DRAGONFLY Trimarans User Forum

Here's a tip:
With Dragonflies it isn't a good idea to let out the main sail very far, because the battens will rub on the shroud/backstay. When sailing downwind we tend to be over-sheeted as a result, and in strong winds that can cause some weather helm.

The solution to this problem (for cruisers) is to drop the mainsail and sail under Genoa-only, using the barber-hauler to open up the sheeting angle. If the wind is strong I attach the main halyard to the aft end of the boom, and sheet-in the boom so the halyard and mainsheet take load off the backstays.

Dragonflies sail deep downwind beautifully with just the genoa, without weather helm.

In lighter air we use main and genoa (or spinnaker) but we tack downwind and weather helm isn't a problem in light air.

Beware of building wind conditions when sailing downwind. Strike the spinnaker early and reef early, so if you head up or stuff a wave you aren't overpowered by the sudden rise in apparent wind. Think about what it would be like if the apparent wind suddenly rose by an amount equal to or greater than your SOG.

On my mono (42' Catalina) I had the same problem with the swept back spreaders. Especially on larger water with a good seaway the main would back fill and then slap as it flopped the other way. Finally got tired of it and started dropping it down wind. No barber haul, but a big pole to get the genoa out. Then started flying the asymmetrical the other side..... wing on wing jib and asymmetrical...... nice ride. Will try the same on the DF with the jib and genoa on the sprit.

Hi

This summer I sailed a number of times with jib only - downwind speed (DF800) was almost the same as with main. The reason for dropping the main was do decrease the speed going through a number of small passages looking for a place to stay. So I had to roll in half of the jib to get down in speed.

I have also been thinking on the stress on the rig sailing with spinnaker only, after your post - I will use the hallyard and the main sheet as an extra backstay.

My sailmaker had to put extra protection where the batterns meet the the shroud/backstays.

/ Christian

I think if you are sailing that far down wind - you are sailing to low.
Now sometimes I realize that you are left with no choice but to go dead downwind. But if you "heat-it-up" a bit by sailing on more of a reach, you will get to your downwind destination faster and make it more interesting. Jibe a few times, and by sailing lower in the lifts you will be able to make up for that little bit of extra distance.
If you have instruments on board that tell you VMG - velocity made good, try it sometime. Sail the VMG heading. Then try sailing dead downwind to the same mark. See what happens to your VMG.

Just my opinion
Ted

tpaliwoda wrote:I think if you are sailing that far down wind - you are sailing to low.
Now sometimes I realize that you are left with no choice but to go dead downwind. But if you "heat-it-up" a bit by sailing on more of a reach, you will get to your downwind destination faster and make it more interesting. Jibe a few times, and by sailing lower in the lifts you will be able to make up for that little bit of extra distance.
If you have instruments on board that tell you VMG - velocity made good, try it sometime. Sail the VMG heading. Then try sailing dead downwind to the same mark. See what happens to your VMG.

Just my opinion
Ted

I agree Ted. If you refer back to my original post, I wrote "In lighter air we use main and genoa (or spinnaker) but we tack downwind and weather helm isn't a problem in light air."

My advice to run dead downwind with genoa-only was specifically for situations in heavier winds. In that situation, especially when there is enough "fetch" for large wind waves to build, you may find yourself wanting to slow the boat down.

A few weeks ago we sailed east in strong westerly winds (in the mid-twenty knot range, gusting to mid thirties). Under genoa-only we were doing 11-15 knots boat speed in steep 5-8 foot waves that had about 60+ miles of fetch to build up. We were repeatedly burying the end of the bowsprit, and decided to reef the genoa to slow down for comfort and safety.