any advice/tips on raising sails in stronger winds?

I don't have a beach i can set my boat on to rig up, and the wind is not very often blowing from a direction that I can leave it on the stand.
The lake is nice and sandy,and shallow, so I have a good ground under my feet, but when the wind is stronger and I have to fight it and the waves together it can be a good workout just to get to the fun part, So I'm looking for any tips. I usually raise the main first because if I don't the jib will beat me half to death and I can't see what I'm doing with the main.

I've been playing with the creation of a round stand so I can face my boat in any direction and keep it secured.

What about a mooring? you could sink an earth anchor into the bottom of the lake where you want to rig. The most stable option would probably be to run two 6 to 10 foot lines (depending on depth) off of the anchor and attach them to each bow tip at the bridle mount. Alternatively one line to where the bridles meet the forstay meet might work as well. That should steer itself into the wind pretty efficiently.

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Catamaran Racing Association of Michigan - Marketing Officer
USF18 - Social Media Manager

2010 NACRA Infusion
2004 F18 Hobie Tiger - SOLD
Hobie 16 - BREAKPOINT - SOLD

If the wind is really blowing, for raising or lowering the jib I do the following:

Raise or lower the jib to about the 90% point and roughly tie off the jib halyard on the mast cleat (usually one wrap on the cleat is sufficient at this stage).
Tuck the luff of the jib under my armpit to hold it in place so I can steady the headstay while connecting/disconnecting the shackle to the bridle's chainplate.
Grab the jib's clew plate and connect the jib sheets (so it will not flail around) and then finish raising/lowering the jib.

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Tim
84 H16
82 H16
87 H14T
Tortola Sails: 115222
Blue Prism Sails: 88863
Clearwater, FL

I just realized my mistake, I've tied it a few times but to the dolphin striker not the bow tips, and it moves alot because it can turn.

Thanks TiberiusGV !

Thanks for the tip Tim! I've never considered not running it all the way up and making it tight right from the start.

Since I almost always launch from a motor boat launch - short piers, not much distance between them, rocky shorelines - I usually motor out a ways then raise the mainsail. I usually have the crew (my wife) use the motor to keep us headed up. But it just occurred to me to heave to, to raise the main. Has anyone tried that? You backwind the jib, and lash the tiller so the rudders keep you head up.
I'll give it a try next time I'm messing around by myself and see how it works.

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks

If you have sea room (no lee shore, no other boats), just leave everything alone...the boat will find its angle to wind/seas. THEN, just hoist mainsail. With a rotating rig this works well. If your rig doesn't pivot, probably not so good. If no rotating mast, then raise jib and heave to (jib cleated to windward, rudders set to steer to weather--so as boat goes faster, rudders point you to wind so jib stops working). THEN hoist mainsail--would still work better with rotating rig, tho. Good that a 16 has a rotating rig-otherwise you might need a motor (gasp!).

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R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

Wow! You guys have got some skills. I have been sailing for almost 46 years and have never been able to put the main up out on the water. Of course I gave up trying pretty quickly so maybe I just wasn't persistent enough. Over the years I have always been able to find a mud bank or grassy spot or the mythical sandy beach to rig the main. Mythical for me, not so for others more fortunate.

I know, I struggle doing it standing in waist deep water fighting the wind and waves, I did find last weekend that my mast hook for the halyard nock ( i know I'm butchering the right terms so correct me and I'll do my best to remember) has been replaced with a smaller one using the same rivet holes, lowering the hook point about 1/2" and I think that little bit might make a world of difference in ease of locking it in.

Trying to do it from the boat in deep water? I need a video.

And can anyone elaborate on "backwinding the jib" please?

I'm really going to have to make time to read that book on Hobiecat I bought. probably twice

Gotta admit it is harder to raise mainsail without a front trampoline-especially with trying to get luff rope correct AND catch the halyard lock from directly underneath. And if you are trying to do it in heavy winds all the time, it can get frustrating. You "can" spend some money and make it easier...one thing that would help is to attach a spinlock line clutch to replace the jib halyard cleat--that holds the jib part way up as you go. Another thing that would help would be to add sail slugs outside the luff rope on the mainsail--if you are sailing in competition, you wouldn't want to do that because you will be a tiny bit slower with that additional gap between mast and sail--but it sure makes raising the mainsail very easy. You can get the sail slugs at sailrite for about 50cents each and for another 80 cents you can get a screw in 'holder' so you can just screw through the sail to attach the slugs. Takes about 10 minutes per slug, you need one on top, one on bottom, and one on top and one on the bottom of each batten or one even with each batten (the batten has to push against something).



Backwinding jib is just leaving the jib cleated to weather during a tack to help swing the bow through the eye of the wind. You can use the same technique to heave to by allowing mainsail to flop (no mainsheet), backwinded jib will try to accelerate the boat to fall off, the rudders are set to drive the boat back toward head to wind. You end up staying in one spot or close.

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R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

I have a similar set up, got a seawall and a stand. We use a concrete filled car tire as a mooring in waist deep water and hook a carabiner to the dolphin catcher. Normally in heavy or unfavorable winds just push it out to the tire bare pole with the sails on the tramp and rig it there. Not ideal but it gets the job done.

I did it like that (waist deep water) the first year or two. It was a total pain unless there was very little wind, but who sails then? I also found that I lost a bunch of ring dings, pins, etc.

I can't imagine trying to hook the main in deep water...

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Steve
2017 Hobie 16 "Cayman" sails 114795
1985 & 1973? Hobie 14 "Sea & Ski"

So I tried heaving to, to raise my mainsail after motoring out from the launch. It worked beautifully. I was by myself, so didn't have the luxury of crew running the motor to keep me in irons, but didn't need any help at all.
I avoided using my forward tramp to raise the sail. I stood with a leg on the hull, and one on the front crossmember, which afforded me a good position to both pull on the halyard and feed the sail up into the luff track. Easy peasy!

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks