mast rotating to windward.

[yachtie2611]

I was at a regatta in Victoria a couple of weeks ago and  it was blowing pretty hard (20-30) .

in the gusts my mast kept rotating to wind ward and almost parked the boat , I reckon its the jib but if I ease it it just flaps about , am I better just to furl it in big breeze? also tacking was a nightmare but that's a whole other topic. any info would be great. mike.

[knobblyoldjimbo]

Everyone away! If you have no vang then it probably is the jib, or trap line. I know that Phil/Korwich has similar troubles. He sets the boom saddles so that the mainsheet is angled, probably 60degrees so the main is pulling the boom hard into the gooseneck. This locks it in place.

For tacking keep the jib backed until you have forward motion on the new tack. Release the main as you tack otherwise it'll weathervane and stop you dead. Over 20 and you're into hero territory.

[korwich]

Trap will pull the mast in the right direction,the  jib will derotate it (wrong direction).  If you pull the jib on too tight after you tack, without keeping some pressure on the mainsheet there is enough pull in the jib acting on the mast hound to flip the mast around to the wrong way.  Once it has gone around the best way to fix the problem is to release the jib and kick the boom down to leeward, pull on the mainsheet to lock the mast into place, then pull on the jib.  As said by Jimbo I have a fair amount of angle on my mainsheet blocks to try to keep the mast locked in place.  One thing we have done recently is that if you have the new heavier hound setup is to drill a second hole for our stay shackle that is closer into the mast.  It was noticed that the amount of distance from the position of the shackle in the hound to the centre line of the pin at the foot of the mast was about equal to the amount of distance from the gooseneck to the centre line of the same foot pin.  Therefore the jib was exerting about the same amount of turning effort onto the mast as the boom was giving in the opposite direction.  By drilling another hole we have given the boom more mechanical advantage to push the mast and keep it turned the right way.  Since drilling this second hole, I have not really had any derotation probs.

Do not sail with you mast derotated, on a heavy day I have snapped one mast and bent another.

 

Phil