Jezzz.... This is really useful. You should make it a channel feature. Short, sweet and to the point. I recently wanted a clip that covered polling out. All I could find was poorly edited ramblings. Do lots more, more, more.... Possible subjects... - Bleeding the fuel feeds... That's something one (but not you) needs to be able to do in a hurry. - Basic engine service..... ummm (1 and 2) you probably need to 'borrow' an engine. - Climbing the mast. - Polling out.... I'm still looking! - MOB practice. - Setting up a fishing line. - Prepping fish. - Leaving the boat... checks. - Splashing. - Pre haulout. - Passage planning essentials - Pilotage essentials The list could be endless. Easy to do videos with high consumer value. And, if you structure it right in the channel, a great reference source. BUT key for me is keep them short, sweet and to the point!!
Brand new boat owner. I have watched loads of animations on UA-cam but there's nothing like seeing it being done live. Thanks for this simple video which starts me off on my sailing journey.
My recliner doesn’t have any reefing points on it but I’ve manage to sail a lot of miles with you guys and always enjoy to tips. 😁 ! Fairwinds to you both
Nicely done video, I am quite comfortable with mast base reefing, although I would always clip a harness on my jackstays before going forward to work on the sails. A couple of comments. Cranking on the uphaul or topping lift makes it much easier to tighten the boom end line. Alternatively, if you have a boomkicker or solid vang letting the vang off a bit raises the end of the boom. It also insures against the boom crashing on the deck if the uphaul has been inadvertently left uncleated, it has happened! A 4:1 Cunningham tackle on an S hook simplifies the tack attachment, gives you some room to play with if the tack is hiding inside the sail cover, and also means you can drop the halyard to a pre arranged mark, cleat it straight away, then use the Cunningham tackle to tension the luff.
Nicely done. I found it helpful and to the point. I admire the standards for how things are stowed. Sudden weather changes can add a lot of stresses to taking a reef. Knowing what you are going to find when you reach for any rope on the boat adds to the safety of the boat. I liked every part of this video.
The only thing I do different is to tighten up on the topping lift before lowering the sail. I know that some people are happy to use the tension in the lazy jacks to stop the boom from dropping, but I prefer using the topping lift.
My Topping lift is set so the boom does not fall down on dodger. when the mainsail is properly set, it is loose. So I never really adjust it while sailing.
@@TarasKalapun I like that and will try it. The very first sail in my boat the pulley at the top of the mast ruptured and the boom did fall down on my dodger and bent the (aluminium) frame. Whoops :)
Topping lifts are for peasants!... www.boomkicker.com/ Jk, but these really are the cats meow and not that expensive and work so well and come with drills and taps should you need to thread a bolt in. Its a fantastic kit. When not sailing i take the main halyard to the back of the boom and take a bit of weight off the kicker and then i can tighten the main sheet and it keeps things pretty straight just like a topping lift would.
Great video. To ensure even tension on the length of the mainsail luff i winch the halyard on to the required tension and then tension the sail’s foot. Doing these two steps in this order avoids the risk of unnecessary outward lateral pressure on the sails lugs at the luff of the mainsail....(if you tension the reefed foot first)....
Many will probably comment on leading the reefing lines aft to the cockpit. Good to see you do your reefing at the mast. The system on my old boat is the same as yours and I wouldn't want it any other way.
Great video thanks guys! The only thing I like to do different is pulling the topping to release pressure on boom and reduce stress on main-sail. I like the way your reefing halyards are colour coded and setup!
I've watched a lot of videos by people who say they're presenting a "sailing course" and try to explain reefing, but fail. You guys explain each step clearly and don't leave anything out. Nice.
I didn't expect to like these little short videos. I'm all about the steps!! But these are awesome, and extremely useful. Thanks you two. That passage, man. I'm excited on your behalf.
I have a Nonsuch 22 (a single self standing mast "cat boat") so the reefing procedure is pretty easy and can all be done by one person from the cockpit in a few easy steps: 1) Slacken the choker line (that eases the wishbone boom) 2) Lower the main halyard partially 3) Haul in and cleat the reef 1 tack line 4) Retension the halyard 5) Haul in and cleat the 1st reef clew 6) Tension the choker (that tensions the wishbone boom and reshapes the sail) Love the channel - great work on the boat!
Man, are you two far now from" not buying a sofa" period !! From absolutely no experience - if I remember right - to show/educate us all on tricks, equipment et all. Bravo ! Et merci beaucoup !👍 BTW, because of you, this old dude (67) is looking for a small sail boat to learn and escape the house.😁 Retirement sucks... 😫
That was good information. The lines for my two reef points run to the cockpit, which is good but doesn’t eliminate having to go forward and along with the other halyards and sheets it can look a bit like multicoloured spaghetti if I’m not careful. Your system is clean and tidy.
That’s why we posted it on Monday. It’s not really an episode, but useful info on its own. Monday’s are sort of our “random video” day. If you can come up with. Better name, we’d be happy to hear it. ;)
Found it very helpful thank you. My wife and i will start sailing soon. We have a boat ive had before ee met but have only been abke to sail it a total of only 65h since 2018 that i bout it. Hopefully we finallyyy start very soon ⚓⛵🙏❤️
Great how to video. Thanks! I'm a rookie, just learning. It's always really helpful to see someone who's skilled not only talk through the task, but do it. We learn so much by watching that even the pro might not be aware of all the subtle things they're teaching us.
