I'm in my 2nd season on a Prindle 16 sailing off the beach in Santa Barbara, CA. The last few weeks I have been getting out on the wire solo and am starting to get more comfortable out there and making the transition in and out more smoothly. Today the wind was blowing 17-20 knots (according to the local yacht club website) with 2-3 foot seas. I was having a blast and handling it pretty well. I did much better today on tacking in these higher winds after reading about how to do a roll tack on these forums (THANKS!). Last time I went out in about 20 knots and I almost sailed to the channel islands cuz I couldn't come about. Today, I hit a max speed of 20 mph (wore a GPS) and was pretty psyched about it. In these conditions I was afraid to cleat the main sheet, so held it in my hand the whole time. My problem was after about an hour of sailing my hands and forearms were super fatigued from holding on to the line so tightly. After an hour I was forced to come in because I could hardly hold the line any longer. I tried wrapping it around my hand, but this didn't allow me to let out line quickly in a gust. Is there a technique to holding the line in such a way that it takes some stress off the hands and forearms? I've read on here that one should not cleat the main when out on the wire in heavy winds, so I would think that everyone would run into this problem, but I know people sail for many hours at a time, so there must be some skill to this other than just getting stronger. Help?
Thanks in advance!
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Scott
1982 Nacra 5.2 "Great White"
Ledbetter Beach, Santa Barbara, CA
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Tips For Soloing Prindle 16
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Posted: Sep 13, 2010 - 12:46 AM
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Posted: Sep 13, 2010 - 06:29 AM
upwind and downwind you should be able to cleat safely once you get used to the boat
when not cleated in strong winds you want the ratchet on, if it doesn't click look for a switch to get it clicking
the other thing to check on your mainsheet block setup is how many blocks you have. older boats will often have only 4to1 or 5to1 block systems...........nowadays this is generally considered not enough and newer 16' boats will come with either 6to1 or higher. it's usually not too hard or expensive to upgrade 1 or 2 steps. my nacra came with 5to1 and by swapping the double block on the bottom for a cheap triple block it became 6to1 and less arm strain. you may be able to simply increase yours too
the rule to keep hand holding the sheet when reaching across the wind is flexible as you get used to the boat and if you stay on the ball
ie if you aren't hull flying there is no need to hand hold the sheet unless the winds are extremely gusty and unpredicatable
now back to work for me
edited by: erice, Sep 13, 2010 - 09:45 PM -
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Posted: Sep 13, 2010 - 09:04 AM
The P16 is a delight to sail solo, 15 knots under main alone is my top speed.
Actually the best way to solo the p16 is under just the main. My boat is still balanced like that and requires a very light touch in the helm. When under main alone i usually sit on or forward of the inspection port. On the trapeze I straddle the shroud. Upwind this is even more important, because getting the weight forward means you can punch through the waves.
Downwind move a bit back and down. I usually sit on the middle of the tramp, bracing against the leeward hiking straps.
Uni-rigged the boat will not lift a hull downwind, fully let out the traveler and sheet in as the speed picks up. keep the telltales flowing.
My original '84 P16 has a 7to1 mainsheet. It is a bit slow, but the ratchet works.
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Posted: Sep 13, 2010 - 11:31 AM
sounds like your getting it! when your flying hulls in heavy winds point the boat upwind, not a beam reach, and you have the ability to control heal with the rudders alone by heading up. you can cleat the main but always keep the line clear and in your hand with no slack to the block. when a puff comes along just ease into the wind a touch, if its a big gust then you can pop the sheet a touch. you will get the hang of it quick and gain contol with the rudders and save strength for hoisting 12 ouncers!
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Posted: Sep 13, 2010 - 01:16 PM
i have sailed with a broken cleat on my main blocks since last fall. i only recently replaced the springs in an attempt to fix it (didn't work)... so .. i have not been cleating for 9 months now?
I also don't wear sailing gloves.
It did take a while to build up enough hand strenght but now i can crack walnuts, or take off my car lug nuts without tools :) -
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Posted: Sep 14, 2010 - 01:04 AM
Thanks for all the tips guys! The wind was great today 16 - 20, but alas I had to work. Tomorrow I'm off at 1:00, so hoping for more of the same and I can try some of these ideas. I'm especially going to look for a ratchet switch on my blocks. That is intriguing - I didn't even know there was such a thing. I do know the ratio is high - at least 6:1 - maybe higher. I'm not sure how to determine it, but the boat was given to me, but I didn't have a jib or a blocks for the main, so they are knew from Murray's and I think I bought their high range Ronstans (at least my sticker shocked dropped jaw felt that way!) Sunday was unusually gusty. Normally on the ocean it's much more of a steady wind and I can probably cleat the main sheet more regularly to give my hands a rest. Praying for wind!!!
