I've had my Hobie Wave for two summers now and I've been trying to learn how to balance the boat while hull flying. The few times I've gotten the hull clear of the water I ended up capsizing moments later. I'm sure those of you who sail on the ocean get to practice with good wind, but I'm mostly sailing on medium size lakes and/or with the wife and kids on the boat so I don't get too many chances to let loose. What's the trick to balancing on one hull? I tried focusing on pulling the rudder when I got up too high in hopes that turning toward the lower hull would bring the upper hull back down. However, all that did was partially turn the boat before I went for a swim. Is the trick to let the sail out more as I get too high? How much does your body weight factor in? Each time I've gotten the hull flying it seemed to go all the way over pretty quick so it's been hard to figure out what I'm doing wrong.
Also is it harder to get a Wave hull flying compared with a H16? The wider hull of the Wave seems like it's more of a plow when only one hull is in the water. Do the H16 hulls still cut through the water when the hull is deeper in the water?
Joined: Fri May 01, 2015 9:49 am Posts: 238 Location: Eastern PA
You are way ahead of me on the learning curve, so not sure how much help I can be. What I've seen from endless YouTube videos and searches is that balancing entails a lot of body movement, leaning out at the very back of the boat, and playing the sheet in and out.
Joined: Mon Dec 22, 2008 7:02 pm Posts: 737 Location: Rockford, IL
Yes, to lower a hull, if you are on a broad reach, either ease out the main a bit, or turn slightly into the wind. I usually just adjust the main to hold me in that sweet spot.
_________________ 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
I am surprised to hear that turning into the wind helps to bring it back down. I was thinking of it like a car on two wheels, if you turn toward the high side the rotational momentum will cause it to roll over. But after hearing your advice it makes sense to reduce the force of the wind pushing the boat over.
Do you find that once you get the hull up you immediately have to let the main out a bit to keep it balanced? I did not let the main out once I got the hull up and the boat seemed to go right over pretty quick.
On the positive side, I'm getting pretty good at righting the boat after I go for a swim...
Joined: Sat Apr 02, 2011 3:05 pm Posts: 8 Location: Rhode Island
I would agree that turning dead into the wind will drop the hull back down or you can let the sail out or hike way out. I found the best thing to do starting out is to flip it on purpose. Then keep doing it until you get comfortable with the feeling of the boat and not flipping and holding that "sweet spot" . I always say when doing something it is best to put yourself into the circumstance when you know you are going to flip it, that way if it does happen you know exactly what to do. I push it to the edge many times and then flip sometimes on purpose just to cool down I find slight adjustments to the rudders better than trying to adjust the sail. So what do you need? 1. Lifejacket - absolutely a must! obviously. Because you want to go swimming 2. Patience + Practice 3. A good steady wind. Gusty days are good but a good strong constant wind is better to practice in. On lighter wind days I've gotten down on the trampoline to shift the weight to get the hull in air and then get up on the high hull. It is like a balancing act in a way, so weight is a factor. Many times I'm basically sitting on the side of the top hull. You can see in the video how I reposition to that spot. On the rudder adjustment once in the air you can see some adjustments I make to keep it in that sweet spot. Have fun!!
(btw, I go sailing on Cape Cod.)
Here is a video of me flying.
_________________ The grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. - Allan K. Chalmers Somethng to do: Go Sailing Something to love: Sailing Something to hope for: Good Winds for Sailing
Thanks for the video, I watched it several times to see how you control everything. Practice is what I need, but unfortunately I don't get too much time on the boat.
This summer I've sailed on the Norton reservoir several times and also on Sebago Lake in Maine, but I've sailed off the Cape (bay side) for a week last summer. Both Sebago and the Cape had decent waves on the days I sailed which made it more challenging to build up good speed, but much better wind overall. In comparison, the Norton reservoir doesn't have much waves so it's easier to go faster but the wind is less constant. Also the Norton reservoir is really shallow, only 4-6ft in the deeper areas and less than 2ft in several areas so the rudders actually drag sometimes. I'm still learning that lake so I'll know where it is safe to try hull flying.
Hopefully I'll get back out soon to practice now that I have all this good advice.
I used to sail Waves in the Gorge and also got quite good at righting a capsized boat . In-laws have a 16 and I bought an 18 last year... keeping the hull up is similar for all of them. As a caveat, the boats are fastest when the windward hull is just skimming the water. Flying the hull is of course a blast but it's not the fastest configuration.
So for keeping the hull up, make sure you have the main uncleated in your hand. The height of the windward hull can be controlled by: 1. shifting body weight in and out - this has a lot more of an effect than you would think but is the finest level of control. 2. releasing the main - i release maybe an inch of sheet and it'll dramatically bring the hull down. I try shifting weight first then slackening the main 3. turning into the wind... when all else fails, turn into the wind a bit which typically has the greatest effect on bringing the hull down
The 18 seems to have a "sticking" point at ~40 degrees where you can hold it relatively comfortably in non-gusty conditions. I remember the Wave being quite tippy but also quite easy to right. The biggest factor for me was learning to just adjust a little bit at a time and not get that panicky feeling when it starts to go over (more so on the 18 than the Wave/16 ).
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