Settings and Techniques to Maximize Boat Speed – By David Ames February, 2021
Hello, my name is David Ames, and I have been an avid Flying Scot sailor for about the past 6 years. I love the versatility of the Flying Scot, and I use my FS for racing and teaching learn-to-sail and advanced racing techniques. For fun, I use the Flying Scot to go to the sand bar on days off with my family and our two dogs. Part of belonging to the Flying Scot community is sharing my knowledge with other Flying Scot sailors to enable them to better understand the Flying Scot and to help others get the most enjoyment out of their boat.
The Flying Scot is a one-design boat which means that all the boats are the same and only minor modifications are allowed under the rules. In my following blog series, I will go over everything that we have done to our boat to make it sail faster as well as reduce common breakdowns and simplify control systems making the boat easier to sail. Even though it is important to have a fast boat, do not make the mistake of spending more than 10% of your sailing energy on the boat and leave yourself enough time to perfect your racing skillsets on the water.
So, we all would like a faster Flying Scot, but what does that mean?
Standing Rigging – Your boat’s standing rigging is an extremely important aspect of making the Flying Scot fast because the rake, stay tensions, and sail setup adjustments are all based on the symmetry of the rig. If the tip of the mast is not dead center, then the sails will be slightly different on each tack, and it will be difficult to find reproducible settings on each tack. The way I check the mast for centering is that I will measure a point on the rail from the stern of boat up near the chain plate and make a mark. Then I will replicate the measurement on the other rail in the exact same place and double check each side. To measure the mast’s position, I will take a long tape measure and raise it to the top of the mast attaching it to the main halyard and then measure the length to the marks on each rail of the boat. If the measurement is not exact, look to replace one or both sidestays compensating for the difference. Another cheaper way to correct the difference is to modify the holes on the sidestay connector plates.
Rake – The mast rake should be somewhere in the range of 28’ 5”- 28’ 6”. There are 2 ways to check if the mast is positioned at the correct angle.
1.) Connect the main halyard with a long tape measure and raise the halyard until it is snug at the top of the mast. Measure the length from the top of the mast to the back of the center of the deck and it should be in the range of 28’ 5”- 28’ 6”.
2.) Take the jib halyard and lower the shackle so that it is barely touching the deck right in front of the mast. Swing the jib halyard forward to the forestay and mark the forestay right at the bottom of the shackle. Measure the distance from the forestay mark to the hole on the bow plate. The distance should be 16” 1⁄4” to correspond with a rake of 28’ 5”- 28’ 6”.
Maintenance – Standing rigging maintenance should be done every time that you have the mast down or about once every 6 months at a minimum.
Blocks – At the top of the mast, there is a main halyard block that should be inspected for wear and lubricated during each maintenance. The jib halyard block, the topping lift block, the spinnaker halyard block.
Halyards – All the halyards should be checked for any burring; The spinnaker halyard should be checked for wearing and make sure that the stopper knot is set in the correct position.
Stay End Fittings and Connectors – Check the end fittings of the shrouds for cracking, burring, or excess corrosion. I use my boat in a high salt environment, so I normally change out my shrouds about every 3-4 years. Every time that my mast is down, I end up inspecting all stay fittings and I use Boeshield spray to keep the water off of the fittings and then I retape the shrouds to protect the sails from the clevis pins and to prevent the ring dings from backing out.
Stay Thickness – The forestay should be 1⁄8 inch. If you are still using the 3/32 inch halyard, change it because the 1⁄8 inch headstay relates to all the sail manufactures tuning guides.
Chain Plates – The side stay chain plates run through the deck and are attached to the boat behind the flotation foam under the seats. The chain plates are very durable but if you start to see corrosion at the deck then check the screws that anchor the chainplate for corrosion as well.
Stay Tension – For Snug Rig jibs, the forestay tension should be around 90 lbs. for light winds and should be tensioned up to 130 lbs. in heavy winds. I check the tension every day that I go sailing. If the rig is not holding tension, then it is a good indicator that there may be a problem with the turnbuckle at the forward toggle or that an end fitting is damaged.
