Small sailers large lake

[Hughesfamily]

Oh boy, this was humbling. Lack of experience was very noticeable this past weekend but we tried!

We are moored on a large lake. We decided it’s time to unclip off the buoy and experience it. Away we went under engine. There was a plethora of speed boats and pwc’s out. Most of which we’re making huge waves. We never experienced this before. We decided to stay to the side and clear the busy area. We could see the yacht club and all the sails up but we aged getting out there. It was darn right scary for us.

I plotted out our course. We went west to a clear area, then turned east into the wind. Michelle did a great job holding us and I jumped on deck and lifted both sails. After hugging the mast multiple times during wake boat passes, (my gosh)I took the helm and.........

I turned us further east to a good close reach. The sails filled, I tightened the Genoa and relaxed the boom gently, I was hoping to gain lift and have a nice long stretch before we would have to tack and run for another good long while. No buenos! I was thinking no wind now, just our luck. After what seemed like a few short minutes I was having a hard time keeping her pointed left. She wanted to go right, I was fighting her. Ultimately she came around by herself and we were pointing downwind. Had we continued to the right, I would have had to tack very quickly as I set us up for a good long run left.

I think after the excitement of getting out, we were spent and just motored home to the buoy. Proud we were though! That was a Large effort. All be it failed lol.

[Hughesfamily]

Questions:
At what point do I forget about lift and point us into the waves for safety? Do I stick to my plan and just take the waves on from the side?

What do you think I did wrong to have the boat right itself? I’m thinking I never considered the strength of the water current and relied on the wind direction alone. Once I noticed I couldn’t achieve lift I should have started off to the west to gain speed before tacking onto the wanted eastern course?

It was a large event for us. We’re very pleased that we tried :-)

[Jammer]

Part of the problem is that MacGregors don't sail especially well no matter what you do. Compromises in the hull shape were made to allow them to reach high speeds when motoring.

It is possible that you did not have the ballast tanks full, or that the ballast valves were open or leaking, which will radically reduce sailing performance.

At what point do I forget about lift and point us into the waves for safety? Do I stick to my plan and just take the waves on from the side?

It's a judgement call. Whenever you're not comfortable, or your crew or passengers are not comfortable. Usually it's sufficient to keep the incoming wake/waves within 45 degrees of the bow, you don't have to hit them exactly head on.

[sandy stone]

Actually, the sailing abilities of MacGregors depend on the specific model, and not all have water ballast. There is a MacGregor 25 on my lake that does quite well racing, with an experienced skipper and crew.

To the OP - are you comfortable with your knowledge of sail trim? There is plenty of information available on the web, or if you have questions we could probably answer them here.

[JPA Cate]

Hi, Hughes Family,

As always with the internet, there are varied opinions.

It's brand new to you! You are on the steep part of the learning curve. Now that you know the motor boats wakes are a factor in the ease of hoisting the sails. When you go to hoist them, the person on the engine should motor about 15 degrees off head to wind, this will keep the sails off you, and when both are hoisted, they can steer down to the 30-40 degrees to the wind range. The boat will heel, and now you can try to sail. You should find it a little easier to keep your balance with it heeled steadily. Also, soon your body will learn how to do it without your having to think about it so much.
Lake winds are usually light and very changeable (flukey). You will learn to look for the subtle changes in what you feel on your face and see on the water, to inform you when you're getting out of or into more breeze.

But perhaps you need to learn more about your obligations of when to maintain course and speed, and when to yield to sailing traffic. When you are motoring, you follow motor boat rules, yield to those coming from your starboard side. There's more, but that one is critical.

What I'd suggest is to see if the sailing club on the lake near your mooring has classes, to present you with easily managed bit of knowledge that will help you enjoy your boat. Otherwise for the rules in Canada for inland waters, I'm sure you can Google and find them. Both you and your family need to become familiar with them. They are based on years of traditions: most people will be following them.

It's a beautiful part of the world there; I wish you pleasant sailing. However, be warned, it's a bit addictive once you get used to it all.

Ann