I'm new to sailing, but have relied on the sketchy recollections of my
school days fooling around on Sunfish and Hobies, plus the info I have
gleaned from a variety of sailing books. So far, I have done a pretty
good job of getting where I want to go, and staying out of trouble. My
problem is that I must be doing something wrong when on any point of
sailing from a broad reach to a run.
In the light winds (5-8 knots) we've had here the last couple of
weekends, I am able to get a respectable speed up when on a beam reach
or even sailing to windward, but I seem to come to a dead halt when
trying a run or broad reach. I would appreciate any pointers you experts
have out there. I think I am getting my sails at approximately the
right angle, but there must something screwy, because I see other boats
flying by me. This may be a ridiculous request of you all without
experiencing the conditions, or seeing my technique, but I thought I
would give it a shot. I am trying to ramp up the learning curve as fast
as possible. For reference, I have been sailing with main and Genoa on
rolling furler.
Curt Westlake
WWP-19 #1096
(No name yet, still waiting for inspiration)