I've now got several thousand miles of sailing, some crossings (including the Pacific).... a lot of reefing, but also emergency 3rd reef work around in a storm (and snaking it back through the enclosed boom the next day.) On the 42' cat the first step was always, put some tension on the topping lift so the boom doesn't just drop. But my reefing experience is limited to a couple charters, my own boat and the cat. What I learned putting up a parasail many times is: Learn the method for your sail or gear . Look for the 'tips' (always ask the company who made the sail. Not everything makes it into the instructions.) Then have a discussion before and especially after every deployment, reef, snuff and stow until you learn all the angles. Then practice until you're smooth. Which seems to be where Dan and Kika are with their reefing here. An important part of reefing lines is finding out all the ways they can chafe when in use or not in use. We lost our third reef in a storm from chaffing that happened while it wasn't in use. We learned to let the reef lines fly loose behind the sail. Not fully sure about this yet. And do reef. I decided to figure out reefing on a 28' boat I'd chartered, what I immediately learned (15 knots of wind) was I didn't lose any speed (I wasn't in a race) and the boat sailed with comfortable, level decks. Everyone else out that day, all of whom had more experience, were leaning over. Maybe they were all posing for photos. But all their non sailing friends and family when they had to use the head, were learning they didn't like sailing.
Yip ! Very well done. I needed a quick review. Just bought a “small mini cruiser” (17’) .. Not had a sailboat ⛵️ under my feet 👣 in nearly 38 plus years. Nice 👍 to review a little refresher. Reefing same same (kind of) but parts n equipment upgraded n my 77 yrs old memories needed some jogging ! Thankz. Papa J
Great video as usual. No point of over powering the boat. Planning ahead is good. Sail along nice and easy. Love how everything is labeled on the mast and jam cleats. Neat and tidy makes for a safe boat !
That's very helpful! Thanks guys. The prestaged reafing lines And using a carabiner for a quick and consistent reefing procedure. The wind off the coast of New England is not normally forgiving nor predictable.
I've got a single line reefing system, with all lines led back to the cockpit. So I do much the same as you to begin with - ease off mainsheet, vang & main halyard. Then I just pull on my first reef line and it simultaneously pulls both the clew and tack of the sail down. After that, it's a case of retensioning the main halyard and back on with vang and mainsheet. One other thing that I've done is marked lines on the halyard and reef point to show where each of them should be tensioned to at both full sail and reefed position.
I see someone else has mentioned ‘topping up’ the Boom before releasing the Halyard. One more thing would be putting a quarter turn in the rope when recoiling the Halyard when stowing it. Or any other rope for that matter, so it doesn’t go into figure of Eights. Note:- Hold rope as you were doing but with your finger tips just roll the rope a quarter of a turn as you bring your hand back to make the coil. Try it it’s easier to do than to explain!!!
We have our topping lift set so the boom will never hit the dodger, so we don’t need to adjust it often. We also coil our rope in a figure 8 on purpose. It’s the same way all the pro racers coil line and prevents the line from binding or kinking when feeding it back out. You can even flake three strand that way for stowing anchor rhode and it will feed out of the locker like chain. Works great.
Me: "Hey Google what's a 'reef' in boating terms?" Google: Reefing is the means of reducing the area of a sail, usually by folding or rolling one edge of the canvas in on itself. The converse operation, removing the reef, is called "shaking it out." Reefing improves the performance of sailing vessels in strong winds, and is the primary safety precaution in rough weather.
Super Helpful!! Exactly what we needed!! We’ve only sailed with manual reef systems and our upcoming charter has this system, so now we know how it works! Many thanks!! Love you guys!!
I used an older Harken single line reefing system x 2. All lines go to cockpit. I marked my mast at the reef points so I can drop the main on target every time.
Good job. The only thing I would do differently is to wear a life jacket since, when you reef, the wind and often the waves are getting intense. Particularly if we are only 2 on the boat. Happy sailing
Nice explanation! I've got three reefs, with six lines going back to a bank of clutches on the cabintop roof that I can access from the cockpit. Super easy when you're single handing!
Just doing some viewings of Uma as she was the first days, weeks and months and I wish I had time to do a short film of her transformation! Guess in that story you and Dan are the elves!!!! Lovin it!
We have a Duncanson 29'6" with slab reefing, like yours, but loose vang, and we use topping lift to hold the boom up, ie: 1) sheet off, 2) main sheet lead to leward {forward steps, to lessen the rudder angle in big winds}, 3) sheet medium, {safety of crew with boom movement}, 4) vang off, 5) Topping lift TIGHT {our boom would fall if no topping lift tension, and no halyard tension}, 6)halyard Loose dropping the sail, 7) kunningham hook onto eye in luff, haul tight {don't have hooks, have a tack shackle}, 8) halyard tension, 9) reefing line tight, 10) topping lift off, 11) tidy up lines on mast step, as per penny Whiting video {coiled onto the halyard cleat, so easy to 'dump' in emergency}- rope "tail" from cleat grabbed and pulled under coil top and placed back on top horn of cleat (encapsulates coil on cleat)-flakes off clean,no twists, 12) sheet "on" to sailing trim, 13) adjust main sheet track to rudder angle/ angle of heel for comfort.
Hi Guy's we now have in mast reefing which we chose when we ordered Impavidus. Lots of reasons that make this the option for us and you really dont lose performance if you have the German twin sheet system and you know how to set a sail. Anyway, a top tip for you. Mark the halyard with indelible marker at the 1st, 2nd and 3rd reef points, do the same at the appropriate points on the reef lines. You will find this really helps with reefing using your system. Sail safe. Ant, Cid & the pooch crew xx
Complements for all your vids...I really like the way you two have the rig on the boat really squared away...and thanks for the reminder about low friction rings usefulness in reef lines....
Best system ever, simple, hard to break, no risk for anything to jam inside the boom nor the mast except the main hailyard, little risk to the sail, easy to execute single-handed, provided the boom is at a reasonable height and the vang well released. Many may say "it is dangerous to go to the mast". Well, in my humble opinion, if one fears to use a sailing boat as a sailing boat, which includes manoeuvring and interacting with the rigging, I highly recommand to use a motor yacht or to stay at home. Happy to see I young people using the good old methods (which I have used myself on several generations of fast crusers, always at the cutting edge of their time). Not elegant, not fancy, looking technically old... making feeling a bit "frustrated" not to be at the leading edge of the progress, but... you dont change something working so well since so long - in particular at my age - do you? Lonely greetings from the southern Seas!
