Winging It

Goosewinging it (please ignore the unflemished bowline on deck)

First time we've ever gotten the Springtide to run goosewinged for any period of time (5-10 minutes before the wind shifted and we got an accidental jibe). They call it 'goosewinged' because the jib hangs off one side of the vessel and the main over the other, makes the sails (in some historical sailor's opinion) look like the wings of a goose coming in for a landing.

Why would you want to goosewing? Well, compare your average fore-and-aft rigged vessel (your average sailboat) to your old-timey square-rigger (think Master and Commander or Pirates of the Carribean). The purpose of your standard square-rigger's rectangular sails was to harness the pushing power of the wind. The purpose of your fore-and-aft rigged triangular sail is to generate lift (like a wing), pulling you along the water. This gives fore-and-aft riggers the power to sail close to (into) the wind.

Think of it like a knife (meant to cut) compared to a ladel (meant to scoop.)

While the fore-and-aft rigger (most square-riggers carried at least some triangular sails), can sail into the wind, the moment you head downwind you abandon wind-generated lift for wind-generated push, something triangles don't harness quite as well as square sails do. This is especially difficult as the mainsail generally blocks at least some of the wind from the jib.

This is where goosewinging comes in. By pushing one sail off the starboard beam and another off the larboard, you maximize the available sail area, helping the boat run a bit more smoothly downwind. Best thing you can do downwind unless you have a spinnaker (large jib-like sail) on hand.

Hot and humid this weekend. Loads of threatening clouds, but not a drop of rain this morning. Flocks of Canadian Geese seen on the lake, along with a few Cormorants.