Forestay Extender & Turnbuckle – The forestay extender and turnbuckle run from the toggle up through the bow plate and is attached to the forestay. I set the turnbuckle to get the forestay to the low end of my tension range and I have two holes in the chainplate to change tension from light wind to heavy wind. Since the forestay extender is mainly hidden, it can become neglected and will eventually fail leading to the mast falling causing damage to the boat and rig. The best way to prevent a forestay failure is to remember to inspect it for wear every time that the mast is down and tape the ring dings so they do not pull out of the shackles. Older turnbuckles should be wired so they cannot unwind themselves.
Toggle – The Toggle is located under the bow plate and is attached to the forestay chainplate. Check the screws that hold the chainplate for corrosion and change them out before the screw heads sheer off.
Control Systems
Vang – I use a 12:1 vang which is the standard for a racing Flying Scot. I have a 6:1 purchase between the tabernacle and the boom and a 2:1 puller line that is run back to the cassette. The reason why I like to use this system configuration is that it cleans up any purchase that may interfere with the spinnaker halyard. Additionally, by having just a 2:1 from the puller makes the system responsive when I ease off the vang. When I ease the vang, I am usually in a situation where I am sailing into a lull and want the leach of the main to open back up to prevent stalling the sail. Most boats that I have looked at have the 6:1 as the control line which gives you excellent purchase for adding vang but creates resistance when you ease off the vang.
Cunningham – I use Cunningham as a draft compensation control when I depower the main in 15-20 Kts. All other conditions, I do not use any Cunningham.
Outhaul – The outhaul should be adjusted based on the sailing conditions and by how much power that you want in the mainsail. A loose outhaul will make the mainsail fuller and will generate more power. A tight outhaul will flatten the sail and depower the main. The proper amount of power to carry in the mainsail depends on combined crew weight, wind, and wave conditions. All skipper/crew combined weights are looking to power up in light winds. The key to decide when to depower and begin to flatten the main depends on when you can no longer hike the boat to about 7%. Heavier sailing teams will be able to carry a loose outhaul longer than lighter teams. In light winds, there should be no wrinkles in the foot of the main. I tension the outhaul until there are no vertical wrinkles in the foot of the sail when I am in powering up conditions (0-12 kts). Once I get into depowering conditions, I start to create a horizontal wrinkle in the foot of the main. If the conditions are choppy, I will leave a little more power in the main to re-accelerate after hitting a wave.
Winches/Halyards – The winches and halyards need to be in good working order because the halyards are critical in properly setting up the sail shapes for the wind conditions. On race day, I fully unwind the wire halyard from the winch and then tightly rewind the halyard so that there is no bunching in the wire. The best way to judge halyard tension when setting up the sails is to sail downwind and tighten the halyards until there are no wrinkles in the luff of the sails. Ease off the jib halyard until you can barely see some crows’ feet form near the jib hanks and cleat the halyard off. The main is setup in the same way. Sail downwind and raise the main halyard until there are no wrinkles. Then ease off the halyard until there are horizontal wrinkles halfway up the luff of the mainsail. When sailing upwind there should be some horizontal wrinkles in both the main and jib luffs.
Mainsheet – The Flying Scot mainsheet can be rigged at 3:1 or 2:1 to accommodate the strength of the skipper. The 3:1 system makes it easier for the skipper to trim but the downside of the 3:1 system is that it makes weather and leeward difficult because you must pull in or ease out so much extra sheet. A couple of keys to having a good mainsheet system is you are now allowed to put a second ratchet block on the boom to give the skipper more leverage which means that a 3:1 configuration is no longer necessary. Second, I see that most Flying Scot booms have chafe marks where the boom hits the shroud after a jibe. The best way to prevent damage to the boom is to put a stopper knot in the mainsheet so that the boom stays 1⁄2 of an inch off the shroud during a jibe. I use a 2:1 sheet system because of the sheeting at the marks.