At 1:43 it would be nice to see what actually is happening to the sail between step 3-5 when you pull in on reefing line. Many people, especially those with smaller or older boats/sails don't have fancy systems like that. They have to lower the sail and use the lines dangling from the sail to tie around, the sail section no longer being used. It would have been nice to hear a comparison of various ways people typically need to reef their sails. What probably helped people were the very basics that you first luffed the main, then lowered it. Then after you did your specialized reefing, you explained you then raised the main halyard again to tightening it.
The only difference in their system to the ones you describe is the stack pack and lazy jacks contain the loose sail as it is lowered so there is no need to tie lines around the section not being used.
You should always tighten the main halyard/luff prior to tightening the reef lines that run through the leach of the sail. Doing it the way explained in this vídeo may cause the main to blow apart and just not correct. I would delete this video and correct the procedure. I am an RYA Yachtmaster Instructor with vast experience and seeing these kind of mistakes is worrysome as people are following you
A similar setup on my Hallberg-Rassy 38, better in some ways and problematic in others. Firstly, everything on my boat is heavy with wire-to-rope main halyard, wire-to-rope outhaul, 14mm genoa sheets and the rest of the running rigging is 12mm - and it really needs to be. When I found her, she was setup for 2 reefs but I installed two more pairs of sheaves (now a total of 5 at each end of the boom) and a further pair of cam levers at the gooseneck end (making 5 in all). I've left reef 4 spare at this point because my 3rd reef is fairly high up and I'm going to run a line for my new storm trisail using the fourth reef fittings. Beyond that, reefing is pretty similar except I have to pull the main down as it's not as free as yours, and I have a rams horn arrangement at the gooseneck. Rather than a winch on the boom, I have one on the mast below the gooseneck and I winch in the appropriate reefing line outboard of the cam levers. Biggest criticism - that 3rd reef line is a mile long and, together with the second, you really have to watch things as the main comes down as the lines could take someone's head off, in the cockpit, if you don't watch out. But I mostly sail single-handed I suppose so it's just me at the mast. Other criticism - single-handing means I can't bring my boat up as high as you do as the rolling gets a bit much and I wish to stay onboard, so I reef with tension in the sail.
Do you want to talk us through why you don't lead the reefing lines and halyard and vang back to the cockpit? Would make it easier/safer especially on single-handed watches
Halyards It is commonly thought that all of the halyards should be lead to the cockpit. This is certainly true for the jib and spinnaker, but not necessary for the mainsail. The main halyard can be left on the mast because it is usually the first sail to raise and the last to drop. On most sailing days the singlehander will only raise and lower the main one time. As well the skipper will likely be at the main halyard when the motor is running and the boat is flat on the water. The main is probably the most physically difficult sail to raise in terms of weight so we don’t want to add extra turning points that require extra effort. Even in the worst possible weather, it is still safe to take the few steps from the cockpit to the mast to put in a reef. When reefing the main, the skipper must be at the mast to tie it up anyway. Having the main halyard right next to the reefing line on the mast is very convenient. It makes it possible to drop the main and tighten the reef lines from one position. One problem with having the main halyard on the side of the mast is the difficulty of reefing in a heavy wind when the halyard is on the leeward side. It is an awkward position if the boat is listing 45° while attempting to handle the halyard from the bottom side. In these cases I just tack so that I’m on the top again. Thoughts, Tips, Techniques and Tactics for Singlehanded Sailing Andrew Evans (I highly recommend this book: the newest version is not expensive from Amazon and an is version are available from the single handed sailing society's website. Great resource, great gift idea, etc)
mcsblues Great questions, I’m interested in that too. I’m from Sweden and here all boats (also old boats) lead the lines and halyard to the cockpit. Would be interesting to hear pro’s and con’s with that.
@@petervespae-biketours593 As I said below somewhere I suspect the major con apart from the extra cost is you end up with a lot of line cluttering the cockpit, but that's a trade off I'm happy with especially if I can sleep through someone else quickly safely and easily putting in a reef without help. A solid vang or the topping lift also led back would help also - that way you can just release the main halyard to a mark with no need to re- tension.
the most common reason given is that all lines let aft works really great until it doesn't, and then you're up at the mast anyway, only with more friction and tangle to deal with, and less experience to handle it. Second most common reason I think is that doing at the mast there's less friction and everything goes faster.
@@wilfdarr Hey thanks you..I Just bought a Hughes 30' Up in tobamorry Ontario Canada hopefully hitting the big shoot and take the Trent Canal to lake Ontario and down to warmer weather.. I'm a 35 year old single hander with cancer and this comment made my day.. So thanks again..Calm Seas
Pretty straight forward! Nice that your reefing lines only lead to the aft reefing point and the fwd reefing eye at the mast is clipped in with a hook. This reduces friction on the reefing lines a lot. I do not like these setups where the reefing line runs through both eyes. You may be able to stay in the cockpit when reefing, but it's so hard to pull it in and out. I've got a much smaller boat, two reefs but no reefing lines. At the mast I use a hook like you do and at the aft reefing eye I simply tie it to the boom with a short piece of rope, through the eye around the boom, then I detach the foot tensioner from the clew and attach it to the reefing eye, done. No need for any reefing lines hanging around and getting tangled, need to reach up to the end of the boom, but as said the boat is smaller.
Reeling Part1: Loosen tension on out haul. Part 2: Push button to activate in-mast furling motor. Part 3: re-tension out haul. Part 4: Resume drinking beverage of choice! 😃😃
All good until the motor does not work . I like the system they have because there is little to fail . It is tried and true and I have similar on my boat except the halyard does not tension the main the Cunningham does - loose footed at the mast .
How many videos on UA-cam do you want me to find of people taking literally days to fight a stuck mainsail out of the furling mast 😈 With electric winches its pretty much the same effort without the chance of Ringling Bros. showing up.
@@wilfdarr It does take considerable more caution and attention to detail to avoid a complete mess with in-mast furling, that is for sure. Especially so with some of the cheaper systems I have seen deployed on some boats. With that said, I was only playing with Team Uma in my over-simplification of my furling technique and I suspect they understood that. I have tremendous respect for what they have accomplished and how well they have upgraded their boat across all facets.
