Before Leaving the Dock

1. Have the person who will be casting off climb off the boat and untie the bow painter. Make sure she understands not to do anything else until you tell her.

2. Review briefly with the first skipper how they will sail backwards and then turn the boat to sail. Have her tell you what she will do.

3. When the boat is pointing into the wind and everyone seems ready, tell the person casting off to simply step onto the boat, holding the bow painter, climb into the boat, feed the painter under the jib sheets and stow it near the anchor.

4. You should be sitting on the south side (away from the seawall) of the boat, ready to grab the tiller or sheets if necessary. Make sure the mainsheet is not cleated, and monitor the sailing backwards and turn.

5. Once the boat is pointing in the proper direction, sheet in the jib, move people around to balance the boat and instruct the skipper to sail towards the two similar buildings in Emeryville, or some other appropriate target on a slightly close reach. Now, discuss sail trim.

1. Trim the jib yourself so the boat has some motive force. Let the main flap.

2. How do you trim a sail? How tight should it be? How can you tell if it's too tight?

   Explain that a sail should be trimmed as far out as possible while it is still working efficiently.

3. Is the main working efficiently?

   Explain that the front edge of the sail is called the luff, and if wind hits the backside of the sail near the luff that's called luffing. If a sail is luffing it is not working efficiently.

4. What should you do if the sail is luffing?

   Explain that if the sail is luffing you can stop the luffing by pulling it in with the sheet. You can also stop the luffing by turning the boat away from the wind (where the wind is coming from), so it's important to keep on your course while you trim the sail.

5. What if the sail is not luffing? Is it in too tight?

   Explain that if the sail is too tight it doesn't develop as much force (it is "stalled") and the force it does develop is not in the optimum direction.

6. How can we tell if the sail is too tight?

   Unless we have some special indicators (to be discussed later), we can't.

7. What do we do?

   Let the sail out until it starts luffing and then pull it in until it stops.

8. What's the first thing you do to trim a sail?
    Is it luffing?
    How do you know?

   The first thing to do to trim a sail is to look at the sail!
   If it's luffing, pull it in until it stops, if not, let it out until it starts luffing, then pull it in until it stops.

9. Have a crewmember trim the jib. Have the skipper trim the main.

10. Why did the boat turn?

    When you pull in or let out a sail, it changes the balance of forces on the boat and causes the boat to turn. It's not a problem when trimming the jib because the skipper is watching the course and steering. But when the skipper pulls in the main she usually looks at the sail, not at the course.

    When trimming the main, don't look at the sail!  Pull or release the mainsheet a foot or so while holding your course, then glance at the main and repeat as needed.

11. Which sail do you trim first?

    Release both sails, have the skipper trim the main then have the crew trim the jib. Make sure the skipper holds her course.

12. Why is the main luffing?

    Explain that changing the jib affects the wind which hits the main, so trim the jib first (actually you can trim either sail first, but you'll end up trimming the main last). Every time the course changes relative to the wind the sails have to be retrimmed.

1. Have the skipper fall off (turn away from the wind) and head up (into the wind) to different courses. Have the skipper tell the crew what she is doing ("heading up" or "falling off") so the crew knows to be prepared to trim the jib. End up sailing on a close reach.

2. What do you do if the boat heels over too far?

   The three actions to take if the boat heels over too far are (in this order):

   1. Move weight to the high side or hike out

   2. Head up slightly into the wind (most people head up too much; it takes practice to get it right, so don't worry)

   3. If all else fails, let out the mail so that it luffs. If the main is not reefed, it might be a good idea to reef it. A luffing main is called a "fisherman's reef".

   If there are waves be sure to have the skipper sail on a broad reach to experience wave action on the quarter.

3. Explain tacking:

   Explain that you will be turning into the wind and beyond, so the sails will end up on the other side of the boat.

   The steps are:

   1. The skipper instructs the crew "Ready About"

   2. The crewmember who is controlling the jibsheet pulls it in and up to release it from the cleat, but does not loosen it (let the jib out), and then says "Ready".

   3. When the crew reports ready, the skipper turns the boat into the wind by moving the tiller ("helm") towards the boom (the "lee" side of the boat) and says "helm's alee". The boat turns into the wind and the sails start to luff.

   4. As the jib starts to luff, the crew releases the jibsheet.

   5. As the boom crosses the middle of the boat, the skipper:

      1. releases the mainsheet, making sure it's uncleated
      2. crosses to the other side of the boat (toward the tiller)

      the crew crosses to the other side of the boat.

   6. Once the end of the boom is no longer over the boat, the skipper puts the tiller towards the middle of the boat and starts sailing on her new course. The crew pulls in the jibsheet on the new leeward side.

