File - Canadian Wayfarer Association

By the way, if the board is raised too much, you'll have plenty of time to think about it as you
swim around the boat to climb back on it! However, the motto is "if the board is in the box,
water and its attendant weight and turbulence are not."
As the gybe mark approaches, boats start to converge again, making the problems of getting
free air and smooth water even more acute.
We will cover the actual gybe mark tactics next time, but as it gets closer, think ahead. Keep
saying to yourself: “Where do I want to be when I round the mark?" The longer the preparation
time, the better the chance of getting it right.
2.7 Heavy air gybing tips 34
On any windy day throughout the world, you will find Wayfarers capsizing. Sometimes, one can
be forgiven for thinking that the gybe mark is equivalent to the Lemmings’ drop as boat after
boat tumbles into oblivion. It need not be like that, of course. It's up to you. It is perfectly
possible to get round the gybe mark even in windy weather.
All you have to do is follow the Golden Rules:
1 Don't start to worry before you get to the gybe mark and as you get closer: don't panic.
2 Bear away gradually, keeping up speed. Crew sitting in centre and staying there unless
ordered otherwise. Board should be about half down for pessimists (something to stand
on) or half up for optimists (for optimum speed)!
3 Aim to reduce wind pressure on the mainsail by
a) gybing at full speed
b) at sea, gybe when surfing down wave
c) do not slow down. If this happens, delay gybe until accelerating again.
4 Tiller extension should be popped over to other side before the gybe.
5 After sheeting in a little and as tiller is pulled towards him, helm stands up with feet well
apart. (Don't forget to duck as the boom comes across.)
6 Grabbing hold of mainsheet and pulling hard as stern goes through eye of wind and then
simultaneously, as the mainsheet is eased out 35 , the tiller is (quite) vigorously jerked
back the "wrong" way only for a moment. The effect of this is to push the bow back to
leeward and negates the centrifugal force of the boom. Don't worry. The bow won't
bury.
34 by Duncan Glen
35 Al Schönborn’s note: In our Wayfarer, the helm does nothing with the mainsheet which has the
stopper knot tied so that the boom is stopped just short of the new leeward shroud at the end
of a gybe to reduce unnecessary stress on the boom where it otherwise slams into the shroud.
What does help immensely is that, as the helm begins the gybing turn, the crew grabs the kicker
(vang) and keeps enough tension on it to develop a feel for when the pressure on the main is
greatly reduced – i.e. the main is ready to come across. At that moment, the crew wings the
boom across but does not let go of the kicker. Instead, after the boom has crossed the centre
line, the crew gives a healthy tug against the boom’s momentum in an effort to stop the boom’s
swing before it reaches the new leeward shroud. In a blow, this is of course a futile effort, but
its effect is astounding. The wild slam of the boom from the end of a gybe not controlled in this
way, becomes a gentle swing at the end, and as a result, the helm has a much easier time
controlling the boat as he comes out of the gybe. And an added bonus from this method is that
it keeps the crew in the centre of the boat as Mike recommends!
74