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Shifting gears
Chris Williams of Banks Sails USA takes you through
how you can maximise your boat's speed by changing gears.
Introduction
In every area of racing there are several sailors or boats
that are consistently faster than their competition. The
consistency of the performance of these boats is due in
large part to the fact that they have the ability to change
gears quickly during the course of the race. There are
several factors that play heavily on when to change gears,
these factors can be any one or a combination of the following:
Tactical (boat for boat racing), strategic (getting around
the course faster) or changing conditions. This article
will explore how and when to change gears in a moderately
sized keelboat.
The different gears
We will first define and name several different gears
and later explain when one should use these gears to get
the most out of a boat.
1. Normal Mode
This will be the gear that we use as a reference, i.e.
backstay looser than normal, sheet eased more than normal
etc. Normal mode could be defined as the settings used
when there are no other boats to worry about, steady winds,
tides and flat water. When sailing your optimum VMG upwind
you must find the perfect balance between sailing high
and sailing fast. This setting is usually used in about
8-12 knots of wind or when the crew just starts to hike.
The genoa leads should be set so the bottom and top tell-tails
break evenly and the sheet should be trimmed just hard
enough to maintain a constant speed. The genoa halyard
should be set so the draft of the sail is between 40-45%
aft of the luff. The main should also be trimmed so the
boat speed can remain at a constant speed without much
effort. The traveler should be nearly center-lined, the
sheet should be tight enough so the top batten is nearly
parallel to the boom and the outhaul fairly tight. The
backstay will be in a medium to tight setting depending
on the wind.
2. Two Sail Reaching
Most races start out in this mode during the pre-start.
Make no mistake, it is just as important to set the boat
up for maximum speed before the start, as it is once your
are on the racecourse. If you can carry good speed into
all of your pre-start maneuvers you will have more control
of the boat's position when the race starts. Set the boat
up with a headstay that is about 30% looser than your
upwind tension for the given conditions. Move your genoa
leads forward 4-5 inches to prevent the top of the genoa
from twisting off too much. Ease the halyard slightly
from your upwind mark. No matter how strong your Genoa
halyard is it will stretch as you begin to harden up onto
the wind and trim the sail in. Easing your halyard when
not sailing upwind will also make your headsails last
longer. Typically, when reaching back and forth, the traveler
is centered. When the traveler is centered, the boom vang
should be tensioned until the top and the bottom of the
mainsail begin to luff at the same time. If you have a
choice of tacking or jibing, try to jibe to minimize the
loss of speed.
3. Power Mode
Power mode is the mode you use when sailing in bad air
from another boat on the racecourse, light air, or choppy
seas. Typically the rig setup will be a looser headstay
and tighter checkstays. The Mainsheet should be set up
with a higher than usual traveler, the leech must be open
so the top batten has about 3-5 degrees of twist. The
outhaul should be set slightly looser than normal in order
to maximize the sail's drive. The headsail should be set
up with the leads forward, the halyard slightly eased
and the sheet 2-3 inches looser than normal.
4. Point Mode
Sailing in point mode is one of the most difficult to
sail in since the groove is very narrow. It is critical
to compromise only 1 or 2 tenths of a knot of boat speed
so that the keel continues to work. If you try to higher,
you will lose more in boat speed than you will gain in
height, as the boat will start to slide sideways. It is
very important to maintain a steady speed. When switching
to point mode, the first adjustment is to tighten the
backstay. Then the mainsail should be trimmed to give
the driver more helm. Start with the sheet trimmed tight
(top batten 1-2 degrees beyond parallel to the boom, or
tell-tails just stalling). Move the traveler so it is
at or just above centerline. The boat speed will not hold
steady for too long so try build speeds by easing the
traveler not the mainsheet in order to reduce the drag
of the sail. The genoa should be trimmed with the halyard
tight, the lead moved aft and the sheet on hard. The sail
should be into the top spreader and the lower shroud.
This, combined with a tight headstay, will flatten out
the headsail significantly. Do not ease the genoa sheet
to build speed if the weather tell-tails are luffing.
Rather tell the helmsman to fall off then ease slightly.
5. Light Air Wave Mode
When sailing in waves and light air you should generally
try to sail your normal speed numbers and sacrifice a
little height. Do this by sailing with the boat slightly
heeled and the sails set for a big groove. Ease the backstay
a little to allow a wider entry on the genoa and a more
powerful mainsail. Trim the mainsail with the traveler
high and the sheet and outhaul eased for power. Sheet
the genoa with the leads forward and the sheet and halyard
eased to give the genoa more punch.
6. Heavy Air Wave Mode
Just as when sailing in waves and light air, in a breeze
you should try to sail with your normal boat speed and
a little less height. It is very important to make sure
the helmsman has a very forgiving groove to both steer
over the waves and have the ability to build speed quickly.
Do this by twisting off the top of the sails. Make sure
the backstay is tight to reduce any slop in the headstay.
Sail with the main traveler higher than normal in a breeze
and the sheet eased. Trim the genoa with the leads moved
aft, the halyard tight and the sheet hard on the bottom
and twisted a little more than usual up high. If the mainsail
is twisted and the genoa is tight, the boat will never
achieve maximum speed, try to always sail with the leeches
of both sails twisted evenly.
