How to singlehand a Triton in small craft warning condition

[Triton106]

Hi All,

I often singlehand my west coast Triton 106 Blossom on the SF Bay. The condition on SF Bay is often challenging for a singlehander even with all of the helpful riggings. For example, Blossom is equiped with four self tailing winches, a Simrad 30 autopilot, lazyjack, all lines lead back to the cockpit.

This past Sunday, I went out on the bay again from Grand Marina in the Oakland estuary. I was immediately welcomed by 20+ knots winds gusting higher (I don't have a anemometer). I was on a broard reach and the Simrad simplly could not handle the condition. So I could not leave the tiller to adjust the sail, or clean up the sheets and miscellaneous lines all over the cockpit. I was not threatened in anyway but just the simple task of tacking is challenging.

I will very grateful if you can share your experience with me how you manage a situation like that and any tips or tools that I can use to help make it more managable the next time I go out by myself.

Thanks and best regards,

[Tim]

Autopilots are probably great and all that; I don't know because I've never sailed with one, ever. (They aren't of great use, in my opinion, in the lobster pot-strewn waters of Maine, where constant course changing to dodge the pots is de rigueur.)

But overreliance on an autopilot for all singlehanded sailing gestures probably leads inevitably to a situation where, when for whatever reason the device doesn't work properly, one finds themselves wondering how to proceed.

Singlehanding any boat when the wind pipes up can quickly become a fire drill. The smallest problems are exacerbated in unexpected ways. I don't think there are any magic tricks or tips to help with this situation, but some basic seamanship skills can come into helpful play.

First, safety first.

Second, reduce sail early, not late. Nothing calms down an overspirited boat in heavy winds like the proper amount of sail. And it's easier to reduce sail before it gets too windy.

Tritons in particular tend to sail at acute angles of heel and exhibit wearying weather helm. These traits make handling the tiller more of a challenge, but when sailing alone you need to learn how to use your feet, hips, knees, what have you to hold and/or move the tiller as necessary while you use your hands to adjust sheets, tack, or whatever. This is a reality of singlehanding that must be mastered, all the more so if you're used to relying on an autopilot to do the dirty work.

You can't always do everything in a blow without sometimes needing to stop the boat. Reefing, for example, is often safest (when alone, in particular) to come head to wind, roll up the jib (you DO have roller furling, don't you?), and deal with the main.

A well-designed reefing system for your main is a must for singlehanding. It should be quick and easy to deploy, and both ends should, in my opinion, be handled from a single location. If your lines are led aft, how do you hook your reefing cringle on the tack hook, or do you have a reefing line system for the luff as well as the leech? Aft-led lines are only good if everything is there. If you need to go to the mast to hook a reef in place at a tack hook, aft-led reefing lines and halyard do you no good whatsoever.

Heavy air sailing is really all about having the proper amount of sail up. Boats that are uncontrollable in heavier winds simple have too much sail up for the conditions. Sailing with the rail submerged and full sail in a blow might be a romping fun good time when there are other people on board, but by yourself this sort of situation is unhealthy. Reef early and often. Reduction in sail will ease the pressure on your rudder and make steering easier--and might even allow the autopilot to take control again, if you desire.

Beyond these basics, it's really just about experience and comfort level on the water and on your boat in particular. Experience only comes with experience, and each sail you take, however imperfect, adds to your repertoire.

[Peter]

IMHO:
When caught in a sudden blow I usually pull up close hauled so I can easily spill wind from the sails in a gust.
Some advice that helped me greatly was learning to put a "twist" in the sails to dump some unwanted drive. This allows time to get things under control if it sudenly blows up.
By moving the traveller all the way to windward, and easing the sheet until the luff is just stalling, a lot of the upper area of the main is neutralized.
Same with the jib: move the sheet block aft so the sheets are pulling harder on the foot than the leech, allowing the head to twist off and spill wind.
Practice reefing in moderate conditions, so the procedure is familiar and comfortable.
I agree with Tim, roller furling is very helpful.
Another valuble resource in a blow is to learn how to 'heave to'. Every boat does it differently so I won't go into details. It gives you time to sort things out and make a plan of action,... and use the head :-)

And I confess: I have an autopilot ... and a windvane ... and a spare autopilot.

[Tim]

I certainly didn't mean to imply that there's anything wrong with autopilots: there's not. The fact that I've not happened to sail on a boat with one, despite 32 years of sailing, is reflective only of my sailing location and the particular boats I've been on, not because of any inherent dislike of autopilots. There are times I'd like one, but I can't justify one given how limited the usage I'd get out of it under my current sailing situation.

