Sailing techniques in "uncomfortable" weather?

[NPCampbell]

Originally Posted by Paul Howard

35knots is not strong enough to set the sea anchor, but heaving-to is comfortable and easy. Heave-to on the offshore tack, especially if there is a current setting towards land.

I don't know how much of this is myth at this point but I have read numerous times about the 300 or so boats in the 1979 Fastnet race in the British Isles. The winds reached force 10, 15 sailors died, 5 boats sunk, over 100 were knocked down, 70+ boats capsized/turtled ... but of the 26 boats that hove to, none suffered a knockdown, capsized or were seriously damaged.

[CharlesV]

Strongly suggest reading Pardeys book, Storm Tactics, because heaving-to was the answer to the problem. You dont have to wait for actual storms to employ heaving-to, and doing so allows taking a break as it was said earlier. I believe the book covers cats too but I have no personal experience with cats/high-wave conditions.

As it was also said, I definitely suggest getting out in those very conditions for practice and before actual storms...those storms at night....in zero visibility...

[Pigpen Pete]

People have different meanings for "heaving to".
If you reduce sail with the jib sheeted hard and the main eased a bit and the rudder locked, the boat should balance and self steer with the head about 60 degrees off the wind. Trim sails and rudder to achieve this. The boat should track slowly across the wind neither losing nor making ground and be reasonably comfortable.
Idle the engine in gear with this setup and the autopilot or windvane if you want to make a little progress.

[Palarran]

Man, it really sounds like monohull sailors are giving advice on catamaran sailing. Cool if you know the difference, but no so much if your basing it on "Pardey" experience. I'd never leave my cat hove to and un-watched in winds above a force that would cause the rudders to fail if shoved backwards. Many cat's simply can't effectively heave to, and those that can are much more likely to go into irons than a mono.

Originally Posted by mikereed100

We find ourselves in that situation more than I would like. We generally just reef and head up until the speed is down to 4-5 knots, which allows the boat to make progress without pounding. If it gets worse we just heave to until it settles down a bit.

I agree except if it get's worse for me I keep my windward motor running in gear and at idle speed. Basically fore-reaching with a little backup in case you head too much upwind. If I loose to much speed for steerage, then I'll add rpm's to the motor.

[Pete7]

Will a cat fore reach? I don't know because I have only sailed a mono.

5 -7 ft waves with a long frequency can be gentle, but if the frequency is every 8 - 10 seconds progress will be very difficult and almost impossible for us.

Pete

[danielamartindm]

Originally Posted by Palarran

Man, it really sounds like monohull sailors are giving advice on catamaran sailing. Cool if you know the difference, but no so much if your basing it on "Pardey" experience. I'd never leave my cat hove to and un-watched in winds above a force that would cause the rudders to fail if shoved backwards. Many cat's simply can't effectively heave to, and those that can are much more likely to go into irons than a mono.



I agree except if it get's worse for me I keep my windward motor running in gear and at idle speed. Basically fore-reaching with a little backup in case you head too much upwind. If I loose to much speed for steerage, then I'll add rpm's to the motor.

A good point about rudder failure; but heaving to differs for all vessels. My cat seems to want to make 1-2 knots of steady forward way when hove to. I haven't experienced any forward-aft lurching that might put me in irons, but then I haven't hove to in all possible wind/wave conditions, and time is still turning.

[Paul Howard]

Originally Posted by Blue2cat

In my Beneteau 34' Blue II, running before the wind with a drogue aft is the smoothest ride even though headway is lost. However, one must be vigilant due to need to maintain steerage. Autohelm may not be useful often in this condition. Heaving too generally not so good with a cat because balance is challenged and a big wave on the bow can bring her broadside with disastrous results. I think I like the idea of pinching closer to the wind with light engine use resulting in some luffing off sails but again requires keeping at the helm to point that tight but at least headway is not lost. Also, a storm jib called gale sail might be a major assistance. see this site for the one I am going to purchase which does not require an additional stay set up which is no good for a cat with tarp between bows. What do you think on this idea? The Gale Sail | Easy Handling Storm Jib | ATN Sailing Equipment
for a do it yourself series drogue for budgets try this site Series Drogue Kit

I had an ATN gale sail, 100sq.ft. on my Manta cat and only used it three times during a high latitudes voyage (3years) from Canada, to north of Iceland and crossing the Arctic Circle and then down to the Beagle Channel and around Cape Horn and to the Falkland Islands and back to Eastern Canada.
The website shows it tacked down at the same place a jib would be, but I installed a pad eye about a foot behind the roller furling and it worked better.
I only used it if I had to go to windward during heavy weather, not when I had sea room to heave to or lie to a sea anchor from the bow. Longest sustained use was three days when on passage from the Beagle Channel to the Falklands when an un-forecast gale from the Northwest came up. Because of strong east going current we had to push to windward or be swept towards South Africa, as we had to go from the Beagle Channel south of the Isle de Estados and couldn't make any headway up the Straits of LeMaire. The galesail worked well.

