On the boom of my Hobie 16 about two feet from the goose neck is an eyelet is this some sort of boom vang attachment?Hobie 16's dont need a boom vang. If you did when would you use it? Possibly while going down wind to present more sail? How would you set this up? I just like to know about all the things Hobies can do?
This is for a boom vang but because it is useless on catamarans it no longer comes on new boats (14s or 16s) as on the older boats. Many people just drill them off to get it out of the way.
Boom vangs are primarily used on monohulls usually to control the leech of the mainsail downwind or upwind when the wind is strong enough that you need to spill it significantly to stay flat in a gust.
If you watch your leech as you dump the mainsheet you can see the upper part of the leech twisting off which makes you loose a lot of air and slows you down alot. A vang keeps it from twisting off. The alternative to this on catamarans is the traveler. Downwind the traveler should be let out and the main not let out excessivly to keep the leech tight and not twisting off. That is the same reason many sailors play the traveler upwind in heavy air instead of the mainsheet to keep the leech constant and not twisting off.
-Todd
I see said the blind man that was wonderful help i did not plan to use it just wanted the why. Thanks
When the H16 was new many cat sailors were still sailing straight downwind. Even after gybing downwind was accepted by the H16 racers many would still go straight down wind in light air. That is the reason for the boom vang eye.
Most of us have never raced straight downwind on a cat. So, we don't realize the importance of a vang.
There are some cats that go straight downwind (Wave, Laser Vortex, etc) The ones without a vang are just eaten alive downwind. In light a laser will horizon a Wave downwind. Even Lido's creep up on you.
If you want to try a vang some light air day. Attach a heavy bungee between the tramp lacing at the base of the mast and the eye. The bungee should just barely hook. A line tied tight will work too.
This is a useful trick if for example, the wind has died and the beach is dead downwind. You can vang it and go wing on wing.
Most catamarans do not need a boom vang, as someone already pointed out, because they have a traveler which allows the mainsheet to be basically used like a vang.
I always assumed, maybe wrongly, that the vang attachment was supplied with the Hobie 14, Hobie 16 and Hobie 18 because so many of the boats were put into rental operations that did not use a traveler because they wanted to keep the boat as simple and basic as possible. The vang could be used instead to make the boat safer when sailing off the wind and in the case of accidental jibes, etc.
On our Hobie 18 we used a vang all the time to force positive mast rotation off the wind. Very simple and worked really well. I know it is not a use that was ever intended or anticipated for the vang, but the class rules allow a vang and do not specify how it can or cannot be used. It sure made life easier for me than having to hold the mast rotation limiter forward with one hand while holding the jib outboard with the other hand when sailing downwind.
I don't know whether the Hobie 18 rules have changed, because we have not been sailing that boat for several years. If someone had ever questioned it, I don't know what the verdict would have been. The Hobie 18 was not allowed to have any mechanical means of enforcing positive mast rotation, but it did allow a boom vang. Interesting rules question.
Of course when you seldom use a vang, dumb things happen.
I called for the boat to gybe and the crew did not release the bungie vang. Needless to say the boom and we lost several boat lengths.
As I made it a policy on my boat never to yell(We're here to have fun), it got very quiet for a long time.