Some Heavy Air Photos

[John C. Harris]

From Saturday, May 15, 2010. OkoumeFest, the CLC rendezvous, near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Reefed down and hustling along in 16-20 knots and big chop.

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PocketShip - Best 1 - Small.jpg (166.32 KiB) Viewed 18030 times

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[jeff]

John can you give your impressions on how she handled, on the wind off the wind down wind, boat speed, ballast, weather helm etc. I would appreciate your candid thoughts. Jeff

[Keith]

Reefed down and hustling along in 16-20 knots and big chop...

It looks like you are having a good time! I'm just wondering... would PocketShip benefit from a boom vang when the wind picks up?

[John C. Harris]

>>>>>John can you give your impressions on how she handled, on the wind off the wind down wind, boat speed, ballast, weather helm etc. I would appreciate your candid thoughts. Jeff

Going into my third season now with the boat, I've seen a good bit of wind and wave.

The boat heels right down when lightly loaded. I think the manual indicates 160lbs beneath the floorboards; if you were always solo and not carrying much gear I might suggest 200lbs instead. In big puffs the boat heels right down to the rail and sort of stops there without going any further, which doesn't hurt anything, but it isn't the fastest way to sail.

No non-planing 13-foot waterline boat is going to be dazzling upwind in chop, though PocketShip does well as long as you keep the jib set. PocketShip will surf in conditions like those shown in the photos. A long reach on a day like that would be exhilarating. Like all sloops, the boat feels, and IS, sluggish sailing upwind under main alone. Once or twice I've wondered if a 30% smaller jib wouldn't be handy for heavy air. I think the hassle of changing out jibs would outweigh the benefits. Perhaps it could be hoisted on the spinnaker halyard so you could leave the 100% jib furled and hoisted.

PocketShip almost never has any weather helm under any conditions, which is really unusual for a boat of these proportions. I worked hard at that! In the photos you can see that the tiller is amidships even when the boat is heeled sharply.

PocketShip loves waves and the (relatively) fine bow pushes through admirably. A bunch of people commented on that at OkoumeFest. Dry, too---not much spray.

>>>>would PocketShip benefit from a boom vang when the wind picks up?

Yes, it would. You'd need a powerful vang for a mainsail that size, and I wonder if the stock gooseneck is up to the kinds of loads a big vang will impart. That's one reason I haven't gotten around to putting a vang on my boat. I'm careful with jibing once the wind is above 15 knots, as it is. I've broken about ten goosenecks over the last 20 years. I'll find a larger unit if I ever get around to sailing to the Bahamas. (For 99% of sailors and sailing, the standard RaceLite gooseneck is fine.)

[Keith]

Yes, it would. You'd need a powerful vang for a mainsail that size, and I wonder if the stock gooseneck is up to the kinds of loads a big vang will impart. That's one reason I haven't gotten around to putting a vang on my boat...

If a boom vang was added, do you think the tabernacle would need beefing up a bit?

I'll probably never be in the Bahamas with my PocketShip (I'm on the west coast) but it would be nice to circum-navigate Vancouver Island, probably well over 1000 km not counting all the stops and side trips along the way, or do a trip to trip to the Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii ) which would be over 1000 km each way. I'll definitely need a forecast that doesn't include any storms for part of the time. I'll want lots of shorter and less ambitious trips before I decide that both I and the PocketShip are up to it! A sail down to Port Townsend for the wooden boat festival (only a day or two away) might be nice too!

[jeff]

Thanks John for your candid information. I think I'll throw in 200 lbs ballast and call it a day. I can't wait to finish this project so I can start enjoying the fun of sailing. Jeff

[kimsails]

Have you looked at the "Boom Stay" as a boom vang and preventer possibility for the Pocketship?

From the website (http://www.mv.com/ipusers/whale/tillers ... minfo.html):

"BOOM STAY® provides a new, simple, positive means for holding a sailboat boom in any fixed position, by simply applying hand tension and cleating a control line, which terminates at the helm.

"A powerful, adjustable, vang action is then achieved, by tightening the main sheet with the boom held, as above.

"Further, hand held tension to the control line, allows a boom to be safely eased towards the cockpit while jibing, reducing danger to the crew and passengers on board.

"Essentially, a line is led from a boom bale to a "Deck Eye" at the rail, then across the foredeck to a "Deck Eye" on the opposite rail, but first passing through the BOOM STAY® control unit, and the control line block, and finally, back to the aforementioned boom bale, creating a "Boom Loop"."

When the "Boom Loop" line is slack,the boom, and the "Boom Loop" line, move freely,with zero friction.

When the "Boom Loop" is under tension, the "Boom Loop" line binds at the deck eyes, effectively stopping any movement of the "Boom Loop" line and the boom at any point.

The BOOM STAY® system is a reliable substitute for the traditional boom brake, boom vang, and boom preventer systems, currently available in the sailing marketplace.

Kim

[ahamm]

As one who had the pleasure of sailing on the PocketShip during the stiff weather I can attest to the stability, she chugged along with no problem.
I have a vidio of John zipping along if I can figure out hot to post it.

[Keith]

Have you looked at the "Boom Stay" as a boom vang and preventer possibility for the Pocketship?

Thanks for the tip. It sounds like a pretty good multi-function addition!

[sailordavy]

@John Harris, you stated that the Pocketship almost never exhibited weather helm under any conditions. Since a small amount of weather helm is desireable for safety reasons (I'm used to racing planing dingies), I need to know if the Pocketship ever exhibits any lee helm.