How to trim a sail and use tell tales (part 1 of series)

[@philswatersports]

Did your learn to sail course explain how to use tell-tales?

[@stevekirby4874]

Thanks for this Phil. After about a year I am just getting a feel for my Streaker. I regularly refer back to your videos which are the best I’ve found ⛵️😎

[@philswatersports]

Hi Steve, Thank you, what a lovely comment! We have a few Streakers at my club, lovely boats. I might see if I can get one in one of my next videos! Is there anything in particular you want extra help with? I've got various ideas for videos this year but want to make sure I'm actually doing what people want to watch. Cheers & happy sailing! Phil

[@stevekirby4874]

@ Hey Phil. Thanks for the reply. I’d love to know how to get the best from my Streaker for club racing and I’m sure many other sailors feel the same about their Lasers and other single sail dinghies. Learning more about sail settings for different points of sail and wind conditions would be great ⛵️😎

[@philswatersports]

Thanks Steve, and for your other comment. Great, I'd like to do more to help people at club racing levels, on topics like using the sail controls for power, rig tuning, strategy, tactics and racing rules. I've also got a few more basic things on the way for beginners as well. I'm not quite sure where you're at, if you're still getting to grips with the boat and perhaps only recently started racing, there could be a lot to be gained just by focusing on all the basics. People who win races and events don't have a secret trick - they just do everything really well, ALL the time! If you don't start on time, you're just throwing time and distance away. Good boatspeed is a byproduct of the boat being sailed efficiently - really focus just on sailing the boat well, by thinking about the 5 essentials the whole time (keep watching the series!). Every time the boat heels too far over, you'll be losing speed; a poor tack could cost you boat lengths; a capsize could cost you significantly. Focus on the areas where you're making the biggest losses first (when do the hotshots sail away from you the most?) Upwind, really focus on how close you can get to the wind without losing speed, to find the optimum VMG (velocity made good) for the boat - sheet in and then focus on getting your telltales flying properly. Being overpowered upwind is a killer for boatspeed because when you spill the wind, starting from the front of the sail, that's where the most forward drive comes from - if you can't hike any harder, get the kicker and cunningham/downhaul tighter until the sail is flat enough that you're not having to ease the sheet. People generally don't pull these tight enough when they first start sailing. The outhaul comes on after that if you're still overpowered, you're trying to keep the power low down. Let them all off at the windward mark, too much kicker offwind is hard work too. I know it's hard to put some of these things into context just from a brief explanation. Perhaps when you go sailing, just pick one thing each time you want to focus on, and practice the same technique to improve it. Don't be scared to experiment too - if you're sailing next to others in a race, this is a good way to see what difference your sail controls make, for example, because you can see a response. A cheap action camera could be a good way to watch yourself too Hope this all helps! Phil

[@stevekirby4874]

Hey Phil. You’ve nailed all my problems 🤣 When you write your book these tips could fill 3 chapters! Many thanks ⛵️😎

[@philswatersports]

😂😂 No worries. Best of luck with it!

[@smkunder1]

Wow, good stuff, I am 69, took a sailing course where I got completely lost with all the terms and do’s and don’t’s . This has already taught me in a much more understandable way.

[@philswatersports]

Sometimes all the terminology makes it far more complicated than it needs to be! Thanks for your comment, I'm glad it's been helpful

[@stevec-b6214]

this is the clearest and easiest to understand explanation I have seen, thanks!

[@philswatersports]

Thanks Steve C-B, I appreciate the feedback! It looks like you've seen some of the other sailing help videos too, good luck with it!

[@bando404]

Fantastic stuff! The passed 3 years I’ve taught myself how to sail, all just by feel and never quite sure if what I find working is “correct”. It’s great to get the explanation and mechanics behind it all. Watching your videos makes me want to go out and practice even more.

[@philswatersports]

Thanks for the feedback! Glad you've found them helpful, that's what I'm hoping for with these videos. Also glad to have inspired you to keep at it!

[@ferfernando950]

About time someone made a simple and yet thorough video explaining how to set sails in a sv!! I take my hat off before you sir! You have now a new suscriptor.

[@philswatersports]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! Have you seen my other videos? If you liked this, you might like my sailing skills playlist on my channel home page 🙂

[@bikeroadrider]

Perfect video. Thank you!

[@philswatersports]

Glad you enjoyed it! You might like my other videos about sailing skills on this playlist: kzbin.info/aero/PL2VtZj-uQwyjfdNsbYbWWjKeJjnYGiUEW

[@zenbuilder8801]

Phil, well put. I started sailing on a sailfish when I was 10 or so in "62". Sailed many boats since then. Everything from the fish to Hinkleys. This is a wonderful series. At 72. looking to get another "fish" or Laser, after not sailing for 40 or so years. This is a great refresher , Thank you. jeff

[@philswatersports]

Hi Jeff, Thanks for your comments, I'm glad it's been useful for you. I hope you enjoy getting back into sailing. I've got plenty of ideas for more videos to help people, and I might do a few focusing on the Laser as well as one of the most popular dinghies. Always good to hear people's thoughts, as well as any ideas for what kind of content people would like to see in the future? Best wishes Phil

[@neils2474]

Excellent video - linking the theory and practise in a really clear, understandable way. Thanks for taking the time to make and post this!

[@philswatersports]

Thanks for your great feedback! It's so nice to hear when it helps people because yes, it's a lot of time involved! Have you seen my other videos about sailing skills? You might like them if you liked this one 😃👍

[@hosoiarchives4858]

What an amazing video. Best one I’ve ever seen on how this works

[@philswatersports]

Thanks, and I'm glad you found it useful. You might like some of the other videos I've made to help with the understanding of how a boat works, points of sail and the 5 essentials: kzbin.info/aero/PL2VtZj-uQwyjfdNsbYbWWjKeJjnYGiUEW

[@GMaX-Eire-forever]

Fabulous content. Appreciated.

[@philswatersports]

Thanks! Happy sailing 🙂

[@stevec-b6214]

Is a burgee also needed? - I mainly just cruise, but still want the boat to sail well

[@philswatersports]

A burgee is a great idea, as they show the apparent wind direction. They can be a good starting point for the general sail setting, but they won't show as much detail as the telltales do. By this, I mean that you can set the angle of the sail fairly well based on the burgee, but the telltales are more sensitive to react to the air flowing around the sail itself. A burgee is particularly useful in light winds when you might be struggling to work out where the wind is, or to get the airflow to attach to the sail. The Hawk MKII is a popular choice for un-stayed boats (Laser/ILCA, Topper etc), as it shows the wind approaching the sail: amzn.to/3J1dCa1 Or a masthead burgee is ideal for doublehanders: amzn.to/49cOfgc A mast head burgee will also find the wind a bit sooner in light winds, because it's probably a bit stronger a bit higher up; but bear in mind that any rocking of the boat will affect the burgee. Hope this helps!

[@stevec-b6214]

I have and will continue to rewatch this video as I have a very short attent

[@philswatersports]

🤣🤣