Light wind tips

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   Hello everyone.  My annual crack at the S2 7.9 fleet was last weekend and we had very light (1-2.5) with a .75-1 current.  Alas I saw sterns and look for insights on light wind.  I had wrinkles in the Genny and main, no backstay, uppers were 32, lowers 30, bottom clean, engine button pushed in and lever engaged (goofed that one when I first bought boat)so.... wondering if I was too tight looking for point?  Had the 150 off the spreader by ~2 inches but did not play the traveler, kept it in the middle....  I et another crack at them this weekend and I am getting annoyed when they tell me about my good start (they like to barge as a group and I keep closing the door on them, clearly got 3/5 starts but then shazam! they were gone) so I turn to you again.  THanks, :(bill  #155

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WJRyan Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 12 February 2008 Location: Louisville, KY Status: Offline Points: 230	Post Options Post Reply Quote WJRyan Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Light wind tips Posted: 21 September 2011 at 10:10am
	Hello everyone. My annual crack at the S2 7.9 fleet was last weekend and we had very light (1-2.5) with a .75-1 current. Alas I saw sterns and look for insights on light wind. I had wrinkles in the Genny and main, no backstay, uppers were 32, lowers 30, bottom clean, engine button pushed in and lever engaged (goofed that one when I first bought boat)so.... wondering if I was too tight looking for point? Had the 150 off the spreader by ~2 inches but did not play the traveler, kept it in the middle.... I et another crack at them this weekend and I am getting annoyed when they tell me about my good start (they like to barge as a group and I keep closing the door on them, clearly got 3/5 starts but then shazam! they were gone) so I turn to you again. THanks, :(bill #155
	Bill Ryan, Room4Crew, #155

fatjohnz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 05 August 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 304	Post Options Post Reply Quote fatjohnz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 21 September 2011 at 10:24am
	don't cha hate that? - eventhough we keep the bottom clean we seem to pick up some grass or other flotsam on the way out to the start area so I always back her down hard and and then a quick rev in forward to make sure the prop is clear. - check the crew weight is heeling the boat and weight out of the stern. - i noticed the last time i got beat in light air that the leader's had the mainsheet on quite hard and the traveler off center. i was thinking that in very light air this would give the genny and the main similar attack angles. i'm not sure if it will help ... just something i noticed. john

fatjohnz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 05 August 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 304	Post Options Post Reply Quote fatjohnz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 21 September 2011 at 3:00pm
	ahhh, ... and the other thing is to make sure you're light on the inside. warbird posted in another thread, '... one bottle of suntan lotion; one battery...'. so if you don't touch it on race day, consider taking it off the boat for race day ;-)

frfletch Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 13 May 2008 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 365	Post Options Post Reply Quote frfletch Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 21 September 2011 at 9:11pm
	The boat is great in those conditions. Your halyard tensions seem okay at just hand tight. Not too many wrinkles I hope because you want to promote air flow over the sails. Forget how far you are off the spreader with the #1. I suspect that at 2" off the spreader you were too tight, but that is a matter of feel while on the spot. Certainly it is too tight to get the boat moving initially. The main thing is to get the boat moving and keep it moving whatever it takes. You may not have played the main correctly. In super light airs we sail with relaxed leaches, and some twist, which so the vang should not be tight and the traveler played just so that the sail is not being backwinded. Very touchy-touchy-feely-feely. Do not try the old thing about keeping the boom on center when going to windward? Maybe on a 1970's high aspect ratio M/H rig, but not on the Laser's fractional. Play the main loosie-goosie and get the boat moving. Once it is moving with power, one can sneak things in on the sheets or traveler for better pointing and speed, but just one click at a time. If the speed falls, let things back out---everything slowly. Insist on trimmers using the winch handle in light conditions so that they can play the genoa sheet one click at a time. Hand-pulling on the sheet in light conditions causes over-trim and stalls the boat. Pointing is not key. VMG is key and that requires to keep the boat moving even if you temporarily sail the wrong direction. With 2 knots of true wind you'll can get the boat moving 1.5 knots, and with that you will have 3 knots of apparent wind, and then you can get boat speed of 2+ knots, etc, etc. Just get it moving and keep it moving. One other thing: We find that in super light conditions, we sometimes put 3 of our crew downstairs sitting as close to center as possible which steadies the boat. All persons in these conditions must move slowly to keep the boat, rig, and sails dead steady. In such conditions I enjoy driving from leeward so that I have direct sight of the slot between the sails, the trim, and how the two sails are working together. Once things steady I will come back up. Focus, focus, focus on keeping it moving.

