Sailing boat

“ A sailing-boat is so constructed as to resist this tendency to capsize. Either she is made narrow and deep and is weighted with ballast as far as possible below the water-line, or she is shallow but of considerable beam. The deep and weighted boat will heel over more readily than the beamy shallow boat, but the further she heels the greater pressure of wind is necessary to make her heel still more, for the leverage of her ballast increases as she heels, and many boats with lead upon their keels are practically uncapsizable. ”

“ How to Sail a Boat
If you fasten the bottom of a kite to the ground, you will find that the wind will do its best to blow the kite over, and if the kite is fastened to the mast of a toy boat, the wind will try to blow the boat over.
In sailing a boat the effort of the wind apparently has but one object, and that is the upsetting of the boat. The latter, being well balanced, is constantly endeavoring to sit upright on its keel, and you, as a sailor, are aiding the boat in the struggle, at the same time subverting the purpose of the wind to suit your own ideas. ”

“ TAKING CARE OF THE BOAT You must not only learn to sail, but you must learn to take care of your boat, to keep her neat and clean, and have everything above and below decks in shipshape order. Nothing looks worse than a slovenly kept and dirty yacht; a boat with fag ends of rope hanging about, loose and tangled messes of gear, sails not properly stowed, and a general air of untidiness apparent everywhere. The first attribute of good seamanship is order. Therefore, if you want to be considered a skillful sailor, keep your boat both above and below decks in shipshape fashion. ”

“ The choice of a boat—Description of the various parts of a cutter.
More, probably, could be written on boat-sailing than on any other sport; for this pursuit owes much of its extraordinary fascination to the fact that its science is practically infinite; the most experienced sailor has always something new to learn, and is ever acquiring fresh wrinkles. Of all inanimate objects a boat is surely the most beloved of its owner; there is something almost human in its ways and vagaries ”

“ Most of our yachting men maintain that a long hole through the bottom of a boat must weaken her; that the great strain of the centre-board, concentrated as it is on one small portion of the keel, must render a large craft thus fitted ill-adapted to buffet with a really heavy sea. ”

“ The general principles of sailing are as simple as the national game of "one ole cat." That is to say, if the wind always blew moderately and steadily, it would be as easy and as safe to sail a boat as it is to drive a steady old family horse of good and regular habits. ”

“ Each sail is hoisted to its masthead by one halyard, and its luff is kept close to the mast by hoops or more usually by a lacing. A boat thus rigged is possibly the safest of any, and is not easily capsized. ”

“ In harbor-sailing, a buoy or point often appears ahead, which, if passed, the yacht could be at once kept away free, being now close-hauled, thus saving the time and inconvenience of tacking, but, as she is going, will be right in the way, unless she is put about. ”

“ So in a boat. I have been nearly roasted on the lake in this boat when I was going before the wind, while it would be comfortably cool on the wind. The motion of the boat kills the breeze. Some boatmen make Hop's blunder, and put on more sail than they can bear; and then it is a dangerous error."
"Haul in on the main-sheet! A pull on the lee jib-sheet!" said Ash, when the Goldwing came to a bend in the river, which made it necessary to brace up the boat a little more. ”

“ Knowing that inattention to your work will perhaps result in a spill, you will be constantly on the alert, and you will learn that by quick and proper movements of the helm you can control and maneuvre your boat so as to keep her on her bottom at all times.
If you have your boat ready take a day when the wind is light and steady and get somebody to go with you who understands sailing. Let the old hand tend the sheet while you handle the tiller. ”

“ If a boat worked by both sails and oars be running under sail for the land through a heavy sea, her crew should, under all circumstances, unless the beach be quite steep, take down her masts and sails before entering the broken water, and take her to land under oars alone. ”

