British  Weta  Class Association

OWNING THE BOAT

 

Before you launch for the first time, read the handbook which can be found on the Wetamarine NZ website. Have a practice rig in your garden before you do it for real. Read the handbook again and then take the plunge. Choose a sunny day with about 10kts of wind. Allow plenty of time because, although it is not actually difficult, there are a lot of bits of string to get in the right place and you won’t get it right first time. If you let go of a halyard and it goes up the mast you cannot roll the boat on its side to get it back. A fishing rod may help to get it down but even better, fit carbine hooks or snap hooks to the top ends of the halyards and tie the other end to the horn cleat on the mast; the weight of the carbine hook will keep the halyard within reach. When getting the trolley off the road trailer the transom may touch the ground. Not a problem on grass, but in a car park put a doormat on the ground. John Fairclough has fitted little wheels to the ends of his trolley to prevent this.

 

Before raising the mast, tape a burgee or Little Hawk windvane to the top. To raise the mast, first use electrical tape to hold the T-balls in place, taking care not to obstruct the luff groove. Set the trolley bow down if possible. Put a mouse mat on the foredeck so that you can rest the heel of the mast on it if you don’t get it into the step first time.  Set the shroud adjusters well back (ie short) unless sailing without the jib. Launching the boat is easy provided you are prepared to get wet. In the UK you are going to need a drysuit or a full wetsuit most of the time. Raise the mainsail with the boat EXACTLY into wind, otherwise it’ll be very stiff. This may mean altering the direction of the trolley several times. Do this on the foreshore - don’t attempt to push the boat across the boat park with the sails up.  With the sails up, RELEASE THE STERN LINES then manoeuvre the boat into the water until you are waist deep. Push the boat backwards off the trolley, holding on to the painter (which should be as long as the trolley) with the other hand. Get the boat back to beach where it will usually lie quietly and get rid of the trolley which will FLOAT AWAY if you don’t get it above the high water mark.

 

To sail off a lee shore: standing in the water, point the boat in the direction of the first tack, half lower the rudder, insert the dagger board and lower it 6 inches. Back the jib about half way and jump onto the trampoline and then roll into the boat. Lower the dagger board a bit as soon as you can. The boat will sail itself to windward like this, giving you time to lower the rudder, connect your tether and haul in the mainsheet (which should already be hooked on).

 

Now you are sailing! Quite a lot of noise comes from the back of the leeward float but very little from under the forefoot. The boat heels a bit initially and if it’s puffy you might feel quite insecure. Relax - it’s almost 12ft wide and is not going to blow over in 10 knots. The helm will initially feel odd. This is because it’s a very small rudder and it develops very little feel. The boat does not heel so no weather helm develops in the puffs. There IS feel there but you won’t be able to detect it on your first trip. You steer the boat to the wind all the time and this sometimes requires a push force on the tiller. You will get used to this - the jib tell-tales are the only things you will look at all summer! Some people rig a piece of elastic across the top of the tiller to provide a little feel but mainly to hold the boat on a steady heading while you furl the gennaker. The very light control force necessary to steer means that only a very light force is required from the ‘elastic autopilot’.  The tiller/mainsheet layout is unconventional and it is necessary to swing the extension behind the mainsheet when tacking. When sitting well forward inboard the mainsheet tackle obstructs free movement of the extension, and occasionally, the tiller. You may get used to this eventually but some people have fitted a split mainsheet system in which the tiller passes between the two halves of the mainsheet.

 

 In the absence of a boom the mainsheet works like the jib sheet on a conventional rig. Pulling the mainsheet in flattens the bottom of the sail and reduces twist at the top by tensioning the leech. Letting it out has the opposite effect. It is not necessary ever to let the mainsheet out very far - the clew should never be very far outboard of the vertical cockpit sides, even when running (which you don’t do very often). Total mainsheet travel at the clew is only about a foot which represents about six feet at the tail of the sheet. As with a jib of comparable area, the sheet loads are quite high.

 

Jibsheet operation is conventional. There is however on the NZ website a tab called Chris Kitchen’s Tips. In this he illustrates how to bend the jib cleats slightly so as to make it easier to engage them from the trampoline.  Some people tie the mainsheet to the jib sheets while others have split the stock jib sheet and taken the two tails out to the edge of the trampoline.

