Chapter 4 - Let’s Go Sailing

The great day has arrived at last you're about to sail the boat by yourself. It's all very well to say, "Don't be nervous," but as with most new things in your life it is sometimes a little hard to get used to a sailboat. It's not that you're afraid of capsizing (you wouldn't be so foolish as to get into a sailboat if you couldn't swim); it's just the strangeness of the feeling in your bones as the boat leans with the wind and the confusing sound the sails make overhead.

One consolation is to realize that if you get confused in a sailboat, it's perfectly safe to let everything go. When you let out the sheet, the wind spills out of the loosened sail. And although the sail flaps away noisily, you quickly realize that the boat has flattened out like an old bathtub and slowed down to a mere drift. How reassuringly different from a car in Sunday traffic. In a sailboat you can just let go. Try it a couple of times, to gain confidence and relaxation. Pull in the sheet and feel the boat tip as you tighten the sail against the push of the wind. Drop the mainsheet and feel the wind spill and the sail loosen and the boat flatten out. Any time that anything goes wrong while sailing, let go of the sheets. This provides time to meditate on the situation.

You sit in your boat forward of the tiller (so that you can swing it freely, to steer) and opposite your sail (so that you can balance the weight of it as well as look at it easily. You will want to check your sail every few minutes, since its lower third, up next the mast, is like an instrument panel in a car or plane. This is the area you will check to see if your sails are set right. While it's all very well to stare up at the whole mainsail, for the wonder of it, luckily for your neck the lower part is all you have to keep looking at. Here's how you check the set of your mainsail:

You let the sail out, by letting the sheet in your hand run out, until the sail begins to luff. This means that the sail in the instrument-panel section begins to flutter and bubble. Then you pull in the sail till the luffing just stops that is the best set for your mainsail. Remember that this sail isn't, after all, a perfect triangle. If you look at it, you'll see that it is skillfully cut and seamed so that there is a curve to the whole thing. Don't pull in your sail till it's flat; just keep a nice curve in it like a bird's wing.

So much for the general controls for your boat; now let's take a look at how to get started.

Getting Underway

If you are moored at a buoy, the bow will lie into the wind. For an example of getting underway, let's say that there are several boats close to your port side, so you decide to go off to starboard in other words, on a port tack. (A boat is sailing on a port tack when the wind is coming over its port side.) With both sails hoisted, haul in the starboard jib sheet, taking up all the slack. Push the clew of the jib to port; the wind will fill the sail and force the bow of the boat to starboard. As soon as the boat begins to swing around, let go of the sail and take up on the starboard jib sheet. Swing the tiller to port; this will help push the nose of the boat to starboard. (Unlike the steering wheel of a car, a tiller is moved in the direction opposite to the one you wish to swing the boat.) Then trim the mainsail by taking in the mainsheet until the sail is fairly flat. As the jib pushes the boat around, the mainsail will fill, and the boat will move forward. At this moment, cast off the mooring and you'll begin to make headway. Bring the tiller back to starboard, so that the boat doesn't fall off too much. When the boat is on the desired course, bring the tiller amidships (to the center).

The boat on the left is reaching; the one on the right is beating or sailing close-hauled.

Where Is The Wind?

Look at the trees, the smoke from chimneys, flags, and catpaws on the water.

Wet your finger and hold it up.

Watch the telltales on the boats, the smoke from cigarettes, and feel the rush of the wind against your cheek.

In casting off the mooring line make certain that everything is clear. In the above example, let's assume you go out to your mooring in a dinghy. Your mooring line should be over the starboard bow and your dinghy's painter taken aft and brought around forward on the port side outside all shrouds and stays. Then pass it around the bow to the starboard side and secure it to the mooring line. By following this procedure you won't have any fouling of lines when casting off.

If your boat should be tailing off in a strong current and the wind is blowing from the opposite direction over your stern, you may leave before the wind, using the jib alone until you are clear, with enough way on so that your boat will steer. Then you can luff head to the wind and, with the jib sheets loose, quickly hoist your mainsail and be off on your desired course.

