Most of the time I experimented with trying to sail upwind, and to access the benefit of paddling (motor-sailing) at these angles, vs just paddling. The upwind work is reflected in my overall average of 3.3 mph over the 25 miles, even though I did have some fun and fast sailing across and downwind, clocking a maximum speed of 7.7 mph.
I still have a lot of difficulty figuring out the exact direction of the wind. Seems it should be an easy thing to do, except I get confused by the wind in my face from sailing forward.
This practice day also included reefing and taking the sail up and down while on the water. I paddled some with the sail down and outriggers out, definitely slower going, and a real slog upwind. Though a very easy setup, it's still not something I'll want to do (setting up and taking down) more than once a day, or even every day. During the 100 miles of the Everglades Wilderness Waterway I'll likely store the whole rig, as even with good winds, I expect overall it'll be too protected, at least until I get to White Water Bay, and there will probably be some tight spots that will not accommodate the height of the mast or width of the outriggers.
I've got turning down pretty well, tacking and jibing. It's amazing what a little shifting of body weight does to help with the turns.
Today (Sunday), I got back on the lake early, about 7 AM without the sail rig, and managed a good 20 mile paddling workout. Then it was off to friend and paddler John Desiderio's surprise 60th birthday party.
Happy Birthday John.
1 comment:
Hi Dawn! Try tying a few short lengths (6-8") of yarn on the masthead to show you the apparent wind direction. Watch the wind made wavelets on the surface of the waves to tell the true wind direction (perpendicular to the wavelet troughs). Sounds like you're getting better and better though! Glad I'm not racing against you! ;-)
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