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Exercises with a sailing canoe
Canoe sailing as paddling is very hands on experience, in which only practice makes a champion. Even if you would not have championship in mind, learning to control your sailing canoe is an essential part of the sport. Knowledge of your vessel gives you more and you learn to trust your canoe in all conditions.
The C-class canoe is very efficient even in light wind. Photo: Unknown.
The following exercises are meant for all sailors of the open ACA-class sailing canoe and maybe for other canoe sailors as well. On water exercises are not meant to those preparing for a contest it is a completely different matter as Kipling would say but for ordinary tourer who wish to learn to use his sailing canoe. These exercises equal a paddling course of open canoes or kayaks, but they are created for self-learning. If the exercises, equipment and concepts feel strange for a paddler, it is because canoe sailing is different: we must learn different issues than before.
I've sometimes calculated that in canoe sailing it takes about 20 hours before one learns to use a new sailing canoe adequately. The routine and speed required to handle each situation comes only with time, with hours spend in canoe in different, changing conditions. Each sailing canoe is different, so I had to learn the same things over and over again with each new sailing canoe I have built.
If you are motivated enough, it might be a good idea to start a log of the exercises done, write down your observations, experiences and faults noticed in canoe. Often, after getting to know a new canoe, I've made notes right after the return including the date, time spent on water, wind speed, route and experiences about the exercises done and exercises for the next time.
The content of exercises is progressive, the basics first and after that the more demanding issues. First things done first are the most important since you be competent in those before trying more demanding stuff.
Content of the exercises
A How the rigs works
B The canoe, heeling, sitting and dangling
C Sailing on beam reach
D Making turns
E Tacking, gaining height
F Sailing downwind
G Maximal speed
H Two on a canoe
I Exercise log
A How the rig works
The rig consists of all devices added to a open canoe hull for sailing, including the sail. The aim of this exercise is to make all parts work properly and reliable and simultaneously the sailor should learn to use those fast without hesitation. All the devices and lines serve a purpose and by adjusting their fixing, position, tightness and locking a simple, easy and reliable rig is achieved.
Sit comfortably on the canoe bottom and sail on weak beam reach back and forth. At the same time keep an eye on that
1)the boom and gaff may turn unhindered around the mast. This is made possible by a proper gaff hoist line and a boom goose neck.
The goose neck should not be too tight or loose nor abrade the mast. A piece of plastic hose could be placed on the goose neck or attach a collar of leather or plastic around the mast.
2) The hoist line should run easily, not sticking on the rolls and is well on hand at the pulpit. It should be easy to attach and free from a rope lock and the sail should be easy to hoist and haul down.
The hoist line usually stretches out, so it is necessary to tighten it after few miles sailing. In a sailing vessel all the rig parts ( sail, gaff, boom, mast and lines) stretch and bend. This is always part of the sport. When they stretch and bend they always search a new place and balance and don't break easily some part is always flexible.
When approaching the shore it makes sense to lower the sail before the landfall and paddle the final meters. Respectively it is worth pushing the canoe first on water and after that hoist the sail. When hoisting and lowering the sail is under control the increasing or gusting wind does not surprise the sailor.
3) That the boom is pulled downward properly when using a pulley of many rolls. The line and its lock should be well at hand in the pulpit.
Usually it is necessary to tighten the boom downward at following winds, when the boom tends to rise.
In heavy winds where the sailor wants to flatten the sail and bend the boom down, it is necessary to tighten the boom to its maximum. Flattening the sail decreases the sail efficiency even by a third, causing a reefing effect. Because of this the boom should be relatively thin and flexible, otherwise it is impossible to bend it.
4)that the gaff does not flex too much and the wind not lose its shape
The ACA gaff should be relatively flexible but not too much: the sail should maintain its shape in the wind. If there is larger than 10 cm bend on the gaff the sail loses its shape and the efficiency disappears. The upper part of the sail is the most efficient and that is why the upper gaff should be relatively rigid.
