Month: Apr 2019
Wind over tide at Peveril Point
There was a great if not rather extreme example of wind over tide today at Peveril Point, Dorset today.
Wind over tide creates choppy conditions, more so on a tidal race. Check out the rush of water over the ledge and almost standing waves.
RS Vareo Storm Sail, Meh!
It was the first race of the season yesterday with the same wind forecast by both the Met Office and Windfinder. It looked quite fruity from the shore, so I opted for the storm sail.
That turned out to be a mistake, firstly the wind wasn’t nearly as strong as forecast (race 11:00 – 12:00), in fact there was way more sea than wind.
Secondly I was reminded of what a dog the boat is upwind with a small sail, especially into waves and they were decent yesterday. The boat is heavy, it really needs that bigger sail.
Thirdly I’m used to the power of the standard sail so the whole sense of boat balance is thrown out with anything less. Downwind with the kite was fine but reaching was slow too.
I don’t think I’ll bother with the storm sail just for myself in the future (with child maybe) and will prefer to abandon a race if it’s too hairy rather than be too slow with a smaller sail.
Where’s the fun if you aren’t hanging off the back quarter on your toes (?) 🙂
Edit: 12th April, I went out similar conditions (14-18 kts) with the full sail the other day. So much better.
Klaus Harris 