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Breeze On
Q: I am having some trouble getting my IMX 38 going up wind in a breeze.
We crank the backstay on, flatten the main, move the leads back on the
genoa, but it just doesn’t seem to be helping. We have good sails and
have been sailing for years. Any thoughts?
A: There have been some interesting new schools of thought for sailing in
a breeze. One is to actually make the main fuller (traveler up, outhaul
eased) so that it puts slightly more helm on the boat. Yes, it adds weather
helm, but tests are proving that this actually helps to make the boat
climb a bit more to weather. Much the same with the headsail. Flat jibs
are often found to be lacking in power, especially in a seaway. Let the
headstay sag off a bit, lead forward a touch more than you might think.
While your pointing might initially suffer, again the gained power will
more than make up for it in raw speed. Let us know how it works.