“ Bring the yacht close to the wind, and haul the main-sheet flat aft, and belay it carefully; for, if it should get adrift whilst the sail was being furled, some one might be knocked overboard. Then stand by the throat and peak-halliards, and, at the word "Lower away," ease away handsomely on each, taking care not to let the peak drop too fast, which, if done, sometimes causes the hoops to jam, and the whole sail to stick, till the peak-halliards are hoisted upon again to clear things. ”

“ Sailing a good boat in the sea is not the best fun, but there is a kind of boat which is very easily made as you sit on the beach, and which is useful to play with when wading, and afterward to throw stones at. You take a piece of cork for the hull. Cut a line down the middle underneath and wedge a strip of slate in for a keel to keep her steady. Fix a piece of driftwood for a mast, and thread a piece of paper on that for a sail. ”

“ It will be seen, then, that the science of sailing lies in being able to manage a boat with her head pointing at any possible angle to or from the wind. Nothing but experience can teach one all the niceties of the art, but a little aptitude and address will do to start with, keeping near shore and carrying little sail.
Simplest Rig Possible
I will suppose that the reader has the use of a broad, flat-bottomed boat without any rudder. (See Fig. 143.) She cannot be made to work like a racing yacht under canvas, but lots of fun can be had out of her. ”

“ You know that when the sails fill, as an ordinary boat, she lies over, and it is her keel or centreboard that keeps her from drifting to leeward. In an ice-yacht the sharp runners keep her up, but there must be some sideways yielding to the force of the wind, and so an ice-boat rears—that is, one runner lifts free of the ice, and thereby takes off the strain. Otherwise you must either luff or be capsized. But with beach-sailing this rearing would probably throw too much weight on the leeward wheel, causing it to sink into the sand, and perhaps stop her way altogether. ”

“ The leading principles of boat-sailing are the same as those for sailing a larger vessel. The gear of a boat, as far as it goes, is identical, and the knots, bends, and hitches that are most used are common to both. ”

“ You want the sails to fill on the new tack, and she should be met with the helm before she has fallen off much beyond her proper course. In a light wind, when the boat moves sluggishly, she may fall off somewhat before she feels the pressure on the rudder. ”

“ In rough-water sailing a boat going to windward wants her sheet eased. Do not trim the sails dead flat, nor try to sail the boat very close to the wind; give her what is called a good full, and keep her moving all the time. Remember, that every wave is a hill that the boat has to climb over, and she needs all the drive possible in order to do it. You must learn how to help her with the helm to take these seas easily, first by luffing and then by bearing away.
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A man can only become a good windward helmsman by constant practice and by paying attention to every detail. ”

“ Three or four successive coats of paint should be applied to a boat the first time it is painted, and before using, it should be launched, half filled with water, and allowed to stand for a few days so that the joints will swell and close properly. A mast six or eight feet high and a leg-of-mutton sail will enable a boy to sail before the wind in a quiet breeze, but rough-weather sailing should not be attempted in this style of open boat. ”

“ In all night sailing it is important to know the direction in which any passing vessel is proceeding, and also to be able to give notice of the direction in which one's own yacht is sailing, or, if she be at anchor, to so denote, so as to avoid collisions ”

“ The first day that you get under way with your new canvas should be a fine one. If it comes on to blow hard, and you have to reef your mainsail, it will certainly be pulled out of shape. You must not expect your sails to stretch in a day. You will have to tighten up the lacing and haul out the earing many times before your mainsail [89] has stretched its full, and the oftener the better for your sail’s flatness.
Laying up a Boat for the Winter.—In laying up a small yacht, it is well to have her upon shore, and if possible, under cover. ”

“ Still another matter to be considered when selecting a boat is whether you should use a keel or a centerboard craft. Every boat, in order to sail well, must have a portion which projects below the bottom and which will prevent the craft from sliding sideways or making “leeway” on the water when the wind is from the side or when sailing against the wind. ”