The gaff bend can be measured by stretching a thin string between the gaff ends and by tightening the main sheet enough on water or land. The bend can be measured by eye or measuring tape in the middle of the gaff.
5)That the strain of the sail on boom and gaff ends is right, not too tight. In normal winds the sail shape must be deep enough to generate lift efficiently.
The sail is stretched on place by lines tied on sail rings. A typical error is to tighten those too much. Often an outside person sees the sail shape better that the canoe sailor himself, being too close to the sail. The best helper is a fellow canoe sailor.
Trimming the ACA sail: According to a Finnish ACA sail maker, Mr. Sam Hartikainen, the sail is trimmed in weak winds by tightening it relatively tight from the boom end and by leaving it quite loose at the gaff end. The boom downward pulley is left very loose except in high wind. This allows the sail to twist from the upper part (the up most batten is parallel to the boom) so that the wind exiting from the sail won't heel the canoe too much.
In high wind the sail is tightened on boom as a tight tube and at gaff end tightened to some extent. The boom downward pulley is tightened so that the boob bends. This flattens the sail and moves the bulb towards the leach. The purpose of these tricks is to de-power the sail.
6)that the rudder works and the canoe turns easily.
If the mast is located too much back, the rudder feels heavy. The rudder blade should be large enough and swim in sufficient depth to steer properly. Installing a larger rudder blade might help if turning the canoe seems weak and slow.
At first it might be difficult to get used to a right hand rudder. Small turning movements done all the time even on straight courses help to become familiar with the steering. The more you use the rudder, the more familiar you become with the steering.
7) That lee boards are properly attached to the pulpit or canoe sides and that there is enough friction surface between the lee board and the attachment point. The more friction, the less force needed to keep the lee board in down or upright position.
If the lee board screw tends to become loose (thus loosening the lee board), you might try the following tricks:
1. tighten the screw by a monkey wrench (attached to the canoe with a tied line).
2. put some plumber's white tape to the bolt threads. This increases friction and hinders the bolt from getting loose but not unfastening.
When sailing a canoe with two lee boards only one lee board is in water at a time the lee one. The other lee board is twisted to the horizontal position.
8)That the flow threads and wind indicator are working properly.
A nice wind indicator can be made by cutting two narrow ribbons, about inch wide and less than a meter long from a thin canvas. These are taped to the gaff end. The wind direction and direction changes can be read in real time from this wind indicator. It also shows changes in wind speed when gust hits the sail. In fact wind is constant in open sea only, whereas among islands the wind strength and direction changes all the time.
The wind indicator helps reading the wind - a must for canoe sailor trying to foresee the future and not be surprised by sudden wind changes. For example by looking the ripples on the water it is possible to estimate when a gust hits the canoe and from what direction. Or by keeping an eye on overcasting cloud in the blue sky when the sun is blocked by a cloud there is a local increase in wind speed and gusts.
A sailor should sheet the sail at a proper angle in relation to the wind. Looking the direction from the wind indicator the right angle can be found by slightly sheeting in the sail. With my own wind ribbon of 80 centimetres the right sheeting means a 15-20 cm difference between the sail top leech and the ribbon.
9)That the flow threads are in place
Some wise person mentioned that it is possible to sail around the world if there are a compass and flow threads in a boat. The direction is read from the compass and flow threads tell how the sail generates the maximum lift. I don't use flow threads with the ACA rig, but I consider the wind indicator a necessity.
Flow threads are about 15 cm long pieces of woollen thread or magnetic tape of a C-cassette, taped on each side of the sail with the duct tape. Two tapes of each side is enough.
One tape is attached slightly higher than the midpoint vertically and about 1/3 from the luff horizontally. The other thread is taped on the leach at the same height as the previous one so that it flaps freely behind the leach.
The threads show when the airflow the most important airflow at the back of the sail is strong enough and from the right direction. From the sailor's viewpoint the thread on back of the sail should point backwards horizontally and be pushed against the sail. The back thread should also point and flap backwards.
