• "Mainsail trim made simple "

• "Top Ten Tips on Spinnaker Trim"

• "Genoa Trim Made Simple"

• "Heavy Air Sailing"

• "Lionheart" Wins Royal Savage

• "Lake Champlain Race"

• "MBBC Sailors Dominate"

• "Plattsburgh Mayor’s Cup Sails to Vermont"

Mainsail Trim Made Simple

"Just a hint of wrinkles"

by Bill Fastiggi

his is a quick guide for racers or cruisers to give you the proper mainsail trim for the majority of sailing conditions:

1. Set halyard tension - Pull up mainsail halyard and remove 95% of the horizontal wrinkles along the luff of the sail. The exception is in very heavy air, remove all the wrinkles. When sailing upwind vs. downwind or light air vs. moderate air, you will have to adjust tension to achieve this setting of "just a hint of wrinkles".

2. Set outhaul tension - For upwind sailing, pull outhaul tight to remove wrinkles or to close the shelf foot. Downwind, if you have a shelf foot or loose footed sail, ease the outhaul until shelf is open. Most boats this will be about a 6" range of adjustment.

3. Set mainsheet tension - For upwind sailing, trim mainsheet until the back half of the top batten is approximately parallel to the boom. If you have leech tell tales, the top tell-tale should fly about 50-75% of the time. In heavy air you will need to “twist open” the top of the main by sailing with less leech tension to depower the boat.

4. Set traveler - Pull traveler up to windward until boom is on centerline. As the wind increases, gradually slide traveler to leeward to relieve weather helm.

5. Vang - For downwind sailing, set the vang much like the mainsheet tension upwind. Pull the vang on until the back of the top batten is parallel to the boom, and the leech telltale flies about half of the time.

6 . Mainsheet tension downwind - let sail out until it luffs on the forward edge of the sail, then trim just enough to remove the luff.

7. Cunningham - like main halyard, use to remove all but 5% of the luff wrinkles. This is simply a quick reference guide that should work well for most boats. However, you may find through experimentation, that slightly different settings may work a little better on your boat or sail.

"Top Ten Tips on Spinnaker Trim"

"Ease the sheet when you feel a puff and trim it in when the boat begins to accelerate"

by Bill Fastiggi

've consolidated triming a spinnaker into my top ten tips. While each boat is a little different you should be able to use this as a guide to getting "faster".

1. While approaching the windward mark set the spinnaker pole as early as possible making sure it is set high on the outboard end. This helps the wind catch the spinnaker in front of the genoa. Wait until the geona is down before you adjust the pole height.

2. Douse the geona as quickly as possible. Practice lowering the genoa as the spinnaker is being raised. This helps the spinnaker fill quickly.

3. When flying the spinnaker ease the sheet when you feel a puff and trim it in when the boat begins to accelerate. This is true in all wind conditions.

4. When running make sure the spinnaker has the maximum area projected. A common mistake when trying to keep the clues level is to raise the outboard end of the pole too high. Use the twing or the lazy guy to keep the spinnaker from raising up and reducing projected area.

5. Adjust the twing or lazy guy as the wind velocity changes keeping the leach of the spinnaker from twisting.

6. On all points of sail keep the center seam of the spinnaker parallel to the water. This is a more exact way to keep the clues even.

7. On downwind legs keep track of wind shifts by using the mast head telltale. This is a good job for the person trimming the guy. Another way to tell windshifts is by the location of the windward and leeward mark. Generally speaking try to sail the course that is taking you closest to the mark.

8. Don’t neglect the main! Adjust the boom vang for apparent changes in wind velocity. Trim the back third of the top batten so that it is parallel to the boom.

9. When running take the spinnaker down on the windward side of the boat. In moderate winds you can actually remove the spinnaker pole before the take down. Raise the genoa behind the mainsail, and have a crew member hold the spinnaker guy to weather until you get a few boat lengths from the mark, then release the sheet and halyard while you pull the spinnaker down on the windward side of the boat.

10. When reaching use the stretch and blow technique to lower the spinnaker. As you approach the leeward mark raise and trim the geona. Wait until the boat is several boat lengths from the mark and release the halyard making sure it runs freely. Keep the guy tight and have several of the crew pull the spinnaker in from the leeward side. Keep the guy tight to the headstay until the spinnaker is in the boat. It will actually float above the water for a few seconds, giving the crew time to gather it in behind the genoa.