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Scott
1982 Nacra 5.2 "Great White"
Ledbetter Beach, Santa Barbara, CA
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Posted: Sep 14, 2010 - 09:06 AM
ratchet blocks REALLY important for helping hold the load when not cleated
not all blocks come with ratchets
the ronstan 5 to 1 cascading system on the weta has not ratchet but the loads are so light it doesn't need one
the gennaker blocks are auto-ratchets which switch from free running to ratchet when a medium load comes on
magic!
but they come free running and have to be set to auto
you may have something like this, look closely for a switch that makes it click in 1 direction or a red slide button with auto written near it
http://www.ronstan.com/marine/product.asp?prodno=RF56331B
edited by: erice, Sep 14, 2010 - 11:12 PM -
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Posted: Sep 14, 2010 - 09:11 AM
The mechanical advantage is computed by the number of supporting lines, as in how many lines support the load. If you run a line upwards, around a pulley, then back down to your hand, you have 2 lines supporting the load, this gives you a 2:1, each line holds 1/2 the load.
Look at your blocks when they are rigged up, & count the number of supporting lines. It is not quite as simple as counting the number of turning blocks, because often the reeving starts out with a becket that gives you one more supporting line.
You should be able to look up the model number of your new blocks on the manufacturers web site & get all the info on ratcheting etc. I'm not familiar with Ronstan, Harkens have a little sliding tab on some models.
The small black widget slides up & down, turning ratcheting on or off. The multi block arrangements on Hrken have a small black plastic k.n.o.b that can be turned. When you pull in slack line you should hear a "ratcheting/clicking" noise. If it is silent either ratcheting is turned off, or the blocks don't have it.
On the Harken higher end units you can set the preload of the ratcheting function.
Make sure you reeve the blocks correctly, Harken has reeving diagrams for many of their setups. Generally only one of the sheaves will be ratcheting, & that sheave should be where the line exits, you can spin them by hand & listen for clicking. The final sheave will be in line with the cam cleat where the line exits the setup. The groove where the line runs will not be "round", but will have facets.
The final bit is to make sure you are using the correct size line. Line that is to thick will not get as deep into the sheaves groove, & it needs to do this so the sheave facets can bite into it. Correct size line should sink into the groove so as to be flush or nearly so with the top edge of the sheave.
http://www.harken.com/blocks/ratchetoverview.php
edited by: Edchris177, Sep 14, 2010 - 08:47 AM
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Posted: Sep 15, 2010 - 01:27 PM
The winner is....erice! Switching the ratchet on, made all the difference in the world!! I have a Harken 6:1 system and there was the little switch ready to be activated and boy did it help!!
But, the day was not quite so simple! Got it all rigged and ready to head out..wind was 12-14 on my buddies wind gauge with 2-3 foot seas. He was heading out on his Nacra F18. I rigged much quicker than him and headed out ready to try the mainsheet with the ratchet.
Got off the beach and out to deep water past the surf, got the rudders set and sheeted in on the jib, then the main and started to pick up some good speed, time to hook on to the wire. left hand holding the mainsheet and tiller, right hand fitting the trap loop on to the hook of my harness, easing myself back...right into the water! (no more than 2 minutes into my sail! Is this some sort of record?) Not sure if it fell off or if I missed it all together, but the next thing I knew I was holding on the mainsheet being dragged along for a few feet (it was uncleated) until the boat flipped! This was my first time flipping solo - 2nd time this summer. Last summer I flipped it at least 1/2 a dozen times and never had a problem righting it with a partner. I swam around and made sure everything was uncleated, grabbed my righting line and threw it over the hull all the while it was very quickly turnning turtle. I've never had it come even close to going full over, but it did. Luckily for me I had just read about this in one of my catamaran books and decided to put the theory into action. Climbed up on the leeward hull to bring the stern up and pulled on the righting line and it very steadily rose up to sideways with the mast into the wind. I then slid over to a more central location to right it and leaned back and....nothing. Tried about 5 times, hanging out with all of my 170 lbs and nada! I don't have a righting bag, but I carry a 20L dry sack and hoped that would be enough weight to help me out. I got it filled and rigged up and leaned back out and once again nothing. The tip of the mast was still quite a bit under the water. My Nacra friend on the beach was watching out for me because SB Harbor Patrol showed up at this time. This was a good thing cuz since I hadn't gotten out very far and from the angle I was drifting it was very dicey as to wether I was going to drift on to the beach (no problem) or into the rock breakwater. The Harbor Patrol grabbed the top of the mast and lifted it up for me and I plopped right over...and about 25 pounds of seaweed dropped onto my head! Possibly enough weight when up at the top of the mast to make it impoosible for me to right it.
I sailed it back to the beach, made sure everything was okay, and headed back out after resting my tired arms for about 30 minutes. Now I would really have trouble solo! I was a little skittish going back out on the wire, but I got right back on the horse and even when tired was able to hold the line easy with the ratchet system on. Sailed for about 2 1/2 hours non-stop in winds that built to 14-16 and had a blast!!
Thanks for all your help!!
-Scott
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Scott
1982 Nacra 5.2 "Great White"
Ledbetter Beach, Santa Barbara, CA
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Posted: Sep 15, 2010 - 01:45 PM
Glad it worked out for ya!
I would have loved to see the look on your face after the 25lbs of seaweed landed :p
