[Bruce PATRICK]

I run the main sail but I see main running the geona . Why what is the advantage I find the main more stable.

 

[chuck53]

Did you mean to say you see MANY running the Genoa? I do that very often as the Genoa is very easy to use with the roller furling. The main is a pain in the butt to use. Uncovering and raising isn't too bad but dropping the sail, flaking and covering is not easy.
For a short sail, I only use my genoa.

 

[night0wl]

Kind of hard on the standing rigging to keep running one sail vs balancing the setup...I prefer to run both sails but reef

 

[SHNOOL]

Lazy jacks (or dutchman flaking) and the main becomes less of a bother. I'm for balancing sail myself. With a strong fractional rig, the main will be more powered up and balanced alone, on a masthead rig a genoa will balance pretty well by itself. Depends on the boat.

There is a guy on our lake who sails his fractional J/24 very frequently with his 155 genoa up alone, and does quite well that way. I'd have never guessed the boat would balance well against it, but he seems to handle it nicely. In the same vein I'd likely run a jib (100%) and full up main. Or reef and jib.

 

[aloof]

How is it hard on the standing rigging to sail under genoa alone? What stress does what piece have that endangers it's longevity? I'm skeptical.

I have two problems with sailing under headsail alone. First it looks lazy. Second, it limits maneuverability. If there is other traffic around, or obstacles, the main is the one sail to have while a headsail alone is asking for embarrassment, or worse. I suppose one can rely on the engine...

 

[Don L]

People run on their head sail only because they are being lazy.

 

[weinie]

People run on their head sail only because they are being lazy.

Sometimes lazy is good.

 

[Faster]

Sometimes lazy is good.

Meh.... I think 'lazy' is just 'lazy'... but sailing headsail-only is, I suppose, a better 'lazy' than just motoring on....

 

[chuck53]

I have two problems with sailing under headsail alone. First it looks lazy. Second, it limits maneuverability. If there is other traffic around, or obstacles, the main is the one sail to have while a headsail alone is asking for embarrassment, or worse. I suppose one can rely on the engine...

I guess I'm lazy and make no bones about it. My wife and I frequently go out for short 1-2 hour sails. That's what we enjoy. The time and trouble to put up the main for a short sail just ain't worth it. Now, if we are on a longer sail and maybe have an extra hand on board, we're happy to put up the main.

As far as maneuverability...we're in the middle of the lower Potomac where other boats are few and far between and obstacles...I've been dodging crab pots all my life, power and sail and have never got tangled up with one.

 

[Delta-T]

Everyone's boat sails different with different rigs and sail combinations. And we are talking cursing, not racing. What works best for your boat might not work for me. So I say sail what works best for you and forget the rest, whether it be called lazy, or silly, as long as you are enjoying your self.

Now with my tall rig and my 150% alone, my boat is perfectly balanced and I can do hull speed all day long. With my narrow beam and add the head main sail and I have too much heal and weatherhelm. With both sails up I do gain a few degrees up wind, but it's work, so why do it? With my main sail alone, my boat goes no where. I think that's a bit odd too, but I have been sailing all my life (57), and for the last 45 years on my Bristol. Can anyone speculate why?

 

[Sailormon6]

It's my boat - I paid for it - I'm over 70 years old - and I can sail it any damn way I want! Now leave me alone!

 

[RainDog]

For sure depends on the boat. I used to sail my Catalina 27 in high winds with 1 reef in the main (only had 1) and just a handkerchief of jib out. Sailed great. I saw a bunch of other boats sail with just Genoa in those conditions and it seemed to work great. I gave it a try and damn near lost my rig. Not a good idea on that boat. On my current boat it works fine, but I much prefer a balanced plan.

 

[JonEisberg]

How is it hard on the standing rigging to sail under genoa alone? What stress does what piece have that endangers it's longevity? I'm skeptical.

I have two problems with sailing under headsail alone. First it looks lazy. Second, it limits maneuverability. If there is other traffic around, or obstacles, the main is the one sail to have while a headsail alone is asking for embarrassment, or worse. I suppose one can rely on the engine...

When the breeze pipes up, sailing under a headsail alone on a boat like mine could be a recipe for disaster...

I think many folks might be underestimating the amount of support a mainsail, even one deeply reefed, can give towards keeping the mast in column. (Perhaps not so much with in-mast furling, which is another strike against that setup, IMHO) On a boat with inline shrouds or no fore and aft lowers, if you're sailing to weather in any sort of sea, the mast could easily get to pumping like crazy, possibly becoming inverted, with the potential for the loss of the rig...

Generally a poor practice when the breeze is up, in my opinion...