Centerboard – I mark where my centerboard is 100% down by looking at the gap between the leading edge of centerboard and the front of the centerboard trunk. If the centerboard is not down 100%, your Flying Scot will lose both pointing ability and boat speed. If your centerboard is down too far, then there will be additional drag created at the junction between the bottom of the boat and the leading edge of the centerboard trunk which is slow. The procedure for figuring out the perfect position is first I let the centerboard roll back so that there is a 1-inch gap between the leading edge of centerboard and the front of the centerboard trunk. Next, I slowly roll the centerboard forward until there is zero gap between the leading edge of centerboard and the front of the centerboard trunk. Then, I take a sharpie and mark right where the roller should be so that the crew can tell by not having to look down into the centerboard trunk. The final setting that I make is to put a stopper knot in the centerboard retractor line to prevent the centerboard from being dropped too far down.
Rudder – There is some debate about the ideal angle of the rudder. The Flying Scot rudder factory setting is about a 7% rake angle, but many Flying Scot sailors reduce the rudder rake down to about 2% to reduce the amount of weather helm when sailing upwind. Both the mast rake and the rudder angle have a big impact on the amount of helm in the Flying Scot, so it is important to understand the interaction between the two. If your mast rake is too far forward (more than 28’ 7”) then there will be little to no helm and a rudder raked at 2% will start to produce leeward helm making the boat difficult to point upwind. On the other extreme, if your mast rake is too far back (less than 28’ 4”) and your rudder has a 7% angle then there will be an excessive amount of weather helm slowing down your boat speed because the rudder produces more drag with increased helm. I have my mast rake at 28’ 5 1/2” and my rudder is 3% from vertical. When I am sailing the boat upwind with the proper heel, I can let go of the tiller and the boat will sail perfectly straight and I strive to have little to no helm. When I let the boat heel a little bit, I get a small amount of weather helm.
The Gasket – The gasket seems like a small part of the boat, but it could potentially become a major reason why your boat is slow. The gasket gets pinched open from not having the centerboard up 100% when the boat is brought out of the water onto the trailer. Once the gasket is pinched open, it allows water to come into the centerboard trunk increasing drag on the bottom of the boat and at the junction with the centerboard. Once the gasket has been damaged it must be replaced, so be extra careful to make sure that the centerboard is all the way up and that the gasket is sitting centered on the trailer roller. The gasket should be inspected every time you go sailing.
Boat Bottom – The condition of the bottom of the Flying Scot should be inspected about twice a year for excessive scratching and fairness. Most of the scratches come from the rollers on the trailer so extra caution is needed when you unload and load the trailer. We installed some extra padding and a bow protector to prevent the hull from hitting the metal on the trailer. If the bottom has excessive scratches, then the boat will have to be rolled over, patched, and sanded which is a major project.
Boat Weight – All owners should weigh their boats with just the hull only. Weighing the hull only will allow you to gage how close your boat is to the class minimum weight (675 lbs). I weigh my boat about once a year and keep track of my measurements to see if the hull is gaining weight. If the hull is gaining weight, then it is probably absorbing water into the core or the tabernacle. If your boat is gaining weight, then I would closely inspect the core to try and identify the intrusion points or damage to the fiberglass encasing the boat core. Catching damage to the core and fixing it early will extend the life of the boat significantly. Try keeping anything like the anchor or other objects that could damage the core in a plastic container.
Jib Cars and Blocks – Most boats that I have looked at have the springs installed on the jib car blocks which moves the jib trim point outboard. Moving the jib trim point outboard reduces pointing ability in all conditions. A second problem with having the jib trim point outboard is that to compensate, the crew must add 3-4 inches of weather sheeting. The jib blocks should be attached to the jib cars so that they sit 2 inches inboard of the tracts which is the maximum limit under the rules. I removed my springs from my jib cars because they were preventing the blocks from moving inboard in light wind. Also, I hardly ever use any weather sheeting. When I do use weather sheeting, it is at most 1 inch.
Jib Sheets – On my boat, I use three different jib sheets. I have a 1-1 light wind jib sheet that I use from 0- 10 kts. I use a 1-1 sheet in light wind to improve boat handling and reduce the weight of the system which closes the leach. In 10-15 Kts, I use a heavier 1-1 jib sheet to improve boat handling. In 15-20+ Kts, I use the traditional 2-1 jib sheet allowing the crew to deal with heavier sheet tensions.
Markings for Trim/Tension – I am a big proponent of using measuring stickers to allow the crew to understand the exact positioning of a control line or sheet tension. The jib sheets should have a mark and a measuring sticker on the back side of the bench.
At the end of the day, a fast boat is all about paying attention to the details. I am always looking at other sailors’ Flying Scot to see if they have done something different with the rigging or systems on the boat. Everything that we do to our Flying Scot is a reflection of our knowledge of sailing and our understanding of the physics of the Flying Scot design.
In super light conditions it is tough to get the sails working so wind flow over the upper 1/3rd of the main and jib become the most important factors in trimming the sail and producing the correct sails shape.
Halyard Tension – In order to open up the leaches in the top of the sails, the jib and main halyard must be looser than normal. The best way to judge halyard tension is to sail down wind and tighten the halyards until there are no wrinkles in the luff of the sails. When sailing upwind there should be some horizontal wrinkles in both the main and jib luffs.
Boat Heel – Heeling 5-10 degrees to leeward can help open up the main and jib leaches. The more you heel the boat, the more gravity assists pulling the leech of the main and jib outward. An added bonus to heeling the boat to leeward in 0-3 kts is that you are reducing the wetted surfaces of the bottom of the boat which reduces drag. When sailing downwind heeling to leeward helps to get the spinnaker/Main slot opened as well.
Sail Trim – The jib should be trimmed outward from normal closed hauled medium wind conditions. The telltale at the top of the jib should be flowing and the leech should be 2-3 inches outside of the leeward shroud. The main should be trimmed out to the corner of the boat and the upper telltale on the top batten should be flowing. The telltales on both the main and jib should be checked by the skipper and crew to identify any stalling and make subtle adjustments in the trim to keep the upper 1/3rd of both sails flowing.
Steering Technique – The wind flow through the jib/main slot is dynamic which means that your steering angle will affect the amount of flow through the slot. In order to accelerate from slow speed, the sails must be trimmed out about 1 inch from where they would be at top speed. The skipper needs to steer so that both telltales on the jib are flowing perfectly straight back which will maximize the flow. Remember, if you pinch or foot the boat it will take longer to build pressure. Once pressure has been built with the sails trimmed 1 inch out you can start to allow the boat to point a little. The best way to point in light wind is to allow the weather helm and the leeward heel to slowly point the boat up. When you allow the helm to point the boat you will not create any unnecessary drag. Once pressure has built up you can shift your weight out and trim in both the main and the jib 1 inch to point a little bit better. Your overall strategy is to have a smooth change from building pressure to pointing and if you happen to stall or hit a lull then you need to go back to promoting flow in the upper part of the sails.
Jib Track Position – Moving the jib leads aft on the tracks can also help flow in the upper part of the jib leech because it helps open up the slot and simultaneously allows the sail to twist more. Be careful. Once the wind picks up over 3 kts, you will want to move the jib tracks forward again.
In light conditions it is tough to get the sails working so wind flow over the upper 1/3rd of the main and jib become the most important factors in trimming the sail and producing the correct sails shape.
Mast Rake: 28’ 5 1/2” Headstay Tension: 110 lbs. for snug jib shape.
Halyard Tension – The best way to judge halyard tension is to sail down wind and tighten the halyards until there are no wrinkles in the luff of the sails. When sailing upwind there should be some horizontal wrinkles in both the main and jib luffs. The outhaul should be tightened until you get a slight horizontal wrinkle in the foot of the sail.
