Sailing Report and Fish Stories (long)

[Tim Diebert]

Yesterday was a super sailing day.

The hardest wind I have sailed this boat in...hell, the hardest wind I have sailed any boat in....even big boats.

I was way too busy to pull out the anemometer, but going by measured wind speed earlier in the day and previous experience, I would say it was blowing 15-20 steady with gusts way over that. You know....white caps everywhere and sometimes the tops were being torn off.

(As an aside: I find wind stories an awful lot like fish stories......it is real easy to add a few inches to the spread of the hands.LOL In my case I bought myself a wind speed gauge last year and was surprised at how much 'out' I was in my guesses. And I was always guessing on the high side.....go figure. Just like fishes)

My luck was with me again yesterday as it was dead calm up until the boat was in the water and I was ready to go...looked up and there was a nice working breeze coming down the lake. I Yanked those planks up and off I go right off the ramp. I use a busy public ramp and often just motor out a ways to get out of other (motor boaters) folks way.

Sailed for a couple of hours in a steady 5 knot breeze. Perfect for experimenting with sheeting angles for the new lapper (larger head sail). With the new ability to balance the boat with the dagger board and sail trim, I was scurrying around with my cordless drill putting in new fairleads while the boat sailed herself. Funny thing is ...in the end, the better location was where I had already been sheeting my old jib.

The wind dies. so I motored over to where I had seen another little lightweight sailboat (I had never seen before) bobbing with slack sails. I rafted up with this chap and had a beer. We were discussing whether I was going to tow him back to the ramp or go looking for some wind when a nice breeze started up the lake, this time from the south. (I have experienced 180 degree wind shifts 3 times in a days sailing on this lake).

He sailed back to his dock (he was staying with some friends at their cabin...their boat too). I sailed up the dock and he jumped on to go sailing with me.....(I had the beer ~;0)

Turns out this guy Jim had owned a 52 foot schooner in the 70's and sailed and crewed on a 32 foot race boat on the coast for the last 12 years. As soon as we started off I knew this lad knew his business....man, what fun to have very experience crew on board. 62 year old Kiwi and he was scurrying around that deck like he sailed that boat all his life.

Jim was a big help with the new sheeting angles and was on the foredeck clearing jammed sheets almost before I asked him. Good fun. He trimmed the main constantly...and had a great knowledge of a gaffer. Best crew I ever had for sure.

We sailed is a beautiful steady 10-12 knot breeze for another couple of hours...maybe longer. We made a few miles down the lake to windward...but then that breeze died as well.

We were close to the marina where I noticed a sailing buddy of mine taking down the mast and rigging of his 26 Macgregor Classic. Stopped to chat with him and his wife for a minute and motored off north to my launch ramp and Jims dock. We were most of the way there and the sails were stowed when this wicked ass wall of wind peaked around the point from where we were. We both jump to get the sails up and head out into it...to windward now...another 180 shift... a North wind, and generally the most wicked ones.

Within minutes we knew we were going to have to reef at least one, but I figured to leave it all up until for a while yet as the initial slam of the wind often dies down shortly after it starts. Not this time, it picked up....steadily. A proper blood storm it was.

We then reefed down one (nice to have options). With this single reef (minus 20%), the lapper, dagger board (ballast and new spars) the boat was perfectly balanced with two crew. If I was by myself I would have need to go one more (40% reduction). It is nice to have options. My old sail had one deep reef at about 33 inches and I found it useless .....I like the two the way I have them because they work and are actually useful. But my boat is set up a bit different than other folks, so what works for me might not work for others.

As for the lapper, I loved it. At first, in light to medium winds it did not produce any more power than the jib...it seemed to me. The main thing was balance. The boat prefers this rig over the smaller head sail. Running the lapper with reefed main was terrific. Even when it was friggin howling.

Where the lapper is really lovely is downwind...what a powerful sail! I can tell you that rascal was pulling so hard it was tough to sheet it in or adjust it without two hands. For heavy weather days like that, I am going to have to get one of the rotating swivel cleats like I use for the main sheet. To have to move my body over to the lee side like that just to adjust the sheet was tricky...with it blowing so hard and weight transfer was serious.

Man that boat was just surfing down those waves on a reach...a complete riot. Easily my best sailing day (wind -wise) ever. There was only one other boat on the lake at that point and it was the owner of the boat that Jim was sailing when I met him earlier. A Harpoon 4.5. All sail/planing hull. Three guys (Two men and a kid) aboard and it was all they could do to not dump the thing. Experienced guys.

When we saw them out there we tried to catch them. They were going to windward and there was no way we could even hope match their speed, though we were pointing as high as them. After about 20 minutes of this tack they then spun around and head right back at us, we changed tack and intercepted them and then followed them about 150feet back on a broad reach. They never got away from me. We could not catch them...but we kept up with them on that point of sail.....with a reefed main, 240# of ballast and a similar water line. I was totally impressed with my little boat. So was Jim...and so were those other guys when we had a beer with them later on that evening. It was later on that I remembered that it was so harry, I forgot to pull up the dagger board when we were whistling down wind chasing those guys...who knows, if I had thought to pull that board we might have caught them.

We had tried all points of sail in these conditions....it was great. The new lapper is much more useful for dead down wind sailing as it is easier to keep full.