10) That the sail is sheeted correctly according to the wind and canoe
If you don't know the flow threads and their positioning it is better to ask the sail maker. Threads in wrong places are not useful. Nor you get any benefit if you cannot read the flow threads.
The most common error of a novice is to over sheet the sail. The trick is to sheet the sail only so much that the flapping stops. Trimming and fine tuning the sail with flow threads are issues only after you have learned the basics.
The other typical novice error is to sheet the sail too much in causing loss of lift and heeling forces. In the ACA canoe the boom end is never sheeted inside in gunwales. This is an issue only in very fast sailing boats and almost never happens with the ACA canoe.
As a summary of sheeting the sail we can say that over sheeting means loss of lift and unnecessary heeling. A loose sheeting with a maximum sail belly creates fastest speed.
B The canoe, heeling, sitting and dangling
The hull shape means a lot in sailing and this chapter takes a closer look on that. The hull affects on controlling and manoeuvring a canoe in many ways. The balance, steer ability and taking the waves depend on hull. When there is no other ballast in the canoe than the sailor himself, he must control the canoe by moving around and steering. All this can be adjusted by modifying the canoe hull to suit sailing.
The first rule of choosing the canoe and hull shape is that it should increase its righting moment when heeled. The stability is foremost a result of curvature of bottom ribs and secondarily of relation of waterline and gunwale widths. The gunwale width and the natural stability of a canoe can be altered by customising the canoe hull.
If the canoe hull is not completely flat (a form that should be avoided with sailing canoes), it sails best slightly heeled, meeting the balance between the heeling force and hull side buoyancy. Many canoes made with U-shaped ribs gain extra stability when heeled with wider waterline. A flat-bottomed canoe, such as Grumman aluminium, does not gain extra stability after heeling over certain angle but becomes unstable so that it is not possible to paddle or sail it safely other than in upright position.
Dagger Interlude is an example of a canoe gaining stability when heeling. It feels quite tippy when paddled by an inexperienced paddler, sitting on high bench, but sliding heeled it is extremely comfortable. The same applies to my Venla, a III B decked sailing canoe, that sails nicest in heavy wind heeled almost to the gunwale. Naturally a canoe gains more stability by lowering the seat or your center of weight, but this might not be sufficient alone to maintain balance in heavy and especially high winds.
What is the most common open sailing canoe in USA? In the open canoe competition of ACA the most popular hull is Mohawk Ultima, used by the most famous sailors. With length of 18.5 feet, made of plastic composite, MU is not the narrowest or lightest but it has proven to be the best all around canoe. Each autumn the ACA members usually order MU hulls without any insides from a small company as a combined order. The hull is widened to about 100 cm width on the gunwale. On this widened hull each sailor builds the decks, gunwales, thwarts, floats and possible seats to suit himself. Because the symmetry of the MU hull the same canoe can be used in both ACA and C-class races by changing the sail and rig. In ACA class an asymmetrical hull is allowed, in C-class no.
We try to import some MU's to Finland with help of the ACA, when a suitable low-cost shipping is arranged. Maybe after two years these canoes see action on out local racing courses.
The canoe over heel can be compensated only by moving the live ballast, the sailor himself on the side or even dangling over the gunwale. This needs the following tricks:
1)Heeling and maintaining the balance in an open canoe must be pre-thought and a seat is arranged on the gunwale, enabling the sailor to sit on when encountering strong wind or gust.
2)Even though the sailor would not constantly sit on side, he should sit in such position that allows a quick rise to the gunwale. I prefer a kneeled posture on a soft mat, leaning butt to the thwart back of me. If you sit firmly on the bottom of the open canoe, it might be impossible to move on the side fast enough.
3)The other possible and popular seat is a bench on the gunwale level or slightly lower, so that it enables weight shift on the side fast. The higher the seat the grater is the effect of moving the living weight (the center of weight should be as far away from the canoe's rotational axis as possible).
