Five Steps You Can Take to Reduce Weather Helm
Increase weight to windward. Move your crew to windward to reduce heeling and flatten the boat. Ease the mainsheet and Genoa sheets. Slide the mainsheet car to leeward. Move Genoa sheet blocks aft. Reduce sail area (reefing; smaller headsail).
What causes lee helm?
The cause of lee helm is the center of pressure exerted by the wind on the sails falls too far forward of the center of resistance of the hull—the natural point at which the hull tries to pivot. This tends to push the bow of the boat away from the wind.
What does Helms Alee mean?
Helms Alee: A term used by the helmsman to notify the crew that he has started to tack.
How do you correct lee helm?
You correct lee helm with the opposite strategy: Move the center of effort aft. Trim the mainsheet and boomvang and ease the outhaul and cunningham to increase the main’s power. Ease the jib to reduce sail power forward. If you have a lot of weather helm sailing to windward, check the shape of your mainsail.
How tight should shrouds be?
They should be tight enough that when you push or pull on them, they don’t want to jiggle around too much. If they feel loose or floppy, you need to tighten them further. Once the cap shrouds are set, the rest of the shrouds simply follow in sequential order with none of them being tighter than the cap shrouds.
What is weather helm on a boat?
Weather helm is the tendency of sailing vessels to turn towards the source of wind, creating an unbalanced helm that requires pulling the tiller to windward (i.e. ‘to weather’) in order to counteract the effect. Weather helm is the opposite of lee helm. It is generally less troublesome than lee helm.
What is pinching in sailing?
Pinching is when the boat is sailed too close to the wind direction, causing the angle of attack on the sail to be too narrow.
What is mast rake?
Mast rake is a measure of how far the mast is angled aft from a straight vertical. A typical mast rake ranges from one to one-and-a-half degrees on a cruising masthead rig to as much as four degrees on a fractional racing rig.
What is the sailing term for no wind?
Tide Over
Not to be confused with “tied over,” this phrase has its origins in seafaring. When there was no wind to fill the sails, sailors would float with the tide until the wind returned. They would “tide over.”
What do sailors say when they set sail?
“Aye Aye Captain!” – a sign of approval. “Ahoy!” – sailors would use this exclamation among themselves to call out to each other. “Land Ho!” – an exclamation that a sailor would make when they spotted the land.
What does jibe ho mean?
“Bearing away” or “jibing” (similar to saying “helm’s a-lee” during a tack) indicates the helmsman is turning the boat (away from the wind) to start the jibe. “Jibe-ho” accompanies the start of the boom swing across the centerline.
How do you find the center of effort of a sail?
Center of Effort
To determine the CE on paper a line is drawn from one side of the sail to the opposite corner. Then, do the same for another side. The resulting intersection of lines is the theoretical or geometrical center of effort (CE) for each sail.
What is the difference between a shroud and a stay?
Shroud. Stays and shrouds are often confused, as they essentially do the same thing (just in different places). Stays are only located on the bow and stern of the vessel—that’s fore and aft. Shrouds run from the port and starboard side of the hull or deck to the top of the mast.
What do spreaders do on a mast?
A spreader is a spar on a sailing boat used to deflect the shrouds to allow them to better support the mast. The spreader or spreaders serve much the same purpose as the crosstrees and tops in a traditional sailing vessel.
How often should you replace standing rigging?
Normally, the replacement of standing rigging should be done every 10 years. Generally, insurance companies today require the standing rigging be replaced approximately every 7-10 years, depending on how often, or how far the yacht is sailed, they may require the rigging to be replaced earlier than 7 years.