frfletch Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 13 May 2008 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 365	Post Options Post Reply Quote frfletch Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 21 September 2011 at 9:21pm
	One other thing. If we know there is going to be light conditions with a tide running against the fleet on an upwind leg, we carry a small alloy anchor on some light 1/4" line. In BC we have some considerable tides and with the additional distance one must travel in tacking, it can be faster against the fleet to hold still until conditions change. In BC we can see tidal current in excess of 2 knots, and sailing upwind with 2 knots of boat speed will effectively send you backwards. It happens, however I would rather be doing something else on such days.

fatjohnz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 05 August 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 304	Post Options Post Reply Quote fatjohnz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 21 September 2011 at 9:49pm
	yes, one thing for sure is to avoid going backward; don't get sideways to the current unless you've got pressure and you must do it

fatjohnz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 05 August 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 304	Post Options Post Reply Quote fatjohnz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 27 September 2011 at 1:49pm
	We had very light winds this weekend and so I did experiment using extra halyard and main sheet tension. Gave both halyards a good hard hoist and then eased until the luff crease disappeared and the sail regained its shape but did not ease to the point of wrinkles. Heeled the boat by crew weight and sailed a wind angle that would keep the jib working (2" off the spreader and foot just touching the shroud). With the traveler centered, gradually brought the main sheet on fairly hard, till all the telltales stalled. Then let the traveler down a bit till the bottom 3 telltales were flying (top one still stalled). Seemed like she had more giddy-up than the last light air day. john

WJRyan Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 12 February 2008 Location: Louisville, KY Status: Offline Points: 230	Post Options Post Reply Quote WJRyan Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 September 2011 at 7:32am
	Good tip FJ! I will try this one next. Another question, do you keep the main cleated or play it uncleated?
	Bill Ryan, Room4Crew, #155

fatjohnz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 05 August 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 304	Post Options Post Reply Quote fatjohnz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 September 2011 at 8:34am
	In light winds(?), there is not much to play. But conditions are ever changing and we are constantly checking(experimenting). Put a piece of tape on the sheet to mark your setting and then adjust a little to see if it feels better or worse. Really important in light is to look out and see the wind on the water; avoid the dead spots. Watch your compass so you are aware of the lifts and heads. js

WJRyan Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 12 February 2008 Location: Louisville, KY Status: Offline Points: 230	Post Options Post Reply Quote WJRyan Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 September 2011 at 10:16am
	We are having a discussion on the boat whether the sheet should be cleated or not, one opinion is you can feel the changes faster and the other that you should let the effort/energy hit the boat and not someone's arm... thoughts?
	Bill Ryan, Room4Crew, #155

fatjohnz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 05 August 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 304	Post Options Post Reply Quote fatjohnz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 September 2011 at 12:59pm
	I would say, ‘that depends’…. On the conditions; not so much on whether you are taking it in the arms. When the breeze is steady, there will be a lot of adjustments made to the trim to find the ‘groove’. Once you find it, the driver is working the lifts and headers and the trimmer is making fine adjustments as needed to main sheet and traveler for wind strength; to find max power and optimum heel. I would leave the mainsheet cleated (except for the fine adjustments of course). When the breeze is gusting, and especially if you’ve got more wind power than you need, the main trimmer has a big role in driving the boat, so the helmsman and the trimmer need to work in concert. This is where you need to be on the same page as far as what you want to achieve when the gust hits and how you will handle the extra power. When you are driving through a puff, the trimmer should be very active to take full advantage of the extra energy and then return to base trim. You certainly need to be uncleated for this. Imho, john

frfletch Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Commodore Joined: 13 May 2008 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 365	Post Options Post Reply Quote frfletch Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 September 2011 at 4:57pm
	In most conditions I prefer to manage the main trim to windward from the helm. Most playing the traveler, but whatever else it takes. One man swinging his legs from outward over the rail, to inward so that he can play the main costs .24 of a knott or roughly 500 yards per hour. That is huge. Try it! Just one man facing in instead of hiking. The helm person can feel the main best. In big conditions we use a separate trimmer for the main and the traveler rary gets cleated in those conditions.