In windy conditions like this, I have this strange problem. My side stay turnbuckles like to unwind themselves. Fortunately, I have grown accustomed to repeatedly checking them and retightening when they come loose. A couple of years ago I had one come right undone. So now I am in the habit of always checking them along with all the other things I am always watching. That's part of why I love sailing, you are always busy.

I am going to try and figure out a way to keep these sucker cinched up....maybe a few wraps of electrical tape...?

At one point I guess I had not been watching well enough and Jim says, "hey, check out your quick link on the port side fwd chain plate/ turnbuckle"...the connecting nut had vibrated loose and the link was spread out and trying to straighten itself. That is how hard it was blowing. I could not get it back together so I just kept as much tension in the turnbuckle as I could.

During all this time we were sailing in this storm, My buddy John with the Macgregor was busy as hell trying to tame his boat enough with the big swells to get it on the trailer. The launch ramp is poorly located at the tip of a point and has no protection from either a north or south wind. Once he had the boat out (with a lot of help from a group of bikers that stopped to help him) he watched us sailing out there. He was really impressed, have fun just watching and wished he had his camera....so do I! I don't have one good shot of the boat sailing with me on it.

I did have my camera on the boat...but things were just too furious to get it out...beside, at times we were taking lots of spray, the decks were buried and dumping water into the cockpit and it was raining at times as well. I had the hatch boards in and the hatch closed most of the day. I have a new and expensive digital and was not wanting to test it's levels of water proofedness. Besides...I would have had to slow down to take a picture...or measure the wind....and was having too much fun to do that.

That's my story and I am sticking to it.

Tim Diebert

Annie M.

Here are three images I did get that day. At the bottom of this page.

http://www.timtone.com/tt/ttphotos/PhotosSailing2.htm

[Craig]

Sounds like you had a great time. It is more fun to sail with someone who knows what they are doing. I'll bet he had lots of tips for handling the boat as well. We will forgive the lack of photos this time.....

[Tim Diebert]

No boat handling tips from this fella. He was more like a 2nd pair of hands that didn't need to be told what to do. He was completely happy just tending sheets and leaving decisions and driving to me.

A few times I even tried to stump him...changed my mind at the last minute just before executing a maneuver and he adapted every time smooth as silk. Second nature I figure. Gybes were smooth and easy, even with the heavy gusts.

He even adapted to the low boom right away. Man, I am spoiled now. :cry:

You are right....what fun. Not many big boat sailors want to hang around with us toy boaters...but Jim had an awesome day and said so. We may sail again next week if this weather breaks. It has just poured here all day.

[Tim Diebert]

Now there's an idea Ray.

No holes in my turnbuckles. They are the hardware store cheapies.

...maybe some bronze safety wire twisted on there might work too.

I doubt electrical tape would hold those things back.

...oh hey....or a locking nut chased up the threads....but they are reversed threads there....whatever.

These turnbuckles threaded shaft is only 1/4" or so...if they were heavier I could cut my own holes. Good idea there Beaker. I have a whole jar filled with vintage cotter pins just waiting to get put to good use.

[Florin {VACATIONER}]

Tim, it sounds like you've had a riot of a time on the lake. Good to hear the new lapper is working fine (that'll be my new addition for the next season). As a matter of fact I think I'll be getting a new coat of real sails for next season. Is your lapper dacron or is it just a trial one out of tarp?

We were out in BC this weekend, we thought of trying to get hold of you but it was too late.

Cheers

[Tim Diebert]

Hey Florin.

I just mocked a a good quality white poly lapper using the parts from that guy that sells poly sail kits on the net...sorry I forget his name...I was going to make another set using that kit but got good real sails instead. Glad I kept the kit though. Perfect for experimenting with the lapper and the Topsail next. Once I made the poly sail, I actually sewed all the seems. Glad I did as the very first day I tried it might have taken it apart otherwise.

Poly always seems to work very well....at least for a while.

My poly lapper is meant to be temporary until I come up with an ideal size/shape....then get a nice Dacron one made. Maybe try and make the real one myself. My wife has volunteered her services.....so that might be the way to go.

Sounds to me like going to a Lapper for your VAC is a good plan (going from Mike P's threads)...then making sure you have a good usable selection of reef points make on your new Dacron main. I know other folks have other ideas...but I heartily recomend going for two reef points at 20% reductions each. That way your helm balance is handleable.

Where in BC were you? In the south?

Yesterday rained BUCKETS. And boy did we need it.

Christina Lake is a funny lake. In one day you can go from zero wind, 100 degrees and sunny to way too much wind and cold rain...and back again, with everything else in between. All with several 180 degree wind shifts.

Keeps you on your toes.

[Dave R1]

Looks like a good time, Tim.

As to locking the turnbuckles, I found left hand threaded nuts at my local hardware store so I put a nut on each screw and just tighten them with a wrench. Actually, the only one I undo now is the forestay.

If you want the nuts and can't find them, let me know. I imagine I could get them for you.

[Florin {VACATIONER}]

Darn, I just lost my entire write up for the weekend... I thing the computer ate it.... Oh well I'll have to write up another now.

Good to hear the tarp worked out for you.... it would be too darn expensive to make experimentals out of dacron. I'll probably make another jib maybe in the next few days and see how it works.

We were on Lake Windermere... close to Fairmont and Radium in the Columbia valley, we wanted to go south and meet you there but we decided to go to BC at the last minute and didn't think we could get hold of you on the net that quickly. In retrospect I'm really glad we didn't go....I'll tell ya why later.

I'll have a write up later on today about how the weekend went.

Cheers