A Wet and Wild Ride on the Mount Hope Bay MA This Afternoon

[MHBsailor]

First sail in my (new to me) CD22D this afternoon was a wet and wild ride starting right off the mooring in a 15-20 kt breeze coming up the Narragansett Bay from the SSW. The little Yanmar 1GM was surprisingly sprightly once it warmed up for a few minutes. Some big waves early on had the bow bouncing up and down like a bucking bronco but with no rolling side-to-side. Had a second reef in the main and the 100% jib and that was just about right most of the time, as evidenced by little healing and a nicely balanced helm. All-and-all I was impressed with the smallest Cape Dory "pocket cruiser" with an inboard Diesel during these sailing conditions.

[mgphl52]

First sail in my (new to me) CD22D this afternoon was a wet and wild ride starting right off the mooring in a 15-20 kt breeze coming up the Narragansett Bay from the SSW. The little Yanmar 1GM was surprisingly sprightly once it warmed up for a few minutes. Some big waves early on had the bow bouncing up and down like a bucking bronco but with no rolling side-to-side. Had a second reef in the main and the 100% jib and that was just about right most of the time, as evidenced by little healing and a nicely balanced helm. All-and-all I was impressed with the smallest Cape Dory "pocket cruiser" with an inboard Diesel during these sailing conditions.

Congrats!!!

[John Stone]

No pictures? You’re killing us.

[fmueller]

Yay Dan !!! Great news.

I was out too - I'll say, boy, we have been having some wind. I got south of Warwick Pt Light on the west bay and the tide was running out against that honking south wind - and the chop - I thought I was in a Winslow Homer painting.

[MHBsailor]

Had my hands full John I do hope to mount a GoPro to the stern rail soon - does anyone know if there is a gimballed mount?

[s2sailorlis]

Def need to reef in the CD22 in anything over 13-14 knots. I’ve been in gusts of about 20-22 main reefed, maybe 75% of jib out and port rail and side deck in the drink. When I pinched to windward she leveled off enough to bring water into cockpit. Too much weather helm in anything over 18+ knots.. even when reefed.

However even at that degree of heel she felt real stiff. It’s the weather helm that’s disconcerting, as if the tiller will snap in your hand...

Pix below was from a 10-12 knot day, but with occasional 2-3 foot seas. If you look carefully there’s another sailboat way ahead, a 30-32 footer at same degree of heal.

[Steve Darwin]

It was about 15 kts on Buzzards Bay that day. One reef, along with the 100% hank-on jib, was fine for our 25D. In wind stronger than that, we take two reefs, or, if reaching, sail with the 100% jib alone and she rides along with no weather helm at all. Good performers in heavy weather, these Cape Dory boats.

[John Stone]

Def need to reef in the CD22 in anything over 13-14 knots. I’ve been in gusts of about 20-22 main reefed, maybe 75% of jib out and port rail and side deck in the drink. When I pinched to windward she leveled off enough to bring water into cockpit. Too much weather helm in anything over 18+ knots.. even when reefed.

However even at that degree of heel she felt real stiff. It’s the weather helm that’s disconcerting, as if the tiller will snap in your hand...

Pix below was from a 10-12 knot day, but with occasional 2-3 foot seas. If you look carefully there’s another sailboat way ahead, a 30-32 footer at same degree of heal.

S2sailorlis, that’s a gorgeous picture. Action, great depth of field, sharp focus. Beautiful muted contrasting colors. My mother was a professional artist. She always said seawater is green. She was right. There the proof if I have ever seen it. I think Winslow Homer Himself would stop to marvel at that picture.

[MHBsailor]

We weren't that heeled over but were flying the old stretched out mainsail (and 100 jib) with second reef and no vang (the one that came with the boat was no good) so we were spilling a lot of air from the main, plus not sailing close-hauled, as it was the first sail on this boat, and the steady wind was probably 13-15 kts gusting to 20 kts. What made for the wild ride was motoring against the incoming tide and wind to get out of the Coles River from my mooring onto the Mt. Hope Bay.

[fmueller]

great shot for sure ...

Dan - does your 22 have working jib sheet tracks on the coachroof ??

Looking thru Sailboatdata.com and I'm thinking not all the Cape Dorys do ... I used to assume they all did.

In wind - I'm sold on having a smaller jib that trims from inside the shrouds. Specially going upwind.

[MHBsailor]

Hi Fred, no block and jib track on the coach roof - just a single deck-mounted bullseye on each side aft of the side stays. We found that the jib sheet on each side had to be threaded between the forward lower and upper. I believe this arrangement is featured in some of the factory photos for the CD22s. Do you think that mounting a block on each side of the coach roof would be a better arrangement?

When the sailmaker came out to measure my spars before making a new mainsail, he commented that the track length for the genoa sheet block on top of each cockpit coming was way too short if I went to a roller-furler setup, and recommended adding at at least the same amount of track length forward and aft of the existing factory-installed track. He said this was essential for ensuring the correct sheeting angle as a genoa is furled and unfurled. I plan to install a furler at the end of the season and have him measure it for a headsail - he thought that I might be better with a 120 or 125 that a 130 in these waters. On my previous TY Senior (which had a 130 on a reliable Harken furler), I found myself furling the headsail back to 120 a lot when I was too lazy to take a reef in the main when I was single-handing lol.

JD

[fmueller]

Man ... lots of points ... go with what the sail maker is saying about car position and track length (which can never be too long unless you run out of toe rail or $$) ... one thing I do know is that when I got a hi cut 115 percent genoa 5 years ago I found that the jib cars hardly have to move forward at all when you reef. I got the hi cut so I could avoid being run over in Boston Harbor but I'd get a 120 for your boat ... traditional cut ... you can't go wrong. You'll be happier to have less sail when it's windy. When its not, 2.5 knots is dam slow, 2.75 knots is dam slow too.

As far as real force 4+ wind handling - I'm just so sold on having a working jib and on my 27 in lieu of a bigger sail. The thing is unless you have a big jib (135 or larger) that wraps well around the rigging you can't get a real pointing trim angle, and in heavy wind you always have to roll it in and now your jib clew is hanging out there right outside your cap stays. Yuck! That means if you haul the main in close to over center, it is over trimmed compared to your jib. So you ease the main because you'll have too much helm if you sail by the jib - but and here is the catch - unless you are very good with your traveler and main sheet - and even if you are - you tend to loose that flat un-twisted airfoil as soon as you ease off the main sheet ... and you REALLY want that flat main in a strong breeze: less drag, less heal, and when coupled with the jib nicely - more drive and pointing ... and you also really want that flat jib too; tightly coupled to the main - and rolled up genoas are.not.flat. .... So then everyone says you gotta reef the main - when what you really needed was a smaller proper jib and a flat well shaped tight main.

OK - rant over - get the genoa first ...

specially because who the heck knows where to put baby tracks on your coach roof and next summer will probably be like the tropical convergence zone ... not the roaring 40s we've had this year

cheers