Boat Heel – The optimal boat heel is slightly less than in the 0-3 wind knot range when the ideal heel is somewhere between 5-10 degrees of leeward heel. Heeling 5-10 degrees to leeward can help open up the main and jib leaches. The more you heel the boat, the more gravity assists pulling the leech of the main and jib outward. Wetted surfaces become less of an issue up wind in 3-6 kts and the sails should produce enough power to heel the boat to the optimum angle. Weight positioning becomes more of the critical focus point. If you are trying to produce more pressure, move the crew weight in and forward in the boat and when the boat powers up, be patient in moving the crew weight to weather (the crew should only move up to weather after the skipper is almost hiking) to get the boat to the desired heel. When sailing downwind heeling to leeward helps to get the spinnaker/Main slot opened as well.
Sail Trim – The jib should be trimmed outward from normal closed hauled in light to medium wind conditions. The telltale at the top of the jib should be flowing and the leech should be 1-2 inches outside of the leeward shroud. The foot of the jib becomes the critical indicator for how tight the crew should trim in and the foot of the jib should be trimmed until a slight horizontal crease forms between the tack and foot of the jib. Trimming based on pressure is the main goal so if you are trying to build pressure make sure both sails are eased 1 inch and if you have good pressure be patient and only sheet in the last inch after the pressure has fully built and you are attempting to point. The main should be trimmed much further in than in 0-3 kts and should trim in until the top batten telltale almost stalls. The telltales on both the main and jib should be checked by the skipper and crew to identify any stalling and make subtle adjustments in the trim to keep the upper 1/3rd of both sails flowing.
Steering Technique – The wind flow through the jib/main slot is dynamic which means that your steering angle will affect the amount of flow through the slot. In order to accelerate from slow speed, the sails must be trimmed out about 1 inch from where they would be at top speed. The skipper needs to steer so that both telltales on the jib are flowing perfectly straight back which will maximize the flow. Remember, if you pinch or foot the boat it will take longer to build pressure. Once pressure has been built with the sails trimmed 1 inch out you can start to allow the boat to point a little. The best way to point in light wind is to allow the weather helm and the leeward heel to slowly point the boat up. When you allow the helm to point the boat you will not create any unnecessary drag. Once pressure has built up you can shift your weight out and trim in both the main and the jib 1 inch to point a little bit better. Your overall strategy is to have a smooth change from building pressure to pointing and if you happen to stall or hit a lull then you need to go back to promoting flow in the upper part of the sails.
Sailing in 3-6 kts has a very similar technique as sailing in 0-3 kts, remember to lock in on the telltales and pump the sail 1-2 times when trying to build pressure and if the pump does not have an impact on pressure then look at the telltale on the upper main batten to see if you are over trimmed and stalled.
Steering Mechanics – Proper steering and trimming mechanics should use the minimum amount of energy and waste of motion. Remember to hold the tiller and main sheet close to your belly and keep your lower body further in than your shoulders.
In medium sailing conditions you no longer have to focus on promoting flow in the upper part of the main and jib. In 10-15 kts, the focus of your upwind technique should shift to trimming the jib and main to achieve the best VMG. Staying in phase with the wind shifts should become your highest priority in your tactical game even though sailing to find more pressure is important. Downwind you should focus on being on the headed jibe at the weather mark and then make the determination to sail high or low based on where you see the most pressure. The winning formula in these conditions is to sail the least amount of distance with the fewest boat handling maneuvers.
Halyard Tension – Similar to light wind conditions, the best way to judge halyard tension is to sail down wind and tighten the halyards until there are no wrinkles in the luff of the sails. When sailing upwind there should be some horizontal wrinkles in the main. In 10-15 kts, the jib halyard is tuned slightly tighter and the luff of the jib should have the slightest hint of a horizontal wrinkle. The outhaul should be tightened until you get a slight horizontal wrinkle in the foot of the sail. No main Cunningham yet.
Boat Heel – In 10-15 kts, I am going to divide the boat heel notes in upwind and downwind heel.