 

[weinie]

For sure depends on the boat. I used to sail my Catalina 27 in high winds with 1 reef in the main (only had 1) and just a handkerchief of jib out. Sailed great. I saw a bunch of other boats sail with just Genoa in those conditions and it seemed to work great. I gave it a try and damn near lost my rig. Not a good idea on that boat. On my current boat it works fine, but I much prefer a balanced plan.

Agreed.
In heavy winds up to 20kts, sailing my catalina 27 with just the 135 was not good. It gets way to hard to sheet in tight and you feel the rigging straining.

That boat was much better off with a reefs in the main and some jib in a bit of a blow.

That being said, on days after work when I didn't have too much time and just wanted to tool around by myself with a refreshment in hand, sailing with the genny alone was just fine and actually pretty quick. Plus you could put the boat away that much faster which meant just a little more sailing time.

 

[chuck53]

It's my boat - I paid for it - I'm over 70 years old - and I can sail it any damn way I want! Now leave me alone!

I'm 61, my boat is paid for and what's wrong with a couple hours of lazy sailing.

 

[aloof]

Yikes. Sorry lazy sailors. I don't have any problem with you being old and lazy. I'm young (60) and not lazy in any way, but have sometimes sailed on headsail alone. It just looks lazy to a sailor...kinda San Diego/MDR.

Re the wear and tear comment: Sure mast pumping is bad, but the poster said it wore out the standing rigging. I read that as is was shortening the life of the shrouds or backstay or something. If a mast needs the main to support the mast in moderate conditions perhaps the designer forgot to add running backstays or aft lower shrouds.

As for maneuverability: my feeling is it limits one options too severely in situations where ones options are best left open. A main alone is better in so many ways: puffs, stopping, mooring, dodging, tacking, etc. Last week I saw a sailor trying to pick up a mooring. He dropped his main on approach and sailed up to the mooring on genoa alone. Hilarity ensued. With main alone it would have been trivial. He could have had a beer between mooring and lowering the main.

As for why a boat will sail better under 150% genoa than main alone, several reasons: the 150% probably has more sail area than the main. And the luff is probably longer...more efficient. And headsails are not crippled by a mast disturbing the airflow. And by the deck layout the genoa will not be overtrimmed to the centerline as the main is apt to be. Under main alone the boom must not be centered and the sheet should be well eased.

 

[scratchee]

My boat handles very nicely under just the genoa. Why is this any more lazy than opting not to put up the spinnaker or a whisker pole when running downwind?

 

[FSMike]

Re: Maneuverability

Main sail only may be better in most situations, but if you ever find yourself forced to sail to a dock with the wind behind you, there is no way to quickly dump the main. With just a jib, if need be you can blow the jib sheet and let the jib stream downwind while getting the boat secured.

 

[Barquito]

Re: Maneuverability

Main sail only may be better in most situations, but if you ever find yourself forced to sail to a dock with the wind behind you, there is no way to quickly dump the main. With just a jib, if need be you can blow the jib sheet and let the jib stream downwind while getting the boat secured.

True about not being able to blow the main going down wind. But, I would rather make another plan for the approach, rather than use the jib. Maybe swing into the wind at the pier, or motor in, or go in under bare poles.

 

[Sailormon6]

Re: Maneuverability

Main sail only may be better in most situations, but if you ever find yourself forced to sail to a dock with the wind behind you, there is no way to quickly dump the main. With just a jib, if need be you can blow the jib sheet and let the jib stream downwind while getting the boat secured.

If you're thinking about entering a slip downwind in a really strong wind, the better choice is to anchor somewhere until the wind dies, because, without an engine to stop you with reverse gear, you're too likely to hit the dock hard.

In more moderate wind, you don't need any sail at all to enter a slip. just position the boat to windward of the slip, take down all sails, and the boat's hull and spars provide enough windage to blow the boat into the slip.

In light air, use the mainsail, not the jib. As you approach the slip, with the wind at the stern, lower most of the mainsail and let it fall to the deck. Leave up just enough in the slot to provide enough sail area to drive the boat slowly into the slip. A crew member might have to hold the sailcloth out to catch the wind. When the boat is certain to glide into the slip, have your crew member pull down the rest of the mainsail. That totally smothers the mainsail.

If you get a sudden gust as you're coming in with the mainsail, when most of it is lying on the deck, the boat won't accelerate much, and your crew can pull the remaining small triangle down quickly. If you get a sudden gust with a full, hanked-on jib, you can let the sheets go, but your flailing sheets or sail could wrap on a piling, and just the windage alone on a big jib could drive the boat into the slip too fast to be able to stop it. You have much more control over your speed using the mainsail in this manner.