@@svZia-Switch51 Sorry, I understood your humour and I was being a bit cheeky too. Sorry if that was lost. I personally don't like roller furling anything, but I certainly understand the draw, and as long as they are well maintained I wouldn't ever fault a sailor for having them any more than a teak deck or brass fittings: I just don't like the extra work that stuff requires and am perfectly happy sailing a bleach bottle with hank on sails.
The way I do it is to go into the wind and tension the halyard to have the boom at center point. The reason for it is not to have to worry about the boom going from side to side on choppy waters. I've seen also a method when you go 35 degs to the waves/wind and trying to put the main down for the reef. I guess each method has it's ups and downs.
We like to reef while continuing to sail. We don't motor into the wind just to reef. We can reef and un-reef without loosing speed or maneuverability which is very important.
Just as you should with person-overboard drills (MOB), each of you should be able to rapidly reef without calling additional crew on deck. One very safe method for doing this is to heave-to and lock the rudder at an angle such that the boat sits well to the existing sea-state. This will depower the mains'l and flatten the boat so that one individual can go forward to the mast. The rest of the procedure would be unchanged (with the addition of a step for coming out of a hove-to posture), but the other crew member can maintain rest - which is clearly important if you're adding a reef! BTW, whenever possible (especially in traffic), heave-to on a starboard tack... providing you (as a sailing vessel) with a modicum of additional navigation "rights". Cheers, W
We reef exactly the same way.. only we have to do that twice. In some cases we lower the main al the way and skim along the waves with a small cutter sail and aft sail up.
I think this is quite a good solution to how to convert a roller reefing system to slab reefing, requiring not too much modification, basically just adding the reefing cleats on the main is all that is required. The low friction rings can be attached to the existing clew attachment point as you have. Avoiding using blocks makes it much easier, and I don't think blocks are really necessary there, all the tension is taken up by the main sheet, so low friction blocks are ok. What do you think about interweaving the reefing lines through the sail, then you'd end up with a Dutchman type reefing system?
We keep our leech reefing line installed, so our steps are: 1. Make sure the outhaul is tensioned. 2. Raise the lazyjacks since we "stow" them under the reef hooks while under sail. 3. Lower the mainsail halyard until we're at the desired reef point. 4. Tie in the midsail reefing ties along the sail under the foot, but not around the boom. 5. Attach the luff dogbone to the reef hook at the head of the boom. 6. Tension the leech reef cringle line. 7. Retension the mainsail halyard. 8. Lower/stow the lazyjacks. 9. Profit!
I'm curious to know. Do you leave the first reef in place if you are going to a 2nd reef. By that i mean the caribeaneer buckle. Or do you use a second caribeaneer for the second reef gromet on the sail ?
Hello from Canada. Great system for reefing in particular; color coding and numbering of your lines and clamps along with awesome line management fore and aft. When combined with excellent communication skills the result is safe and enjoyable sailing. Your method of explaining all sailing terms is first rate certainly one of the best I've used. Thanks from a newbie Prairie landlubber. Have been following you from day one thanks for taking me along and allowing me to sail vicariously with you.
Thanks to your video, I think I finally understand what reefing is. I googled parts of a mainsail to learn: The edges of the mainsail are called the leech, foot and luft. The corners the mainsail are called the head, clew and tack. Reefing points are grommets sewn into the leech (back) of the main sail. These reef points become the new clew (bottom corner) of the sail when the sail is lowered. So reefing is lowering the mainsail then using a grommet sewn into the back of the mainsail to pull the mainsail tight and keep it in a nice triangular shape. or in sailor talk Reefing is lowering the mainsail then pulling it tight by the reef point in the leech of the mainsail. "Reefing" a sail and "taking in a reef" mean the same thing. On simpler sailboats, the reefing points are a series of straps sewn parallel to the foot of the sail and are tied around the boom when the sail is lowered to "take in a reef". I hope I got this right because I have been wondering for years what exactly reefing is an how it is done.
Jezzz.... This is really useful. You should make it a channel feature. Short, sweet and to the point. I recently wanted a clip that covered polling out. All I could find was poorly edited ramblings. Do lots more, more, more.... Possible subjects...
- Bleeding the fuel feeds... That's something one (but not you) needs to be able to do in a hurry.
- Basic engine service..... ummm (1 and 2) you probably need to 'borrow' an engine.
- Climbing the mast.
- Polling out.... I'm still looking!
- MOB practice.
- Setting up a fishing line.
- Prepping fish.
- Leaving the boat... checks.
- Splashing.
- Pre haulout.
- Passage planning essentials
- Pilotage essentials
The list could be endless. Easy to do videos with high consumer value. And, if you structure it right in the channel, a great reference source.
BUT key for me is keep them short, sweet and to the point!!
Well said
Brand new boat owner. I have watched loads of animations on UA-cam but there's nothing like seeing it being done live. Thanks for this simple video which starts me off on my sailing journey.
I have my halyard marked at each reef point so I can quickly drop the main to the correct position and tighten just a bit if I need to.
Good idea
Great tip
My recliner doesn’t have any reefing points on it but I’ve manage to sail a lot of miles with you guys and always enjoy to tips. 😁 ! Fairwinds to you both
Great video Dan and Kika! Watching you guys discuss your process really shows how attentive you both are to every detail!
Nicely done video, I am quite comfortable with mast base reefing, although I would always clip a harness on my jackstays before going forward to work on the sails.
A couple of comments.
Cranking on the uphaul or topping lift makes it much easier to tighten the boom end line. Alternatively, if you have a boomkicker or solid vang letting the vang off a bit raises the end of the boom. It also insures against the boom crashing on the deck if the uphaul has been inadvertently left uncleated, it has happened!
A 4:1 Cunningham tackle on an S hook simplifies the tack attachment, gives you some room to play with if the tack is hiding inside the sail cover, and also means you can drop the halyard to a pre arranged mark, cleat it straight away, then use the Cunningham tackle to tension the luff.
