Would anyone suggest the best ways to avoid being overpowered in very strong winds, >18-20 kts? I frequently encounter such conditions along with short, choppy waves in Buzzrds Bay racing -- but cannot seem to avoid being overpowered. I have only one set of reef points on my main, but even with traveler all the way to leeward, I seem to continue heeling way too much. I raced in 15-20 kts, with gusts to 30 kts yesterday with a #3 and reefed main and it seemed I had too much main and too little jib. I usually race with at most four other crew -- do I have too little crew weight on the rail? I am competititve in winds up to 15 kts, but not above. Any suggestions?

Get bigger crew...or more of it. There is a reason why the weight limit is 1400lbs here in the states. And in the Carib its 1463lbs... and I try and max that out. We have 15-20kts most days and building... I have never raced with a reef in, but we can only carry a 155% when its "lighter" mostly a 140%. If you have too much crew and the wind drops they can go sit on the keel... make sure theres a couple of Sailing World mags for entertainment...and provide commentary from above to keep them happy.

Bill,
When you get everything going the J/30 is fantastic when the it really starts blowing. First at 18-20 you should not have to reef - I know that is hard to belive but with a frac rig it is possible.

Here is what I have found to work:

Tons of backstay. When it is going to be windy we shorten the backstay for the most effect and then crank it down so it is level with the stern pulpit.

The other real important thing going upwind is to point very high. The J/30 has a great groove when the wind is cranking like that and she can out point nearly everyone. Just keep sailing higher until the boat starts to flatten out, suddly it will click into a nice groove that is very balanced. And then work to keep it up there and drive the waves. To get there you will need a bunch of leach tension on the main so it is very flat, also there may be a big bubble near the mast but as long as the back part of the main is driving you are good (does not look pretty but it works). And have someone ready on the main to dump it because you will not be able to crack off with out easing the main.

Also if the jib and main do not feel balanced, check that your blocks are in the correct spot.

And also what red said - big butts on the rail!

Hope this helps.

David
#387

Last year 2nd weekend AYC Fall Series, wind from the Thomas Pt Light weather station, in knots:
Dir, Speed Gust, Time
027, 24.1, 32.1, 11:00 AM
019, 22.9, 29.9, 12:00 PM
026, 22.0, 29.9, 01:00 PM
035, 22.9, 27.0, 02:00 PM

Full main & #3 with seven crew at 1320 lbs. Wound forestay 10 full turns tighter, uppers and lowers at 44-45, about as tight as I could get them. Tightened backstay turnbuckles tight with backstay adjuster off. Main up in the harbor behind a building, full crew in full foulies on the rail from then on. On the race course halyards extra tight; cunningham and outhaul maxed. Backstay tight as it will go without inverting the main. Mainsheet on hard, vang snug to that trim. (Must ease vang before going downwind!) Keep the jib full and use traveler to control heel. Play traveler constantly from middle to all the way down. At that point the main is either luffing or only using the last two feet of the leach. You can feather in puffs, but not to the point of auto-tack (a disaster) or feeling sluggish in the inevitable big waves or chop.

Too bad only three boats came out to play-- it was great experience.

I love that sort of conditions. Upwind the J/30 is rather fun to drive (as long as you've got a bunch of bodies on the rail keeping the spray off you).

Like Bob, we set the rig up pretty tight. Uppers are 45 on a Loose Gauge B, lowers 44. We don't change the forestay, but that probably would help a bit too (moving the CE of the sailplan forward and reducing weather helm).

With backstay, outhaul, and mainsheet on hard, the main looks REALLY flat.

On Lake Michigan with the wind out of the NE, we get some pretty good waves... perhaps what you'd find on Buzzards Bay. I drive around the waves a lot... the main trimmer has to play the traveler constantly... dropping it as I head down the back of a wave to keep from heeling too much.

If we're still overpowered, we'll ease the mainsheet so like Bob we'll only be using the leech of the main. If we're still overpowered, we'd use a flattening reef (if you happen to have one of those anymore).

In a westerly offshore breeze, Loch Mich is pretty flat in Chicago. In those conditions, we point really high, and drive mostly by heel angle, feathering when a gust comes along and we start to heel. Probably nothing faster for it's rating than a J/30 with enough weight on the rail to hold it down.

Thanks VERY much to everyone for your practically instantaneous feedback! I am very much encouraged by your suggestions -- it is apparent that I do not have enough crew weight (easy to remedy, with the promise of ice cold refreshments afterwards), and its clear that I'm not cranking down enough on the backstay and shrouds. I did seem to occasionally find that "groove" and point very high, but felt like I needed more drive from my jib. Does anyone routinely go down from a 155% #1 to a #2 -- seemed like the #3 was too small.
Thanks again for all your tips!
Now I know why I have always been happy that I got my J/30 17 years ago. You guys are great!
Bill Veno
Waltzing Matilda

Most racing J/30 sailors don't have a decent #2... so their choice is either a #1 or #3. Those of us who do have a halfway decent #2 find it quite uesful, especially when you don't have enough crew to hold the boat down.

The problem with a #2 is you have a choice to make. With only a #1 and #3, that choice is pretty obvious.

It's probably better to use a #3 when you've got waves you have to drive around, and a #2 when there's flat water where you can point very high.

Last years NA's provided an interesting lesson on heavy wind setup. In the first race of the series, breeze was around 18 gusting up to 22+ out of the east on LIS. If you haven't sailed on the Sound, you need to know that an easterly blow is UGLY. HUGE short chop (one boat lost their rig slamming into a wave). The winning boat, Zephyr, sailed every leg with a #1 and a full main. They sailed everyone else clear off the course. They seemed to be sailing bow down (way down), traveler way down to power through the waves. The rest of us were trying #1's, #2's, and #3's in various combos-but couldn't touch Zephyr.

In flat water or moderate chop, Dave's advice is spot on-feather a bit, flatten everything to the max, and go with the three. And definitely carry at least 1300 lbs of crew!

P.S. Bob-did you fly the chute in that breeze?

No chute in first race, 25 gusting to 30. Big Kahuna had us at the first cross. Considering both Fall+Season series were at stake we were content with a safe second. Really it was our old pal Sea Biscuit (now a Mumm 30) who convinced us it might not be a good idea. We were almost to the top mark on the first beat close to the port layline. Biscuit rounds in the class ahead of us and sets a masthead (!) kite. I say to brother-in-law Mike, “We might have to tack”. He: “Aren’t we on the layline?” Me: “Yeah, but they’re starboard!” Biscuit goes into full on knockdown broach, keel out of the water, bow aimed straight at us. We stuck it up just high enough to pass astern as they popped up and took off again. BTW one of their crew said they saw the whites of my eyes, which I am pretty sure were big and round.

Second race we tacked under BK at the start and held them off in some very close racing. We were prepared to set if they did. BK waited until the final downwind leg, still 24 knots according to Thomas Point (we have only hand held wind instruments) but not quite as gusty. We gybed soon after the mark to save one later and waited to see how BK did—and they were coming fast. We gybed back, set and finished about a boat length ahead, aided by one broach if I recall correctly when BK gybed. Double digit speeds the whole way.