 

Having got the sails set and learnt how to steer, it is now time to explore the boat. Move out to the edge of the trampoline, leave the mainsheet cleated, hold the tiller extension in which ever hand you prefer  (I am a ‘microphone position’ man) and sit quite close to the shrouds. You can hold onto the shroud to steady yourself in waves. A couple of points on seating arrangements. In light winds you sit in the cockpit This is a bit shallow for some people and if you find yourself with a sheet or the tether round your feet, you may have to stand up to sort out the mess. There is no reason why you should not lie on the trampoline except that it is so comfortable that you may go to sleep. Sitting out on the edge of the tramp is the nicest place to be if there is enough wind; you are quite high and above the worst of the spray. There are toe straps for those who wish to hike aggressively and some people sit on the floats using the tether to steady themselves. Some have incorporated a trapeze handle into the shrouds to pull themselves back in. Wherever you sit, keep a good lookout - it’s amazing how much you can’t see through those translucent sails. Tacking is simple - push the tiller away from you, throw the tiller extension across to the other side, let the jib back momentarily then sheet it in on the other tack. Climb back out to the other rail.

 

To sail upwind in stronger winds it is necessary to steer the boat constantly to the edge of the wind. If overpowered, let the main out a bit and the top will twist off. It is seldom necessary to release the mainsheet although you should have it handy just in case. If you get a big puff and the leeward float has submerged just keep pointing up until the sail luffs. The boat can be knocked over to almost 90 degrees and will still come back up. If you are not racing you may care to sail with just the mainsail up. The boat is almost bullet proof in this configuration but does not point very well and is prone to get stuck in irons when tacking. If this happens just reverse the helm and reverse into a three point turn. I call this the ‘bath toy mode’. For the simple pleasure of thrashing about in a strong wind in relative safety it is unbeatable. If at any time you want a rest, just let the sails out and lie a-hull with the sails hauled in just enough to keep them quiet. The boat turns into a raft and will lie completely quietly. You can back the jib a bit to heave-to.

 

When you’ve tried the windward stuff, have a go at a run.  Point downwind, deploy the gennaker and sit on the cockpit side towards the stern. Sheet in and point up a bit to fill the gennaker. The mainsail should be eased a bit beyond the side of the footwell, and the jib let out about half way. Point up a bit and the boat will fly - point dead downwind and the apparent wind will drop to almost nothing. Develop an instinct to point DOWNWIND if you get a monster puff - don’t try to luff up. Practise ‘heating up’ and then bearing away, maintaining the new higher speed in the new apparent wind. The speed limit is when the leeward float and the bows start to bury. This will only happen in F5 upwards and usually happens quite slowly.  Immediately let go of the gennaker sheet and bear away downwind; recovery in instantaneous. The boat carries a bit of lee helm with the gennaker up. The technique is shown here .

 

Gybing requires a degree of organization but there is absolutely no danger of a capsize so we are concerned with aesthetics rather than survival. There is a video showing how to do it but the demonstrated technique involves facing backwards which some people (eg Frank Bethwaite) dislike. I am a face-forwards person.  First, cleat the jib loosely on the new side. Look around for an aiming point for the new ‘tack’ - you will be turning through at least 90 degrees. Make sure you are not sitting or standing on the gennaker sheet and are not going to when you change sides. Steer smoothly through the gybe, let go of the gennaker sheet, change sides, stop the turn and sheet in. At some point you run out of hands and will probably let go of the tiller and this is where the elastic autopilot helps stabilize things.

 

And now to furl the gennaker. It is important that there is no load on the sheet as you reel the sail in otherwise a bag will appear in the roll which will flutter manically on the next windward leg. Head almost dead downwind, make sure the sheet is free and pull on the furler line until the sail disappears. Turn upwind, sheet in, get back on the rail and round we go again.  If you have one of the older Harken furlers and it jams (the furling line slips below the flange of the drum and gets caught round the spindle) you will have to lower the sail and bring it into the cockpit.. There are DIY fixes for this problem, most of them involving Duck tape.

 

Two sail reaching. On a two sail reach you have to be aware of where the safety lane is. If you get a monster puff will you bear away or will you point up into the safe lane? Decide before the gust hits (bearing away is usually better, provided there isn’t a boat just underneath you). When rounding the windward mark, as you bear away you have to pass through this so called ‘death zone’. It is only a problem in very strong winds and is best dealt with by letting the main out before you bear away and then aggressively pulling the tiller towards you to force the boat into the downwind safety lane before it has a chance to heel.

 

All this sounds rather frenetic - and it is in winds above 15 kts. In the comfort zone between about 4 and 14 kts the boat is totally innocuous.