Leaving a dock is easy if the boat is to leeward (on the side away from the wind). First, unfasten the bow and stern lines and then pull on the jib sheet. As the bow swings away from the side of the pier, trim the mainsail until it's at the proper angle and the boat moves ahead. Adjust the course to steer by the tiller, and keep the sheets well in hand. Set your sails close-hauled to get clear. If the boat is on the windward side of the dock, backwind the jib, cast off the lines, and give the boat a smart shove to carry it clear while the mainsail is being trimmed. When leaving a downwind dock, sail out under jib alone, until the boat is sufficiently clear so that you can head into the wind. At this time, you can then raise the mainsail.

If you're bottled in by other boats so that you can't maneuver easily, or if the position of the wind is such that you can't maneuver, the logical solution for the novice is to paddle out, use an outboard if there is one aboard, or be towed by a motorboat into a position where you have maneuvering room. As you become an expert in sailing, you'll be able to get away from situations in which you now require help from others.

When coming about on a tack or when jibing, always watch out for the boom.

A good example of the slot effect of the jib (see chapter 2 for a description of the slot effect).

Sailing To Windward
 
Sailing to windward is usually the wettest, the most challenging, and the most enjoyable part of sailing. As stated previously, a boat can't sail directly into the wind, since the sails won't fill and exert the proper pressures. However, a boat can arrive at a point directly upwind by sailing a close-hauled course at an angle to the wind and permitting the wind to strike your sails a glancing blow. This procedure involves a series of zig-zag courses, during which time you're able to sail at approximately 45-degree slants, or tacks, first one way, then another into the wind.

The whole object in windward sailing is to "point" as high or to sail as close to the wind as possible without stopping the boat's way. Therefore, when sailing close-hauled or "on the wind," the sheets should be hauled in hard so that the sails are trimmed as flat as practicable and the boom is as close to the center-line of the boat as advisable. Care must be taken to get the boom in a proper position so that the craft will sail at its maximum speed and not stall. If a boat points too high into the wind, it will slow down and come to a stop because the airfoil of the sail has been broken. This is called pinching; if the boom is too close to the center of the boat it may be heeling at a considerable angle but have little forward movement. For this reason it's generally best to have the end of the boom pointing to the lee quarter but not extending over the side of the boat. Just how far the sails should be sheeted, however, depends on how full or how flat the sail is cut, and how much breeze and sea there is.

Some sailboats can't sail any closer than 45 degrees to the true wind direction, while others can sail closer to the wind than 45 degrees. The best way to determine if you are sailing as close into the wind as possible is to turn the boat gradually up into the wind until the luff of the sail begins to shiver and shake. The jib is generally the first to show signs of pinching; it will flutter at its luff. Then the mainsail will begin to shake at its luff. This indicates that you have sailed too far into the wind so that the wind is now blowing on both sides of the sails. When this occurs, move the tiller away from the sails so that the boat will head farther from the wind. Since the wind is almost continually changing in strength and slightly in direction, it's a good idea to test frequently by pushing the tiller toward the sails and pointing up to make sure you are sailing as close to the wind as possible. By experimenting several times, you'll soon know how far you can point up before the sails begin to flutter or luff.

On boats with fixed keels, nothing further in the form of adjustments is required to sail into the wind. In boats having a centerboard, the board as well as the sheets must be adjusted for the different points of sailing. When going to windward, the centerboard should be lowered all the way to prevent the boat from sliding leeward.
When sailing close into the wind, a boat will achieve its greatest angle of heel or tilt. The helmsman and crew should sit on the windward (high) side of the boat when close-hauling. In this position you and your crew will feel more secure and will act as a live ballast to help balance the boat. If the wind is puffy and the boat heels excessively, the method used to avoid a capsize due to a sudden blast of wind is, as previously described, to release the strain on the mainsail by slacking off its sheet and permitting the sail to swing out freely, thus spilling the wind. Another method is to swing the boat directly into the wind. Sometimes both methods may be used to prevent capsizing. After the puff has passed, you can resume your normal sailing into the wind.