As with all electronic wonders, though, one should always know how to handle things if the magic box doesn't do the trick!

[Ganges #363]

A couple of things you might try on days when you expect a lot of wind.

Sail with a working jib...you can point higher because the closer sheeting angle (inside the spreaders), and it's easier to tack. If you have a roller jib setup, have a luff tape installed on your working jib. Let the racers deal with the larger jibs on windy days.

Reef at the dock...it's a lot easier to reef there, and easy to take out if not needed later.

A 'fisherman's reef'....pull the jib in very tight, luff the main slightly. Closes off the slot. Really only good as a short term fix, though.

The Triton is a very easily driven hull, doesn't need a lot of sail area to move it to its potential. Check out James Baldwin's logs, he has made lots of miles in stiff breezes with a small jib and double reefed main.

Bill
Ganges #363

[Triton106]

Hi All,

Thanks for your helpful tips. I have some follow up questions which I hope you can help me with. But first some additonal info. about Blossom and the area where I sail:

a. It has a Harken roller furling system and it works very well.
b. I typically just use a working jib (110?) and most of the time I put in one reef in the main before I go out.
c. The main reefing system is hooks on the tack and clue reefing line is led to base of mast so everything is done at mast when reefing.
d. In spring, summer, and fall the typical condition in SF Bay Area is 15-25 knots with gusts in slots that go up to 30+.
e. The condition in the Oakland Estuary is usually fairly benign. I often adjust main reefing (either take one out or put one in) while transiting from it to the Bay.

With that my follow up questions are:

(1) Does adding an tiller extension help? What's your experience?
(2) Is it normal that autopilot can be overwhelmed even when I have two reefs in the main in 20+ kt wind?
(3) What is the typical heave-to setup on Tritons? I tried several times only succeeded a couple of times. Last weekend I had the jib backed but the boat still fore-reaches at about 2kts.
(4) When heaved-to how does one put in a reef in the main?
(5) Can I just let the main and jib luff while putting in a reef?

Thanks again for all your help. I have got a lot to learn.

Best regards,

[Tim]

Personally, I love tiller extensions and always sail with one. I just like the feel and motion, and don't really like reaching in to centerline to hold the tiller. Every time I sail a boat without an extension I have less fun. But that's just me.

I think boats like Tritons can easily overwhelm a lot of tillerpilots. Tritons are heavy for their size, and have a lot of weather helm in general. But I don't have any direct experience here. I do know that most tillerpilots seem to break their model lines right at 28-30', and in general I feel the larger, more powerful ones are better suited to the Tritons characteristics.

You can let the sails luff while reefing, but luffing jibs are so annoying that it's nicer (in my opinion) to just roll it up and have it out of the way, and avoid banging sheets and cringles. It's so easy to do; why not.

You said all your halyards lead aft; does that include the main halyard? I think having all the control lines in a single place makes the most sense. If you need to to the mast to control your reef lines and luff cringle/hook, you ought to have the halyard right there too, not in the cockpit. One stop shopping, as it were.

20-30 knots true is plenty of wind by any standard. It's a challenge sailing by yourself in this sort of true breeze. Take your time and learn the basics of your boat under more benign conditions, and you'll find that the heavier air is correspondingly easier. But it's a lot of wind, and since Tritons will often be at 20-30 degrees of heel in that wind your job is that much harder.

[Bluenose]

I am really enjoying this discussion. Thanks everyone.

I prefer to reef while sailing and heeled rather than luffing into the wind. What I do is fall off to a close reach on a starboard tack and let out the mainsheet until the boat is very well balanced. If my timing is late I will likely need quite a "bubble" in the main to balance the helm. I can then go forward and tuck in the reef. Sometimes I need to go back and correct the helm, but not if I have been practicing my reefing. I find that this system has a couple of advantages. First my boat is well balanced and set up to course correct to a point. If she falls off the main fill and she rounds up. If she comes up the jib starts to luff and falls off. Second by having the main on a reach and slightly under trimmed I find it easier to reef since I can easily lift the end of the boom up to the clew (I don't know if the weight of the Triton boom would allow this) since the main is not as sheeted down tight as it would be close hauled. Then I take in the tack and raise the halyard.

I think I remember (please correct me if I have this wrong) reading that Rod Stephens suggested that if you can't tuck in or shake out a reef in less than a minute you systems or process isn't efficient. Having tucked in and shaken out a reef 4 times on one tack while singlehanded last summer with a crappy system I intend to put a lot of though and practice into my new system. I don't know if I can be that quick but maybe.

I do know that I don't care for single line reefing or leading reefing lines aft. I find that I am most comfortable working at the mast on the high side of a heeled boat.