[Blue2cat]

Well here we have it. No consistency between fore-reaching, heaving-to, or running with drogue or not. Why is that.? The increasingly clear statement throughout this blog is that you have to try it out and have to know your boat. I am now convinced that heaving-to for me is worth more testing especially when i get that gale sail. (thank you Paul Howard)

Here is a good article on heaving-to for a cat. Heave-To A Cruising Catamaran | Multihulls Quarterly by Hank George a vet on sailing and somewhat on cats.

If anyone has an interest in sailing the Med coast of Spain this summer while testing that sail as well as a few other tests i need to conduct while enjoying Roses Spain to Morocco and finally Gibraltar, contact me. I plan 4 weeks or so. This is in prep for next year's November crossing of the Atlantic with the ARC from the Canary's down to Cape Verdes and across. The boat, a Beneteau Blue II cat and for the crossing I will be looking for three other on a crew of four.

[Palarran]

Originally Posted by Blue2cat

Well here we have it. No consistency between fore-reaching, heaving-to, or running with drogue or not. Why is that.? The increasingly clear statement throughout this blog is that you have to try it out and have to know your boat. I am now convinced that heaving-to for me is worth more testing especially when i get that gale sail. (thank you Paul Howard)

Here is a good article on heaving-to for a cat. Heave-To A Cruising Catamaran | Multihulls Quarterly by Hank George a vet on sailing and somewhat on cats.

Interesting article. It's really hard for me to imagine a cat hove to with zero head sail. Personally, I'm not that impressed with his article and would guess that he was mostly guessing about how to do this than actually writing from a vast experience base with catamarans.

I don't know how much other people watch YouTube videos but I do - a lot. Almost everything I've every wanted to know can be researched by watching them. If you search for catamaran hove heave to there really aren't any showing the classic maneuver. There are about 50 for monohulls, zero for catamarans. I wonder why?

Except this one - bizarre.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHgBrCJpoG0

and of course there's Nigel and his opinions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMVPm9FH8ug&t=104s

[44'cruisingcat]

The conditions described in the OP don't call for heaving to, running a drogue, or a sea anchor or anything other than simply reducing sail.

[Blue2cat]

Just did some serious reading about cats, running, and series drogues. A number of accounts of series drogues being used and how running is best once no headway can be achieved going to wind or if conditions are just too scary/dangerous. Excellent details here: Ist one is the lead article but maybe i think you have to belong to that blog at a cost but the next two are maybe best and free.
https://www.morganscloud.com/2018/11...eid=92ca2d4490 and

Jordan Series Drogue and

D/T-7 Trimaran, Searunner | Victor Shane's Drag Device Data Base

[Blue2cat]

Seeing how that posted, let me help on this. Jordan site look under "Performance at Sea" Several boats includes cats tell their story.

[Factor]

Originally Posted by Palarran

Interesting article. It's really hard for me to imagine a cat hove to with zero head sail.

On a well designed cat that sails well, particularly with a roachy main heaving to without the headsail is the way to do it. Sail along on a reach, Furl headsail, Traveller right down. Sheet on, tack. Thats it. Boat will effectively go into irons and sit there forereaching slowly. To get going again, ease main, and traveller to centre, headsail out, headsail sheeted on.

The theory here is simple. When you tack, the centre of effort moves back, to somewhere much closer to the rudders, so centre of effort is effectively in line or close to centre of lateral resistance.

I do this regulary when waiting to start a social race, saves a lot of back and forward stuffing around, also when I am single handed and want a coffee etc or when i simply want to rest for a while.

Obviously every boat is different but its worth trying this.

[Palarran]

Interesting. I'll have to try it sometime. My constant fear is always going into irons and the boat being shoved backwards. With the helm hard over it wouldn't go over well with most rudders. Also, what happens if due to a series of waves you actually tack?

[Blue2cat]

Confusion seems to increase. i can see the idea of full main and no head-sail makes sense in that most cats will not come about if there is no jib to assist but you do loose steerage often or are challenged to steer well. When I lst lost my head-sail, no one could steer the boat but me by anticipating its moves. Next concern would be with a full main if it does catch the wind, wow! Maybe reefed main this may have merit I guess. But here the video above, which, yes, is not about heaving to, drops the main and uses the jib and engine to steer while reducing the main then move upwind.

Bottom line for me. Heave to, forereach in any manner that works for your cat but once it gets too rough and effort is tedious to maintain the helm, run with a drogue works.

ALSO Someone above mentions the drogue site i provided and maybe missed that a few egs were cats in very heavy conditions while on the other site it was a trimaran in 40 kn winds that used the technique with success.