Nicely done. I found it helpful and to the point. I admire the standards for how things are stowed. Sudden weather changes can add a lot of stresses to taking a reef. Knowing what you are going to find when you reach for any rope on the boat adds to the safety of the boat. I liked every part of this video.
nicely put...was thinking it myself!
The only thing I do different is to tighten up on the topping lift before lowering the sail. I know that some people are happy to use the tension in the lazy jacks to stop the boom from dropping, but I prefer using the topping lift.
My Topping lift is set so the boom does not fall down on dodger. when the mainsail is properly set, it is loose.
So I never really adjust it while sailing.
@@TarasKalapun I like that and will try it. The very first sail in my boat the pulley at the top of the mast ruptured and the boom did fall down on my dodger and bent the (aluminium) frame. Whoops :)
Topping lifts are for peasants!... www.boomkicker.com/
Jk, but these really are the cats meow and not that expensive and work so well and come with drills and taps should you need to thread a bolt in. Its a fantastic kit.
When not sailing i take the main halyard to the back of the boom and take a bit of weight off the kicker and then i can tighten the main sheet and it keeps things pretty straight just like a topping lift would.
If your jacklines are sufficient for that, then I see no reason not to have them do double duty?
@@wilfdarr It's probably 'force of habit' more than anything. I had the boat for 12 months before I installed the lazyjacks :)
Great video. To ensure even tension on the length of the mainsail luff i winch the halyard on to the required tension and then tension the sail’s foot. Doing these two steps in this order avoids the risk of unnecessary outward lateral pressure on the sails lugs at the luff of the mainsail....(if you tension the reefed foot first)....
Many will probably comment on leading the reefing lines aft to the cockpit. Good to see you do your reefing at the mast. The system on my old boat is the same as yours and I wouldn't want it any other way.
Amen.
Great video thanks guys! The only thing I like to do different is pulling the topping to release pressure on boom and reduce stress on main-sail.
I like the way your reefing halyards are colour coded and setup!
I've watched a lot of videos by people who say they're presenting a "sailing course" and try to explain reefing, but fail. You guys explain each step clearly and don't leave anything out. Nice.
I didn't expect to like these little short videos. I'm all about the steps!! But these are awesome, and extremely useful. Thanks you two. That passage, man. I'm excited on your behalf.
I have a Nonsuch 22 (a single self standing mast "cat boat") so the reefing procedure is pretty easy and can all be done by one person from the cockpit in a few easy steps:
1) Slacken the choker line (that eases the wishbone boom)
2) Lower the main halyard partially
3) Haul in and cleat the reef 1 tack line
4) Retension the halyard
5) Haul in and cleat the 1st reef clew
6) Tension the choker (that tensions the wishbone boom and reshapes the sail)
Love the channel - great work on the boat!
Man, are you two far now from" not buying a sofa" period !! From absolutely no experience - if I remember right - to show/educate us all on tricks, equipment et all. Bravo ! Et merci beaucoup !👍
BTW, because of you, this old dude (67) is looking for a small sail boat to learn and escape the house.😁 Retirement sucks... 😫
That was good information. The lines for my two reef points run to the cockpit, which is good but doesn’t eliminate having to go forward and along with the other halyards and sheets it can look a bit like multicoloured spaghetti if I’m not careful. Your system is clean and tidy.
wow short but great episode again Dan & kika, loved it 👍🌎⛵️
That’s why we posted it on Monday. It’s not really an episode, but useful info on its own. Monday’s are sort of our “random video” day. If you can come up with. Better name, we’d be happy to hear it. ;)
Found it very helpful thank you. My wife and i will start sailing soon. We have a boat ive had before ee met but have only been abke to sail it a total of only 65h since 2018 that i bout it. Hopefully we finallyyy start very soon ⚓⛵🙏❤️
Great how to video. Thanks! I'm a rookie, just learning. It's always really helpful to see someone who's skilled not only talk through the task, but do it. We learn so much by watching that even the pro might not be aware of all the subtle things they're teaching us.
I've now got several thousand miles of sailing, some crossings (including the Pacific).... a lot of reefing, but also emergency 3rd reef work around in a storm (and snaking it back through the enclosed boom the next day.)
On the 42' cat the first step was always, put some tension on the topping lift so the boom doesn't just drop. But my reefing experience is limited to a couple charters, my own boat and the cat.
What I learned putting up a parasail many times is: Learn the method for your sail or gear . Look for the 'tips' (always ask the company who made the sail. Not everything makes it into the instructions.) Then have a discussion before and especially after every deployment, reef, snuff and stow until you learn all the angles. Then practice until you're smooth. Which seems to be where Dan and Kika are with their reefing here.
An important part of reefing lines is finding out all the ways they can chafe when in use or not in use. We lost our third reef in a storm from chaffing that happened while it wasn't in use. We learned to let the reef lines fly loose behind the sail. Not fully sure about this yet.
And do reef. I decided to figure out reefing on a 28' boat I'd chartered, what I immediately learned (15 knots of wind) was I didn't lose any speed (I wasn't in a race) and the boat sailed with comfortable, level decks. Everyone else out that day, all of whom had more experience, were leaning over. Maybe they were all posing for photos. But all their non sailing friends and family when they had to use the head, were learning they didn't like sailing.
Yip ! Very well done. I needed a quick review. Just bought a “small mini cruiser” (17’) .. Not had a sailboat ⛵️ under my feet 👣 in nearly 38 plus years. Nice 👍 to review a little refresher. Reefing same same (kind of) but parts n equipment upgraded n my 77 yrs old memories needed some jogging ! Thankz. Papa J
Great video as usual. No point of over powering the boat. Planning ahead is good. Sail along nice and easy. Love how everything is labeled on the mast and jam cleats. Neat and tidy makes for a safe boat !
Very cool! I have a Precision 18 foot sailboat and this has given me some ideas to make my boat easier to reef. Thanks!
That's very helpful! Thanks guys. The prestaged reafing lines And using a carabiner for a quick and consistent reefing procedure. The wind off the coast of New England is not normally forgiving nor predictable.
