Problem du Jour

At a time when I should be on dry land visiting with my family, shaving off my beard and having a much needed drink at Crowley’s Pub, I am still out here battling gear and the elements, and today’s battle was more than a little wearing. I came on deck this morning to find Rubicon humming along nicely under full main and full Genoa, close hauled and with spray flying. We were doing a good turn of speed, whatever it was, but the boat was close to getting overpowered so it was time to roll in some of the Genoa. I was about half done with this routine task when the roller furler stopped, cold and frozen. I couldn’t roll up any more of the sail and I couldn’t let it back out. This was a serious situation; in fact, I considered it potentially the most serious issue I have faced so far. The sail was half way out and it could not stay out as the weather was expected to pipe up later today which could have had unpleasant consequences. In fact, I am writing this later today and it has already piped. Also, in order to get to Newport before the next OSTAR race, I need the Genoa.

Upon examination it appeared that the furling line had gotten tangled in the furling drum which is right at the bow of the boat. There was no way to take a short cut in untangling the line inside the drum, despite the drum’s side openings, because if it suddenly freed up while part of the sail was flying, the rest of the sail would come exploding out, spinning the drum and ensuring that I never play the piano again, and it’s an instrument I’ve always wanted to learn. Apart from that, there was simply too much tension on the line. After thinking the situation through for a few minutes I came up with a simple plan which fortunately has worked. I took a line to the bow and lashed the furling drum which prevented it from moving even if the furling line was freed up. I then pulled the furling line, which runs through various guides to the back of the boat, completely out and started the laborious task of unwinding and rewinding. First, however, I turned the boat downwind to make the whole activity a little more civilized.

So this morning’s on deck activity was sitting on the anchor roller at the tip of the boat and pulling about fifty feet of line though the drum. I had to do this procedure 25 times to get it all out and then another 25 times to rewind it properly. Of course, the line was trying to dive into the water and generally getting in the way but there we are. On the plus side, I did have a great view of the ocean sliding under her keel as Rubicon glided downwind. Coloring the negative side was my awareness of the approaching cloud band and of course the fact that we were going the wrong way and this was taking a long time. Finally the job was completed, the roller furler was back in action and we were back on course. When I went below I was surprised that it was already past lunch time so I called my breakfast lunch and took a nap.

I am certainly taking some satisfaction from having resolved the problem du jour and for the moment putting aside the question of how it happened in the first place. Ideally, when you are rolling in a headsail you want to keep some tension on the sail through the jib sheet while also pulling in on the furling line. This can sometimes be tricky when you only have two hands; particularly if you’re thinking about the hot shower and cold beer that awaits in Newport.

If you enjoy this website why not make a donation to The Institute of Cancer Research. For more information visit our Charities page.