"Genoa Trim Made Simple"

Proper genoa trim can be very difficult to set up.

by Bill Fastiggi

s sailmakers develop new and sophisticated sail shapes and materials it is important to keep abreast of the subtle changes in sail trim. Here are a few tips to help you keep it simple!

1. Set halyard tension - Pull sail up hard enough to remove 95% of the horizontal wrinkles along the luff of the sail for a laminate sail, and for a Dacron sail tension halyard enough to just barely remove all the horizontal wrinkles.

2. Set Jib/Genoa leads - Use these guidelines for proper lead location. When the sail is trimmed in, the leech (back edge) and foot (bottom) should have approximately equal tension on them. With an overlapping genoa, the sail should hit the spreader tip and the shroud base at about the same time. Another good guide are luff telltales along the luff of the genoa. The telltales should stream so that the upper tell-tales break slightly ahead of the lower telltales.

3. Sheet tension - For a genoa trim in so that the leech of the sail is about 2"-6" off the spreader tip. This will vary greatly depending upon the type of rig and boat, length and number of spreaders, track locations and cut of sail. For small non overlapping jibs with battens, trim until the battens point straight aft.

4. Leech and foot lines - are only used to remove the “fluttering” of the sail along these sail edges, not to "shape the sail" or “bag it out for light air”. Proper genoa trim can be very difficult to set up originally, but once set up correctly, should be able to be duplicated easily. For best results, consult your sailmaker, boat designer, or local hot shot for class racing boats.

"Heavy Air Sailing"

25 knots - Hang on and go!

Rig set up - Make sure you have plenty of rig tension and headstay tension. On most boats the headstay tension is controlled by backstay pressure. More backstay pressure will add headstay tension, which flattens the headsail and helps pointing. Backstay pressure also bends the mast, flattening the main, and opening up the leech of the main.

Sail trim - Flatten the sails. Mainsail should be set with the outhaul on hard, the vang tensioned, and the luff tensioned with main halyard and cunningham. The traveler should be eased to leeward, and the mainsheet should be set to allow the upper leech to twist open to depower the main. The jib should be flattened with a firm headstay, jib halyard, and sheet tension. The sheet lead should be moved aft and outboard to open up the slot, and add twist.

Steering and upwind sailing - Keep the boat flat and under control. The flatter the boat the faster it will go and the easier it is to steer. In big waves or chop, twisting the sails open at the top will allow you to steer a wider groove with out excessive heeling. Don’t make the mistake of pinching at the expense of boatspeed. Steer over, through, and around the waves, but keep the boat moving. When the waves are big enough, you will probably steer around every wave, so make sure that your bow isn’t “pushed” down by the waves, causing more heeling and slipping sideways. In flatter water you can sail with a little more leech tension, feathering the boat up into the wind to keep it flat and maintain a better pointing angle.

Downwind sailing - Take advantage of the waves, they are your friends. Try to keep the bow of the boat pointing down the wave. Keep the boat under control by maintaining a constant angle of heel. This should be done by a combination of crew weight, steering, and sail trim. Don’t worry too much about easing the backstay, or outhaul to power up the main, especially if you are using the spinnaker, you won’t need any more power in the mainsail.

When reaching, move the crew weight aft and to windward to keep the boat flat, the bow up and the rudder down. When a puff hits, bear off slightly, ease the main and vang if necessary, and ease the jib or spinnaker sheet to let the boat accelerate as the apparent wind shifts aft, then re-trim as boat accelerates and the apparent wind shifts forward.

When running, steer the boat aggressively to keep a constant angle of heel. Steer to keep the boat under the spinnaker (i.e. if you heel or roll to windward, head up to counter the roll). Keep the spinnaker under control by twinging down the sheet and keeping the out board end of the pole down and aft. Take the spinnaker down early and get all the lines cleaned up so that everyone is on the rail as you go around the leeward mark.

Most importantly, wear PFD’s, hang on, and have fun!

Bill Fastiggi manages Shore Sails, Burlington and spends most of his free time campaigning his Lightning and sailing with customers.