Nice video. Could you let us know more detail how your low friction rings are set up and how your outhull is set?
Love these small tutorials on your boat. I'm looking into getting into sailing because of you two. Love your Chanel.
Wonderfully organized, colour-coded and all. Great advice. Thanks.
I've got a single line reefing system, with all lines led back to the cockpit. So I do much the same as you to begin with - ease off mainsheet, vang & main halyard. Then I just pull on my first reef line and it simultaneously pulls both the clew and tack of the sail down. After that, it's a case of retensioning the main halyard and back on with vang and mainsheet.
One other thing that I've done is marked lines on the halyard and reef point to show where each of them should be tensioned to at both full sail and reefed position.
This is how it is done! Well explained!
I see someone else has mentioned ‘topping up’ the Boom before releasing the Halyard. One more thing would be putting a quarter turn in the rope when recoiling the Halyard when stowing it. Or any other rope for that matter, so it doesn’t go into figure of Eights. Note:- Hold rope as you were doing but with your finger tips just roll the rope a quarter of a turn as you bring your hand back to make the coil. Try it it’s easier to do than to explain!!!
We have our topping lift set so the boom will never hit the dodger, so we don’t need to adjust it often. We also coil our rope in a figure 8 on purpose. It’s the same way all the pro racers coil line and prevents the line from binding or kinking when feeding it back out. You can even flake three strand that way for stowing anchor rhode and it will feed out of the locker like chain. Works great.
OK whatever suits you, I still think it wearied!!
Me: "Hey Google what's a 'reef' in boating terms?"
Google: Reefing is the means of reducing the area of a sail, usually by folding or rolling one edge of the canvas in on itself. The converse operation, removing the reef, is called "shaking it out." Reefing improves the performance of sailing vessels in strong winds, and is the primary safety precaution in rough weather.
Great production quality!
Super Helpful!! Exactly what we needed!! We’ve only sailed with manual reef systems and our upcoming charter has this system, so now we know how it works! Many thanks!! Love you guys!!
Thank you. I’m learning. 😊
I used an older Harken single line reefing system x 2. All lines go to cockpit. I marked my mast at the reef points so I can drop the main on target every time.
Good job. The only thing I would do differently is to wear a life jacket since, when you reef, the wind and often the waves are getting intense. Particularly if we are only 2 on the boat. Happy sailing
Nice sailing lesson Kika and Dan. The new dodger is really earning it's keep. Thank you and keep on having fun and showing us how you sail.
Nice explanation! I've got three reefs, with six lines going back to a bank of clutches on the cabintop roof that I can access from the cockpit. Super easy when you're single handing!
Thanks, this is so useful for new sailors like us!
More videos like this please.
Please/Thanks, more videos like these. You guys are awesome.
Noted 😉
Your systems are so dialed. Thanks for sharing. This is great and reflects excellent seapersonship. Well done.
Can't we say Seamanship now?
"Seapersonship" 😂🙄🤦
Just doing some viewings of Uma as she was the first days, weeks and months and I wish I had time to do a short film of her transformation! Guess in that story you and Dan are the elves!!!! Lovin it!
This video was indispensable...i think you guys ought to create 'how to sail 'videos.
Great Little video.. To the point.. Been cool to go into a little deeper into how you had the lines run, but a great start.. Thanks.. flk k
Exactly.
Great explanation, not a wasted word and extremely clear. Thanks.
Great system you have there, and thanks for the short, and sweet presentation!!!
Always love the how to videos thanks
Great video. Wish I knew what your talking about. Everybody always mentions reefing but I Still don't know what it does. Have a greeeeeeeat day!
We have a Duncanson 29'6" with slab reefing, like yours, but loose vang, and we use topping lift to hold the boom up, ie: 1) sheet off, 2) main sheet lead to leward {forward steps, to lessen the rudder angle in big winds}, 3) sheet medium, {safety of crew with boom movement}, 4) vang off, 5) Topping lift TIGHT {our boom would fall if no topping lift tension, and no halyard tension}, 6)halyard Loose dropping the sail, 7) kunningham hook onto eye in luff, haul tight {don't have hooks, have a tack shackle}, 8) halyard tension, 9) reefing line tight, 10) topping lift off, 11) tidy up lines on mast step, as per penny Whiting video {coiled onto the halyard cleat, so easy to 'dump' in emergency}- rope "tail" from cleat grabbed and pulled under coil top and placed back on top horn of cleat (encapsulates coil on cleat)-flakes off clean,no twists, 12) sheet "on" to sailing trim, 13) adjust main sheet track to rudder angle/ angle of heel for comfort.
Hi Guy's we now have in mast reefing which we chose when we ordered Impavidus. Lots of reasons that make this the option for us and you really dont lose performance if you have the German twin sheet system and you know how to set a sail. Anyway, a top tip for you. Mark the halyard with indelible marker at the 1st, 2nd and 3rd reef points, do the same at the appropriate points on the reef lines. You will find this really helps with reefing using your system. Sail safe. Ant, Cid & the pooch crew xx
Complements for all your vids...I really like the way you two have the rig on the boat really squared away...and thanks for the reminder about low friction rings usefulness in reef lines....
Best system ever, simple, hard to break, no risk for anything to jam inside the boom nor the mast except the main hailyard, little risk to the sail, easy to execute single-handed, provided the boom is at a reasonable height and the vang well released.
Many may say "it is dangerous to go to the mast".
Well, in my humble opinion, if one fears to use a sailing boat as a sailing boat, which includes manoeuvring and interacting with the rigging, I highly recommand to use a motor yacht or to stay at home.
Happy to see I young people using the good old methods (which I have used myself on several generations of fast crusers, always at the cutting edge of their time). Not elegant, not fancy, looking technically old... making feeling a bit "frustrated" not to be at the leading edge of the progress, but... you dont change something working so well since so long - in particular at my age - do you?
Lonely greetings from the southern Seas!
Thats was really helpful!!!!! ,just in the process of getting my boat ready to sail and I have a lot to learn!!! Thanks for the great vid.
