Spinnaker Wrap Poll

[paulk]

Once again, the SailNet weeky poll results are surprising me. About a third of the more than 300 (so far) respondants think that to avoid spinnaker wraps around the headstay while jybing they need use a spinnaker sock. Snuffing the chute then jybing and re-setting it is a valid way to avoid wrapping the sail around the headstay, though it is slow. What concerns me is the roughly equal numbers (at this point) who believe that turning the boat more slowly through the jybe reduces the chances of wrapping the chute. In my experience, the longer you take in the jybe, with the sail bouncing and billowing around, possibly collapsing in the lee of the main, the MORE likely a wrap is. It upsets me that so many people - theoretically sailors- would fail to see the flawed logic of their responses. IMHO a quick jybe avoids wrapping the chute around the headstay. It''s full on the first jybe, out in front of the boat, and then still full, still out in front of the boat, on the other jybe. The trick is to have the crew be able to jybe the pole as fast as the boat can turn. Boats jybe slowly to allow the crews time to jybe the poles, and THAT is when their spinnakers get wrapped around the headstay. Speed up the crew, speed up the turn, and you''ll avoid the wrap... or get a snuffer.

[DuaneIsing]

I don''t have much I can add here except to note that the poll specifically referred to "cruising spinnaker", which means it is an asymmetric chute with no spinnaker pole involved.

[Jeff_H]

In the limited amount of time that I have spent on boats with cruising chutes I have had two wraps. For some reason cruising chutes seem way more prone to getting wraps than assymetrics flown off poles, and assymetrics flown off poles seem way more prone to wraps than symetrical chutes. In my mind, it is this propensity to get wraps that make cruising chutes and to a lesser extent assym chutes less suitable to single-handing and short-handed use.

Jeff

[bporter]

It''s a lot easier to use a cruising chute short handed than a symetrical, unless you''re boat handling skills are way up there.

It also would depend on your rig - on my boat you''ve got seperate sheets and guys to worry about on the symetrical.

With the Asym gennaker, no pole = no guy, also no downhaul, no dipping. My wife and I can handle it just fine. There''s no way I''d try to fly a symetrical chute off a pole with just the two of us.

Way too many things to pull on.