[Public-List] Elderly Person Sailing Slowly Essay

[William Woodford]

Daniel,

Absolutely loved your words and I thank you for sharing your problem
solving skills.  I’ve been re-reading Zen and the art of motorcycle
maintenance and your approach to the problem is a wonderful reminder of the
proper way to examine an obstacle.  You sir have Gumption!

Thanks again, you made my day.  Our fellow Alberger,Mike Meinhold, always
says- you win by leaving the dock and clearly you are doing just that.

I wish you many pleasurable voyages.

Best regards,

Woody
US11
On Wed, Mar 5, 2025 at 03:53 Daniel Swords via Public-List <
public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:

>
> Epigraph
>
> The goal is not to sail the boat, but to help the boat sail herself.
>
> (John Rousmaniere
>
> Author of The Annapolis Book of Seamanship)
>
>
>
>
>     I am an elderly, single, live-aboard day sailor with an aging CCA
> designed Alberg 30 sailboat.
>
>     I have reached the age and physical decline where switching from a
> sailboat to a trawler was looming as a potential necessity.  So I began
> reading forum posts on advantages and disadvantages of switching.
>
>     But most of those forum posts seemed centered on coastal voyaging. And
> I wondered, if I lived on a trawler but wasn’t able to voyage what would I
> do?  Just sit in my slip all day?
>
>     Also, being poor and considering that the cheapest boat I could own
> was the one I already have, I became determined to see if I might keep my
> sailboat but change my sailing habits. That was when I considered sailing
> with only a double reefed mainsail.
>
>     Why only a double reefed mainsail instead of a furling jib?  Because
> the mainsail attached to the boom is self tacking and easily trimmed
> without winching.  Also, if caught out in storm conditions, my boat
> heaves-to best with only a double reefed mainsail.
>
>     In this fashion I sail almost daily from sunrise to sunset, I am out
> of the slip, off the grid, out on the open water, and yet I sleep each
> night securely and comfortably in my slip.
>
>     When a sudden squall or thunderstorm approaches I don’t have to rush
> frantically about in increasing wind gusts struggling to reef my already
> reefed mainsail. My boat heaves-to best with just the double reefed
> mainsail trimmed flat and tight and the tiller lashed to leeward. The
> roller furled jib provides all the windage necessary to keep the boat from
> tacking in high wind and rough waves. And with the double reefed mainsail
> trimmed tight to the centerline, in the very rare occasion that it does
> jibe, the jibe is very benign because the boom does not swing violently
> across the hull. Hove-to in this fashion I can sit comfortably below in my
> cabin drinking coffee until the storm passes.
>
>     On very windy days with gusts between 18 and 28 knots sailing like
> this is like sailing on a live-aboard Sunfish but with no need for hiking
> out.
>
>     The only sacrifice I have made to accomplish this much easier and more
> comfortable sailing is boat speed. But boat speed for me has quickly become
> relative and unnecessary, especially when daysailing. Having steerageway is
> fast enough and at my age, if I were in some great need for speed why would
> I be sailing?
>
>     An added benefit for me is that my boat is almost always entirely self
> steering without the need for a tiller pilot or a wind vane. In moderate
> winds I can sail any apparent wind course between a close reach (60° off
> the wind) to a broad reach (160° off the wind) just by adjusting the
> mainsail trim.
>
>     In light winds my boat has a very slight lee helm. In heavy winds my
> boat has a very slight weather helm. And in moderate winds my boat’s helm
> is basically neutral. I either lash the tiller very loosely to compensate
> for the helm or often I can just let the tiller swing freely.
>
>     Even though I am elderly and always single-handed I can still
> experience the enjoyment of open water solo sailing. Sailing like this is
> like the difference between racing or jogging through the forest versus
> meandering. I’ve kept my boat and extended my sailing pleasures and
> abilities without spending a dime.
>
>     It did take some learning time and effort and patience. On my first
> few outings I was thinking my boat just wasn’t one that sailed well on only
> the mainsail. But with practice I soon discovered it was just a new and
> different skill which has been an added enjoyment to learn. So if you do
> try this , stick with it and practice.
>
>     The skills of sailing and self steering and heaving-to with the
> minimal and most controllable sail, the double reefed mainsail, are useful
> skills for any sailor to learn. And you may increase and extend your
> sailing enjoyment and delay switching to a trawler by several years.
>
>
> Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone
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