When sailing close-hauled, be sure that you have a firm grip on the tiller. But always move the tiller carefully; never swing it back and forth from side to side. Frequent and quick movement of the tiller will slow down your boat. The way the sails fill, the feel of the wind on your face, or the direction of the tell-tails will dictate small changes in steering. If the boat was properly designed, it will have a slight weather helm. This means that the tiller must be kept pulled toward the windward side. If the tiller is unattended, the boat will turn into the wind and luff. This is a very important safety factor. In an emergency, you can let go of the tiller and slack off both the jib and mainsail sheets. The boat will swing around and lie more or less quietly, pointing up into the wind. To test this, let your tiller ease off to the leeward and immediately your speed should be lowered, the angle of heel should be decreased, and the bow should swing up for a luff. Catch it before it pinches or stops.

As was stated previously, a boat can arrive at a point directly upwind only by making a series of diagonal slants, or tacks, first one way, then the other. A boat is on a port tack when the bow moves to the starboard and the wind comes over the port bow, port beam, or port quarter. Conversely, a boat is on a starboard tack when the bow swings to the port and the wind comes over the starboard bow, starboard beam, or starboard quarter. As you can see, the name of the tack is determined by the direction from which the wind is blowing.

Changing a sailboat's course so that the bow swings past the eye of the wind and pays off on the other tack is called coming about. If we assume you are sailing on a port tack, swing the tiller sharply to starboard (leeward side) or toward the sail, thus causing the bow to turn to port. At the same time, release the jib sheet (the starboard or leeward sheet) so that the jib won't present any resistance to the wind as the bow swings into the eye of the wind. Be careful to ease the mainsail sheet loose so that you don't heel too suddenly. For an instant the boat will be pointed directly into the wind, with the sails shaking violently. As the boat continues to swing around, the wind will strike the sail more fully and the jib must be trimmed. It will fill and push the bow of the boat around to the starboard tack. Midship the rudder as you approach the new heading (a starboard tack), and when straightaway set the sails again. The reverse procedure is

followed when swinging from a starboard tack to a port tack.

Be careful when coming about. The boom swings from one side of the boat to the other. If you aren't watching, it can strike you or one of your crew members on the head or even knock someone right out of the boat. To prevent this, the command, "Ready about," should be given as a warning to cast-off (un-cleat) the jib sheet and to prepare a change from one side of the boat to the other. The command, "Over" or "Hard alee," is given as the tiller is pushed to the lee side of the boat and the bow goes through the eye of the wind, and anyone in the way of the boom ducks. During this operation the crew should gently move to the opposite side of the boat, which now becomes the weather side. Don't come about too fast or too slow. Carried out correctly, this will be one smooth, continuous operation and the boat will immediately gather way on the new tack. If done too slowly or in light winds, your boat may stop head to the wind; this is known as being "in irons" or "in stays." If coming about is accomplished too fast, you may either overshoot the new heading or capsize. Also avoid coming about in the middle of a strong puff of wind, since the results may be the same.

Sailing on a broad reach. Boat 52 is using a spinnaker.

To get out of irons you release all sheets and pull up the centerboard. Then sit and wait until the boat slowly swings broadside to the wind. When this occurs, trim the jib first, for this prevents the bow from turning into the wind, and trim the mainsail and lower the centerboard. This method can be slow, and you have no control of direction. For these reasons, it's far better, when you get in irons, to push the tiller and boom away from you and hold them there. The stern will soon swing to one side, the mainsail will fill, and the boat will stop moving backward. At this point pull the tiller toward you and the boat will gain headway on a new tack. This maneuver can be hastened if one of your crew members holds the jib to the side opposite the mainsail. Sometimes in a small boat it's possible to get out of irons by giving the tiller a few quick jerks (to move the stern around) or by taking a few quick strokes with an oar, and the sails will fill again.

