SailNet Community banner
  • SailNet is a forum community dedicated to Sailing enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about sailing, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, repairs, reviews, maintenance, and more!

Need opinions on skipper judgement

5K views 33 replies 24 participants last post by  wind_magic 
#1 ·
Hello everyone,
I've been a Sailnet reader for awhile, but I rarely post. Would like some opinions since my 'skipper' is a big fan of web forums and not a a big fan of my suggestions. ;) We sail a 39 ft boat that weighs around 14,000 pounds with our five-year old. We're pretty much 'bay sailors' who just cruise on the weekends. Our daughter has been sailing with us since infancy and feels comfortable on the boat - maybe a little too comfortable. We had a smaller vessel previously and she would stay in the cockpit with us while we were under sail. Now, on the 'big boat' she like to go down below by herself and spend time down there while we sail. I don't have a problem with that when conditions are light and when we are not heading upwind. Recently, we had a nice day sail in 17 -ish knot winds that were gusting just over 20 knots. At the point we turned around to head back (at my suggestion) I was at the helm and stated that the sails would need to come down or our smallest crew member would need to don her vest and immediately join us in the cockpit with some reefing to be done. We were in a 'narrow' body of water, 25 knot winds at this point, with frequent tacks necessary to head upwind and my skipper thought I was completely unreasonable to think there were any safety issues. Note that our boat is also a newer model where we have a virtual dance floor to go flying across with few handholds - especially at a height suitable for someone who is 43 inches tall. I have now been told I should get a motor boat or stay at the dock. Has anyone ever encountered similar issues and if so, how did you handle them?

Love to sail but.....
 
See less See more
#33 ·
We own a 22,000lb boat (plus water/fuel/people/stuff) and we'll be double reefed on the main and single reefed on the genny at 25kts. We'd rather be comfortable and slow than hard over and a bit faster. Actually, it depends on the time of day. In the morning, when we first leave, we don't want to be hard over. By the end of the day, we really don't care and just want our first drink :)

To answer the original poster's question, I think you were a bit overcautious by saying that you had to lower sails and get all hands on deck, but that's much better than undercautious (although a sailboat will handle better in almost all conditions with some mainsail up). On our boat, the kids wear life jackets when not below, but they can take them off below. For the grown ups, life jackets go on either when we put the first reef in or the seas are high enough (or confused enough). If the wind blows over 20 or in inclement weather, we usually string our jacklines out and clip in. When there's a lot of stuff going on (reefing, frequent tacks), if our kids don't want to be involved we have them go below. As others have mentioned, it's critical that you have a safe environment for them to hang out in. If it doesn't exist today, build it.

I think your skipper was a bit harsh on you, but it's a difference in experience. You're more nervous at higher winds whereas I'm assuming he has been in more and knows how the boat will act. On our old boat, I was great. On our new-to-us boat, I was nervous the first few times the wind blew over 20, and I'm still getting used to it as I learn what she will do and how long it will take for her to dig in.

Just persevere, and get more experience at the higher wind velocities. Put reefs in BEFORE 25kts of wind, learn how your traveler can reduce heel and weather helm, and learn how your boat will react to gusts.
 
#34 ·
To the original poster. Did you try pouting ? That used to work on me sometimes, but not all the time. As a last resort you could cry. That always worked on me, well, most of the time. I mean like really cry though, you know, you have to say you give up that you don't know what to do that you've tried everything and all that stuff, and cry into a pillow really loud.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top