Notes

• Launch Pontoon Boat today. We need to unload that trailer so I can replace/repair the bearing/hub assembly

Goal

• WORK ON TIMING

Practice

• lots of tacks and gybes
• FJ Tacking (and Gybing). The FJ is a bit more finesse-oriented than a 420. Remember the boat is much rounder/narrower and floppy than a 420. This round narrow boat also has a relatively weak, low-aspect CB that needs to be kept lifting (doing its job) as often as possible. The boat is far more prone to sliding sideways, especially early in the tack, and definitely afterward if you don’t get it right. Rolling in an FJ (compared to 420):
  • faster
  • sharper
  • work on keeping jib full through the whole tack
  • flatten when the boat is heeled at an angle where one big flatten will propel the boat forward and make the mast vertical
  • less aggressive (weight movement side-to-side). So, rolls in an FJ require less effort, but are quicker.
  • In the FJ, everything is much more subtle.  Putting a significant amount of power behind a roll will roll the boat over too quickly, ending in a lot of poorly executed flattens.  Remember, the flatten is what makes a roll tack fast.  No matter how big the roll is, if the flatten is not executed well, a flat tack would be more effective.  Thus, rolling hard in FJ’s leads to a lot of slow tacks.
  • This is not to say that the goal in an FJ tack is not to roll the boat way over.  In fact, it is quite the opposite.  The best sailors will typically get the rudder to just pop out of the water for an instant during the peak roll.  We have talked about this. However, reaching that point is more about timing than effort.  Except in light air conditions, FJ tacks are typically executed with the skipper and crew both sitting on the rail with shoulders slightly outboard, waiting for the right time to cross.  In the 420, usually skippers in crews get off of their butts, and slam their hips hard into the rail to initiate the roll.  The FJ is so narrow and round, that by using the right technique during your turn he boat and wind will actually do all of the rolling for you.  Remember, if you do not nail your flatten in the FJ, it will actually slow your boat down.  Neither the boards, nor the boat are particularly wide.  Thus, at the peak of the roll, when the boat stalls, the boat will quickly slide sideways if the flatten is not properly executed.  By using less effort to roll the boat, and focusing on timing, you get the same amount of roll out of the boat, but have a much easier time to properly execute a perfect flatten.
  • In the FJ, the crew actually sits backwards, watching the skipper to coordinate the roll.  IN addition to the location of the jib sheet fairleads, this is done because of the way the crew’s feet cross in the different boats.  In the FJ, by tacking backwards, the crew’s feet fall in the perfect place to lock right into the strap and hike or flatten without hesitation.
  • Same deal downwind… the flatten is the thing. Short, sharp well-timed roll (never over-roll) and a total focus on timing your flatten to maximize forward thrust