I'm not shore I follow the "lode bow heavier" theory, I find that the sail pressure forces the bow down a bit. Interesting comment on the Kruger skating, with the stile of sea kayak I prefer to paddle there isn't as much roundness in the hulls . What about mounting the rig aft of the paddler, a little bit harder to set but still doibal, and getting the sail closer to the rudder may help?
The size of the sail is very relevant to the conditions , we sail in big open water, up to 25kn and a combined sea state of 5m can be a common thing. We don't prefer the 1m size but around .8m even as small as .7m
The feks sails are made up to a water-tribe speck , thay have a window and reefing patches as standard, the Reaf system is simple ,I cary the reaf straps fastend around the sholder strap of my pfd , when ther not in the sail all that's ther is the patches, no clutter of extra sail gear , when reafed the sail dose loos a bit of its shaping , and can be a pain to get reafed but the option is ther . Thay can be suplied with eny modifications made as well. If enyone has a beter reafing idear for a sprit sail rather than just brailing it up I'd be interested to hear.
Best regards
Mick
flat earth sails
Class 1 & 1 Meter Sails
(34 posts) (15 voices)-
Posted 4 years ago #
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I have missed out on a lot of paddle sailing discussions here.
To try and catch up I will post a few random thoughts.Your video is really good.
Paddle sailing up wind is not easy.
That is the hardest point of sail.
Pushing yourself to paddle sail up wind, is great to do that a lot to increase your abilities / widen up your comfort zone.
In general, most always I can gain useful propulsion slightly above reaching. If its calm I can go a lot higher.
Sometimes I do up wind paddle sailing that is difficult / and not practical just to increase my abilities.
So when some people feel like they are done when reaching, I can point a little higher.<o:p></o:p>Ideally a sail should be rigged as close to you as you can make it and still be out of the way of 98%+ of your strokes when up and down. You should also be able to reach and control it. If it is 100% out of your way when paddling it is too far away.
I agree with Joewildlife. Reefing a 1 square meter sail sounds good in theory but it is a waste.
I wrote a bit about that here.
http://www.falconsails.com/KayakSailingFAQ.php#reefI paddle sail quite a bit, and almost never go below a 1 square meter sail. I wait for the windiest days and go for it.
So far I have completed 1 Everglades Challenge, and I decided to reduce my sail power for about 2 miles. That was part of my crossing Ponce De Leon Bay. I stowed my sail, and paddled. I sure was not wishing I could reef my sail. Out of another couple Everglades Challenges worth of paddle sailing, I lowered my sail due to too much wind zero times. A good air foil shape will convert heeling force into forward propulsion. A solid rig is predictable. Combine that with some practice, and you will feel the same way.Like Joewildlife says. If you feel out of control, lower your sail. That will be about 1 out 100 miles once you get use to it.
Here is video where you can see me turning thru about 180 degrees, and feel very comfortable in good size wind and waves. Practice and a good rig will go a long ways.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yctdvkNK7qM&list=UUFX26AmZBlP586oMosRlx_gIf you ever need any help please contact me.
See you at Fort Desoto.
FalconSails<o:p></o:p>
Posted 4 years ago # -
Another thing that may help you quite a bit is to release your boom.
It looks like you had your sail pulled in tight.Here is a basic sail trim technique.
Release your sheet until you see a bubble form in your luff.
Then pull it in just tight enough to eliminate the bubble.Most people will find that they pull their sail in too tight.
Propery sail trim will reduce heeling, and increase forward propulsion.It also appears as though you may not have good contact points with your boat.
Maintaining control of your boat is a lot easier if you are in good contact with the boat.
A canoe is a little different than a kayak.
Here is what I did with m boat.
http://www.falconsails.com/expeditionrig/Your canoe will be different of course, but good contact points will improve your boats responsiveness to your leans.
Posted 4 years ago # -
I love these WaterTribe forums. Picking and choosing from the smorgasbord of nautical knowledge is so satisfying. Not to mention endlessly entertaining with all the videos of people doing things we should probably be trying to avoid. I love Class One boats, but there is that lazy side that knows conservation of strength and looking to the long-haul is what it takes to finish. So I ended up in Class 5 with a canoe-trimaran for the NCC 2014. All the ideas you so thoughtfully expressed are going to make my tandem kayak a joy to ferry across Florida Bay, and Chokoloskee will be a hoot with the proper setup despite the skinny-water conditions. For fun in the NCC 2014 here is my next ride. Thanks for the kayak sail setups. See you on the beach!
Posted 4 years ago #
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