> I'm guessing you do NOT have a
> backstay on your boat, but for those of us who do, there is also always
> a risk of an uncontrolled jibe, where the end of the boom lifts, swings
> to the other side, hangs up in the backstay and with stiff winds and a
> steep swell/chop the boat may lay over and can turtle.
Hi Larry et al,
I wonder how long your boom is and/or how tall your mast is. There are so
many differences from one P19 to another that it's hard to generalize from
one to the next.
Our boom simply isn't long enough to catch on the back stay pm our P19,
Redwing. Our P19 has an adjustable topping lift line from the top of my mast
down to the end of the boom, and when I lift the boom, it doesn't come
anywhere near the backstay. The topping lift line is inside the backstay all
the from top to bottom, so no matter how high I lift the boom, geometry
dictates it will always be inside the backstay.
Even if the geometry on some P19s is different, I think a vang would prevent
the boom from rising up and snagging on the backstay on an uncontrolled jibe
in a downwind run. And a vang can sure smooth out the ride on a downwind run!
I sailed my then-brand-new-to-me P19 just *once* without a vang downwind in a
quartering-following sea, in relatively benign conditions (15 knots approx
with 3 foot swells). Immediately after that, I rigged a vang on the boat,
and for good reason.
That first downwind ride was both uncomfortable and fightening. As we surfed
down each swell, the boom was bobbing up and down, the mainsail filling and
then spilling wind like a bellows, while the boat yawed sideways at times and
the rudder stalled out. To make matters worse, the main sheet that came with
the boat was too short to let the boom all the way out. The likely prospect
of an uncontrolled jibe was turning me into a nervous wreck.
Unlike you in the storm, I had the luxury of deciding that I would head up
from the downwind run and instead do a series of broad reaches to my
destination. (The whole story: I sweettalked my hubby into hanging onto the
boom like a "human vang" for a few minutes. It stabilized the boat, but he
soon tired of wrestling with the boom and I had to change course! <g>)
On another note, I heard stories as a kid in New England where fishermen
would stash a rope somewhere out of the way on the lifebbat so that they
could devise some way to lash themselves to the hull of the lifeboats in the
event of a capsize.
Maybe 'twould be a good idea in a bad sea, hmmm? That and a hand held VHF
radio clipped to a live jacket (oh no, more boat bucks to spend! Guess we're
not equipped to sail off into the sunset yet!)
Best,
Judy B.
1985 WWP-19 #266 "Redwing"
SF Bay, CA