Good breeze, good sailing... good day!

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This afternoon was a bit windy, and we had a GREAT sailing session. We added one new skill, STOPPING (link) and we practiced Points of Sail and Tacking. We did a brief Baby Duck drill, so that is going to count towards the sailing qualification.

Today we got the boats rigged fairly quickly and efficiently... by this point in the class, the students should know all the terminology and all the knots!





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Two New Bern NJROTC cadets rigging the mainsail on their Javelin. These beginners sailed with a coach, but they might be ready for independent cruising after today!











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 It was windy enough today that the mainsails were "reefed." This means to tie off the bottom portion of the sail and make it smaller, so that the boat is easier to control in strong winds.











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Two of the Javelins tacking. The near boat (sometimes called Red Stripe Jr.) has just passed head-to-wind and you can see the jib starting to blow past the mast. It's important to begin a tack with good speed, and to control the boat thru the turn.

We had several failed tacks this afternoon, but we don't need to show photos of that.






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Sailing along on a close reach, on port tack. The mainsail could be pulled in a little tighter, but the boat is moving well.











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This looks like a close call, but it really was not. The yellow boat on the left is in the middle of a tack,  the white boat is under good control on a beam reach. You can see the reef 'tucked in' along the boom.








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These pictures do not convey the boisterous, bumpy conditions of sailing today. A southerly wind was reinforced by a sea breeze, building up to have steady whitecaps (10~12 kts) and a foot to two feet of choppy waves.

These cadets with Coach John Jackson did a good job this afternoon. Photos of sailing always make it look more calm (and relaxing) than it really is!








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 Sailing wing-and-wing, or on a RUN (point of sail).

This is faster than letting the jib flop around behind the mainsail, and helps make the boat easier to steer down wind, too.














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Now we're doing the BABY DUCK drill (link)... can you see the boats behind? They are doing a good job following!

This is a good exercise, requiring all the skills we have learned so far, and gives the coaches a good chance to either give feedback or to relax and enjoy the sail.








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Here is one of the few photos that show the waves... the water surface was somewhat rough. The waves make steering a bit more difficult, and make 'working the boat' a balancing act.









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And, as always, the day comes to a close and we have to unrig the boats.

This was both a very good practice session, and a lot of fun. Well done!




... posted by Assistant Coach Douglas King









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Rough weather day- we practice some basics

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As you'll see in the photos, this past session was held under threatening skies and strong winds.

We are getting familiar with rigging the boat, but it's more challenging when the wind is trying to tug the sail out of your hands






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Once the boat was rigged, we kept it tethered to the dock in such a way that we could swing it back and forth with the dock lines. The cadets practiced steering and handling the sails, without the risk of a capsize or of damaging the boat, if they make a mistake or respond a bit too slowly to gusts.

In this photo, the crew is having difficulty getting the jib trimmed. The sail flapping was very loud, making communication difficult at a time when it is needed most!


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This boat is CLOSE REACHing. You can see the sails are full, and are slightly eased: the mainsail and boom are not over the transom. The jib is trimmed correctly for this point of sail.

Two of the skills we practiced today was the correct position to sit in the boat, and handling the mainsheet "hand-to-hand" while steering at the same time.





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Even with the sails fully eased and flapping, the boat is heeling in the strong wind (approx 20mph).  Is it possible to sail in these conditions? Yes, but it is not a game for beginners, the skipper must -know- all the points of sail, the maneuvers, -always- maintain communication with the crew, have a quick & correct response to waves & gusts, and think ahead to avoid problems.




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The Javelins are good boats for this kind of teaching. They are built tough and they are stable, but they are also responsive enough to give the student a good feel for sailing. There is a LOT to remember, and so getting familiar with the basics of steering with a tiller (or the hiking stick... better!) and handling the sheets will help.





These two smaller diagrams show how this exercise was set up.

 When the sails are full, the boat is REALLY pulling hard... a sign that the sailors are doing it right!


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The line handling crew needed strength and attention to detail... but they did their job well and maintained high morale. Maybe this part of the drill was fun, too!


Hopefully we will hold real sailing drills next Monday. We will continue working on sailing the 'Points Of Sail' and on the basic maneuver TACKING (link), and hopefully will also practice bringing the boat to a stop under sail.



In fact, it would be very helpful to study our On-Line Lessons (link) (hint hint). There is a link to this Table of Contents in our list of links at the upper left of this web page.

... posted by Assistant Coach Douglas King




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