7. De-powered Mode
Once the crew is fully hiked and the main trimmer needs
to start luffing the main to keep the boat from heeling
too much you need to start de-powering the boat. Do this
by first sailing with the backstay as tight as it will
go. Then trim the genoa with the leads aft, halyard tight
and the sheet tight. Tighten the outhaul as tight as it
will go and start to use Cunningham to flatten the mainsail
out even more. When looking for height, sail with the
sheet loose and the traveler high. When a puff hits, ease
the traveler until the sail begins to luff, try not to
let the all of the sail luff except the leech where the
battens are. When looking for more speed, trim the sheet
a little harder and ease the traveler as low as it will
go, before the mainsail begins to luff. When a puff hits,
ease the sheet as much as possible without letting the
battens and leech luff.
8. Speed Mode
When you are less worried about height and more worried
about sailing fast you need to set the boat up for maximum
speed. Do this by easing the backstay 20%, and putting
the bow down 2-3 degrees and hiking extremely hard. Trim
the headsail slightly loose, with the lead just slightly
forward. Ease the mainsheet a little and then lower the
traveler as far as possible without luffing the mainsail.
This will allow you drive off and let the boat sail fast
without producing too much helm.
Tactical reasons for shifting gears
Any time you are either trying to sail faster than normal
or higher than normal in order to sail over, around, through
or away from other boats you need to switch gears into
a more specialized mode.
After the start you need to decide what mode you should
be in. If there is a big hole to leeward it may be a good
time to put the bow down and sail in speed mode. This
will allow you to get the first shift before any other
boats and may allow you to tack and cross the fleet. If
you have a boat just to leeward or a boat on your weather
hip that you want to pinch off you need to set your boat
up into point mode. This will give you the ability to
either sail to the next shift before tacking or force
a the boat to weather to tack and give you the chance
to work your way to the right side of the course.
If you start on the right side of the fleet and are heading
right in an attempt to get a shift on the right side of
the course, try to sail the boat in fast mode to get to
the shift quicker.
If after the start you tack to clear your lane, try to
sail the boat in point mode if your intentions are to
tack back and sail to the left side of the course.
If a boat tacks right in front or under you and you cannot
afford a tack, set the boat up into a point mode. Sometimes
a boat may tack on your wind but you feel that you are
going the right way. Then you must change gears and set
the boat up into speed mode to get your nose ahead of
his bad air.
If you are on starboard tack and a boat is not crossing
you but looks like they are going to tack on your lee
bow, you should set the boat up for speed mode. This allows
you to feather the boat up into point mode once he or
she has tacked.
When approaching the weather mark in a large fleet on
the layline you will often have to set the boat up in
power mode to keep your boatspeed up in bad air from boats
that are ahead of you.
Any time you overstand the weather mark or expect a lift
while on layline and do not feel it is necessary to put
any height "in the bank" then sail the boat in speed mode.
This may allow you cross ahead of any boats that may have
been able to tack on your bow before you get to the mark,
thus allowing you to round the mark ahead of them.
If you find that you are right on the layline early you
should sail the boat in point mode to make sure that no
boats will tack on your bow or on top of you forcing you
to tack two more times.
Strategic reasons
for shifting gears
Any time there is a gain to be made by either sailing
faster or higher to get to the weather mark first, is
said to be strategic. Usually this is to get to try to
get to a shift first or get into or out of current.
After starting at the pin end of the line and you are
expecting the wind to shift to the left or there to be
more wind on the left it can be a huge advantage to sail
the boat in speed mode to get to the left quickly. This
will allow you to get both to the shift first and have
more leverage on the fleet when you get to it.
If you start in a header and are expecting a lift before
you can tack sail the boat in high mode to allow yourself
to get to the lift first.
When you are sailing with current on your lee quarter,
it can pay to sail the boat in high mode to stay in the
current longer.
If you are sailing with the current on your weather bow
or trying to get out of foul tide, try to sail the boat
in speed mode.
Changing conditions
When you are sailing in changing wind or wave conditions
be ready to shift gears quickly as the conditions change.
After the start, if there is a lot of wind the air will
be disturbed and you may find yourself looking for more
power than you needed when tuning up before the start.
Start in power mode and then be ready to shift to either
point, speed, or normal mode depending on your tactical
or strategic situation.
When sailing near the shore in a building or dying breeze
it will often be really puffy. Make sure your crew is
ready to change from normal mode to de-powered mode as
you sail into puffs and headers.
When sailing in an area where there is isolated currents,
the wave conditions can very greatly across the course.
Be ready to shift from normal mode to your wave modes
as the conditions vary.
Final thoughts
Learning when and how to sail with these different styles
can greatly improve your ability to take advantage shifts
and fleet position and give you more control of your race.
Some boats are easier to change gears in than others depending
on the design and performance of the boat. The communication
between trimmers and the helm is crucial in order to best
execute the overall race strategy.
Chris Williams is the Chief Sail Designer
for Banks Sails USA and trimmer on Bright Star, Blue Yankee
and several Farr 40s.
© Banks Sails 2000
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