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Weather SURPRISE out at SEA

4K views 14 replies 9 participants last post by  gweiser 
#1 ·
After completing a very basic course on Dinghy Sailing, I thought I would further my education by crewing on some bigger boats. I found one individual who was kind enough and patience enough to take me on. This individual races in a lot of those CCV races, and I have been out with him at least 5 times. I have learnt a GREAT DEAL in a short space of time. But this weekend was the most drastic lesson I have learned so far. There was a Sunday race, and I make it a point to always check the weather report the day before and the day of the race. There were Thunderstorms and Isolated Showers predicted for this race day (starting at 11:00AM), and I thought for sure the race would be cancelled. But I went to the dock and saw the rest of the crew making the usual preparations to go out. The weather was nice and a pretty good day for sailing (9:00AM), so although my mind said do not go, I went ahead and we went out. The race was to start at 11:00AM, and we had a wonderful start. But then about 45 minutes into the race, we lost all wind and just drifted or sat in a hole. Then one of the crew notice a very ominous dark cloud and he said it was heading our way. He was right and within ten minutes there was a gust of serious wind and rain and then, it looked to me a novice that all hell broke loose. We were flying a #1 Jib and the wind and the waves 4-6 ft just started throwing the boat around like it was a piece of plywood. We dropped the #1 Jib and put on the #2 and it was no better. I was the pit guy and had to go under and prepare the #2 Jib to be passed out to the forestay guy, and man was I thrown around the cabin. I had never been on such a ride before and it was quite concerning and quite wonderful all at the same time. The Capt, who was fighting the wheel, told us to reef the Mainsail, first we reefed it to the #1 position and later to the #2 position. This gave us a little more control of the boat, but not enough to really stay clear of the results of the waves and the wind. I was sitting on the high side as the boat was heeling quite severely. Then something happened I never noticed before, the waves would sometimes change the heel of the boat, so that one minute I was the high side and the next I was the low side. The force of the wind was so strong that to do a jibe we had to take down the Mainsail, and pull the boom over and then raise the mainsail again ob the new side. I think our Capt, called this a Squall or something but whatever it was it really broke me into the REAL world of sailing. Well after about what seemed like an eternity, but was really maybe 45 minutes of Hell, the cloud and storm passed over us. In the time we were experiencing this madness I thought I would never see the dock again. What really scared me the most was that the 5 previous times I had been out with this boat; I was the only one that wore a lifejacket. But in the middle of the fight the Captain had everyone else put on a lifejacket. On the radio we here many distress calls and heard one by one boats calling the race committee to say they were pulling out of the race. We our selves just miss hitting another race boat by about 4 feet. When we pulled in the dock, I saw a boat with it mast broken in half, I saw sails torn, and heard of tow boats that collided. Needless to say it was quite an exciting but concerning experience, and I learned quite a bit about respecting the weather and the power of the sea. But I must tip my hat to the captain and the forestay guy as they fought and did everything in their powers to control and fight back against the storm. I also learned that in situations like that the one thing you must do is something and not just think about the situation and not react. One of my first REAL Lessons of being out at sea, and I just wanted to share it with you guys. I can say now that I am so glad I experienced it, although when I was in it, it seemed like one of the last places I wanted to be…. Thanks for listening and Stay Dry….
 
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#2 ·
Three things.

1) This was a great situation for the skipper as with all of the other boats dropping out and running for home, the field would be narrowed and better his chances for a win.

2) Don''t bother "fighting" the sea, you''ll loose. Roll with her, dance with her. Learn the lesson that she is teaching: Be fluid and giving. You''ll be fine.

3) Tristan Jones said that fear is a useless emotion, that it gets in the way of normal thinking. Relax and make decisions wisely. Acting on emotion and adrenaline can get people killed. When I know the "crap is about to hit the fan", I''ll force a smile and a chuckle. This helps me relax and realize that my situation isn’t that bleak, then I can get to work doing what needs to be done.

Fun story and thanks!
 
