In this post we introduce the topic of mechanical advantage in sailboats. We’ll show how to determine the mechanical advantage of a block and tackle system and give examples for some of the scow classes. Humans have used pulleys and…
Sailing Fundamentals
This category includes information about sailing fundamentals, including sailing theory, basic sailing skills, boat types, sailing terms, boat handling, rigging, launching, boat care & maintenance, mooring, anchoring, and trailering.
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What are you doing to prep for the season? An easy performance improvement, especially for your mainsheet, is to clean your pulleys. Over the course of a season, lots of dust, dirt, road debris, and who knows what else can…
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In this post we discuss Velocity Made Good or VMG. Many newer sailors are not familiar with this important concept, so we’ll discuss the definition and show some examples. Then we’ll discuss how to use the concept of target boat…
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If you have an MC Scow numbered 2476 or earlier, you may have had the lee boards stick in the up position, making it difficult to release them for a tack. In this article, we discuss the causes and solutions…
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We ran across Nautical Language, a fascinating page on the Sea the Sea website. Nautical Language explains the meaning and origin of over 200 everyday expressions from our seafaring roots. Here are some of our favorites: Aloof: A nautical order to…
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It’s easy enough to explain apparent wind at a basic level, but once you start drawing vector diagrams, some sailors lose interest. The best explanations combine real-world experiences with simple diagrams and animations. In this article, we collected some of…
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