      A common error is for the skipper to get the tiller stuck behind her so she can't get it back to the middle of the boat. If this happens when there is a strong wind, the boat will continue turning, jibe and capsize! Have the skipper try lifting up the tiller to see that she can lift it over her if necessary. Stress that it is essential to get the tiller back as soon as the boom end is no longer over the boat.

   7. Finally, both sails are trimmed for the course, everyone takes a deep breath and discusses what went wrong.

4. Have the skipper tell you how she will come about, and have her repeat the entire sequence until she gets it right.

5. Have the skipper come about. Stop her at any time up to crossing the boat if things aren't going well. If the skipper forgets to release the main sheet as the boom crosses the boat, do it yourself and remind her.

6. After things have settled down on the new course, discuss what went right and what went wrong, making sure everyone understands what happened. If necessary, right the capsized boat and then have the discussion.

7. Repeat sailing and tacking until the skipper gets it right at least twice. Set your courses so as not to exit the Junior sailing area.

8. Why do you release the mainsheet when you're just going to pull it in again?

   If someone does something wrong, like not releasing the jib or crossing the boat too soon or too late, if the main fills and there's a strong wind blowing there's a good chance of a capsize. If the mainsheet is released, it gives the skipper more time to correct for the problem. Once you're experienced and sailing with experienced crew it won't be necessary to release the mainsheet, but it will still be a good idea unless you're racing.

1. Explain how to heave to - almost like coming about but:

   1. Skipper instructs crew "Prepare to heave to".

   2. Crew handling the jib makes sure the jibsheet is firmly cleated and then LETS GO OF THE JIBSHEET.

   3. Just as in a tack, skipper turns the boat into the wind by putting the helm to the lee and calling "helm's alee". As the boom crosses the middle of the boat the skipper
      1. releases the mainsheet, making sure it's uncleated
      2. crosses to the other side of the boat (toward the tiller)

      the crew crosses to the other side of the boat.

   4. When the boom end is no longer over the boat, the skipper returns the tiller to the middle. The skipper DOES NOT sheet in the main, but makes sure it is uncleated and free to run all the way out.

   5. As the boat slows down, the skipper slowly pushes the tiller to the lee side of the boat (towards the boom), lifting it over the side of the boat as far as it goes, and holding it there with the hiking stick.

2. Have the skipper tell you how she will heave to, and have her repeat the entire sequence until she gets it right.

3. Have the skipper heave to. Stop her at any time up to crossing the boat if things aren't going well. If the skipper forgets to release the main sheet as the boom crosses the boat, do it yourself and remind her. As the boat slows, make sure the skipper doesn't push the tiller too quickly (or you could come about accidentally, in which case you can demonstrate how to right a capsized boat), but make sure she does push it all the way out and keeps it there.

4. After things have settled down explain what went right and what went wrong, then explain the hove-to position:

   The jib is back-winded, doing 2 important things:

   1. blocking wind from hitting the rear of the main, effectively disabling the mainsail.

   2. trying to force the bow of the boat away from the wind.

   The main is mostly luffing, but every now and then the jib pushes the bow far enough off the wind that the back of the main (the clew area) fills with wind and starts to push the boat forward.

   The rudder doesn't do anything when the boat isn't moving, but when the main forces the boat forward the rudder forces the bow back into the wind, causing the main to luff fully again. The boat slowly heads up and falls off in a generally stable position.

5. Explain that this position (hove-to) is useful for bailing the boat (have someone do this if necessary), to catch your breath after you do something frightening (like capsizing), to have lunch or to switch skippers.

6. Switch skippers.

7. Have the new skipper tell you why the boat isn't sailing ("what's wrong with this picture?) and what will have to be done to get it sailing. He should mention that:

   1. The jib is on the wrong side,

   2. The main is out too far and is luffing,

   3. The tiller is off to the side of the boat.

   To get the boat moving he will have to

   1. Have the crew put the jib on the other side,

   2. Get the tiller near the middle to control the boat and set his course,

   3. Trim the sails.

8. Explain the command to put the jib on the other side:

   "Put the jib on the other side" and have him do it and get sailing again.

The second lesson will typically be a repeat of the first lesson, with some greater variation in course angles to the wind, moving between a very broad reach and close hauled. If necessary and if the student is ready, teach her how to use the hiking stick.

As in the first lesson, have the student explain what she will do for each maneuver before she does it for the first time.

1. Explain sailing close hauled

   1. a boat can't sail directly into the wind, so to go in that direction you sail as close to the wind as possible and tack back and forth.

   2. What determines how close to the wind you can sail?

      Demonstrate that the limit is how tight the jib can be pulled in (show that the jib will start to luff before the main - if the main starts luffing first after it is pulled in all the way, the outhaul is too loose).

