posted February 27, 2005 04:48 PM               

This will be my second season as a sailor and my second season with my CL-14. I would love to have the freedom and fun of single-handing by little boat, but I'm a little nervous about giving it a try and am not sure about the practical steps to doing this. Do you have any advice to share?

For example, is it wise to secure a long line to the bow and loop it around a piling at the ramp and feed out the line, keeping the bow into the wind as I raise the mainsail, then drop the line as I sail away? Also, is a tiller-tamer a *must* for single-handing? How about a small motor to help with keeping the boat 'in irons' while preparing to get underway? Is that a must?

I think it's mainly the logistics of getting underway that have me confused. There is really a lot going on with raising the mainsail and unfurling the jib, and although it's only a 14' boat, there is a good bit of distance between the tiller and the main halyard and jib furling mechanism. I'm sure I'll be plenty challenged at first with handling the tiller, mainsheet, and jib as I singlehandedly come about, but I can at least envision how that might work. I just can't figure out in my mind how to orchestrate the 'getting underway' tasks on my own without capsizing!

Any expert advice, personal learned-it-the-hard-way lessons, URLs for great resources/articles/books, or other info will be appreciated!

posted February 27, 2005 06:44 PM               

Yep, getting the sail up, and down, is the biggest issue. And docking, too. I consider a tiller tamer essential. Before I had a tiller tamer I would actually tie off the tiller. You could do this a time or two to try things out, but you will quickly want to purchase a tiller tamer. They are usually only effective briefly, but this is often long enough. With a bit of tweaking and a steady breeze you can get them to steer quite a while on some points of sail.

I have a motor that is useful to keep the boat headed into the wind while I jump forward and raise the sails, but from time to time the motor dies or the boat falls off the wind while I am trying to raise the sails and it isn't such a big deal. I always feel it looks messy to anybody watching, but it has never been particularly dangerous. I would suggest you just go out and try it. If you have somebody along, tell them not to help unless things get out of hand.
I have left the dock without the motor a time or two, using oars to get out on the water far enough to raise sails. I have only done this in mild breeze. It was no problem. I guess I would not consider a motor essential for single handing a small boat.

I try to give myself lots of clearance downwind before i start to raise the sail and cut the motor. I haven't often needed it, maybe never, but I don't want to have a lee shore distracting me, especially if I discover a line is jammed.

Tacking is easy, though slower than when you have crew, and you are likely to loose a bit of speed.

The secret for single handing is preparation and familiarity. Think through the action before you start. Prepare lines so there is a minimum of fuss to complete the activity. Keep lines clear. Sail conservatively. I often sail underpowered compared to when I have crew. I don't want to get hit with gusts unawares or get caught out in stormy weather without time to prepare. That's the thing, I try to plan ahead enough that I'll be able to deal with situations before they become problems.

Lessons hard learned; make sure the anchor is tied on before you leave the dock. I once found myself with seaweed around the keel and no ability to sail upwind, a sudden strong breeze pushing me to leeward, and a very very near lee shore. I would have dropped the anchor to give me time to raise and lower the keel to clear the seaweed, but I had neglected to tie on the anchor at the dock.

posted February 27, 2005 11:44 PM            

When tacking, leave the main cleated. That will give you one less task to worry about. Now in a well coordinated move, push the tiller to the leeward, duck the boom and move to the opposite side, and uncleat the jib, all at the same time. As soon as you are seated, pull in other jibsheet and trim in appropriately. The main sail will have flipped sides over your head all by itself because of your rudder action. You can trim it now if it needs it.

Practice gybing on low wind days as well.

If you really screw up a tack or gybe, let go the rudder, the boat will head up to wind by itself, put inself into irons and give you time to get your heart rate down. To get out of irons (directly head to wind), walk forward and grab the windward clew of the jib and hold it towards the wind with your hand for a few seconds while the boat moves its bow away from directly into the wind. Let go the backed jib clew, walk back to the tiller and pick a new course.

As you gain confidence, sail in windier conditions.