That's a great system
I have no idea what any of this means... and I'm fascinated!
At 1:43 it would be nice to see what actually is happening to the sail between step 3-5 when you pull in on reefing line. Many people, especially those with smaller or older boats/sails don't have fancy systems like that. They have to lower the sail and use the lines dangling from the sail to tie around, the sail section no longer being used. It would have been nice to hear a comparison of various ways people typically need to reef their sails. What probably helped people were the very basics that you first luffed the main, then lowered it. Then after you did your specialized reefing, you explained you then raised the main halyard again to tightening it.
The only difference in their system to the ones you describe is the stack pack and lazy jacks contain the loose sail as it is lowered so there is no need to tie lines around the section not being used.
Your system is cool ! Almost like ours ! We have the auto-reffing système from Selden. All the commande are at the cockpit, ultra secure 👌🏼
You should always tighten the main halyard/luff prior to tightening the reef lines that run through the leach of the sail. Doing it the way explained in this vídeo may cause the main to blow apart and just not correct. I would delete this video and correct the procedure. I am an RYA Yachtmaster Instructor with vast experience and seeing these kind of mistakes is worrysome as people are following you
You’re right. We have no formal sail training or certificates, we just do what works.
Love these small details. Very useful!
Excellent. Great tutorial. Concise and to the point. well done.
A similar setup on my Hallberg-Rassy 38, better in some ways and problematic in others.
Firstly, everything on my boat is heavy with wire-to-rope main halyard, wire-to-rope outhaul, 14mm genoa sheets and the rest of the running rigging is 12mm - and it really needs to be. When I found her, she was setup for 2 reefs but I installed two more pairs of sheaves (now a total of 5 at each end of the boom) and a further pair of cam levers at the gooseneck end (making 5 in all). I've left reef 4 spare at this point because my 3rd reef is fairly high up and I'm going to run a line for my new storm trisail using the fourth reef fittings.
Beyond that, reefing is pretty similar except I have to pull the main down as it's not as free as yours, and I have a rams horn arrangement at the gooseneck. Rather than a winch on the boom, I have one on the mast below the gooseneck and I winch in the appropriate reefing line outboard of the cam levers.
Biggest criticism - that 3rd reef line is a mile long and, together with the second, you really have to watch things as the main comes down as the lines could take someone's head off, in the cockpit, if you don't watch out. But I mostly sail single-handed I suppose so it's just me at the mast. Other criticism - single-handing means I can't bring my boat up as high as you do as the rolling gets a bit much and I wish to stay onboard, so I reef with tension in the sail.
Have you ever thought about making a video of all your close calls while sailing the world? I love your videos!
Do you want to talk us through why you don't lead the reefing lines and halyard and vang back to the cockpit? Would make it easier/safer especially on single-handed watches
Halyards
It is commonly thought that all of the halyards should be lead to the cockpit. This is certainly true for the jib and spinnaker, but not necessary for the mainsail.
The main halyard can be left on the mast because it is usually the first sail to raise and the last to drop. On most sailing days the singlehander will only raise and lower the main one time. As well the skipper will likely be at the main halyard when the motor is running and the boat is flat on the water. The main is probably the most
physically difficult sail to raise in terms of weight so we don’t want to add extra turning points that require extra effort. Even in the worst possible weather, it is still safe to take the few steps from the cockpit to the mast to put in a reef. When reefing the main, the skipper must be at the mast to tie it up anyway. Having the main halyard right next to the reefing line on the mast is very convenient. It makes it possible to drop the main and tighten the reef lines from one position.
One problem with having the main halyard on the side of the mast is the difficulty of reefing in a heavy wind when the halyard is on the leeward side. It is an awkward position if the boat is listing 45° while attempting to handle the halyard from the bottom side. In these cases I just tack so that I’m on the top again.
Thoughts, Tips, Techniques and Tactics for Singlehanded Sailing Andrew Evans
(I highly recommend this book: the newest version is not expensive from Amazon and an is version are available from the single handed sailing society's website. Great resource, great gift idea, etc)
mcsblues Great questions, I’m interested in that too. I’m from Sweden and here all boats (also old boats) lead the lines and halyard to the cockpit. Would be interesting to hear pro’s and con’s with that.
@@petervespae-biketours593 As I said below somewhere I suspect the major con apart from the extra cost is you end up with a lot of line cluttering the cockpit, but that's a trade off I'm happy with especially if I can sleep through someone else quickly safely and easily putting in a reef without help. A solid vang or the topping lift also led back would help also - that way you can just release the main halyard to a mark with no need to re- tension.
the most common reason given is that all lines let aft works really great until it doesn't, and then you're up at the mast anyway, only with more friction and tangle to deal with, and less experience to handle it. Second most common reason I think is that doing at the mast there's less friction and everything goes faster.
@@wilfdarr Hey thanks you..I Just bought a Hughes 30' Up in tobamorry Ontario Canada hopefully hitting the big shoot and take the Trent Canal to lake Ontario and down to warmer weather.. I'm a 35 year old single hander with cancer and this comment made my day.. So thanks again..Calm Seas
I agree great talk. Could you discuss oat balancing sometime.
love your videos, have boat, and learning while having fun. I'm curious about the end of boom details on the reef?
Great little edit short and sweet
Very organized
That stakpack makes for some handy line storage at the mast!
Textbook. Added to my 'competent crew' playlist.
Pretty straight forward! Nice that your reefing lines only lead to the aft reefing point and the fwd reefing eye at the mast is clipped in with a hook. This reduces friction on the reefing lines a lot. I do not like these setups where the reefing line runs through both eyes. You may be able to stay in the cockpit when reefing, but it's so hard to pull it in and out. I've got a much smaller boat, two reefs but no reefing lines. At the mast I use a hook like you do and at the aft reefing eye I simply tie it to the boom with a short piece of rope, through the eye around the boom, then I detach the foot tensioner from the clew and attach it to the reefing eye, done. No need for any reefing lines hanging around and getting tangled, need to reach up to the end of the boom, but as said the boat is smaller.