Up wind the bottom of the hull shape has the best aspect ratio when you are on a 7-10-degree leeward heel. The center board performs best when the boat is flat but that is at odds with the best wetted surface shape. Determining the best heel (between flat and 7-10-degrees) depends on the amount of pressure you have in the sails. If you are sailing in a 7-10 kt. Lull, you should be trying to building pressure in the rig by steering exactly to the tell tales, and you want the boat to heel up due to excess pressure being built. By allowing the boat to load up and heel, you will be able to generate helm and the boat will want to point which gives the best VMG and you will be able to hike out more and go faster. In situations where the wind is 10-13 kts, the pressure will build quickly and you will be hiking out and easing the main to prevent the boat from over heeling past 10 degrees. The problem with heeling too much is that the centerboard will begin to slip sideways and you will lose pointing upwind. The best technique is to steer to the telltales and make sure to not get into a habit of pinching and then manage the optimal heel of the boat with your mainsheet trim. Pinching will destabilize the flow in the sails and make the pressure unstable. Pinching to flatten the boat is biggest mistake I see in most sailors’ techniques. What is fast, once you have excess pressure, is to steer at the upper range of the tell tales to where you are almost pinching, hike hard, and use the main sheet to keep the boat right in the 7-10-degree heel range.
Down wind the bottom of the hull shape has the best aspect ratio when you are on a 7-degree leeward or weather heel and sailing the boat flat is slow in all wind ranges. Your decision to choose what heel is appropriate comes from the pressure in your sails. If your pressure is soft in your sails and you want to heat up your sailing angle, you should be on a leeward heel. If you have good pressure in your sails and you want to sail a lower angle to the mark, then you should be on a weather heel. I will discuss all the different downwind techniques in a different section.
Sail Trim – When sailing upwind in 10-15 kts, the jib should be trimmed in until the upper tell tale on the leech is just about stalled. The foot of the jib is still the critical indicator for how tight the crew should trim in and the foot of the jib should be trimmed until a slight horizontal crease forms between the tack and foot of the jib. Trimming based on pressure is the main goal so if you are trying to build pressure make sure both sails are eased 1-2 inches and if you have good pressure be patient and only sheet in the last inch after the pressure has fully built and you are attempting to point. If you begin to become overpowered, the crew can over trim the jib to help depower the rig and you will be able to point slightly higher which will help reduce over heeling.
The main should be trimmed to manage the heel of the boat. Remember, in 7-10 kts, you are still trying to create pressure and heel to point, and you will need to trim the main all the way in until the upper batten of the main is almost stalled. You can check the tell tale at the batten once in a while to see if you are over trimming and stalling. Once you are fully powered up in 12-15 kts and hiking out, you will need to begin easing the main to keep the ideal heel and you will start to add vang tension so that the upper part of the main does not twist too much. Vang sheeting will take power out of the main and help keep the boat from over heeling. Additionally, tightening the outhaul and dropping the main a click or two can help depower the main to help keep the boat at its optimum heel. Do Not Pinch.
Steering Technique – In 10- 15 kts, the wind flow and pressure built through the jib/main slot is dynamic which means that your steering angle will affect the amount of flow through the slot. The only difference from light winds is that stalling mainly occurs from over trimming. In order to accelerate from tacks and lulls, the sails must be trimmed out about 1 inch from where they would be at top speed. The skipper needs to steer so that both telltales on the jib are flowing perfectly straight back which will maximize the flow. Pressure will build very fast so you can trim in the main and jib in the final inch and begin pointing right away. If you feel that you have too much pressure just ease the main and vang sheet to keep the boat on the optimal heel.
Mark Roundings – At the weather mark, you will pick your downwind strategy based on the lifted tack at the weather mark and you will decide on how to position compared to the other boats based on the incoming pressure. At the weather or offset mark, there is an opportunity to increaser your boat speed as you sail from closed hauled through a tight reach and then to a downwind course. Most sailors just bear away and set and miss the best opportunity to set up a winning strategy for the down wind leg. Using the tight reach angle to increase your boat speed allows you to gain 2-3 boat lengths and then translate that boat speed into a position that can pass the boats that are immediately in front of you. To increase your boat speed, you need to remember that as you bear away from closed hauled to a tight reach that your sails will increase pressure and you need to hike out with the crew as you bear away. I like to move back a couple of inches and even pump the main as I bear away to get additional speed and then attack the boats in front of me and set the spinnaker.
