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Topic: Crew Advice |
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neilgbj |
Posted: 13-May-07 20:50 |
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As new owners looking for a bit of advice to try to keep my crew (son)drier (I am a caring helm......honestly) and to try to speed up our tacks/gybes.
I have been guilty of t bagging my crew on several occasions (all part of the fun my son says). Our biggest problem is in the lulls, and he is out on the wire, keeping him out there, or does the crew need to be more responsive (helm talking....I know its probably my fault). When its really blowing theres no problem but in those gusty F3s it can be bit frustrating...any advice
When gybing........what do most crews do with the jib. At the moment we are trying various tactics of cleating etc but it can be pretty slow...
Tacking.....with the low boom are most crews wire to wire ? Seems a bit difficult if you have to 'crawl' under the boom.
My son is 65kgs(I am slighty larger at 90k something !)....we are thinking of sheding the wings in all but the most windy conditions..does this seem about right ?
Any help gratefully received as depite the questions we are having a real blast and want to get better
Cheers
Neil/ben 603 |
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Pete Lindley |
Posted: 13-May-07 21:33 |
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Briefly - for now
http://www.isoracing.org.uk/iso_guides/handling/index.htm
Pete Lindley
ISO 1013 'Team RWO'
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Tim |
Posted: 13-May-07 23:14 |
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Neil,
Just a few quickies..
T-bagging, it happens to all of us but generally the crew has to be quite aware and be willing to throw themselves quite rapidly into the boat. The helm can also make it easier by moving in quickly too. Holding onto the stick and the mainsheet gives you a lot of feedback about the boat the crew doesn't get, so use it to move 1st!
Gybing, helm always does the jib. Leave the crew with only the big sail to worry about. If its really windy and the helm is hiking hard then let the jib flap a bit until your at a stable enough time to sort it!
Tacking, I'm at the larger end of the crewing spectrum (78kgs) and can fit under the boom. As a crew you should always be on your feet during the tacks and gybes, crawling is just slow. Not sure how I do it in stronger winds but gybing in light airs I stand in the centre of the boat, feet wide apart. Then before the boom reaches the centreline, duck and move towards what will be the new windward side. Hopefully by the time you get there the boom will go over and you can step across and roll the boat upright. Wire to wire isn't vital for the ISO so prob best to get a process sorted to get good tacks before speeding things up too much. From what I remember I had lots of issues tacking when 1st sailing the iso so don't panic too much!
Wings, find out which setup you need (with or without) and keep it. This means all the bits of string are the correct length and you get used to how wide the boat is! I think crewing is easier without and helm nicer with, so take your pick! |
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Annie |
Posted: 14-May-07 17:54 |
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We seeem to do it a bit differently to you Tim. I thought the crew should be the first to move then if needed the helm moves (the helm should always be comfy). When gybing I do the jib if i'm in the boat and not wiring. If i'm wiring then the helm does it as it is closer to him. Crews should be able to wire to wire when going up wind but when gybing the kite I always have to hook on first then go out. I also have to hook on first when I get tired otherwise my helm gets very jumpy.
I like the wings keep them if you can as they are very comfy.
Annie |
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Richard 828 |
Posted: 14-May-07 18:25 |
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what I have done with the jib just before jibing is to pull on the windward sheet until the clew just touches the mast then release the old sheet. you can then concentrate on jibing without swimming and the jib ends up about right on the new side. maybe the experts can tell me good reasons why this is not good, but it works for us.
As an aside, I am marrying my crew on Saturday May 19th, the other half of the ISO Germany fleet is coming to the party (Achim and Heike) |
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neilgbj |
Posted: 14-May-07 19:29 |
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Thanks for the quick replies........plenty to think about. I notice on the crewing techniques bit for racing it mentions 'board up' and 'board down' for downwind/upwind.....I take this refers to the dagger board and I always thought on an asymmetric it stays down unless really overpowered up wind ? If it is up downwind, by how much ? We always have ours down and it seems ok gybing (apart from the usual pilot errors)
Anyway thanks again
Neil |
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graham_737 |
Posted: 14-May-07 20:53 |
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Hi Neil,
As regards the board, i can't remember us ever having it up at all upwind, but judging by the size of it i guess it'd be an idea to have a bit up if you're really struggling.
Downwind, i agree with you that most asymmetrics leave it down all the time, however the ISO downwind sometimes involves a bit of the old displacement sailing! We sometimes pop it up a bit if the winds light. As a warning tho, I always fall over it in the gybe if my helm has pulled it up! Hurts the shins a bit.