A decked sailing canoe can be heeled more than an open canoe: waves and spray don't flush to the cockpit the same way. But a decked canoe allows less movement space for the sailor. During the last 120 years different solutions have been developed to solve the dilemma of weight shift in a decked canoe:
1) In a small decked sailing canoe like Mira a sit board is build on the deck. The sailor sits on this all the time steering and adjusting sails.
2) In a bigger decked canoe, like the III with a wide side deck, the sailor sits on this doing the necessary chores from there.
3) In a fast IC-class canoe there is a sliding seat that can be extended 150 cm overboard. When the wind pushes a 10 m2 sail on a high mast, the sailor hikes to the end of the sliding seat, even reaches over it to maintain the balance. When coming about the sailor throws the seat to the other side and dives under the boom to sit on the seat again.
Sitting on gunwale or high seat when sailing is not such a bad idea since elevated you have good visibility and evade most of the sprays. After getting used to the position, you are always prepared to the gusts. If I'm sailing the III with a friend, he usually sits on the side deck keeping the canoe in balance and sheeting the mainsail while I'm concentrating in steering and looking out by using the cockpit seat.
A sailor must learn the behaviour of his canoe and know its heeling limit in an open canoe the limit is reached when water starts flowing in. Heeling or taking in some water is not dangerous unless it happens suddenly or the skipper is unable to respond by moving his weight to the side. Naturally too much heeling takes its toll on steer ability and speed. Heeling angles over 30 degrees tend to hinder sail and keel efficiency.
The other rule of stability is: the more flat-bottomed and shorter the canoe is, the less it tends to hold its direction. A short flat-bottomed vessel, such as a sailing canoe with one sail or dinghy, may turn almost sideways by waves, wind and steering error, being near capsize then. This can result from the canoe's position on wave top, both bow and stern out of the water. A long canoe with U- or V-shaped bottom holds its direction better even when heeled. If the canoe has two masts with sails near the hull ends, it is even more direction stable and easier to sail than one masted canoe.
Trimming the hull: Your best option is to choose a canoe with a low V-bottom or a round U-curve. The speediest canoe is the one with narrow waterline width combined to a wide gunwale. The wider the gunwale the better it works as a sailing canoe contrary to the paddling canoe. The gunwale height is not a bad thing since a high-sided canoe can be heeled more than a low one. If gunwale height is an option, choose the high one.
A plastic open canoe can be widened to almost any width by changing the thwarts to wider ones, so that it offers more stability when heeled. Widening the gunwale has also the benefit of curving the keel slightly, that makes the hull more responsive to oncoming waves and the canoe easier to turn.
When trimming the hull, you must consider the class regulations, that must be obeyed in ACA and C-class competitions. The waterline width (measured 10 cm above the keel) must be at least 71 cm ( a rule that is usually always met in commercial hulls). The other rule says that the waterline width should be at least 88% of the canoe's maximum width (usually at gunwale) So if the waterline is 71 cm wide, the maximum width may be 80.7 cm at most. With a 75 cm waterline the maximum width would be 85 cm at most and so on.
Since all canoes differ from each other, start by trimming your one. Measure the waterline width and widen the gunwale as you please. The width can be measured approximately from inside by putting plank of 95 mm height (supposing the bottom of 5 mm) and by measuring the width with two bars on top of the plank. Simultaneously the hull curvature (before and after the widening) can be measured with a long bar.
It also pays to trim the canoe so that it moves straight at level. This can be done by moving the center of weight the sailor back of forth. The right spot depends on the canoe's speed. When the hull speed is reached at about 10 km/h the bow tends to rise and the stern lowers. It makes sense then to sit farther on the bow compared to lower speeds.
