Hi all,
I am an absolute tenderfoot at
dinghy sailing and am having real problems dealing with launching from the beach with any strength of an onshore
wind.
I know from windsurfing that I am supposed to point the
boat into the
wind, decide on which tack to take, jump in and raise the sail fully but it doesn't always
work out that way. Even with the
centerboard partially down or at least inserted, I find that the bow gets blown back into shallow
water before I can get going off the shore. Jumping into this
boat without taking on
water at waist height is not possible for me. So my first problem is that when I get planted in the boat I am in very shallow water. If the wind
is light I can paddle or row out but I would really like to know if there is something I am missing during my beach launch routine.
This is my best attempt to describe my steps:
1. I am in just above knee deep water and the throat
halyard is up all the way but the peak is down so I have about half of my sail area out.
2. If I put the peak up and get full sail area I am afraid of keeping control of the boat. It can take off to either side of the wind to shore and
I have to start all over.
3. I get my body into the boat and center myself as fast as possible. Not a pretty sight. Then I raise the peak and have full sail I have never been able to sail
off without full sail up.
4. I keep my hand on the daggerboard to make sure that it is not impeding my progress. As soon as I can I lower it all the way.
5. Sometimes I manage to get off without hitting any paddle boarders or swimmers. Oft times the bow gets blown on shore before I can get out.
Any tips or suggestions on launching with an onshore wind would be most appreciated.
Thanks very much,
Jim Lee