[Hirilondë]

1. Does it help do what? I like one, for the same reasons Tim does. I have a wheel on my Renegade, but I use the extension on my 9 ft. dinghy and I rarely hike.

2. Yes. The electrical demands of a motor strong enough to never be over powered would be prohibitive on most boats under 40 feet.

3. Not sure I understand the question.

4. I sail under jib with my wheel locked with a bit of weather helm on a close reach while I reef. All my lines are at the mast.

5. A flogging jib drives me nuts. Sail or roll it up.

[Ganges #363]

Ray,

The of the great thing about sailing is difference of opinions about how to do things. The answer is...there is more than one way to do almost everything on a boat. Try things out and see what works for you.
Here are my thoughts, I'm sure others will have theirs:

1. Tiller extensions let you face forward more easily, and can ease your arm/shoulder by not requiring your arm to be extended for long periods of time. Some people feel like they can make small steering changes more easily when using one.

2. I've never owned an autopilot, but my impression is that when they suggest size of boats for use, they use length instead of weight. And I think they are assuming a light, fin keel, spade rudder design. Given the weight and long keel of Tritons, plus the keel hung rudder, you should go up a least one suggested size for the autopilot.

3. Nothing wrong with fore reaching at 2kts, just check your course frequently (and for traffic). Heaving to doesn't necessarily mean 'stopping'.
Sounds to me like you have very successfully hove to. And keeping the jib up hove to keeps the boat under control, and it's much easier to get back underway when your reefing is completed. I prefer that to rolling it up. A large jib should be partly rolled though, or it will take over the boat.

4. Do it the same way you would at the dock, except let the main all the way out so there is no tension on it. Make sure you have the boom supported so that you're not using the sail to pull up the boom on the re-hoist...bad for the sail. The boom should be topped up slightly before you begin reefing, only relaxed after the reef is completed. I lower the sail to the reef cringle, attach the hook, retension the luff, then pull in the leech. Relax the topping lift (if used) and go back to the cockpit...get underway. Make sure your boom vang is slack before you start reefing...if you can't pull the boom back up when reefing, you've probably left the vang on. Release the vang on your way to the mast, re-tighten it after you're reefed. It's easy to overlook.

5. 'Luffing' in that situation is really 'flogging', and nothing takes the life out of a sail faster than flogging. Backing the jib, or rolling it up, is required. (I prefer backing). Some flogging of the main may be inevitable as you go forward, because you want all the tension off the sail. But try your best to have it flog as little as possible.

By the way, a 110 is not a working jib...it's a 'lapper' (overlaps the mast slightly). A working jib is no more than 100%, my choice would be 90.

All good questions, consider all answers and try them out for yourself.

Bill
Ganges #363

[Triton106]

Tim wrote -

You can let the sails luff while reefing, but luffing jibs are so annoying that it's nicer (in my opinion) to just roll it up and have it out of the way, and avoid banging sheets and cringles. It's so easy to do; why not.

Great tip. Why didn't I think of that?

You said all your halyards lead aft; does that include the main halyard? I think having all the control lines in a single place makes the most sense. If you need to to the mast to control your reef lines and luff cringle/hook, you ought to have the halyard right there too, not in the cockpit. One stop shopping, as it were.

No, the main haylard and topping lift lines are led to the cockpit. So there is no one stop shopping for me. My steps are: (1) ease the main, raise the topping lift, ease the boom vang, (2) run up to the mast, hook on the tack (often have to struggle because the boom needs to raised up on the goose neck track), (3) sheet in the clue, (4) run back to the cockpit, crank on the main halyard, let out the topping lift, (5) run back to the mast base and tighten up the main down haul, (6) tidy up the reefing ties on the way back to the cockpit, (7) clean up the sheets in the cockpit that now look like a snake pit, (8) exhausted and pray that I don't have to repeat it again.

Hilironde wrote -

3. Not sure I understand the question.

My third question was -

3) What is the typical heave-to setup on Tritons? I tried several times only succeeded a couple of times. Last weekend I had the jib backed but the boat still fore-reaches at about 2kts.

What I meant is what is the typical Triton heave-to setup - i.e. with main sheeted in tight? Tiller hard over to the lee? With jib or without jib?

Bill wrote -

Make sure your boom vang is slack before you start reefing...if you can't pull the boom back up when reefing, you've probably left the vang on. Release the vang on your way to the mast, re-tighten it after you're reefed. It's easy to overlook.

I learned it the hard way and it was witnessed by a friend struggling with the topping lift and cursing. Sure made me look silly. I don't forget it now.

Thanks all for the good advice!

Best regards,