I guess everything like the jib etc comes down to preference, i mean there's one guy at the front of the fleet who, as the helm, does everything! Mainsheet, Jibsheet, kite, daggerboard... i reckon he'd even go on the wire if you asked nicely. {all shall respect the silver feather}
All the best with it, come along to an event... most learning you'll do over a weekend.
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Tim |
Posted: 14-May-07 21:41 |
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Congratulations Richard! Looks like the Iso fleet are getting a bit loved up this year.
We have been known to lift the board in 25knts+ upwind and less than 15knts downwind.
As for wire to wire, I tend to do it when going onto a starboard tack but clip on and go out on port. No idea why and bugs me but doesn't seem to make that much difference in terms of speed unless you forget to take the jib sheet with you!
Indeed, respect to the feather for the weekend... |
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Pete Lindley |
Posted: 14-May-07 21:46 |
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Upwind:
Daggerboard down throughout the windspeeds until after playing with the rig you are still overpowered due to a combination of windspeed, helm/crew weight, skills, etc. At this point then lift the daggerboard about 4" / 6" - this helps prevent tripping over the daggerboard when gusts hit.
Downwind:
Lift daggerboard by about 12". We don't because we forget! Others do and therefore have better CMG & VMG (Course Made Good and Velocity Made Good)
On the gybes, you can easily do them with the board fully down through all the wind speeds really. A lot of it is due to steering technique. You must have boat speed and boat balance correct when going into gybe. Heeling boat to leeward is bad, so too is no speed (I'll slow the boat down as I'm going to gybe and I'm a bit tentative). Slow boat = more force on rig and therefore more chance of being blown over. Also gybing with main on shroud is bad in winds - needs to be over the quarter area. Reason for the latter is that to get the wind on the other side of sail for gybe when boom on shroud, means that when you have gybed, you will have the wind 90degrees to the beam with the kite up and I'm sure you are aware this is difficult to do in most conditions in just a straight line!
Any help there?
Pete |
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Annie |
Posted: 15-May-07 19:22 |
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Tim you wanna get practising with your other hand 
Annie |
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Matt Lewis |
Posted: 15-May-07 21:54 |
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with t-bagging, we've noticed that this is a great way of waking the crew up, especially if he's drunk/hungover, before the race
not so good in the race mind
graham, if you catch the silver feather wiring you've had a treat, i havnt even seen him wiring (plus he doesn't do the kite and we both do the daggerboard) |
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Rob_Heath |
Posted: 15-May-07 22:21 |
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Hi Folks,
Very interested in the thoughts about the dagger board. I suspect that we are a slightly unusual pairing for an ISO. My dearly beloved holds the stick thing at the back and I am the ballast on the end of a piece of string ! Sounds like I might be at the VERY top of the weight range for crew at 85Kg or so, with Sue somewhat lighter !!??
What we find is that if we leave the board down we have some fairly spectacular wipe outs on the gybe, but if we pull the board up about 12" or so down wind we are OK. Is this just a balance thing ? It seems to work for us - any thoughts / comments most welcome.
Cheers
Rob |
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Bob Ladell |
Posted: 15-May-07 22:49 |
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Congrats to the German fleet - look forward to seeing you guys at an event soon so that we can toast the happy couple
Bob |
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Pete Lindley |
Posted: 16-May-07 12:18 |
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Rob,
you are correct with the board on the gybes. If the board is left down and you turn the corner reasonably sharpish (you'll know because the crew is usually miles behind with the kite and or sprawled on the floor after losing their balance), then you will find the boat will tip over as the sails go across the boat and you are more likely to capsize. This is refered to as 'tripping over the board' when turning corners.
Now if you do the same sharpish turn with 12" board up, then the boat will effectively slip round the corner as there is nothing in the water for it to 'trip over'.
So whilst some people need the board up - most probably due to the way it is steered, others who steer and attack the gybes differently (more gracefully and steadily), can cope with the board fully down.
Personal preference as to what works best for you. Aboard 1013, we leave it down as usually we have forgotten to lift the chuffin thing. It doesn't do us any harm even in the force 6+ and we are the lightest pairing in race circuit fleet. We might even go quicker if we remembered to lift the board occassionaly. |
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Tim |
Posted: 16-May-07 17:44 |
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Are you being cheeky Miss Smith?
Do try with the other hand but my technique obviously just isn't as good as yours.. 
I think if 1013 spent less time sorting out weddings and more time going sailing then they might remember to lift the board downwind. Seems a bit of a issue on the good ship RWO!
[Edited by Tim on 16-May-07 17:45] |
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Annie |
Posted: 16-May-07 18:04 |
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I don't like lifting the board I always think I might knock my teeth out when I gybe. |
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