The flat bottomed canoe is also least suitable when sailing on swells. As mentioned earlier, there is a loss of course when the swell lifts both bow and stern out of the water. On steep waves the hull beats the waves losing its speed. Trying to plunge straight to the oncoming waves causes a light weight sailing canoe to halt easily, especially with a blunt bow. A straight hull combined with a flat bottom is the worst option here causing the canoe to beat the waves on spot. There should be some curvature of the keel that helps the hull to split the oncoming waves, avoiding the beating. In general it not a good idea to drive the canoe directly onto a wave, some angle helps to maintain the speed.
What options a sailor has to control the heeling? Here are two extreme ways to do it:
1. A fast sailing, taking everything out of the wind. In this scenario the sailor sits instantly on the side when the wind grows stronger and sheets out only when the canoe heels too much, takes in water or is near capsizing.
2. A light sailing. Here comfort comes before speed and the heeling is controlled by sheeting out instantly. If the canoe still heels, the sailor sits on side.
The racing sailors usually favour the first option, the tourers the 2nd. The light sailing works when beam reached but not when tacking, since the small sail must create lift and be tight in order to enable the necessary 45 degree close haul.
C Sailing beam reached
The beam reach offers the most comfortable sailing to the skipper. The speed is nice and the sail control is good. Almost any canoe with the slightest keel and sail can sail beam reached. The best place to practice is a bay with a steady, constant wind from the open strait. I have exercised with friends the beam reach sailing between two islands where winds are speedier and more predictable than on open sea. Here the islands form a narrow wind tunnel.
During this exercise the lee board is turned down and the canoe is sailed beam reached back and forth. Following issues can be exercised:
1. Setting the sail to create lift efficiently. Trying out different sheeting angles the basics are quickly learned.
Notice that the sail is tightened enough on the boom and the gaff is relatively loose. This way the sail curves enough and the top part of the sail is straightened out, with the to batten about parallel with the boom. The sheet line may be quite loose as well as the boom down haul.
2. A proper seat position on the canoe is searched, kneeled on the bottom or seated.
Which way is the mos comfortable? Which allow a rapid hike on the side if needed? Only by exploring the correct and natural spots, postures and movements, typical and different for each canoe, the correct sailing posture is found.
3. Sit on the side and try dangling overboard if the beam winds allow. Before long a posture allowing prolonged sailing is found.
I use thick floats attached just below the gunwales of my Dagger Interlude as seats. These allow comfortable sailing posture and offer support to the feet when dangling over the side. Dangling becomes a problem with a gusty wind, if the wind suddenly dies out and the canoe starts to heel on the weather side. A canoe should therefore have some foot supports such as dangling straps to prevent falling overboard and allowing retreating back on the centerline fast if needed.
D Making turns
Few evenings or even a whole week should be spent on practising turns to gain the routine needed. The most difficult are coming abouts, when the bow has to come through the wind to the other tack (with the boom on the other side). The problems relate to the too slow speed and loss of lift during the manoeuvre.
A large rudder is very important item in a sailing canoe, helping in coming abouts and by acting as an extra lateral foil preventing sideway drift in small speed. I noticed this during the ACA race of the Finnish championship contest in Lahti. In light winds a small rudder was not enough to make efficient turns compared to other race participants.
Even an experienced sailor might have trouble to make turns with a light canoe and wind. Therefore a paddle should be ready for use, to help to make the turn. Unnecessary waiting for the wind to do the trick causes loss of time and backward drifting. On narrow straits, tacking between islands that is a nuisance.
There are three kinds of turn:
1. Coming about. Tho bow comes across the wind to the new tack.
Because of the light mass and small inertia of the sailing canoe the coming about should be done during gusts. The sail has the maximum efficiency during the turn if there is top speed before the turn and the sail begins to create lift quickly after the turn. Further, if the canoe remains stationary, it lacks the manoeuvring speed and the heeling moment on the sail is greater. The goal is to gain enough speed for the turn and to stabilize the canoe.
2. A cow's turn. The canoe is turned downwind, gybed and sailed on the opposite tack.
3. A viking turn. The bow is driven against the wind and the canoe is turned to the opposite tack during the backward drift.