Steering mechanics – Proper steering and trimming mechanics should use the minimum amount of energy and waste of motion. Remember to hold the tiller and main sheet close to your belly and keep your lower body further in than your shoulders. At the mark rounding’s remember the sheeting and steering mechanics that we practiced to maximize speed through the rounding
In medium to heavy sailing conditions your ability to properly de-power the Flying Scot and your boat handling are as important as having a good start and playing the wind shifts. In 15-20 kts, the focus of your upwind technique should be on steering to the jib tell tales and managing the heel of the boat with the vang and the main sheet. Ideally, you want to minimize the amount of feathering that you have to do and keep the boat on a slight leeward heel (5-7 degrees) to sail at the best VMG. Staying in phase with the wind shifts is still important because it helps reduce the amount of distance sailed in the race and can help a lighter crew compete with heavier boats. Downwind you should focus on being on the headed jibe at the weather mark and then make the determination to sail high or low based on where you see the most pressure.
Mast Rake: 28’ 5” Headstay Tension: 120-150 lbs. for snug jib shape.
Halyard Tensions – The best way to judge halyard tension is to sail down wind and tighten the halyards until there are no wrinkles in the luff of the sails and then sail upwind and make small adjustments to the halyard tensions based on the luff wrinkles.
15 kt Range. Sailing upwind there should be some horizontal wrinkles in the main and the jib halyard should be tuned slightly tighter so that the luff of the jib should have the slightest hint of a horizontal wrinkle. You are still trying to power up the sails and hike hard to achieve the fastest boat speed. No cunning ham yet. Strap the outhaul.
20 kt range. In 20 kts, I actually drop my main halyard until the boom is just above level with the vang on. This means dropping the halyard 5-6 positions on the winch. The reason I drop the main halyard is to de-power the main and prevent inversion in the luff of the main which is super slow. By dropping the main halyard, you are twisting the upper part of the leech which keeps you from having to ease the main beyond the corner of the boat. Easing the main beyond the corner of the boat will kill your pointing and is one of the causes of inversion in the luff of the main. Then, I put vang on to keep the main leech from twisting too much. The cunning ham is tightened to compensate for the lower main halyard. Strap the outhaul. I tighten the jib halyard until there is no wrinkles in the luff. Tightening the jib halyard is like having a jib Cunningham and moves the draft forward helping to depower the jib.
Boat Heel – In 15-20 kts, I am going to divide my boat heel notes into upwind and downwind heel.
Up wind the bottom of the hull shape has the best aspect ratio when you are on a 7-10-degree leeward heel. The center board performs best when the boat is flat but that is at odds with the best wetted surface shape. Determining the best heel (between flat and 7-10-degrees) depends on the amount of pressure you have in the sails. If you are sailing in a lull, you should be trying to building pressure in the sails by steering exactly to the tell tales and then let the boat heel up due to excess pressure being built in the main. By allowing the boat to load up and heel you will be able to generate helm and the boat will want to point which gives the best pointing angle and you will be able to hike out more and go faster. In situations where the wind is above 15 kts, the pressure will build quickly and you will be hiking out and easing the main to prevent the boat from over heeling past 10 degrees. The problem with heeling too much is that the centerboard will begin to slip sideways and you will lose pointing. The best technique is to steer to the telltales and make sure to not get into a habit of pinching and then manage the optimal heel of the boat with your mainsheet trim. Pinching to flatten the boat will destabilize the flow in the sails and make the pressure unstable. Pinching to flatten the boat is the biggest mistake I see in most sailors’ techniques in 15-20 kts. What is fast, once you have excess pressure, is to steer at the upper range of the tell tales to where you are almost pinching, hike hard, and use the main sheet and vang to keep the boat right in the 7-10-degree heel range.
