Boating and Sailing.pdf - Moja ladja

Chapter 25: The Mechanics of Sailing
there’s only one rope, it’s the clew (unless the sail is of modern loose-footed design,
in which case if there’s a headboard, it’s the head, if there’s no boltrope, it’s the clew,
and if there’s a bolt rope or sail slides but no headboard, it’s the tack).
11. The jib is now attached to the forestay via the hanks or snaps along its luff. Start
from the bottom of the sail up, not vice versa—that way the bottom section will be
easier to attach.
12. Attach the jib sheets, using a bowline or shackles, and run the sheets through the
pulleys (known as “blocks” to sailors) provided back to the cockpit—one goes to
each side. Put a stopper knot, a figure eight, in the end of each so they don’t slip
back through the pulleys.
13. Attach the jib halyard to the head of the jib. On a windy day, it’s very easy for the jib
to be blown off the front deck. Have a crewperson sit on the jib until you’re ready to
hoist it.
That’s it—you’re ready to go, at last. Before you move the boat away from the dock,
though, make one final check to make sure both jib sheets and the mainsheet are slack,
so that the sails won’t fill immediately when you push off.
Getting Underway
To get started sailing, raise the main first, if you haven’t already done so, as in step 9.
Then raise the jib. Pull both taut to the top of the mast and cleat them off, coiling the
halyards neatly. Never tie the halyards in a knot that could be difficult to release quickly,
and always make sure the end coils are orderly. This is so that you can quickly lower the
sails—your only way of stopping short of turning up into the wind—in an emergency.
Since the boat is still pointed directly into the wind, the only thing that happens at this
point is that the sails start to flap fast and loud if there’s a lot of wind.
If you’re in a crowded harbor, it’s not a bad idea
for the crew to man the paddles and make your
way out before the sails are trimmed. Once the
boat starts sailing things can get pretty busy,
and it’s best to have open water ahead.
To make the sails fill, push the bow off the dock
or paddle so that it turns a bit away from the
wind, which will bring the bow beyond the “nosail”
area (where the boat is pointed almost dead
into the wind and the sails have no lift). This will
allow the wind to strike the sails at an angle
greater than 45 degrees.
Boat Bytes
Most small sailboats are
tiller-steered, which means
a straight handle rather
than a steering wheel controls
the rudder. Tiller steering
is different than wheel
steering because you push the
handle left to go right, and vice
versa.
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