It is always more difficult to beach launch from an onshore wind without a motor. If you have a dock, tie to the leeward side of the dock amidships, and have your bow head to wind, raise and cleat the main halyard and jib, but not the sheets. Drop cb and rudder at your leisure. Again there will be some noise as your sails flap without effect. Now the well coreographed piece... simultaneously drop your dockline and haul in your mainsheet and grab the tiller and steer away from the dock. When you clear the dock by a few feet, sheet in your jib.

posted February 28, 2005 01:24 AM               

For those of us with Sandpipers with motors we get spoiled. Takes a little skill out of sailing. With my old Vagabond 16 I capsized more than once, but it taught me a lot about sailing. Spent a lot of time solo.

posted February 28, 2005 07:33 PM               

I ensure that the jib sheet is long enough that I can comfortably manipulate it from the stern. To tack I grasp the mainsheet and tiller in the same hand, release the jib sheet from it's cleat, pass the mainsheet and tiller to the other hand behind my back (this may not be practical if your boat is center sheeted) as I move to the other side of the boat and then trim the jib.

I don't gybe if I can avoid it however if I run out of water unexpectedly I release the jib sheet and forget about it until I've completed the gybe. This leaves a hand for the main sheet and a hand for the tiller. Once the gybe is complete, I trim the jib.

I try and drop the sails with plenty of time to spare if its an onshore breeze. I would rather paddle than come crashing in.
If it's an offshore breeze I will usually sail right into the dock (it's a great feeling and impresses the heck out of non-sailers).

I don't have a tiller tamer however, I frequently find myself wishing I did.

posted March 04, 2005 09:55 PM              

The few times I've sailed solo with both sails up, I definitely used the tacking technique described previously. I've never had to gybe as far I can recall.

I don't really have any tips to offer, as I haven't done this often. I thank the others for posting their advice though. I have seen the "cottager's knot" used before also. I could also suggest the highwayman's hitch, which works really well, and has never come undone by itself. And, a great advantage, it allows you to untie it from as far off as possible, and nothing snags either when you do so. (thank you Lee Valley and your book of knots!)

posted March 11, 2005 03:25 AM               

At the dock I bend the mainsail hopefully pointed straight into the wind, but up to abeam works. If the wind is light, and it usually is in Southern California, I unfurl the jib at the dock as well. A hard shove from the dock in the direction I want to go, haul in the main sheet and away you go. If the dock is wide and windward, I have stood up and pushed the boom out to backwind the main. This gets boat sailing backward and when clear I push over the tiller until the wind is on the beam, haul in the mainsheet and off she goes.

My favorite maneuver is docking. Sailing downwind past the dock 2 or 3 boat lengths and then up into the wind to kiss the dock. A dinghy is so cool because it stops in only about 2 boat lengths when in irons. When alone you may have to keep a little more speed and turn at the last moment in order to place your hand on the dock while still holding the tiller (Don't forget to uncleat both sheets or you are off sailing again.) This docking may scare the heck out of your keelboat friends the first time they experience it. I still chuckle thinking of my brother-in-law's reaction when I did it with a 15kt wind. His Catalina 36 wouldn't have stopped until it split the dock in two.

Try sailing solo on a light day and plan all your tacks and gybes ahead giving yourself plenty of room. Gybing isn't bad, but I haul in the mainsheet as I reach the dead run and ease it out on the other side. It is less tramatic than having that boom whip by.

posted March 16, 2005 09:35 PM               

As long as the wind is not really strong it doesn't seem to matter whether I'm entirely nose to wind. In fact, it's a little more elegant when I'm not completely in irons.
I get the main ready and only partly raised - maybe about 8 feet or so, the mainsheet loose but right where I can grab it at the right moment. My jib is just hanked to the forestay, so I don't know about all this furling stuff.
I then raise the jib, leaving the jib sheets loose but within my reach when I want to set it. I determine which way I'm going to be headed based on the wind and boat direction, then from the appropriate side of the boom, I push it out well to leeward, raise the main, then pull in on the main and then jib sheets as the boat accelerates - done.

Phew, I think that's pretty much it. It's really a lot easier done than said.

I don't find tacking any big deal at all - just as easy as with a crew really - wouldn't do the gybe in strong winds singlehanded until later.