Down wind the bottom of the hull shape has the best aspect ratio when you are on a 7-degree leeward or weather heel and sailing the boat flat is slow in all wind ranges. Your decision to choose what heel is appropriate comes from the pressure in your sails. If your pressure is soft in your sails and you want to heat up your sailing angle then you should be on a leeward heel. If you have good pressure in your sails and you want to sail a lower angle to the mark then you should be on a weather heel. I will discuss all the different downwind techniques in a different section.
Sail Trim
The Jib: When sailing upwind in 15 kts the jib should be trimmed in until the upper tell tale on the leech is just about stalled. The foot of the jib is still the critical indicator for how tight the crew should trim and the foot of the jib should be trimmed until a slight horizontal crease forms between the tack and foot of the jib. Trimming based on pressure is the main goal so if you are trying to build pressure make sure both sails are eased 1 inch and if you have good pressure be patient and only sheet in the last inch after the pressure has fully built and you are attempting to point. If you rig is overpowered the crew can over trim the jib to help de-power the rig and you will be able to point slightly higher which will help reduce over heeling.
The Main: Ease, Hike, Trim, and then Point/Feather.
The main should be trimmed to manage the heel of the boat. The main and vang are your two main controls that you use in 15-20 kts to make the boat go fast. When a puff hits your boat, you should ease aggressively to prevent the boat from heeling too much. Once you have eased you should hike out as hard as possible to maximize forward boat speed and then you should re- trim the main and load up the boat. I like to feather the boat slightly if the crew is fully hiking out and my boat is in the ideal heel but I will only feather for a couple of boat lengths at a time to prevent pinching. If your main is consistently outside of the corner of the boat you should consider lowering the main to depower. The vang should be tightened as you ease the main sheet and will depower and prevent the leech from twisting too much. Do Not Pinch.
Steering Technique – In 15-20 kts, the wind flow and pressure built through the jib/main slot is dynamic which means that your steering angle will affect the amount of flow through the slot. The only difference from light winds is that stalling mainly occurs from over trimming. In order to accelerate from tacks and lulls, the sails must be trimmed out about 1 inch from where they would be at top speed. The skipper needs to steer so that both telltales on the jib are flowing perfectly straight back which will maximize the flow. Pressure will build very fast and then you can trim in the main and jib in the final inch and begin pointing right away. If you feel that you have too much pressure just ease the main and increase the vang sheet to keep the boat on the optimal heel.
Mark Rounding
At the weather mark, you will pick your downwind strategy based on the lifted tack at the weather mark and you will decide on how to position compared to the other boats based on the incoming pressure. At the weather or offset mark there is an opportunity to increaser your boat speed as you sail from closed hauled through a tight reach and then to a downwind course. Most sailors just bear away and set and miss the best opportunity to set up a winning strategy for the down wind leg. Using the tight reach angle to increase your boat speed allows you to gain 2-3 boat lengths and then translate that boat speed into a position that can pass the boats that are immediately in front of you. To increase your boat speed, you need to remember that as you bear away from closed hauled to a tight reach that your sails will increase pressure and you need to hike out with the crew as you bear away. I like to move back a couple of inches and even pump the main as I bear away to get additional speed and then attack the boats in front of me and set the spinnaker.
At the leeward mark, it is important to be one boat length below the lay line when you begin taking down the spinnaker. While the crew is taking down the spinnaker, the skipper should get their weight out and back to compensate for the crew moving forward for the take down. Right when you get to the mark have the crew move into the bench so that the boat can heel to leeward and the skipper should stand up to gain leverage to trim the main in with maximum pull length on the main sheet. As the skipper begins the round up from a broad reach to a close reach the sails will produce excess pressure. Right when the excess pressure builds move both crew and skipper to the rail to flatten and accelerate as the boat comes up to closed hauled. Using the close reaching angle to build speed allows you to sail above closed hauled for a couple of boat lengths allowing you to get into a higher lane than the boats that have rounded ahead. If you are leading then the boats that round behind you will immediately fall into your bad air limiting their tactical options.