LASERS PRACTICE STARTS

Recent "Speed and Smarts" news letter told the story of Dave Dellenbaugh's trip to the Lightning circuit and his preparation.   And his practices...

Practice number two, after spinnaker handling, was STARTING.

How many of you practice starting?

He had an interesting system.   Find or put out an anchored buoy to be the starting line and then set up to leeward and to the right of the buoy.  Start your watch for ten minutes and try to be at the "line" in one minute and at full speed.   A few seconds past the line, circle back and repeat at the next minute.  

When you get that down pretty well, move your set up point closer and closer to the buoy to see how little distance and time you need to get up to full speed.

At the start you are closer to all you competition than any other time in the race. 
Shouldn't you be at your fastest and best?   Well, get out and practice.

Dave doesn't comment about the last race in the series, when he lost the lead....I may tell you about that next time.

LASERS SAIL ROB'S RADICAL ROUTE

Several weeks ago Rob put in two extra marks on our windward leeward course to give us some reaches and ponts of mandatory gybes.

On the diagram W is the windward mark.

1 is a beam reach.

A is a gybe mark.

2 is a broad reach.

B is a gybe mark.

3 is a broad reach

P is the pin mark of the starting line. Leave it to port.

4 is a run.

L is the leeward mark.

5 is the beat to the finish.

When the wind is up it is an exciting course.  Slide to the back of the cockpit to get the bow up and over the waves and then gybe at the gybe marks.  Then one more gybe before the leeward mark.

You might want to try it.  Yes, it may tend to be the parade of the old triangle course, but adds the excitement of the reaches.

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LASERS PRACTICE STARTS

This picture I stole from Proper Course.  I don’t know if it is Lao Tzu who is said to say “The journey of 1000 miles begins with one step.”  The race begins long before the start, but in one sense it begins with the START.

I sail quite a bit by myself – alone-  just to keep from getting too much slower.  In case you didn’t know it – as you get older, you get slower.  That’s what all that masters stuff is about.  Make an old slow person a winner.  That’s dumb, but it is also OK.  Remember, this is a “game” i.e. fun—not serious--- but we still like to do better.  To sail better.

When I sail by myself, I practice tacks, mark roundings, gybes, etc. and when I get tired of that stuff I do a couple of starts.    WOW—then a few weeks ago I had a couple of good races and realized they were when I had the good starts.

So now I am really practicing starts.  Starts by yourself---YES

1.      Stop by a buoy and hold position for 30 seconds.  Outhaul and Cunningham set for fast upwind.  Vang off.  Close reach position at full luff.

2.      10 to 7 seconds to go. Reach in and pull on the vang.

3.      “Jab” the tiller to windward with the tiller extension – hard – so the bow goes down.

4.      Lean in to heel the boat to lee.

5.      Trim in the sail

6.      And hike out to flatten and accelerate the boat.

7.      Trim in to close hauled

8.      And sail fast (bow down), windward and leeward tell tails flowing, boat flat for 30 seconds (maybe you will need tell tails at the front of the window so you can always see the leeward flow.)  No reaching in to make adjustments—those were to be set up before.

Now vang off and go back and do it again and again until it flows together without thinking about the parts.

I will let you know when I get it to “ flow”.

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LASERS IN THE HIGHER WINDS

Sam has been too busy sailing and stuff to get much on the blog.  Sorry about that.  I think of a lot of things, but most of it is already up here some place.  Look down at the left -- pick out a category and go for it.  This is our Wednesday night report.

 Wednesday we had gusty winds and the Nagy Family spiced up the Wednesday night sailing.  Chris Nagy rigged a Radial as did Tom Jennings and Sam Chapin. Jackie Nagy rigged her Opti and with Monica Nagy in the committee boat with Dennis Oldham (the guy that hates Lasers and already spent too much time in the motor boat last week) we were off to short high wind races.  Dennis is calling times to the start.
If we have any advice it is the old stufff.  1. Take the long tack first. 2. When that approaches not being the long tack, think hard about an excuse to get back toward the middle.  3. Delay going to the lay line.  4.  When the wind is up in smooth water, the laser tacks in less than 90 degrees. 5. If you heel much, the bow will want to turn the boat up wind and you need to keep pulling on the rudder to go straight.  So stay pretty flat- hike and/or ease the sheet. 6. Downwind by the lee is a little more stable, but don't let the boom out to more than about 70 degrees. 7. Straight downwind will be slower and may rock you back and forth as wind tries to go right and then left around your sail. 8. When you gybe, roll a little to windward to help you turn, cross the boat quickly and turn back downwind -- the S turn.
Wednesday sailing from 5 to 7PM.

