Sailing
Sailing is motion across a body of water in a sailing ship, or smaller boat, powered by wind.
How sailing works
The force of the wind is used to create motion by using one or more sails. The movement of the air over the sails acts in the same way that air moves over an aircraft's wing. The pressure difference created on either side of the sail(s) drives the boat forward.
Sailboats also have a keel or centerboard, the main purpose of which is to simultaneously allow forward motion and eliminate lateral movement of the hull through the water. Without such a structure, sailing upwind or across the wind is impossible.
Today, for most people, sailing is a hobby. Sailing can be further divided into two areas: Racing and Cruising.
In ancient times (see Odysseus), ships used following or rear-quarter winds. They therefore had to wait in port or at sea for the right wind directions.
Basic sailing techniques
First see the notes on points of sail which introduce some important principles.
Can This Boat Sail Correctly?
This helps the crew to remember these essential points;
By linking together a series of 'close-hauled' legs it is possible for the boat to make an upwind course. In between in each leg the boat 'tacks' through the 'no go zone'.
Two or more sails are frequently used in conjunction with another to maximise the smooth flow of air. The sails are adjusted to create a smooth laminar flow over the sail surface. This is called the "slot effect".
More detailed aspects include specific control of the sail's shape, e.g.:
To prevent heeling in a smaller boat, the crew may move onto the high (upwind) side of the boat. On some yachts the crew can 'hike out', using hiking straps or boards if available, leaning far out over the side to counteract the roll induced by wind pressure.
Safety measures include:
A 'spinnaker' is a very large sail that is only used when sailing downwind, to catch the maximum amount of wind.
Ropes or wires that hold up masts are collectively known as standing rigging and are called shrouds or stays. (The one from the mast to the bow is usually called the "fore stay", and side ones are usually referred to as just "shrouds".)
Ropes or wires that control the sails are known collectively as running rigging. Those that raise and lower sails are called halyards. Ropes that adjust (trim) the sails are called sheets. These are often referred to using the name of the sail they control (eg. "main sheet", or "jib sheet").
Ropes used to tie the boat up when alongside are called lines or springs.
There are some ropes: A few examples, the bell rope (to ring the bell), a bolt rope (attached to the edge of a sail for extra strength), a foot rope (on old square riggers for the sailors to stand on while reefing or furling the sails), and a tiller rope (to temporarily hold the tiller and keep the boat on course). A rode is what keeps an anchor attached to the boat when the anchor is in use.
Sailing terms have entered popular language in many ways.
"Broken up" was the fate of a ship that hit a "rocky point."
"Pooped" refers to the aftermost deck of a ship, taken from "puppis" the Latin word for "stern".
"In the doldrums" referred to being becalmed, windless, especially in the narrow band of hot windless water "the doldrums", near the equator.
"Adrift" meant literally that a ship's anchor had come loose, and the ship was out of control near land and therefore in serious danger.
"Keel-hauled and hung out to dry." was the rather nasty process of attaching a sailor to a rope, and drawing him under the sailboat while underway, and then hanging him from a yard-arm (under his shoulders usually, not by his neck), where officers and crew could mock him. Often, the barnicles on the hull would cause lacerations, making this a particularly unpleasant punishment.
Turning a sailing boat
There are four basic maneuvers a sailing boat can perform while underway. They are:
Trim
An important aspect of sailing is keeping the boat in "trim". To achieve this a useful mnemonic (memory aid) is the phrase. Beating an upwind course
Reducing sail
An important safety aspect of sailing is to adjust the amount of sail to suit the wind conditions. As the wind speed increases the crew should progressively reduce the amount of sail. On a small boat with a jib and mainsheet this is done by furling in the jib and by partially lowering the mainsail (this is called 'reefing').Sail trimming
As noted above, sail trimming is a large subject. Basic control of the mainsail consists of setting the sail so that it is at an optimum angle to the wind,(i.e. no flapping at the front, and tell tales flowing evenly off the rear of the sail).Heeling
When a boat rolls over to one side under wind pressure, it's called 'heeling'. As a sailing boat heels over, several forces begin to counteract this movement. The buoyancy of that part of the hull which is being submerged tends to bring the boat upright, and the centreboard or keel moving through the water tends to slow the rolling motion. A weighted keel provides additional force to right the boat. Lastly, as the boat rolls farther over, wind spills from the top of the sail. All these forces will tend to right a heeling boat. However if the boat heels suddenly beyond a certain point of stability, it can capsize.Sailing close to the wind
How close a boat can sail to the wind depends on the wind speed, since what the boat "sees" is the apparent wind, i.e., the vector sum of the actual wind and the boat's own velocity. The apparent wind is what the windex on top of the mast shows. Because of this, people often talk about how close a boat can sail to the apparent wind. A good, modern sloop can sail within 25 degrees of the apparent wind. An America's Cup racing sloop can sail within 16 degrees, under the right conditions. Those figures might translate into 45 degrees and 36 degrees relative to the actual wind. The angles at which the wind meets the boat are described by the points of sail.Sailing safety
First and foremost:
Sailing is intrinsically dangerous, since water is not our natural element. All sailors therefore should take precautions, and when engaged in publicly organised activities they must take certain precautions, as detailed by the authority which regulates the training or racing.
Also, know the 'rules of the road':
Sailing hulls and hull shapes
Sailing boats can have one, two, or three hullss.
Boats with one hull are known as monohulls, while those with two or more are known as multihulls.
Multihulls can be further subdivided into catamarans (two hulls), and trimarans (three hulls).
A Sailing boat is turned by a rudder which itself is controlled by a tiller or a wheel. Smaller sailing boats often have a stabilising, raisable, underwater fin called a centreboard (or daggerboard); larger sailing boats have a fixed keel. As a general rule, the former are called dinghies, the latter yachts. (see Dinghy sailing)Types of Sails and layouts
The "mainsail" or "main" is usually the primary driving sail, triangular in shape, and fixed to the largest mast on the boat. A headsail, either a "jib" or "genoa", is placed in front of the mainsail, attached in such a way that the trailing edge extends back alongside the main. Two or more headsails can be used. In addition, some sailboats, so-called ketches and yawls, have another sail near the back of the boat attached to a smaller mast called the "mizzen mast".Sailing terminology
Sailors use many traditional nautical terms for the parts of or directions on a vessel; starboard (right), port (left), forward or fore (front), aft (rearward), bow (forward part of the hull), stern (aft part of the hull). Vertical spars are masts, horizontal spars are booms (if they can hit you), gaffs (if they're too high to reach) or poles (if they can't hit you). Too many ropes!
Actually, only a few of the "ropes" on a boat are called ropes.Other terms
Walls are called 'bulkheads'. The toilet is traditionally called the 'head', the kitchen is the 'galley'. Sails in different sail plans have unchanging names, however.
For the naming of sails, see sail-plan.Sailing regulations
Sailors are expected to know the essentials of boating safety which include;
Sailing traditions and etiquette
There are many, more esoteric, etiquette rules, traditions, and customs that will demonstrate to others advanced knowledge of boating protocol such as; pulling up the fenders when you're not in port, the use of flags.See also
Sail, Yachting, ketch, sail-plan, cat boat and sloop, Catamaran, Dinghy sailing, Dinghy racing, Yacht racing, Day sailer.External links