Reef Early

[Mark F.]

My wife and I decided to try our newer sails on our CP-16 in gusty conditions on Monday on the St. Johns River.  The winds were out of the west at 18 gusting to 25 at Navy Jax.  My plan was to stay on the upwind shore and we tied in one reef and used the 110% jib.  That set-up was very comfortable along the protected shoreline.  We went further out into the channel and crossed the Buckman Bridge to the south.  Once clear of the protection of the I-295 bridge, we were pounded by what were probably over 30 mph gusts.  The boat was heeling further than my comfort level and I  quickly decided to point upwind and de-rig.  I used a downhaul to take down the jib with no issues.  However, the sail stop came loose as I pulled down the main.  The main was about to inflate and create more havoc, I just stuffed it into the cabin.  With that mess, I decided to not try to put in the second reef.  We motored back to Navy Jax.

Lesson learned: when in doubt, use less sail area.  This would have been the perfect opportunity to try the second reef and my never-used storm jib.  We'll get more opportunities for that this winter!

[roamy]

Hey Mark,   I too sail in the St. Johns and it can be tricky.  Haven't had my cp16 out yet...too many projects,  I want her to be sound and sturdy, pretty will come later.  I'd love to see a properly outfitted 16 so I can do things correctly, mine is totally stock (1977 hull # 376)  if you wouldn't mind some time?
Jon in Riverside

[Greene]

Brenda and I never reefed our 16 (beginners rarely go out when it is windy), seldom reefed our 19 (novice sailors in a very stable boat) and now tend to reef almost all of the time on our 23. (slightly better sailors who enjoy wandering rather than racing)

Sure we will shake out the reefs when we want to have some fun, but the 23 seems to go just as fast with a shortened sail plan in stronger winds.  Heck, we even had a reef in our mainsail for the first half of the "race" at CLR 2012.  For us it more important to have a nice afternoon enjoying the lake than to push our boat to her limits.

We use a basic rule for reefing the main; winds over 13 means one reef, winds over 18 means two reefs.  This gives us plenty of hull speed and makes the sailing much more relaxed.  We always reef at the ramp as it is really easy to shake a reef out once you find out what kind of winds are out there.

Mike and B

[deisher6]

Mark:
Amen, especially when single-handling.
regards charlie