#3 ·
It sounds like you were out there with a knowledgable crew and skipper. Many of these squall can contain enormous winds and they often contain wind that is moving very vertically making knockdowns harder to avoid. Being on a boat with a good crew it is easier to try different ideas to see what works. You saw a crew and skipper thinking on their feet, adjusting the boat and sailing techniques to the conditions and actually being pretty conservative in such acts as dropping the mainsail to jibe. (A more cavalier skipper might have jibed with the mainsail up or risked a tack. Sail handling in those conditions are especially tricky but it sounds like a good crew as well.) You had the chance to see how an experienced crew handled a difficult situation and I think that you can walk away with lessons that will be with you for years.

Thanks for telling your story,
Jeff
 
#4 ·
Ahoy matey, ye be a fine sailor and a generous human for sharing your story for us. Dis ere Pirate had a similar event this weekend and as I stood on me cabin furling the main while pitching like a bucking bronco, screaming at de squall " is dat all ye got ye sorry misbegotten bag of wind", me 9 yr old first mate was in your shoes. Aye I said 9 and what of it Ye got to gets em young! Squalls be just dat and ye need not be ascared iffin ye has a good captain and your vessel is sound ye be fine. Pirate of Pine Island.
 
#5 ·
Yea, great story. Hope it doesn''t scare you out of the water.

A couple of things... if he really was a good Captain, he should have seen it coming and already had the first reef or two in before it hit...

But then, if he''s in a race, I can see him not wanting to do that.

I agree that the best thing to do is relax and hopefully you have some faith/knowledge of what your boat can handle.

I got caught by a pretty intense squall a while back in the middle of an otherwise very calm night. Caught with jib and staysail up, and a single-reefed main (at least I was a little conservative about sailing at night). After sitting back and relaxing for a while, letting the windvane steer the boat, and seeing that the boat was handling the wind, rain and lightning OK even with all that sail up, I decided it wasn''t worth risking anyone on deck trying to drop sail any further and just rode it out. Last thing you want to attempt is a man overboard drill at night in a storm.

About an hour and a half later we were sitting it absolute calm about 15 miles away from where it started, but thankfully just about right on course.

Mike
 
#6 ·
Wow, great story. But something is confusing this newbie. You said:

"The force of the wind was so strong that to do a jibe we had to take down the Mainsail, and pull the boom over and then raise the mainsail again ob the new side."

Now, any boat I''ve been on (a handful, admitedly), I''d never be able to do this with the wind behind. There''d be too much pressure on the sail lugs or boltrope to move the main up or down. I have always gone at least partly head-to-wind to drop or raise the main. How does one drop/raise with strong winds astearn?

I would have thought that "chicken-jibing" would be the way to go in this situation--but then, I''m a newbie.

bw
 
#12 ·
thanks for the great story. i havent'' been involved in a squall yet, but in heavy winds, the other day, 20-25 knots for me is heavy, on my cal 25, which is 4000 pounds with a 1700 pound keel, i had a tough time sailing. i reefed the main once, which is all i can do, i furled the jib and i tightened the boom vang. other the tightening the downhaul and outhaul which i didn''t do, would there be any thing else to do to depower the sail and make the sailing easier? i dont have a traveler?

i was mostly sailing on a close haul but couldn''t bring the main sail in too close since the boat heeled too much, so it was mostly flapping alot. i also had a tough time coming about.

question:
1. when do you know if the wind is too strong to go out. the weather report said there was a small craft advisory which i assume applies to boats under 25 feet?
2. what do you gain by having some jib up vs just sailing with the main when it is very windy?
3. would heaving too be a good technique when it is very rough?
4. is putting in a traveler a significant benefit in heavy weather or is it more for racers?
5. why was it so hard to come about.?

thanks for your help.
 
#13 ·
I can sympathize; I''m still learning to control excessive heel and weather helm myself. Here''s what I know to do from instructors and reading, in order of intensity:

main:
1. Sheet in hard.
2. Harden vang.
3. Ease traveller.
4. Tighten backstay.
5. Harden outhaul/cunningham/halyard.
6. Reef.

Jib:
7. tighten backstay.
8. reef.

Now, from what you say, You did 1 (somewhat) and 2, can''t do 3, might not have 4, didn''t do 5, but did do 6.