“ If your boat is merely an open boat for day sailing and short trips almost any type will serve, such as a dory, a sharpie, a skipjack or a round-bottomed or yawl boat. As a rule, however, you should avoid the true “open” boat for sailing, for in a boat without any deck it only takes a slight puff of wind, an instant’s carelessness or a small sea to bring the rail under water and swamp the boat.
18Even a very narrow deck is far better than none at all and if the deck has a good high “combing” or raised inner edge, the safety will be increased a hundredfold. ”

“ If, when sailing with a beam or quarter wind, you wish to turn about you should always haul in your sheet, push the tiller to leeward—away from the wind—and bring the boat up into the wind until the sail swings to the other side, when you may gradually ease-off the sheet until sailing as before. ”

“ The boat is such a living creature, even this clumsy one sailing within five points of the wind. The sailboat is an admirable invention, by which you compel the wind to transport you even against itself. It is easier to guide than a horse ”

“ Inasmuch as the whole balance of the boat depends upon the out-rigger, it would never do, of course, to have the large, heavy sail, bearing the weight of the wind, on the opposite side of the boat; consequently, when sailing up in the wind, where tacking is necessary, instead of putting about or jibing, the crew assemble and, lifting the mast with all the rigging, carry it bodily from the bow to the stern, where it is stepped anew; the stern then becomes the bow, and the man at the helm has to scramble quickly to the other end of the boat to find out which way he is going. ”

“ These rivers are capital places for the man fond of single-handed sailing. One well-known and elderly amateur sails a lugsail boat alone, but at a proper distance behind him comes his man in another single-handed boat. ”

“ I should strongly advise the hauling of the boat on a wind until she reaches the point where her sheets may be eased off and she can be headed for her destination with wind and sea on the quarter. A boat with 69any pretensions at all can be sailed close-hauled in rough water with safety if certain elementary precautions are observed. ”

“ The end you bend on to the sail is on the port-side, and the end you haul upon is on the starboard-side. It is made fast abaft the cleat 323used for the halyard, and you never need make a mistake. When Archie hoists the sail to the mast-head, you will stand by the tack on the starboard-side, and haul the rope over the gaff. The sheet is made fast to a cleat on the main-boom, Syl; and, as the sail goes up, you will haul on it just enough to prevent the rope from fouling. ”

“ Then lay out upon the bowsprit, on the weather-side, and pick up the sail from out to leeward, and furl it to the bowsprit by means of gaskets, or stops, or in any way that is arranged for, being careful, if the yacht is pitching much, not to be thrown over the bowsprit to leeward, if submerged in a sea; for the person is suddenly lifted by a sea that may reach only to the middle, and, if care is not taken, pitched over the bowsprit and to leeward. ”

“ As we drew nearer, we could see that the three men fishing seemed old and solemn-looking men. They sat on three chairs in the punt, and watched intently their lines. And the red sunset threw a mystic light upon the waters, and tinged with fire the towering woods, and made a golden glory of the piled-up clouds. It was an hour of deep enchantment, of ecstatic hope and longing. The little sail stood out against the purple sky, the gloaming lay around us, wrapping the world in rainbow shadows; and, behind us, crept the night.
We seemed like knights of some old legend, sailing across some mystic lake into the unknown realm of twilight, unto the great land of the sunset. ”

“ There is no more thrilling sensation I know of than sailing. It comes as near to flying as man has got to yet—except in dreams. The wings of the rushing wind seem to be bearing you onward, you know not where. You are no longer the slow, plodding, puny thing of clay, creeping tortuously upon the ground; you are a part of Nature! Your heart is throbbing against hers! Her glorious arms are round you, raising you up against her heart! Your spirit is at one with hers; your limbs grow light! The voices of the air are singing to you. The earth seems far away and little; ”

“ The little motor pop-popped away, doing its best, but they made little progress until toward night, when a brisk breeze came up from the east. Then, setting all sail, and shutting off the motor, they bent to the wind and went gliding along before it.
There is nothing quite like a seaworthy sail boat, a fair wind and a gently rippling sea. At night, with the sea all black about you and the stars glimmering above, you appear to drift through a faultless sky toward worlds unknown. ”