When tacking to windward, the duration of a tack may not be the same. Obstructions, channels, sand bars and the like make each of the tacks of different length. (In sailor parlance, a short tack is called a short board or hitch and a long tack a long board or hitch.) All the words in the world couldn't describe the correct length of each tack, for every different condition of the water, the wind, and the ability of the boat to sail close to the eye of the wind will enter into the problem. On long trips in open water, the tacks might be several hours in length. A small boat sailed in restricted waters may have to come about on another tack at intervals of a few minutes. The only rule is to keep a tack as long as possible, for each time you come about reduces the speed of the boat, demands adjusting of sails, and causes the crew to shift from side to side.

Sailing Before The Wind

When a boat is sailing with the wind directly behind, or one or two degrees on either side of the stern, it is said to be running. As the boat is running away from the wind, it seems to lose its power and conditions become quieter and this may lull the new skipper into thinking it's easy. Probably more accidents occur on this point of sailing than any other.

In order to obtain maximum power from the wind, the mainsail is set by letting out its sheet until it is approximately 90 degrees (at right angles) to the centerline of the boat. Note that we said the mainsail should be at 90 degrees, not the boom. This is done to obtain full pressure of the wind against the greatest possible sail area. If you're sailing dead before the wind, the mainsail may be paid out either to starboard or port; if the wind should be coming from one quarter or the other, the mainsail should be out on the opposite side.

While running before the wind is easy, extreme caution must be observed. If the person at the tiller isn't alert at all times and should allow the boat to alter its course enough to permit the wind to blow behind the sail, there is the very definite danger of the sail being hurled from one side of the craft to the other. An action of this type is called a jibe (gybe) and in a case such as this an accidental jibe. The velocity reached by the boom during this swing is sufficient to cause a serious bodily injury anyone unfortunate enough to be caught in its path. It also can cause a great deal of damage to the craft such as broken rigging or a broken mast and it can possible anyone unfortunate enough to be caught in its path. It also can cause a great deal of damage to the craft such as broken rigging or a broken mast and it can possibly capsize the boat.

The jib sail does little when sailing before the wind, since it's blanketed by the mainsail. It may hang limp or may bang from one side to the other. While the jib doesn't do the work it was designed for, it does give you the first warning of an accidental jibe. If the jib starts to fill out and pull out on the side opposite the mainsail, you're on the verge of a jibe. To prevent it, give the tiller a quick push toward the mainsail. As you become more experienced in sailing you may wish to try sailing with the mainsail out on one side and the jib on the other (commonly called wing and wing) or you may wish to substitute a spinnaker for the jib (described later in this chapter).

Before the wind, a boat will move faster with the centerboard completely up. But if the boat shows any tendency to yaw or swing off its course in either direction, it's a good idea to lower the centerboard a quarter of its full depth.

The controlled jibe or wearing is a much-used maneuver and it's essential to sailing. (Only the accidental or unintentional jibe can cause trouble.) It is generally employed when sailing before the wind and when you have to round a buoy or breakwater where there is limited space; when the wind has shifted and you wish to avoid sailing by the lee; or when you wish to change your course without coming about. Actually, you could say that jibing is the opposite of coming about. In both maneuvers the sail shifts, catching the wind on its other side. The difference is that you come about when you are sailing into the wind, and you jibe when you are sailing with the wind.

Suppose you're sailing with the wind on the port quarter and you want to alter your course. As the wind is behind you and pounding squarely on the sails, you must take care to insure that the mainsail is under complete control at all times during this maneuver. Drop the centerboard while jibing this makes the boat more stable.

Commence the jibe by trimming in the sheets as rapidly as possible and keep hauling on the mainsheet until it's almost as tight as when you're tacking. This will reduce the size of the arc through which the boom eventually banks over and will keep the boom from lifting. Release the jib sheet so that the jib swings freely. When the boom gets well inboard, ease the tiller over so that the boat starts turning in the direction you want to go.

Method of accomplishing the controlled jibe. Osprays on a tight reach.