   3. How do you sail as close to the wind as possible?

      Since we will want the jib in as tight as possible, instruct the crew to pull the jib in tight. The skipper then sails the boat at a course which keeps the jib properly trimmed.

   4. How can the skipper keep the jib trimmed?

      Just as the crew trims the jib by pulling it in if it's luffing and letting it out if it isn't (and then pulling it back in after it luffs), the skipper falls off (away from the wind) if the jib is luffing, and heads up if it isn't, until the jib luffs, at which time she falls off.

2. Have the skipper sail close-hauled, using the hiking stick if possible and if the skipper is comfortable enough. Remember to start far enough downwind to remain in the Junior Skipper sailing area.

If the student appears comfortable, start discussing the Man Overboard:

1. Explain the jibe:

   1. A jibe typically starts from a dead run and ends up in a dead run, but with the mainsail on the opposite side of the boat.

   2. How can we tell when we're on a run?

      On a broad reach, the telltales on the shrouds of the Lido are hit by wind off the main, so they are not accurate at all. If a boat is on a broad reach with both sails on the same side, when the boat falls off to a run the main will block all the wind from hitting the jib and the jib will collapse. This is the best way to determine you're on a run in a Lido. If the sails are on opposite sides (wing-and-wing) you can't really tell a run very well.

   3. Why can't we just let the wind push the main across as in a tack?

      In a tack, the wind pushes the main across the boat slowly. With the boat facing downwind, the main is way out, and if the wind caught it and pushed it across it would pick up so much speed and momentum that it would possibly break the rigging (this has happened), but at the least it would probably hit someone on the head and cause the boat to capsize. We can't just let the wind push the sail across.

   4. So how do we prevent this damage?

      We try to limit the amount of momentum the sail can pick up, by reducing the angle it swings through. Even with this, a jibe is still more tricky and dangerous than a tack.

   5. How do we reduce the angle?

      As the boat sails downwind, the skipper quickly pulls the main in towards the centerline of the boat, then turns the boat slightly to let the wind catch the other side of the main. As the main swings across, the skipper catches it on the other side and then relatively quickly lets it all the way out.

   6. Is that really all there is to it?

      Not even close! First, it takes three hands to do this, two to pull in the main and one to hold the tiller. As the main is pulled in, the boat tries to head up, so the skipper has to use the tiller to keep the boat on a run. As soon as the mainsail fills on the back side it tries to force the boat to turn up into the wind on the new tack, so the skipper has to fight this with the tiller. It's a lot trickier than it sounds.

   7. So if it's that difficult, how do you do it?

      There are several techniques, but this is probably the easiest:

      1. The skipper falls off from a broad reach until the boat is on a run (the jib collapses). Don't judge wind direction by the telltales on the shrouds - they are affected by wind spilling off the main sail when on a run, and don't judge wind direction by waves - they tell you what the wind was doing half an hour ago.

      2. The skipper warns the crew ("prepare to jibe"). The crew get their heads down (why do you think it's called a "boom") and yell ready.

      3. The skipper crosses to the other side of the boat (the side the boom is on) and puts her hip against the tiller to hold the course. She should be ready to push further with her hip as she pulls in the sail.

      4. The skipper uses her hands to pull the mainsheet in as far as she can. She can face forward and pull the sheet between the boom and the cleat (DO NOT pull the sheet through the cleat) or face the back and pull in the sheet between the boom and the traveler. As she pulls it in, she has to push harder on the tiller to fight the boat's tendency to turn upwind.

      5. When the boom is over the boat, the skipper pushes even further on the tiller to turn the boat so that the wind will catch the back of the main to push it across.

      6. As soon as the the skipper feels the force on the sail reduce, she yells "Jibe Ho", warning the crew again to get their heads down. Then she uses one hand to help the boom across and puts the other hand on the tiller, ready to shove it over in the other direction as the boat tries to head up (which hand to use depends on whether you're facing forwards or backwards - use the convenient hand).

      7. As the boom crosses and the wind force increases in the new direction, the skipper lets the main out, not allowing it to swing free, but cushioning it as it goes all the way out, and moves the tiller as required to keep the boat heading in the same direction.

      8. While all this is going on in the back of the boat, one crewmember moves around to keep the boat balanced; the rest of the crew stays where they are.

      9. Once the main is all the way out and the boat is stable the skipper sits down, the crew puts the jib on the other side, and everyone takes a deep breath.

      10. The skipper should be careful not to overcompensate when keeping the boat from heading up, or the boat may head far enough over to accidentally jibe back. This usually causes a capsize.

   8. Have the skipper try a jibe. It's a good idea to do the first jibes in the lee of Hs Lordship's restaurant where the wind and waves aren't too strong. Once the skipper has done two successful jibes, head out into the real wind and try it again.