The viking turn may be difficult in tight spaces. It is useful only if turns are not needed often.
E Tacking, gaining height
When tacking the sail must be trimmed properly, in high winds it should be flattened. According to sail maker Sam Hartikainen this is done by tightening the the sail on the boom. The gaff end is also tightened to some extent and the boom down haul is tightened in order to bend the boom. These tricks make the sail flatter, cutting down the efficiency by some 30%, causing similar effect as small reefing. When sailing the sail is sheeted in tightly.
Coming about requires enough speed and the turn must be done fast. The sailor can help turning by using these tricks:
1. Just when the canoe's bow has crossed the wind, the sailor moves to the other side and grabs the boom pulling the sail with him. The wind hits the sail immediately forcing the canoe to turn to the other tack. After the turn the boom is released.
2. The course is lowered after the turn by sailing beam reached for a moment. After some speed is gained, the course is turned to close hauled.
3. The tacking angle of a sailing canoe is about 45 degrees, the same as that of dinghies'. Before a tack some landscape point (cabin, tree, flagpole etc.) is chosen from the side, with a 90 degree angle to the bow. After coming about the course is set to this.
Whatever the course, the sailing canoe is most stable with maximum speed. The heeling moment is small and the sail lift the greatest. The keel moving through the water stabilizes the canoe best in high speed and sailor finds easily the correct balance between heeling and dangling.
F Sailing downwind
Downwind sailing is easy for the beginner because of no steering problems and because the sail trim is not much of an issue. When sailing downwind the dominating factor is the sail area, its shape does not matter so much. In light wind keel or lee board is not needed in water and all sails can be set. Sometimes in long distance sailing I might read a book , have a comfortable position in the canoe and have some coffee from a thermos bottle. The problems come with the strong wind and swells.
In downwind sailing the boom down haul is tightened so that the boom would not rise and to maintain the maximum sail area. With the boom on side, the main sheet only is not enough to keep the boom down. The first problem is related to gybing.
a) a gybe is dangerous in high wind. The boom flies in a moment to the other tack, possibly surprising the skipper, sitting on other side. If the gybe is unintentious it is called accidental gybe.
b) The gybe should be done in a controlled way when the skipper moves to boom on the other tack changing position to the opposite side at the same time.
The second problem is caused by high swells when the canoe is on a wave top. The downwind speed of a canoe is about the same as the speed of the swells, so the canoe can stay a long time on top of a particular wave. Balance and course may be difficult to maintain. The result of this can be a broach sideways and a possible capsize. So the sailor must be vigilant when the canoe meets a wave or a wave the canoe.
The third problem is rolling of the canoe in the following wind. In the ACA rig the boom height is such that rolling does not usually force the sail to hit the water but this can be a problem with other rigs. Extreme rolling can lead to taking in water or capsize. One solution to rolling problems is to avoid sailing directly downwind but make a zig-zagged course. This stabilizes the canoe a lot, reduces rolling and the possibility of the accidental gybe as well. The gybes are done under control with skipper's helping hand. Zigzagging downwind courses are often seen in races.
G Maximal speed
After learning the sailing basics and getting used to the canoe, a sailor can start exercising getting the most speed out of it. At this point the sailor should be competent in following skills:
* setting the sail and rig for the current wind
* sitting on side balancing the canoe in a strong, gusty wind
* steering the canoe at the chosen course
* coming about without a paddle, not getting stuck in the wind
* can trim the hull so that the canoe always sails on its keel
The ideal wind of trying the maximum speed is some 5-6 m/s with no whitecaps. Even better is if a sheltered bay is found, allowing wind but protecting from the waves.
Two kind of exercises are recommended for speed practising and to gain maximum velocity:
1) tacking close reaching or sailing beam reached with sail's greatest effort
2) broad reaching
The relative wind is fastest when sailing close reaching or beam reached. The relative wind is result of the real wind and the speed wind created by the forward moving canoe. Broad reaching allow greatest speeds for a canoe or any sailing boat since extra benefit is gained from the following seas and small water resistance.