(The stern will swing into the wind not the bow, as in coming about.) As soon as the wind is dead astern, ease the mainsheet slightly and push the boom over so it won't swing suddenly. (Sometimes the boom will snap over fast before you have a chance to ease it over. Therefore, be sure to keep your head low, shift your weight to the opposite side, and don't get tangled in the mainsheet.) To absorb the shock of the boom, push the tiller to midship, adjust the jib sheet so that the jib again draws, haul up the cen-terboard, and you'll be on your new course.

Jibing should be practiced at first in the lightest of breezes, since it is a rather difficult maneuver to execute in a strong wind. Since you are following the same course as the waves, there's a tendency on the part of the boat when jibing to swing broadside to the waves. Should this occur, the boom, which is extended out over the water, touches the waves, thus causing a tremendous drag on the rudder. This can cause the boat to be un-maneuverable, permitting the next waves that come along to roll the boat over. To prevent this, move all ballast (including you and your crew) as far back as possible so to avoid the tendency of the boat to bury its stem and lift the rudder out of the water.

Should you wish to return from a running position to a windward direction, it's an easy task to swing the boat, just as you do in tacking, by pushing the tiller toward the mainsail. As the craft swings closer to the wind, haul the mainsail sheet in gradually so that the boat doesn't lose its forward motion. It's then only necessary to continue the swing, trim the sails, and lower the centerboard until the desired windward course is reached.

Boats on a beam reach.

Reaching

When a sailboat is under way and is neither sailing to windward nor before the wind, it is said to be reaching. In other words, the craft sails more or less across the wind. When sailing in this manner, your boat is able to sail from one point to another and return with no complicated maneuvering.

While actually a boat is considered to be sailing on a reach when the wind is coming directly from the side of the craft, there are three names given to reaching, depending on the location of the wind. For example, when the wind comes from a point directly abeam, the craft is on a beam reach. When the wind comes from a direction between that of a beam reach and a close-haul, the boat is then close reaching. If the wind comes from a position between that of a run and a beam reach, it is abaft the beam and you are then on a broad reach.

To change from sailing close-hauled to close-reaching, move the tiller up (toward the wind). Then as the boat's head falls off to leeward, set the sails until both the jib and mainsail start to flutter along the luff. Both sheets are then hauled in until the fluttering stops. The sails should be trimmed in a nearly parallel position to the centerline of the craft. The boat will move faster and have less heel than when sailing to windward close-hauled.

When on a broad reach, the same procedure is followed after the craft has been put on its desired course. The sheets are hauled in just enough to stop fluttering of the sails. The boom is usually kept at an angle half-way between the centerline of the craft and the direction the tell-tale is pointing. Broad reaching is possibly the easiest maneuver in sailing, since the boat then has its best balance, though some care should be taken to keep the sails at their full drawing angle to the wind.

When sailing on a beam reach, you handle the sails in the same way as when sailing on a broad or a close reach. When the sails are properly set in relation to one another and at the correct angle to the wind, it's the fastest point of sailing for most small craft. On a beam reach the centerboard should be about one-half down; on a close-reach it should be about three-quarters down; and for broad reaching about one-quarter down.

Reaching is the easiest point of sailing and is ideal for the beginner to get the feel of his boat; it enables the boat to be sailed to and fro along a certain course. Always turn into the wind at either end.
 
Sprites running and jibing.

Handling A Spinnaker
 
When sailing before the wind, the jib isn't overly effective. For this reason, a spinnaker is often substituted when on a beam reach and when running. It's hoisted by a halyard to a sheave or block generally located just above the point where the jibstay attaches to the mast. On one tack the spinnaker pole is attached. (The inboard end of this pole fits into a socket or hooks onto the mast.) The sheet leads from the other tack or clew, outside the shrouds, under the boom, aft to a block near the stern and back to the cockpit. This permits trimming from the cockpit. A similar sheet, called a guy, is secured where the tack is attached to the spinnaker pole; it leads aft, outside the shrouds on the windward side.