Reeling Part1: Loosen tension on out haul. Part 2: Push button to activate in-mast furling motor. Part 3: re-tension out haul. Part 4: Resume drinking beverage of choice! 😃😃
All good until the motor does not work . I like the system they have because there is little to fail . It is tried and true and I have similar on my boat except the halyard does not tension the main the Cunningham does - loose footed at the mast .
How many videos on UA-cam do you want me to find of people taking literally days to fight a stuck mainsail out of the furling mast 😈
With electric winches its pretty much the same effort without the chance of Ringling Bros. showing up.
@@wilfdarr It does take considerable more caution and attention to detail to avoid a complete mess with in-mast furling, that is for sure. Especially so with some of the cheaper systems I have seen deployed on some boats. With that said, I was only playing with Team Uma in my over-simplification of my furling technique and I suspect they understood that. I have tremendous respect for what they have accomplished and how well they have upgraded their boat across all facets.
@@svZia-Switch51 Sorry, I understood your humour and I was being a bit cheeky too. Sorry if that was lost. I personally don't like roller furling anything, but I certainly understand the draw, and as long as they are well maintained I wouldn't ever fault a sailor for having them any more than a teak deck or brass fittings: I just don't like the extra work that stuff requires and am perfectly happy sailing a bleach bottle with hank on sails.
Brilliantly helpful-thank you!
Hey kids, that was indeed very informative and slick!
Excelent! simple and very well explained by steps.
Good one!
I understood about 4 words ya'll said.
The way I do it is to go into the wind and tension the halyard to have the boom at center point. The reason for it is not to have to worry about the boom going from side to side on choppy waters. I've seen also a method when you go 35 degs to the waves/wind and trying to put the main down for the reef. I guess each method has it's ups and downs.
We like to reef while continuing to sail. We don't motor into the wind just to reef. We can reef and un-reef without loosing speed or maneuverability which is very important.
@@SailingUma I agree. Good to know that there a different ways of doing it. Keep up the great content and sail safe.
Thanks for the little "how to" videos. More would be welcome, like how a winch works and how close hauled you can get for max upwind.
Cool thanks!
Dangit...thought it was a video about how to roll a joint. Still it was pretty cool. Thanks Uma!
Nice system, well done.
You should always tension the luff first then tension your leach. Less strain on the sail cloth and creates a nicely set sail.
Make it look so simple. Thx
Nice lesson, try to remember.
Just as you should with person-overboard drills (MOB), each of you should be able to rapidly reef without calling additional crew on deck. One very safe method for doing this is to heave-to and lock the rudder at an angle such that the boat sits well to the existing sea-state. This will depower the mains'l and flatten the boat so that one individual can go forward to the mast. The rest of the procedure would be unchanged (with the addition of a step for coming out of a hove-to posture), but the other crew member can maintain rest - which is clearly important if you're adding a reef! BTW, whenever possible (especially in traffic), heave-to on a starboard tack... providing you (as a sailing vessel) with a modicum of additional navigation "rights". Cheers,
W
Thank You very much! Perfect explanation.
Why do you leave the sail slack just hanging from the boom?
EXCELLENT video! Thanks.
We reef exactly the same way.. only we have to do that twice.
In some cases we lower the main al the way and skim along the waves with a small cutter sail and aft sail up.
I think this is quite a good solution to how to convert a roller reefing system to slab reefing, requiring not too much modification, basically just adding the reefing cleats on the main is all that is required. The low friction rings can be attached to the existing clew attachment point as you have. Avoiding using blocks makes it much easier, and I don't think blocks are really necessary there, all the tension is taken up by the main sheet, so low friction blocks are ok.
What do you think about interweaving the reefing lines through the sail, then you'd end up with a Dutchman type reefing system?
Precision Sails still has a link to this video👍
Nicely done!
We keep our leech reefing line installed, so our steps are:
1. Make sure the outhaul is tensioned.
2. Raise the lazyjacks since we "stow" them under the reef hooks while under sail.
3. Lower the mainsail halyard until we're at the desired reef point.
4. Tie in the midsail reefing ties along the sail under the foot, but not around the boom.
5. Attach the luff dogbone to the reef hook at the head of the boom.
6. Tension the leech reef cringle line.
7. Retension the mainsail halyard.
8. Lower/stow the lazyjacks.
9. Profit!
You might want to consider using a jibe preventer.
I'm curious to know. Do you leave the first reef in place if you are going to a 2nd reef. By that i mean the caribeaneer buckle. Or do you use a second caribeaneer for the second reef gromet on the sail ?
New to sailing, are you not supposed to tighten up the main halyard before you tighten the clew/reef one line?
Hello from Canada. Great system for reefing in particular; color coding and numbering of your lines and clamps along with awesome line management fore and aft. When combined with excellent communication skills the result is safe and enjoyable sailing. Your method of explaining all sailing terms is first rate certainly one of the best I've used. Thanks from a newbie Prairie landlubber. Have been following you from day one thanks for taking me along and allowing me to sail vicariously with you.
Thanks to your video, I think I finally understand what reefing is.
I googled parts of a mainsail to learn:
The edges of the mainsail are called the leech, foot and luft.
The corners the mainsail are called the head, clew and tack.
Reefing points are grommets sewn into the leech (back) of the main sail.
These reef points become the new clew (bottom corner) of the sail when the sail is lowered.
So reefing is lowering the mainsail then using a grommet sewn into the back of the mainsail to pull the mainsail tight and keep it in a nice triangular shape.
or in sailor talk
Reefing is lowering the mainsail then pulling it tight by the reef point in the leech of the mainsail.
"Reefing" a sail and "taking in a reef" mean the same thing.
On simpler sailboats, the reefing points are a series of straps sewn parallel to the foot of the sail and are tied around the boom when the sail is lowered to "take in a reef".
I hope I got this right because I have been wondering for years what exactly reefing is an how it is done.
no idea what any of the terms are but it was a good video
nice clear video. but Man! , those dodger windows! it's like they're not even there!
Nice, finaly I am learning stuff on this channel!