I have been trying to get my wife to take a competent crew course with the
same instructor I had. She is reluctant to take the helm but will handle
sheets. She does help with docking when she is aboard too. A couple of
weeks ago we had a good blow for us with winds steady around 18kts and
gusting to about 23. We had a long beat and were on port tack for awhile.
As she wasn't enjoying the cockpit experience she went below and proceeded
to fall asleep. She is getting better it is only our second year with the
boat, I have to be patient. We really enjoy the time at anchor I try to do
more of that the days she is out with me.
I found my youngest son did better when I forced him to take the helm while
I had my lunch one afternoon. We were sailing up wind and as he had to
steer to the tell tales he was pretty busy and didn't notice we were
heeling. So yes the "having something to do" is good advice.
I think part of my problem is even though I have the most tender of the C&C
family she doesn't have a tendency to round up even when severly pressed. I
am used to it more than the rest of the family I guess and when I know the
boat is in that "groove" I am reluctant to ease the traveller down or let
main sheet out. Having said that I am often surprised and a little
perplexed when we speed up with what I think is a large bubble in the
mainsail....
David Donnelly
C&C 26 Mistress
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http://www.aqua-mail.com
On September 20, 2014 9:09:37 AM Joel Aronson via CnC-List
<cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote:
How comfortable is she sailing the boat? Having sailed with a number of
girlfriends, I found the more comfortable they were at the helm, the less
concerned they were with heeling, gusts etc. Have you tried giving her the
wheel? She can control the heel and you can ease sheets.
FWIW, When I taught sailing, I stonrgly recommended that spouses be in
different boats because the wives learned and did more.
Perhaps she would benefit from lessons from a friend or sailing school?
Joel
On Saturday, September 20, 2014, Chuck S via CnC-List <cnc-list@cnc-list.com>
wrote:
> David,
> Well said. I am learning late in life that *many* wives don't appreciate
> when a sailboat heels or as mine says, ". . . don't like when it leans".
> And what I find challenging and fun about sailing like short tacking
> through a narrow channel or sailing hard on the wind close hauled, causes
> my wife anxiety or grief. Just when the wind starts getting good, she
> usually asks to go somewhere for a swim.
>
> I recently went sailing w a friend with the same problem. His wife is
> very similar to mine. We've all been friends since before we married over
> twenty five years ago. He wanted to show off his new boat and his
> wonderful country of Holland. His plan; the guys went sailing for 10 days
> in Holland while the wives went touring by car through France. I noticed
> most sailboat crews were guys, many skippers were alone, a very few white
> haired couples and the same number of twenty-ish couples. My friend and I
> had a great time sailing whenever possible and remarked several times when
> the boat was making 8 to 9 knots and heeled to 25 degrees, and we were
> having fun, "The girls would hate this." One leg on the North Sea, we
> sailed w just the 110% downwind in 27 knots wind making 9 knots boatspeed.
> On the return, we had 18 to 20 knots on the nose. Sailing would have taken
> longer, causing us to miss getting a slip, so we motorsailed w a reefed
> main making 8.3 knots. The main steadied the boat so she maintained
> momentum and sliced better through the waves. I remember playing w the
> vang to get a better shape to the top of the sail, because the boat had no
> traveller. The girls would have hated it.
>
> So, I'm looking for suggestions to keep both the boat and the wife, happy.
>
>
>
--
Joel
301 541 8551
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