For most smaller boats "turtles" are used to hold the spinnaker ready for use. A turtle is a bag into which the spinnaker is folded and it's often left forward on the deck, with the guy and sheet attached to the sail. This leaves only the halyard and pole to attach, and the sail is ready to hoist. Cartons or boxes are used effectively on smaller craft that have room forward of the jibstay for a turtle. The carton is placed on the foredeck and the spinnaker hoisted under the lee of the jib.

While the task of setting the spinnaker can be handled by one crew member, it's better for two to do the job. One crew member can set the spinnaker pole while the other can haul on the halyard. To set the pole, move it to the windward side and snap the end over the spinnaker guy. Then fasten the spinnaker lift on the middle of the pole and hook the pole to the mast. After or while the pole is being set, the spinnaker sheet and guy are slacked and one is secured on each clew of the sail. Then fasten the halyard to the head of the sail.

When this preparation is accomplished, the spinnaker can be raised. The member of the crew who has set the pole hoists the spinnaker as the boat turns to its new course off the wind. The crew member guides the sail from the fore-deck and makes certain that there are no twists in it. Just as soon as the halyard is cleated, the spinnaker guy is trimmed in order to pull the sail into a drawing position and to position the pole properly. At the same time the sheet should be trimmed so that the pole and clew of the sail are level. When the spinnaker begins to draw properly, the jib can be lowered, if you desire, and secured.

When you wish to douse the spinnaker, raise the jib if it has been lowered. When you're ready to take in the spinnaker, have one crew member release it from the pole end and guy, let it fly to leeward, and take it in under the main boom via the sheet. The person handling the halyard should watch it come in and slack away just fast enough to keep it out of the water. After some practice, this can be done quite rapidly.

A Rhodes 19 with its spinnaker unfurled. An overhead view of a typical spinnaker arrangement.

Mooring Your Boat
 
Watching a sailboat pick up a mooring buoy efficiently is almost as pleasant as watching one sail close-hauled on a long tack. Making a mooring, or, as it's often called, fetching a mooring, is a fairly simple task that is, if you keep a few simple principles in mind. For example, except in rare instances in which the influence of the current is stronger than the wind, always come up to the mooring or anchorage with the bow of the boat heading directly into the wind and the sails fluttering. Round up far enough away so that your headway will just carry you to the mooring. This distance will depend on many factors, including momentum, strength of the wind, character of the sea, and so on. Generally, the sharper the turn into the wind, the more effective the luffing or breaking action will be. The rudder can be used as a brake by pushing it hard over to one side and then the other. Also in shoal water the centerboard is sometimes useful as a brake. Push it down as far as it will go and lean your weight on top of it. But remember that when the craft stops windward, it will be eventually pushed, making sternway. Since most small centerboard boats don't have too great a forward movement when coming up into the wind, a distance of one or two boat lengths in light breezes, or three or four in heavy winds, should be allowed to reach the mooring buoy. Keel boats, because they have more forward movement on them when coming into the wind, usually require a distance about half again as much as allowed for a centerboard boat.

Whenever possible, at some distance from the mooring, it's a good idea to drop the jib sail, unsnap it from the jib halyard, bag it, make the jib halyard fast, and then coil the jib sheets. With the jib sail out of the way, picking up and cleating the mooring is a great deal simpler and easier. Without it, the craft doesn't point as high or go as fast as when it is up. Then, too, the helmsman needn't be too concerned about which side of the mooring he brings the bow of the boat to, and the flapping jib won't interfere with the crew member whose task it is to pick up the floating mooring. Also the jib sail will remain clean, since it will be away from the staining drips of the wet mooring and its generally muddy pennant.

The boat should come to a stop within easy reaching distance of the mooring. A crew member should be stationed forward of the mainsail. From this position he can pick up the mooring by hand or with a boathook, haul it aboard quickly, or attach a mooring line and drop the buoy back into the water. When making fast the mooring line, make sure it passes through the chocks. If you miss the mooring, bring the boat about and try again. It isn't uncommon to see skippers miss several times before making the mooring.