LASERS AND THE SCOWS

WHEN THE WIND IS LIGHT, sail the Laser like a scow.   Heel to leeward to reduce wetted surface and sit forward.  Head the boat lower (bow down) to keep the boat moving.  Close reaching if needed. 

Downwind stay away from dead down wind. Do transitions from by the lee to broad reach at almost 90 degrees.  You will be sailing faster and getting downwind sooner.  Keep big windward heel to get sail up higher where there is more wind.

Attached below is performance sheet from small keel boat that shows the larger tacking angle going up wind in lighter air and the larger gybing angle going downwind in the lighter air.   I circled the fast VMG's .

LASERS FORM A GROUP

 Reported in January Sailing World, a group of Etchells sailors hired a coach to prepare for the Worlds.

 You could get a group for Laser sailing. Maybe only two boats. Could be a lot more. It might help to:

1) Get out on water more.

2) Compare your sailing with others.

3) The good folks work harder to make it look good.

4) The improving group sees the better sailing.

5) You can do speed testing.

6) You can have repeated starting practice.

7) You can throw in extra races.

They have a list of 10 suggestions, but I would cut it down to. Have a leader. Have a plan.
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LASERS CHECK THE MULTIHULLS

These folks were fastest around the world.  Can we learn any thing from them?   Rick White, one of the multihull instructors, (NOT TALKING ABOUT AROUND THE WORLD RACING) says that starting is 90% of the game and the other 90% is rounding marks.  He gives us five MUSTS for rounding the leeward mark.
1) Perpare for the upwind leg.  Outhaul, Cunningham, centerboard.
2) Remember the inside overlap rule and watch for inside boats.
3) Watch for the "pin wheel" and don't get caught on the outside.
4) Slow down to get behind if you need to.
5) Enter wide and exit close to mark.

Then I add to 5, if you are way ahead or way behind, nice wide turn and pass close to mark.  No need to go below the leeward mark.   The exit close is to keep the followers in your back wind or to be up wind of the folks ahead it they have bad rounding.

AND  as you go into the mark visualize the last wind shift and your exit angle from the mark.   Then  you can better hit the close hauled course, not to high or to low.    

THANK YOU, RICK.
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Lasers have PAIN.

 I wandered off-- following links to blogs on Laser sailing and stumbled onto one by Kevin kevinlikesstuff.wordpress.com with a title “Lost At Sea”. He has various topics including one on pain in Laser sailing both when windy and light wind. We recently had a sailor stop sailing at least partially because he developed sore muscles. It can be a problem, but not forever.

Oh yes, I stole the picture above from Kevin.

My reflection on the subject goes back 10 years or more in Key West when a friend of mine, Howard Crane, wanted to sail a Laser. Howard and I had sailed Sunfish together for a few years and had enjoyed each other. We both fixed up some old boats and went at it. When I had sailed a Laser years before, I had hurt my back pumping and told myself if that happened, I would stop right away. What happened was sore legs at night which had me taking Tylenol with Codeine or Ibuprofen at night to sleep. That lasted for a couple of months and since OK.

Remember with a Laser, there are smaller sails, the radial and the 4.7, that you can use when the wind is above what you can handle with the full rig. Sail yourself into shape or skip some of the higher wind races. Get to the gym. Use the smaller sails.

Why the pain if you would rather be without?


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LASERS AND THE DEATH ROLL

The death roll or quick roll to windward on the downwind legs has been a long term problem.  The picture above is from Yachting January 1979 an article by Finn sailor Van Collie about fellow Finn sailor Edward Bennett of San Francisco. (I have all kinds of old papers here.) Edward practiced capsizes in order to handle them better.  Edward proposed to lie back in the water instead of trying to get back in the boat.  That unweighted the down side of the boat and helped turn up into the wind.  Van Collie called it “Bennett’s bath”.  In the old days when I tried it, it never seemed to work well, so now I try to remember the “boat whisperer” advice.

That is Steve going upwind in a radial.   Steve says to stop the death roll turn toward the sail. The rudder will dig deep into the water tending to right the boat and the worse that will happen is a gybe.  Get or borrow the "boat whispperer" CD.  Maybe I will get my rubber suit on (It will be getting cold here in Florida next week--that will be next year--check the date.) and go out and practice capsizes.                                                                            .

