Heaving to on an x

[Jeff Stagg]

delevi and Chip asked about heaving to without a headsail and about how to keep bow to wind:

First off, if you have no sails up and your wheel is straight in any wind, an X will point downwind, bow first and move along very fast. So heave to by turning the wheel to windward and the X will turn beam to wind and slow down; of course heaving to in any form requires rudder(s) and centerboard down, motor down optional.

Second, you can heave to with only a headsail, I've done with standard jib and genoa, the gennaker is a little frail and ballooney.

Third, you can heave to with only the mainsail, but the boat will continuouslyself-tack and stall, mostly stay in irons, drifting aft for the most part. This was a tip from Ed Mitchell years ago and had to do with how to change a hank-on headsail while under sail. Sheet in the mainsail tight, heave to by backwinding the headsail, and when you release that halyard the sail will fall neatly onto the deck in about two seconds. Faster than a rolling furling douse. Then you can stand in the V-berth and change the sails (jib to genoa or genoa to jib), going on deck to lay out the sheets and raise the sail.

If anyone with a M tries this I would appreciate hearing back if it works the same as on my X for pending videos.

[delevi]

Hammin X,

Great article on heaving to. I like the idea of being able to point the bow close hauled. The only way I knew was just backwinding the jib and locking the helm to windward. This puts the beam to weather, not a good way to ride out a storm. I will have to play around with this, using the main and different rudder positions. I don't quite understand what "in the slick means" and how you can keep breaking waves from crashing into your bow, just because you're pointed close hauled and drifting backwards, unless you're back peddling your way from the breaking waves, but that doesn't make too much sense.

[Hamin' X]

Hammin X,

Great article on heaving to. I like the idea of being able to point the bow close hauled. The only way I knew was just backwinding the jib and locking the helm to windward. This puts the beam to weather, not a good way to ride out a storm. I will have to play around with this, using the main and different rudder positions. I don't quite understand what "in the slick means" and how you can keep breaking waves from crashing into your bow, just because you're pointed close hauled and drifting backwards, unless you're back peddling your way from the breaking waves, but that doesn't make too much sense.

The slick is the area on the water upwind from the hull, as you are drifting. Your bow will be about 50 degrees off the wind and you will be drifting backwards about 130 degrees from your heading. This means your drift will be 180 degrees off the wind, but the wind will not be abeam of you. The slick is caused by the hull "smoothing out" the surface as you drift. The waves tend to break into the slick, before they reach the hull, because they have nothing to build on. Your drift rate is substantialy reduce by the keel and rudders. Hope this help explain it.

Rich---Hamin' X---N7ZH

[delevi]

Awesome! Thanks.
Sure hope I don't have to ride out a force 10, but it's nice to know as many tactics as possible just in case.

Cheers,

[wayfarer]

Here's a couple more links (one to a video) that I found informative:

http://www.sailonline.com/seamanship/He ... o_man.html

http://www.videos.sailingcourse.com/heaving_to_wmv1.htm

[Bill at BOATS 4 SAIL]

I had a customer that bought a 26X from me run into some weather returning to Monaco from Corsica, in the Ligurian Sea. He used his ice chest, successfully, as a sea anchor.
I have a sea anchor that I've never used. I should at least practice so I'll know how to do it if/when needed.
I would detach the anchor I keep in the cockpit, with the line going forward outside the shrouds, thru the center of one of the bow mooring cleats, and back to the cockpit. Attach the sea anchor, drop it over the side and adjust the line length from the cockpit at a stern mooring cleat.