and keeps the acreage required to complete the manuever to a minimum. Of course, you still need enough inertia to accomplish the tack. A little practice will reveal the best procedure for you.

There is nothing unseaman-like about wearing sail. It's the right choice when the conditions out-gun your skills. Whenever I see it done I never think "chicken." I always admire the well-performed manuever and the prudent skipper.

Continue to practice gybes in light conditions, and eventually you will be able to gybe confidently when you used to choose to wear sail. Until then, wear sail, and stay dry.

So therefore trying a gybe THE OTHER WAY could have entirely saved me, is that what you are trying to say, Jeff?

Or is it a more advanced way?

[The Regatta Queen]

Can you please re-explain that in other shorter terms... ?
Thanks

[The Regatta Queen]

Hey, tomarrow I am going sailing AGAIN! This time I swear to God I will NOT capsize, and even if I do, I will tell you all about it. Anyway, G2G ya'll.

[gc]

My preferred procedure for gybeing a small boat is:
1) Head as close to directly downwind as you are comfortable with
2) PULL UP THE CENTERBOARD
3) Grab the mainsheet - all parts of a multipart system and throw it over while you move the tiller.
4) As soon as the sail comes over, correct the helm to try to keep the boat going directly downwind.
5) Get the board back down and come up to the new course.

The scariest boat I have ever sailed is a Windmill. It uses a daggerboard that will foul the boom vang if it is pulled up. So it has to be gybed with the board full down. The technique is to wait until the boat is planeing at top speed (this reduces the forces on the sails), then gybe and pray. It is critical to keep the boat going directly downwind, because if it rounds up at all, you trip over the centerboard and get very wet.

And that is the point of having the board up while gybing. If you miss a little and the boat rounds up a bit, it will skid sideways over the water and not capsize. Of course you lose control of the boat at that point, but you are still upright and can correct pretty fast.

[The Regatta Queen]

Thanks!

[The Regatta Queen]

Originally Posted by The Regatta Queen

Hey, tomarrow I am going sailing AGAIN! This time I swear to God I will NOT capsize, and even if I do, I will tell you all about it. Anyway, G2G ya'll.

Yeah, I made it.

Here's What Happened:
...
We had the instructor come sailing in our boat with us. Recently it's been very windy so that adds to the craziness. Why? Our boat was heeling ALOT. A few times the instructor told me to hike out but I wasn't woman enough to do it. (Yeah, laugh.) Everytime one side of my boat heeled close to the water, I chickened out. (Giggles)

[The Regatta Queen]

Strangely, I came sooo close!
Like with all that heeling, I was trying my hardest not to capsize. Is there a "safe" way to stop the boat from its heeling? I was so freaking scared that the instructor had to take me back to the beach! To tell you the truth, I really did want to go sailing. Part of me felt at ease, the other part of me was angered.

[sailortjk1]

Well first of all, what type of instructor do you have?
My opinion is he should be the one answering your questions, you are paying him money for instruction correct? To simply land you back at the beach is not the way to learn.

Sailboats are going to heel, there is no doubt about it.

Yes there are things you can do to reduce the ammount of heel. It sounds like you are sailing a smaller boat with a center board, than yes the first thing to do is hike out your bottom and use your body weight to counter act the heeling.

After that what most do is to ease the sheet out and spill air out of the sail. We can also talk about reducing sail area by reefing sails, but most times on a small boat reefing is not an option. You most likely be using the other option of spilling air from the sails.

If you are really in a bind and if you have enough sea room and are clear of other vessels, you can simply fall off the wind to a reach, which will reduce heel but may not get you to where you want to be going.

Don't be afraid of heeling, its going to happen; and don't be afraid of getting wet, its going to happen....... Thats how you learn.

[The Regatta Queen]

What I am really afraid of is the chance of drowning. Somehow I am afraid, yet I know I shouldn't be... The whole time I had a life jacket on, and I just don't know what is wrong with me... (Giggling) Help!

[The Regatta Queen]

Holy Toledo!!!!
(Hysterical Laughs)