#1 is key, even if initially you heel more. I suspect you didn''t have a flat enough sail, since you didn''t do 5. A sheeted-in but still twisted/cambered main won''t depower.

It''s all about flattening that dang mainsail. Think back: how flat was it? Sheeted down viciously, and with aggressive halyard/cunningham/outhaul, the sail should be flat as heck--or it''s the wrong sail for your rig--or something on your rig is out of adjustment. For instance, does the outhaul have enough range to really stretch out? Do you need a small block to get enough tension there?

It''s hard to flatten a reefed sail--the foot is usually really loose. With a reefed sail, 1 & 3 are usually your best bet. With no traveller, you may need to ease sheets on a reefed main to blow the pressure during gusts. This gives you poor shape, but it works for short periods. Sometimes called "feathering".

I''ve noticed myself too that what works one day does not work the next. A lot has to do with the _type_ of wind you''re dealing with. A few weeks ago here in the SF bay, I was sailing along nicely in about 12 knots on a close reach, heeled about 10 degrees with no reef. Everyone was happy. But as we started to skirt a hilly shoreline to weather it all changed: The boat leaned _way_ over, while the wind felt only slightly heavier. Later I realized that the wind was coming _down_ on us from the hill, increasing the heeling moment because of the downward vector. All I could have done was reef at that point (instead, I fell off to a broad reach and got out to flat air again.)

One last thing: don''t over-reef the jib, and don''t do it at the same time as reefing the main. Definitely don''t reef the jib first. Most small boats develop excessive weather helm as the wind builds, which will tend to round you up into a luff at worst. Reefing the main helps reduce weather helm, since more pressure is now on the jib, pushing the bow to lee. But reefing the jib first only increases weather helm.
 
#14 ·
Gweiser,

To answer your questions as best I can:

1. when do you know if the wind is too strong to go out. the weather report said there was a small craft advisory which i assume applies to boats under 25 feet? Offhand, I don’t recall the exact definition of “small craft,” but a 25’ boat is well within the meaning of the term.

Sailing in 20-25 kts of wind on an inland lake is easy, because the waves are generally small and there are no tidal currents to complicate things. Entering a pass from the sea in 20-25 kt winds against the tide can be treacherous. Sailing across a shoal one day, when the wind is blowing offshore, might be a pleasant sail. The very next day, with the same amount of wind blowing ashore, the waves might become huge and steep as they roll across the same shoals. In short, the amount of danger there is in sailing in 20-25 kt winds depends on the location and other conditions. It would be better to learn about those things while crewing for a more experienced skipper on a bigger boat, than to learn all by yourself on your own smaller boat.

Personally, I take small craft warnings very seriously, having been present when a 27 ft sailboat rolled over while entering a pass in such conditions, at the cost of one life.

2. what do you gain by having some jib up vs just sailing with the main when it is very windy? The jib provides balance to the sailplan. The mainsail creates power aft of the Center of Lateral Resistance, and the jib creates power forward of the CLR. By trimming the sails, you can adjust those forces and the boat will be more powerful and more maneuverable.

3. would heaving too be a good technique when it is very rough? Yes. Also, sailing under bare poles works well, if you have sea room.

4. is putting in a traveler a significant benefit in heavy weather or is it more for racers? I’m surprised to hear that your boat (a Cal 25) doesn’t have a traveler. A traveller isn’t just for racers. It is a device that allows you to quickly depower your mainsail in a gust, and then, when the gust subsides, you can power it up again. It’s a very handy device.

5. why was it so hard to come about.? In high winds it is inherently difficult to turn a boat across the wind. It takes a lot of power to overcome the force of the wind against the bow of the boat. With only a reefed mainsail and no jib, your sail didn’t generate much power. Once, in about 30-35 kts of wind, I was motoring in a 38 ft. Morgan with a 55 hp diesel, and when I tried to bring her bow across the eye of the wind, the wind caught the bow and blew it back downwind. Until the wind lulled slightly, the motor didn’t have enough power to overcome the pressure of the wind on the bow.

If you are going to be going out in marginal conditions (and you know you are, because you already have), you should have at least a little storm jib and another set of reef points on your mainsail.
 
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