Which is faster, tacking long and wide or short and narrow?

Two weeks ago, after a long Winter, I finally got out in my AI. Pretty slow sailing the first 3 times. About two hours to cover 4 miles. The last 3 sails I had, I was able to cover about 8 miles in 2 hours. Sometimes the wind will take me at a wide angle across the bay and back to about a mile and sometimes two, from my starting position, so I need to tack to get back to the cabin. There are times when I tack long and wide, which I prefer, and times when I tack short and narrow. The question I've been pondering for the last 2 years is, when tacking, is it faster to tack long and wide or short and narrow? I'm thinking there is probably an equation out there to figure it out and you probably need to add in the direction of the wind somewhere. Maybe the answer is similar to the post of 'Upwind Angle of the AI' in the Open Forum? This question could probably be answered in Sailing 101, but I've never taken it!

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Fly'n C Lion

That's a tough question. I guess, like most things, the answer lies somewhere between the two extremes, though most people seem to want to point as high as possible. If you've got a GPS mounted and a fix on your destination, you can use the VMG (velocity made good) function to tell you the optimal heading. Personally, I use the fun index - bear away from the wind until it starts to be fun, then hold that course.

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Overall, as each tack costs you time, long and wide is faster. However - currents, wind shifts, wind shadows etc etc all play a role in determining the optimum course, so at times short and narrow will be quicker. Also bear in mind that 'pinching' whilst pointing too high can be detrimental to VMG.

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Cheers, Max ● TI: the "Yella Terra" ● Website: www.MadYakker.com ● YouTube: madyakkermax

Wind speed and direction, in relation to the destination, has a function in the equation as well. If I have a measured distance of 10 miles that I need to travel, I'll have a sense of how long it will take me from one point of sail versus another.

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Mitch

2010 Tandem Island
2010 Revolution
Chesapeake Bay and Eastern Shore

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Because of all the variables, it is tough to say which is the best strategy. Tacking slows your boat and takes time. Long tacks risk wind changes which may be detremental.

With today's electronics, there is an elegant solution: a GPS with a VMG stat. VMG is the reading which tells you the velocity your boat is making directly toward the desired destination independent of the angle (tack) you are sailing. When that VMG drops below what you can do on an alternate tack, you change tacks.

Keith

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2015 AI 2, 2014 Tandem

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

"Less is more" Anon

I also find the winds aren't exactly the same all over, so what works better one day with winds further out at a slightly better angle, may not work as well the next day (or hour) when the winds further out are not as strong or at not a good angle. Part of the great fun called sailing.

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Hobie Island Sailing since 2006

Thank you all for your input.
ChrisJ and Chekika, I've just recently gone way out of my box and picked up a GPS, I don't have it mounted yet and still need to go and download a detailed map for the Pacific NW, and work at figuring it out. I've always wondered how fast and far I'm actually sailing, so this new tool will be fun. As for the fun factor, so hard to stay away from that

Captian-max, when out there sailing and tacking, trying to read the currents, winds shifts, and wave directions is some of the added benefits I find in sailing. It's amazing to me how nothing is ever the same out there. Just when I think I've figured out how a sail is going to be, by standing on the beach and seeing the direction of the waves and feeling the wind, I go out and the sailing experince that day turns out different than I thought. I've even gone out there when there were about half foot waves and on shore I feel the wind, but when I've put my AI in the water and opened the sail, puff no wind will catch my sail! Captain-Max, could you please expain what "pinching whilst pointing too high" means

whosyerbob: This year I purchased a wind meter and the two times I've used it, the wind was 8-12 mph. It took me 2 hrs. to sail about 8 miles. I suppose using it more often I'll get a better sense of my sail times.

reconlon: Exactly! And I know at first, using my GPS, figuring it out and having fun KNOWING how fast and far I've gone, I'll get back to the just going out there for a darn good sail

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Fly'n C Lion

Fly'n, sailing is certainly a fascinating subject! 'Pinching' refers to sailing ('pointing') too close to the wind, which results in your VMG dropping from optimal.

To better understand this, you might like to Google 'sailing polar diagram'. There is one here: http://albinvega.oddis.com/albin_vega_p ... agram.html.

A simplified polar diagram is at http://www.hamptononedesign.com/the-boa ... inthelifts. In this example, the optimum angle to true wind is 38°. If you sail 'higher' than this, say 35°, your VMG will drop. This is called pinching.

Note that these polar diagrams only apply to a specific craft. In the case of a TI or AI, I am guessing that the optimum angle would be no better than about 45° - maybe some of the others in this forum could answer this more accurately?

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Cheers, Max ● TI: the "Yella Terra" ● Website: www.MadYakker.com ● YouTube: madyakkermax

Good to add another sailing term.

In the AI I can go at best about 45 degrees into the wind, depending on conditions. In the TI i can go almost 35 degrees, (10 degrees higher) but the VMG drops off dramatically while closer than 45 degrees, so I guess I've been pinched!

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Hobie Island Sailing since 2006