What can follow from fast sailing? A light sailing canoe can surf on following waves and momentarily increase its speed. With enough sail area and lift and with a right kind of hull a canoe can plane as well, reducing the wetted surface.
The ability to plane depends on the hull shape (usually a dull V-bottom), sail area and the relation between the canoe's weigh and the sail area. Open canoes such as ACAs or C's almost never plane because of the small sail and hull shape. All sailing canoes can sail relatively fast because of their favourable weight relative to the length, faster than some bigger sailing boats. For example:
1) My III canoe Venla (520 x 100cm, 115 kg and 7.5 m2 sail area) has the top speed of 10 knots with one sailor and still 8 knots with a crew of two, even if it does not plane.
2) The smaller canoe Mira (395 x 78 cm, 40kg and 5 m2 sail area) sails 5 knots at most. It won't go faster but forcing it only causes the bow to dive deeper. 5 knots is still about one knot more than the hull speed of a vessel of similar size.
3) The IC racing canoe of the International Canoe Federation can reach speed of 27 knots, that is almost 50 km/h and it has circled a triangular track with an average speed of 16 knots, faster than any other single-handed sailing boat of one hull.
How fast an open sailing canoe can go who knows? Top speed of the ACA might be some 6-8 knots (11-15 km/h). The C-class canoe is faster because its biggest and more effective sail. According to Larry Haff they tended to evolve to 'small IC-canoes' with a top speed of some 10 knots (about 18 km/h).
By setting the sail correctly, taking everything out of the wind and dangling overboard the top speed of your canoe can be reached. If there are other canoes on water it is possible to compare what difference heeling and trimming the rig has. Canoe hull shape also has some effect, the longest hulls tend to be fastest when nearing the hull speed. Smaller can win races in lighter winds because of smaller wetted hull surface. Anyway the sailing canoe is still faster than any paddling canoe.
The maximum speed exercise can be done in lighter winds also. The goal is to find such combination of the canoe, rig and course that gives most speed. When you know how to sail in the most efficient way in each wind, you have achieved the exercise goal. It often happens in races and outings that light wind causes problems and then these exercises and experience gathered becomes useful.
H Two aboard
Sometimes you encounter the situation when there is a gast in addition of the skipper wanting to board the canoe. To safely enable this there are two things: first to equip the canoe for two persons and to agree on tasks during sailing.
Equipping the canoe means that there are seats for both and first and foremost enough room for both. Because the canoe's center of weight is easily altered, seats should be arranged so that the COE does not become unsuitable. If the open canoe is wide enough, both can sit under the pulpit (the lee board thwart). If this is not possible the gast can sit in the bow on the bottom, in front of the mast, for example. If this brings too much weight on the bow, some extra ballast, such as water tanks can be added on the stern.
In some decked sailing canoes two persons is simply too much, because of the lack of room. But on others the crew of two has been the design default, like in III canoes. Even the largest decked sailing canoes have cockpit of about one meter, which is tight for two, but plenty of room on deck. So decks are natural seats for both sailors. It is a good practice for the other sailor to sit on the side or on the front deck, dangling for balance while the skipper steers, looks out, keeps an eye on the wind and orders the other to set the sail. Actually the lower seat is a better vantage point, because of the clear line of sight below the sail and boom. A window can also be added to the front sail to evade closing traffic or other competitors in race.
The sharing of tasks during the sailing depends on the gast's sailing experience. If he is a first-timer, it is better to use him as a ballast on the canoe's bottom. In weak wind some task can be given to the gast, steering for example according to skipper's instructions. Somebody has to constantly know what the plan is be in charge of the ship, its cargo and security. This is the task of the skipper and cannot be delegated to someone else.
A more experienced gast can be given more responsibility. He can sheet the sails according to your instructions but don't suppose he knows why a sail should be sheeted like that unless he is a member of sailing community.
