It's always upwind

[wikakaru]

As sailors, I'm sure you've heard the adage that no matter where you want to go, it's always directly upwind. I had a sail like that a few days ago. Here's the track:

Upwind.jpg

Focus your gaze on the east side of the chart and work your way up and around towards the west. Notice the wind barbs and the zig-zag of the tacks. It shifted around every corner, blew everything from NW to SW, and stayed on the nose the whole time. That was my sail.

At least it wasn't upwind on the way back, too. I've actually had that happen as well, but that's another story...

Smooth sailing,

Jim

[Paul D.]

Good work Jim. I had a sail like that last season in 35kts all the way back to the slip. Was very happy to be in an Alberg boat with a decent headsail. Still, it was a fair amount of work.

Wasn't it Olin Stephens who said, "Gentleman don't go to weather." then went on to design some of the best upwind sailing yachts of the 20th century?

May I ask which navigation program you are using and snapped that track image?

Thanks,

[wikakaru]

Good work Jim. I had a sail like that last season in 35kts all the way back to the slip. Was very happy to be in an Alberg boat with a decent headsail. Still, it was a fair amount of work.

Wasn't it Olin Stephens who said, "Gentleman don't go to weather." then went on to design some of the best upwind sailing yachts of the 20th century?

May I ask which navigation program you are using and snapped that track image?

Thanks,

I've read the quote many times, but never seen an attribution before. It would be interesting if it was Olin Shephens who first said it. I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiment when cruising, but when daysailing I like a good upwind beat to start with, followed by a nice run back to the mooring at the end of the sail.

I use an Android app called GPX Logger to capture the track. I wrote a Visual Basic Script to create "breadcrumbs" every 5 minutes from the track. Then I import the track and breadcrumbs into OpenCPN on my PC. I take a screenshot of the result, and add the wind arrows "by hand" using Paint.net. You could very easily just record the tracks and display them in OpenCPN alone, but I prefer to use a navigation app called Marine Navigator when daysailing because I find it is simpler to use.

It probably seems like a lot of work to do things this way, but I also use the GPX track information in an app called GeoSetter to geolocate photographs I take on my sails with cameras that don't have a built-in GPS, so I'm going to be recording a track file anyway, so that's the point of GPX Logger.

Smooth sailing,

Jim

[gonesail]

also for us .. not always but frequently .. we run into strong winds. or maybe those days are the ones I mostly remember?

[John Stone]

Pretty sure it was not Olin Stephens. Sounds like something Capt Nat would say....or maybe a Vanderbilt while ensconced in a leather chair in the salon of his fully crewed ship. Fortunately we sail to weather in the Far Reach (and generally enjoy it) and we have a saloon. Not a salon in sight.

And what's my point? I have no idea....