Pro sailor and veteran of numerous round the world and ocean races, Stu Bannatyne, talks Andy Rice through the best ways to tackle survival conditionsStu Bannatyne has learned the hard way that sailing upwind in survival conditions changes your priorities. \u201cA lot of the decisions are based around boat preservation, rather than outright speed. The old axiom: \u2018to finish first, first you must finish\u2019 comes into play in survival conditions.\u201d
\nThis was brought home to him early in his Whitbread\/Volvo Ocean Race career in 1993 when Bannatyne was racing on the 85ft Maxi ketch New Zealand Endeavour. \u201cWe were sailing upwind and hit heavy airs and big seas from Uruguay up to Fort Lauderdale.
\n\u201cWe suffered some delamination of the hull and core shear, and as a 22-year-old nipper it was amazing to see the more experienced guys use whatever we had on board to fix it. You need to have contingency plans in mind but it\u2019s better not to get the damage in the first place.\u201d
\nAn even starker example was in the 2008\/09 Volvo Ocean Race when faced with a particularly stormy Strait of Luzon near the Philippines. \u201cNever before had I been on a boat when we actually stopped and waited to assess the conditions. It was 50 to 55 knots of wind and big seas and Puma broke a boom even with three reefs in the main.\u201d
\nWith survival and boat preservation in mind, here are Bannatyne\u2019s five tips for slogging upwind in severe conditions.
\nSailing upwind in the furious fifties east of Argentina, looking out aft from the port quarter. Photo: Pepo Subiranas
\nPreserve the boat
\nStronger winds often bring bigger, stormy seas. This can be daunting and you need to think about safety, not necessarily having people sitting on the rail.
\nConditions may get so severe that you\u2019re no longer looking for outright speed.
\nLaunching off big waves is not a very smart way to go about keeping your boat together and maintaining a high average speed.
\nArticle continues below\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSkip Novak\u2019s Storm Sailing Techniques Part 3: storm sails<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSkip Novak has firm views about the easiest and safest way to reduce sail and carry on in a gale.\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSkip Novak\u2019s Storm Sailing Techniques Part 4: Heaving to<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHeaving to is an ideal technique for riding out a storm, but there\u2019s an art to it in heavy seas.\u2026<\/p>\n
You should be reducing the sail area and reducing the righting moment correspondingly to the increasing severity of the conditions. Having a decent amount of heel to get through the waves is important to stop the boat slamming.
\nAim to reduce righting moment by getting crew off the rail and down below to lie on the leeward bunks.
\nKeep crew fresh
\nFor a 600-mile race, depending on the number of crew, I\u2019d run a three-watch system.
\nWhen the conditions are nice, it\u2019s good to have two of those watches on deck and sailing the boat. You get the extra weight on the rail, you get the extra people for rotating trimmers and so on. But in rougher conditions you can rest two watches at a time.
\nIn survival conditions it\u2019s better to keep people rested rather than tiring them out on the rail. Make sure you have plenty of plain food that requires minimal preparation, and make sure everyone is well dressed and keep them warm with hot drinks.
\nReduce sail early
\nWatch the forecast like a hawk for any changes, particularly a potential worsening of conditions.
\nIf you suspect the wind and wave state is set to keep on building, it\u2019s always a good idea to change down your headsails first, before you think about putting a reef in the mainsail.
\nIt\u2019s much easier to do a headsail change in 20-25 knots of wind compared to 30 knots or more.
\nSo you would change all the way down to a J4 on most boats while still carrying full mainsail. Only then would you reef the main, and you might put in a second reef before you change down again to a storm jib or a J5.
\nBy the time it\u2019s getting to 40 knots-plus, then you\u2019d put in a third reef into the mainsail.
\nIf you\u2019re going to be reefed for a long time, make sure you roll up the foot of the mainsail with bungees or ties, and roll it in the right direction so that the waves don\u2019t fill up the roll in the sail.
\nTrim for balance
\nAs the sea state builds it can become very difficult to steer the boat, so it\u2019s important to try and maintain a balance.
\nTest different sail combinations for maintaining a good helm balance on a training day when the wind and sea state aren\u2019t so severe, so you know what selections to make when you find yourself racing in tough conditions.
\nA well-balanced boat shouldn\u2019t require too much steering for anything other than the really big waves. As a general rule, don\u2019t steer around waves too much because that will change the apparent wind angle quite a bit.
\nSo you\u2019ve got to find the right balance for the sea state. The aim is to set the boat up with a more forgiving trim mode.
\nWork wave angles
\nIt\u2019s common for strong winds not to line up with the wave train, particularly when you get a frontal passage coming through. If you can get on to the tack that takes you across the waves, rather than directly into them, to get to where you want to go or towards flatter water (eg in the lee of a land mass) then use the less violent wave angle to your advantage.
\nAs time passes after the frontal passage, the wave train will align more with the wind direction. So any time you can spend on the favoured tack for the difficult sea state means that when you do tack, it\u2019s likely you\u2019ll be sailing at a more favourable angle to the waves than if you\u2019d made the tack sooner.<\/p>\n
If you enjoyed this\u2026.<\/p>\n
Yachting World is the world\u2019s leading magazine for bluewater cruisers and offshore sailors. Every month we have inspirational adventures and practical features to help you realise your sailing dreams.<\/p>\n
Build your knowledge with a subscription delivered to your door. See our latest offers and save at least 30% off the cover price.<\/p>\n
The post Upwind in survival conditions: How to take on heavy weather appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pro sailor and veteran of numerous round the world and ocean races, Stu Bannatyne, talks Andy Rice through the best ways to tackle survival conditionsStu Bannatyne has learned the hard way that sailing upwind in survival conditions changes your priorities. … <\/p>\n