Sailing with a Real Parachute ?

[Ian R]

Is anyone using a round parachute as in the december 2010 cruising helmsman article(Australia).Sailing Borneo,Sailing Philippines, Island Hopping, Yacht Charter,Boating Holiday, Diving,
I purchased a 28 foot chute for $150.Have only been for a short test up the river,seems ok.

[SaucySailoress]

I find that spinnakers work better. They're a bit like parachutes, but custom designed for a proper fit and sleek efficiency. I gotta say though, that if tankers can save 20% of their energy by using them, then why aren't they law yet?

[Pete7]

From the blog article Ian linked to:

The beauty of this configuration is that the parachute pulls your boat and doesn’t push it like a spinnaker

Not sure about that and how about getting it down if a squall suddenly appears, still interesting idea.

Pete

[Pete7]

So Ian, as the forums subject matter expert on these how did you rig it and in comparison to say a main and genoa did the parachute offer any real advantage like speed and easy of use.

Promise us you will take the camera next time your out with the chute up.

Pete

[Pblais]

I would think you could have some problems in anything but a 100% down wind course. You could handle a little bit of heading up but it will load up the rudder quickly should the wind build. A spinnaker will provide a wider range of apparent wind sailing. With a 28 ft parachute you have quite a bit of sail area (615 sq ft) that would act a full bellied sail. While freighters are using chutes the relative mass of the ship and the area of sail is a lot lower ratio than a 28 ft parachute on a smaller sail boat. Winches on a 31 ft boat would not really be sized properly for a sail this large so control lines don't have a lot of room for adjustment. Leaving it up in a blow would be quite dangerous.

We have had posts about sails similar to a parasail that can be trimmed and would suppport a wider range of apparent wind and be stouter material. The chute will suffer UV damage quite quickly and rip easily.

In any case it clearly works and makes some nice pictures.

[Unicorn Dreams]

I've thought about getting one for an emergency sail in the off chance of a dismasting. Might not get you into the harbor, but should get you close enough to get in under power..

[markpierce]

I'd dump the parachute and get a proper sail, unless planning to drop off from waterfalls.

[scook1]

150 seems really inexpensive. I had never heard of this before seeing this thread. Interesting idea, and multi-functional if one needs to jump out of a plane.
Spencer

[David M]

The difference between a circular parachute and a kite is that a kite can direct air towards a direction giving it thrust in a sense. This allows it to lift itself up and forward if you want this. A parachute you would have to run off the top of the mast in order to keep it from dropping down into the water. A kite can be tied to the deck and lift upwards.

[mikereed100]

Kind of like this:
KiteShip - Innovation in Tethered Flight

but a few thousand dollars cheaper. Worth a try at $150 I should think.

[Zonker]

This is a better solution (kind of a paraglider sail) ... 1 line at the bow, 1 line at mast feet.

[Pblais]

A parachute you would have to run off the top of the mast in order to keep it from dropping down into the water.

You really can't point load the top of the mast with a 28 ft chute You could guy it up a bit to keep it from hitting the water. That is how it looks in the pictures with the sheets run like a spinnaker.

[SaucySailoress]

This is the one I find awesome: SkySails*-*Home

[Zonker]

Originally Posted by Pblais

You really can't point load the top of the mast with a 28 ft chute You could guy it up a bit to keep it from hitting the water. That is how it looks in the pictures with the sheets run like a spinnaker.

I was wondering if such a kite could be used to upright a capsized multihull ?

[Pblais]

I was wondering if such a kite could be used to upright a capsized multihull ?

I don't think you could control the kite enough or be able to attach it where you might do significant help to right it. The power ne3eded would be a lot more than you could handle. Personally, I would go for a blimp as they have far more lifting ability. If you look at the sky sails video you can see how much power they can make.