Strong wind survival at Rooster sponsored Laser event
by Steve Cockerill, Rooster Sailing 26 Jun 2008 15:14 BST
22 June 2008
Sailing at the Rooster Sailing sponsored Laser and Rooster 8.1 Opens at Hill Head Sailing Club on Sunday 22nd of June was a little exciting, see picture attached. Understandably there were no Rooster 8.1 entries - if I had a 4.7 rig I might have been tempted!
With winds in excess of 28 knots as we launched, and topping 37 knots during the first and only race I knew I might do some swimming but I was relatively relaxed as it was an onshore breeze and so if it got unmanageable I could just undo the mainsheet, let the sail flap in front of the mast and point my bow at the shoreline.
I was also confident that, if I were involved in a capsize which ended up with the rig to windward of the hull, I was practiced in the safe 'San Francisco roll' capsize recovery technique described here at Rooster Sailing's Hints and Tips page. I had learned the hard way whilst a Europe Sailor that when in very strong winds, the hull of the boat is often blown downwind of the rig. Then when you try and right the boat the conventional way, there is no safe way to scramble into the boat fast enough to avoid a second capsize; which commonly becomes a turtle. I describe a couple of these capsizes linked together as 'the washing machine effect'.
Now that the waters are starting to warm up, take a moment to try out the San Francisco Roll drill. I have been known to teach it to a sailor by first demonstrating the technique while they float at the bow of the boat and then swap round and act as safety and encouragement. Its always nice to choose a warm evening in lighter winds. With any luck they quickly gain in confidence and are able to use it when they need it. The best part is teaching someone to be safe in extreme sailing conditions. If you ever come across a sailor who is in a dilemma about going sailing in strong winds, just ask if they can do the San Francisco Roll, it might just be one thing that encourages them to make the correct decision.