Reefing Habits and Experience

[Editors]

Do you reef often? Do you have a reefing system in place and ready to employ (jiffy, single line, roller reefing, etc.) Feel free to elaborate with details by posting below.—Eds

[wdscobie]

on SWEET PEA, my M17, i have a double-reef-point main. basic system:

*luff main (as i single-hand most of the time i'll just hove-to)
*loose main halyard and drop main to reef point tack
*lift boom end to reef point and pull single line to snub-down reef point clew.
*snub down tack
*tie off cringles
*haul up the main halyard
*come out hove-to

the above took longer to type than to do on the boat.

[Michel]

I also have the basic reefing system on Mari-Bell, my Sandpiper 565.
I have double reefs possibility but I used the second reef only a few times in six years. It was really blowing on these few occasions.
I simply hove-to and it takes a few minutes to do the task.

[Tim]

On the Ariel and Potter 19 I have a two point jiffy reef set up, which has been used on the SF Bay, Monterey Bay and Salish Sea.

The CD Typhoon has roller boom reefing which I have yet to use, but will probably switch it out for jiffy.

[frank!]

single speed bikes were for poor kids!

i fondly remember the joy of cruising a 10 speeder ....

ya gotta be able to switch gears! and not just going up with gennies and spinnakers (and topsails), but down.....

i find the need of a really good blade jib and, in a small boat, the ability to take in half to 2/3 of the mainsail.

double the windspeed 12kts to 20+ quadruples the power! - hence 1/4 sail area of a nice day needed.

{conversely @ 6kt breeze, a spinnaker 4x could be carried .... }

stay warm,
frank