 

 

Capsizes. Capsizes are rare and invariably happen in unsteady conditions - gusts or waves. The handbook covers capsize recovery and a shallow water demo video is available as are a couple of deep water recoveries. The beauty of shallow water is that you won’t get trapped under the trampoline. The key to a ‘successful’ capsize is disconnecting the tether before you fall into the water and then getting clear of the tramp. There are three sets of sheets and a tether to get caught round your feet.   My only capsize was in shallow water (ie shallower than the mast). In this partially inverted situation the leeward float is not on the surface and you may have to duck-dive down to the transom hatch to remove it. With assistance you can rotate the hull around the axis of the mast to bring the hatch to the surface to let the air out..  The float will then sink and recovery is normal from a position standing on the centreboard. If you have to furl the gennaker do it at the furling drum (ie swim to the bow) and use the painter to tie it off.

 

Coming ashore. I love this manoeuvre! If you have a furling jib, furl it. Let the main out, sit on the forward crossbeam with your feet in the water and pull the dagger board out of its case. The boat will slide sideways onto the beach without fuss. Jump off the beam when in about three feet of water having first RELEASED THE TETHER! De-rigging is easier on a sandy beach than on a concrete reser voir slipway. Lower the jib and let it drop into the water to stop it blowing about. Lower the main and try to get it to flake into the cockpit then throw the centreboard onto it. Get someone to hold the boat while you fetch your trolley and proceed as follows:  let the boat out to the full extent of the painter and manoeuvre the trolley (which floats) between you and the boat. After a deft piece of playing the fish on the line it should be possible to get the bow into the first ‘moosehead’. Lift the trolley handle to dip the moosehead under the forefoot as it is possible to chip the gelcoat. Pull the boat onto the trolley, get it out of the water and then secure the stern lines. One person can pull the boat up a reasonably shallow slipway. Beware of unsolicited help - you will go too fast and scrape the boat on the gate unless you have got some guidelines or an aiming point.

Storing the boat.  For those lucky enough to be able to leave the boat in the dinghy park with the mast up, de-rigging is painless. My bay has two helical earth-anchors to tie the boat down with. I don’t use a cover and the furling jib stays up.  The prod remains in its hole with the sail in a specially made bowsprit bag. The sheets remain attached. The mainsail is rolled up from the foot to the head so as to be ready for a quick hoist next time (I had a special fat sail bag made to allow this), The sail is left in the cockpit with the dagger board on top of it. The rudder remains attached. I am aware that you might not be able to do this at a big club in the crime-ridden south of England!

 

For those who have to break their boats down, there are ways to make this more painless. There are quick-release ways of attaching the jib and gennaker sheets to the sails so that they remain threaded on the boat when the sails are packed up.  You may be able to store the mast beside the boat without taking the halyards off (or even without disconnecting the shrouds.

General.  The importance of dressing up warmly cannot be over-emphasized. It is very difficult to launch the boat without getting into the water and your hands will get wet even if only through contact with wet ropes. Sailing the boat does not require much physical effort and you will not keep warm hiking and pumping the sails. The boat is quite fast and upwind at say 9 knots will have you sitting in an apparent wind of nearly 20. Downwind in waves you will at times be bathed in fairly solid spray.  Forget the pictures of Wetas festooned with girls in bikinis - in anything other than a flat calm with ambient temperatures above 20 and sea temperatures about the same you are going to need serious clothing. I often wear a loose fitting balaclava which keeps some of the spray off my face. If I get too hot I pull it down so that it becomes a neck gaiter. Waterproof gloves are a great boon in winter - washing up gloves are better than nothing. I wear a tailor made drysuit with fitted boots (not the one in the picture, though similar). I wear a gilet style buoyancy aid with a modified closure to accommodate the harness (not done up in the photo, perhaps because I am too hot!) And at least one lambswool jersey underneath. Think overnight yachting rather than dinghy daysailing.

 

Trailing.  IMHO the lightweight trolley is one of the Weta masterstrokes. It reduces the weight on the slipway by almost 80lbs compared to the usual steel type. The bad news is that it’s fragile. The weight of the boat is supported not on a single cradle directly over the axle as is usual but by two cradles some distance apart. This produces a ‘broken see-saw’ effect at the axle. Part of the problem stems from excessive tension in the ratchet straps when on the trailer, part of it is carrying too much weight in the boat, part of it is bumpy roads but the main problem is that it’s under-specified. Inspect yours and if there are any signs of cracks around the welds, take it to someone who can fix it.

 

People who launch across sand or soft shingle sometimes fit balloon tyres which then won’t fit the road trailer. There is room for some creative modification here.

1  Dress up warm

 

 

2  Explore the stability of a multihull

The Weta will pass through a standard farm gate with a foot to spare

Weta Warnings Constituition News

Weta Warnings Constituition News