In coming alongside a dock or another boat, follow the same procedure. Approaching a dock from leeward or windward is simple. If it's leeward, head-reach up to the dock with the sheets loose and attach the docking lines to the dock. A member of the crew should be up forward to see that the bow of the boat doesn't ram the dock. Landing on the windward side, sail downwind until you are beam-on to the dock. Push the tiller hard-over so that the boat swings around into the wind. The hard-over rudder acts as a brake and the boat will be almost dead in the water about a boat length away from the dock. The boat will drift broadside against the dock. Tie up, and the job is done.

If you're coming in too fast to a dock, you can hold or fend your boat off with cushions or fenders, or one of your crew members can do it with his feet. But when fending off a boat with his feet, be sure he sits down on the bow and holds both his feet straight out, balancing himself with his hands on the jibstay. In this way his legs will better take the shock of fending off the boat and yet he won't be pushed overboard.

Some spinnakers get quite big, as illustrated by the one of the 5.5 meter racing one-designer. Editor's note: This is the class Mr. O'Day won a gold medal in 1960 Olympics.

If you don't have quite enough speed to make a dock, a light line can be heaved to someone on the dock. But be sure that one end of the line is made fast to your boat. If your heaving line misses the dock and you start drifting backward, you can follow the same procedure as when caught in stays or in irons. However, the action of the tiller is reversed. Usually you can get enough momentum to get to the dock; if not, you will have to catch the wind and make a fresh attempt.

If you can't make the mooring or dock by any variety of luffing, you can drop anchor or see if there's a nearby boat to which you can make fast. But if the latter should be your only course of action, take it easy and fend your boat so that you don't cause any damage to either hull. While your dignity may suffer a little, you will, at least, be fast to something so that you can stow the sails and beg a tow over to your own mooring or to the dock. If you have an outboard motor aboard, of course, you won't have to do any begging.

Before you leave your sailboat, it should be secured. To do this systematically, follow a schedule such as this:

1. Haul the mainsheet in tight and lower the mainsail carefully so that the sail doesn't go overboard and get wet. Release and unfasten the outhaul, unsnap the main halyard.
Remove the battens, then the mainsail from the mast and boom tracks. Bag the sail. If the jib sail wasn't removed on the approach to the mooring, it should be removed before bagging the mainsail.

2. If you have one, slip the boom into the boom crutch. This is a cross-shaped or Y-crutch structure of wood which is set up to support the free end of the boom.

3. Secure the halyards to their cleats, but after fastening be sure that you have allowed some slack for wet-weather tightening.

4. Remove the tiller. If the boat has a portable rudder, unship it, too. Fasten these down inside the cockpit so that they can't slide around, or take them ashore.

5. Coil all lines neatly and evenly. Collect all the life preservers and other gear; either stow them in compartments on the boat or take them ashore. Make fast all loose gear.

6. Pump out any water that has accumulated in the boat. Then sponge out the bilge, clean topsides and deck. Dirt and scum is much easier to remove while it's still wet than later when it has dried hard.

The best method of coming in to a dock.
 
7. Raise the centerboard all the way up and see that it's secure.

8. Check your boat very carefully and make note of anything or everything that should be done before your next outing. It's far better to do any repairs now while they're fresh in your mind than to wait until a later time. Maintenance and repair work are fully discussed in Chapter 8.

9. Many sailboats have cockpit covers. These are canvas coverings that fit over the cockpit, enclosing it completely. If you have one, unroll the cockpit cover and lash it in place securely.

10. Finally, check the mooring line very carefully. Be sure that it runs from the mooring cleat through the bow chock and then to the mooring. If you're tying up at a dock, be sure your boat fenders are down to prevent any damage to the hull. When all these tasks have been accomplished, you're ready to go ashore.

Fetching a mooring from the various sailing points.

The sheets of a small sailboat can be handled by two persons, as shown in the photograph above (the helmsman controls the mainsail sheet while the crew member controls the jib sheet) or by a single person as shown at left.

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