A wild afternoon on Narragansett Bay
Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2004 1:30 pm
We did it. We were able to provide a delightful couple of hours on the boat for my, not yet too old, but not very healthy, in-laws yesterday afternoon. We picked them up in Bristol, RI and had a comfortable sail (genny only - winds around 10 kts) to Potters Cove where we had a wonderful lunch on an illegal mooring. It was their first time ever on a sail boat and they had a wonderful time. Of course I wanted to be the perfect host making sure they were comfortable and making sure at all times to keep heeling under control.
After we dropped them off in Bristol, my wife and I decided to sail back to Allen Harbor where our Mac is kept. We decided to take the route around the southern tip of Prudence Island. Winds were mostly out of the west now which provided for a supposedly comfortable broad reach. I wish we would have listened to the weather forecast during lunch as it proved to be one of the wildest rides we have had. When we reached the southern tip of Prudence, winds increased to 15 kts (white caps appearing) which meant time for the full reef. However, gusts must have been well over 20 because I had a difficult time controlling the boat. Some strong gusts caused the boat to lean way too much, 30-40 degrees perhaps and then the boat would round-up quite a bit before coming almost to a complete stop. As the wind calmed down somewhat, I could bring the boat back to the intended course but before long a new gust would hit us and the whole thing started over again. The frustrating part was that other similar size boats appeared to be in a nice and steady groove.
We kept this up for a little while before deciding that it was time to strike the sails. By this time the wind had picked up further with heavy white caps and angry looking 3-4 ft waves. It was blowing so hard that I had difficulty rolling up the furler. I was worried breaking the furling line or furler. Now I had to go on the cabin top to strike the main. My wife was trying to keep us pointed in the wind with the motor at 1500 rpm or so and the main luffing violently. We were tossed about and being on the cabin top was no fun. Wearing a life jacket and a tether connected to a bail on the foot of the mast made me feel just a little safe. After the sail was down on the boom, we now had to motor for an hour or so into the wind beating short but steep 3-4 ft waves. I imagined how nice a dodger would be. The spray was coming over the bow ever few seconds and before long I was drenched. Salt water combined with strong wind is probably good for the skin but quite painful on the eyes. My wife was nice and dry in the cabin throughout the whole trip. I was very happy to enter quiet Allen Harbor (except that we nearly got beached while I was trying to lower the rudders as my wive was slowly driving through the narrow entrance and the strong wind played with our little ship - we made a nice 180 before I had the rudders finally down.....and I thought I knew what I was doing).
Questions for the board:
1. Did I experience the limitations of the Mac or was it the sailer or a combination of the two? (fully reefed main, genny at 90% out, boom vang tight (should have been loose to spill wind), genoa blocks aft position, board about half out). I previously tesioned the rigging with a 2 degree rake and 2 inch mast bend.
2. Do I need to reduce mast rake further to reduce weather helm or is the fact that weather helm is occuring at 30-40 degree lean a good safety feature? Rounding up is aways better that getting the mast in the water.....
3. How much beating can the hull handle? I was going about 7 knots into the wind crashing through 3-4 ft waves. I was worried that the boat would break apart.
Look forward to your comments
After we dropped them off in Bristol, my wife and I decided to sail back to Allen Harbor where our Mac is kept. We decided to take the route around the southern tip of Prudence Island. Winds were mostly out of the west now which provided for a supposedly comfortable broad reach. I wish we would have listened to the weather forecast during lunch as it proved to be one of the wildest rides we have had. When we reached the southern tip of Prudence, winds increased to 15 kts (white caps appearing) which meant time for the full reef. However, gusts must have been well over 20 because I had a difficult time controlling the boat. Some strong gusts caused the boat to lean way too much, 30-40 degrees perhaps and then the boat would round-up quite a bit before coming almost to a complete stop. As the wind calmed down somewhat, I could bring the boat back to the intended course but before long a new gust would hit us and the whole thing started over again. The frustrating part was that other similar size boats appeared to be in a nice and steady groove.
We kept this up for a little while before deciding that it was time to strike the sails. By this time the wind had picked up further with heavy white caps and angry looking 3-4 ft waves. It was blowing so hard that I had difficulty rolling up the furler. I was worried breaking the furling line or furler. Now I had to go on the cabin top to strike the main. My wife was trying to keep us pointed in the wind with the motor at 1500 rpm or so and the main luffing violently. We were tossed about and being on the cabin top was no fun. Wearing a life jacket and a tether connected to a bail on the foot of the mast made me feel just a little safe. After the sail was down on the boom, we now had to motor for an hour or so into the wind beating short but steep 3-4 ft waves. I imagined how nice a dodger would be. The spray was coming over the bow ever few seconds and before long I was drenched. Salt water combined with strong wind is probably good for the skin but quite painful on the eyes. My wife was nice and dry in the cabin throughout the whole trip. I was very happy to enter quiet Allen Harbor (except that we nearly got beached while I was trying to lower the rudders as my wive was slowly driving through the narrow entrance and the strong wind played with our little ship - we made a nice 180 before I had the rudders finally down.....and I thought I knew what I was doing).
Questions for the board:
1. Did I experience the limitations of the Mac or was it the sailer or a combination of the two? (fully reefed main, genny at 90% out, boom vang tight (should have been loose to spill wind), genoa blocks aft position, board about half out). I previously tesioned the rigging with a 2 degree rake and 2 inch mast bend.
2. Do I need to reduce mast rake further to reduce weather helm or is the fact that weather helm is occuring at 30-40 degree lean a good safety feature? Rounding up is aways better that getting the mast in the water.....
3. How much beating can the hull handle? I was going about 7 knots into the wind crashing through 3-4 ft waves. I was worried that the boat would break apart.
Look forward to your comments