LASER LIST FOR 2011 #4

Number four is "LASERS START FAST"  APRIL 14, 2011

Nothing like a good start to get you out where you can work you plan.

If you have trouble moving out fast, review this and get some practice in. 

My pick for number three coming up tomorrow.

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LASER LIST 5

Number 5 in "Lasers sail by the lee".  July 27, 2011.

More accuately triming, near gybe, has done a lot for my downwind speed.

If you haven't been doing it, you need to try.

I will try to put up my #4 tomorrow.

Check back.

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LASERS AND A LOT OF LITTLE THINGS.

There are a lot of little things (maybe not so little) that you can add to your sailing program.  Let me list a few.  Are your doing any of them?
1.  Be the first one rigged and out sailing to the course.
2.  Stay out and sail longer than anyone else.
3.  Sail more.  Sail more often.
4.  Clean the bottom of the boat.
5.  On a non-race day set the boat up.  Look things over.  Change what you want to have better.
6.  Make a check list of the things that you need to bring from home.
7.  After every race (soon after) make that list of the stuff that you did wrong and add it to the lists after every race.  Then review it regularly.
8.  Bring your rule book with you and maybe your appeals book.  Rules make the game.   If you have a discussion with your friends, you may need the rule book.   Maybe two.   See if you can find the May 28, 2010 blog "Lasers hail protest".  It is labeled  fun and rules.

LASERS HIKE HARD

This is Molly Forbes, granddaughter of friends in central Florida and member of U of Wisconsin sailing team. 
She is helping Andy Burdick win the A scow regatta in Minnesota.

  Hey Molly, this is not a Laser.  Sit in just a little.  The scows need to heel up, reduce the wetted surface and get on the narrower round leeward chine.
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LASERS STRUGGLE TO COMMENT

Doc Haagen Dozs made comment on the previous blog -- and I haven't been able to add a comment for two days.. (MY BLOG REJECTS ME.)  I hope that problem self corrects.  When I go on other blogs my comments stick, but not on my own...  

Say, do you like that picture above.   I may give you a long story about that some time..

       But Doc says he trims sail by the lee when it is windy on the Wylie cat 30.  My comment is "Wow! I would be afraid to be sailing that close to accidental gybe on a big boat with the wind up.   Maybe if the crew and helm are all experienced and ready to get the heads down just in case."

I would be glad to hear more about sailing the Wyliecat.
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LASERS SAIL BY THE LEE

After the races last weekend, David and Sam were talking about what things our fleet should do better and one of them is the downwind by-the-lee sail trim. Several have been letting the sail way forward and that really works to let you go way left on starboard tack, to keep the sail out and steady when the wind is light and you are adding the weight of the boon to keep the sail out. The down side is that if you don’t continue hard left by-the-lee air flow across the sail will be stalled out and sail lose power. You would like the air to be flowing fast from the leach to the luff and to maximize that: 1) Have a little twist in the sail so the top of the sail will resist a gybe when leading edge (now the leach) is almost back winded. 2) Trim in the sail till you get a little flutter in the bottom of the leach. Then ease the sail out just a little. This is just like the flutter in the luff when going up wind. 3) You need to keep the sail adjusted to wind direction changes or steering changes. If the wind is very light you may need to sit way forward and hold the boom out with your hand if the wind and heading require it. 4) Yes, when the wind is light you need to keep the boat rolled hard away from the sail so the sail is up high where the wind is stronger, etc.

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LASERS TURN THE HEAD

Two issues ago:

R. W.Rawles commented that when rolling the Laser well over to weather to be careful not to look back. 
Actually you will be half way turned and you need to look back to see the wind streakes coming down from windward (you wnat to get in them) and to check on the boats behind that might be trying to take you wind  or establishing an overlap to leeward (toward the sail) and the the right of way.

So stretch that neck and keep looking around.
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LIGHT WIND LASERS HEEL TO WINDWARD

I was trying to put in another picture showing that the more heal the faster the boat is going and that the people in the back are all sailing up straighter.   Wrong format so we have to use this one showing more heal on the faster boat.   Remember rolling the boat over raises the sail higher into more wind.  It puts the sail up over the miiddle of the boat so you don't have to steer toward the sail to balance  the force of just one saqil on one side of the boat.  Actually you should roll the boat over far enough so you will be correcting your course the other direction.  Rolling the boat up reduces the wetter surface when that is the main resistance and wave making is very small.   Suprizingly you should roll that downward curled edge of the boat into the water-- it will go faster then.
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SAIL THE BIG LASER

SAILING THE BIG LASER.


