A crafty idea to help singlehanders raise and lower sails
Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006
One of the chief hassles when sailing alone is raising and lowering sails while maintaining your usual dignity and decorum. And safety. Here’s a very sensible (Why didn’t we think of this?) idea that works like a charm. It was developed by Bill Watson, of Plymouth, Minnesota, aboard his lovely 24-foot Yankee Dolphin, Icelander. Bill lived aboard and solo-sailed for five months in the Apostle Islands of Lake Superior. He suggests:
- Motor away from dock and shore. Head into the wind with just enough throttle to maintain steerageway. Get the main ready to hoist with the mainsheet loosened, and hook a bungee cord from the tiller to the boom. (Bill uses a doubled bungee with brass clips on each end and eye straps screwed into tiller and boom.)
- Hoist the main and cleat the halyard. Even as the boat inevitably begins to head off, let’s say onto port tack, the mainsail dutifully keeps pointing into the wind (swings to starboard). As it does so, the boom pulls on the bungee, the bungee pulls the tiller to starboard, and that heads the boat back up into the wind. This starts happening the instant the sail is up. Works on both tacks.
- It’s like heaving to, but into the wind, and the boat can keep it up indefinitely. The skipper has plenty of time to sweat and coil the main halyard, adjust the outhaul, Cunningham, and so on, and — at his or her leisure — hoist the jib, genoa, staysail, mizzen, and whatever else will fly. Then, unhook the bungee and cut the motor.
When coming back to port, simply motor slowly into the wind, reattach the bungee, free the mainsheet, and begin lowering sails — headsails first, main last. Much hassle is gone. Dignity is maintained. It’s fun to sail solo. Nifty!
Thank you to Sailrite Enterprises, Inc., for providing free access to back issues of Good Old Boat through intellectual property rights. Sailrite.com