An experienced pair of sailors sail efficiently and enjoyable and not much words or commands are necessary, each of them does the necessary chores while the skipper maintains the overall responsibility. The most common word used by an effective pair is tack so that both can shift to the other side and look out the boom.
As mentioned before, a gast usually sits on side when sailing a decked sailing canoe. The gast usually holds the main sheet in hand so that the skipper don't have to do the sheeting and the gast has some line in case he drops overboard. The skipper has tasks of his own like looking out, sniffing the wind and choosing the course. If the weather allows it might be possible to smoke pipe, drink coffee and eat sandwiches. If a strong gust heels the canoe despite the efforts of the gast, it is time for the skipper to hike to the side himself.
Since sailing duet is incredible nice, the sailing canoe should be equipped for two persons right from the start. For example in ACA race there is no crew limit, so it is possible to sail alone or with a gast. For the younger generation it might be exciting experience to take part in an outing or race with a parent. There are usually not many complaints by a girl- or boyfriend either.
I Exercise log
If you want to know your canoe really well the exercises should be done systematically. Learning to handle one's own canoe requires some 20 hours by my experience, that much time is needed to try out and learn all the tricks.
One way to acquire the necessary hours and experience is to do a long outing. During the journey all kinds of weather are met and you learn everything by the hard way. At first it is good idea to evade bad weather by staying in tent, camping ashore and sailing only when the weather allows. Later with some experience harder conditions can be tried out. After a week no weather does not seem so bad. If doing an outing is not an option, exercises can be done during day sailings when time and weather allow.
An exercise log? Here is part of my sailing/exercise log during the 10 first hours with a new canoe. I tested and practised with a new ACA canoe build from the Dagger Interlude for the Canoe Club of Sipoo in June of 2002.
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Sun 4.8.
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1 h
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Canoe named and launched. Rigged in dim light of the falling night. Sailed a circle on the bay and observed the canoe. The boom downward pulley hits the sail hoist line. Attachment point must be raised and the reel moved away from the mast foot.
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Mon 5.8.
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2 h
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Cruising back and forth on the bay. Tried and watched the lee boards. Final tests, everything works as thought. The canoe is more stable than supposed, resists heels well. Heeling under control in gusts also.
Tried lifting force of the lee boards, one lee board in water is enough. Two boards make canoe to snake during tacking.
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Wed 7.8.
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1,5 h + 1 h +2.5h = 5h
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Did coming abouts. A light canoe usually comes to halt on wind. The turn is easier if helped by pushing the sail against the wind forcing the bow on the other tack.
In the evening went to a pancake outing to Furuholmen. A fleet of 15 persons in kayaks from SKK, many of them saw a sailing canoe for the first time. Wind 2-3 m/s from north-east. I was able to maintain speed of the rest of the fleet on open waters, on straits I paddled and was left behind. Arrived to Furuholmen some 50 meters behind the rest, the voyage took 50 minutes. At 22 pm started the return, the wind weakens and turns. Slow tacking in the end, paddled the last 500 m. On shore at 00 am
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Fri 9.8.
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1h 48
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Weak wind 0-2 m/s.
1) Explored the gaff bend (less than 10 cm, seems OK).
2) Explored the sail shape trying to reach the optimal shape for efficient lift.
3) Tried tacking angles on weak wind. Some 35-40 degrees.
4) Sailed boom in the middle, head on gunwale level to the course indicated by the wind indicator.
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A canoe sailor can keep the log whether he is on outing or day cruise. The most important events, phenomenas and experience gathered can be freshly logged on shore. You can also approach canoe sailing systematically by starting with the basics and ending at speed sailing. Proposals of repairs and adjustments, which easily accumulate with a new canoe during first few days are worth logging. You see how different parts work together only by launching the canoe and sailing in it.
In light wind there is plenty of time to watch and trim the III/C -sails Photo: Ilkka Luukka
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