Last year “speed and smarts” went over the sail controls. Here is a picture of Melges 24 with controls indicated. On a Laser we have in order of relative importance the sheet, outhaul, vang and Cunningham. We have a traveler, but these days always set tight. If occasionally you want to point higher for a short time, you can pull the boom in and friction will hold the traveler in a little toward the center. Halyard and back stay are absent. Luff tension is all up to Cunningham and mast bend is shared with sheet and vang.

So here we go... Sheet to 8 to 12 inches from block to block at the end of the boom for light air. Put on enough vang to keep it there and if very light you can sheet out and bear off to get some speed while heeling the boat to leeward to reduce wetted surface. As wind picks up and you need to sit out to keep flat then sheet in to block to block. This tightens the leach and lets you sail higher, but also bends the mast and flattens the sail. When you sail out of pressure be sure to ease your sheet again to get more fullness in the sail. You will be working the sheet all the time.

Outhaul = out to eight inches of fullness from center of the boom to foot of sail for average going up wind. If you are having trouble holding boat down going upwind then pull bottom of the sail flatter. Increase to 12 inches going downwind and on reaches. Mark the boom end in inches or other reference, because different sails may be stretched more or less and not always pull out to the same mark. Reference you outhaul line so you can just pull or ease the right amount without measuring or looking around.

Vang off at the start so you can luff and stall more effectively. Then set up quickly just before accelerating at the start. Set for what you will need going up wind. See above for light wind setting. In Average winds only enough to accelerate when bearing off to duck behind a port tack boat when going up wind. When you get up to not being able to hold the boat down then you need to “super vang”. “Super vang” is to two block with the sheet and then pull on the vang as hard as you can. Now when you ease the sheet out the boom goes out mostly laterally and not much up. The mast stays bent. You can keep the boat flat in over powering conditions by just bearing off and sheeting out. When you are super vanged you have to duck low under the boom when you tack, because the boom stays low. When you approach the windward mark you need to get the vang off before rounding. When you are super vanged you will usually be going so fast it will be hard to get all that right—you need to get enough practice so at it is automatic.

Cunningham is to move the draft forward when the wind is up and the draft stretched back to the center of the sail or behind the center. Don’t use it to pull out the ordinary horizontal wrinkles in the sail as they are usually part of the draft. Cunningham off going down wind.

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LASERS LEARNING

When learning new skills   1) Understand that you need to fix something.  2) Work out what you are to do and go through it in practice.  3)  Do it enough so that it is "automatic" in your brain and you don't need to think out each step.

Studies have shown that one hour of practice a day followed by the sleeping--- when your brain is making these new connections, is more efficient than just a whole lot of hours on the water. 

Most of us can't sail every day, but it helps to know that even little short sessions help get to the "automatic".

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LASERS START FAST

Well, yes, that is the same picture Tillerman used a few days ago, but Paul Goodison has won enough races that maybe we should pay a little attention to any suggestions he has. Now I happen to have RYA Laser Handbook by Paul Goodison on my coffee table, so I just looked through it for maybe the “best” suggestion.


I settled on STARTING, but before I start copying from the book, I will tell you that in many many pictures the “clear start watch” is around the mast just below the goose neck. It is even there when he is putting the mast and sail in the boat. If you do that, you will need a watch on your left hand, so that you can read time when on port tack. Then you will need both watches running accurate. I would suggest getting perfect time, checking on your wrist first and then punching the mast watch. Then synchronize the mast watch with next signal.. I bet really good sailors have the time right on the button.

Then before the start Paul is “hovering” below the starting line. Close-hauled heading or a little below that with sail at full luff and kicker (vang) off. Just before starting to accelerate he reaches forward and puts the kicker (vang) on for up wind settling. Now quickly “jab” the tiller up wind and hike the boat to windward to turn the boat to below close-hauled course. Flatten the boat, trimming in some and heeling the boat to leeward as you come below close hauled. Sheet in more. Hike hard to flatten the boat and drive it forward. Once the boat is up to speed, trim to block to block and return to close-hauled course. Full concentration now on sailing fast.

Timing, force, direction and rolling all the little things together --- maybe will give you a better start.

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