Knowledge of the Sails - Types of Sails

The knowledge of sailing flatly means a knowledge of the sails

. A sailing boat is driven by its sails and a sailor has to know the sails and the complications involved to know his boat. In this article you can find a brief outline of the different types of sails and what are their particular functions in a boat.

What is a sail

A sail is simply a large sheet of cloth that is rigged in a distinct manner on the boat to make the most possible use of the wind current. The understanding of the wind and the subsequent synchronization of the sails with it is the singular most important aspect of sailing. There are three main types of sails that are found, though many new innovations are often brought about them, depending upon the type of boat.

There are three main types of sails: the Mainsail, the Genoa or Gib, and the Spinnaker or the Gennaker.

The attachment of the sail with the boat is known as rigging. Two main types of sail rigging are mainly used in sailboats. They are square rigging and fore-and-aft rigging. The types of rigging decide the specific drafts of a sail. Drafts broadly refer to the curvature on the surface of the sail.

Sails are wind management tools of a boat. The opening, loosening, broadening of the sails are handled by a sailor to attain his way with the boat. Very often, thin shreds of yarn, known as telltales, are attached with the sails to obtain a measure of the intensity and direction of the wind.

The mainsail

A mainsail is the main driving force of a boat. Simply put, the more sail area of a mainsail the more faster the boat move. The sail area of the mainsail thus needs to be controlled and worked upon to control the speed of the boat.

Hoisting the mainsail and getting optimum use out of it requires a certain sailor's trick. The mainsail is hoisted by its halyard and in the beginning the corners of the sail flaps crazily.

This is known as luffing and a little bit of luffing is all right in the start. Care must be taken to avoid excess luffing as it considerably reduces the life of the sail. When fully hoisted, the sail should be tight enough to remove folds from the edges and also there should be no vertical creases on the sail.

A good idea is to let out the mainsail until the front edge just begins to luff, and then it is to be pulled back wisely to completely hoist it.

The Genoa

The Genoa is also a large sail that is primarily used to determine the direction and the turning of the boat. The Genoa is often bigger than the sheet length of a mainsail, but it has a much less sail area. A smaller Genoa is also called a Gib/Jib. The tell tales are generally attached to the sides of a Genoa.

Sails are always raised in the order of first mainsail and then Jib, because by this it becomes easier for the boat to be placed in the favorable wind direction.

The Gennaker

The Gennaker is also a large sail and is bag -shaped. It kind of catches the force of the wind in its 'bag' and pushes the boat along with.

Knowledge of the Sails - Types of Sails

By: Jack C. Davis

POST COMMENT

How To Decide Which Ebook Reader To Buy? What Are the Things You Should Know about Article Submission Quick Move Now Articles March 10 Quick Move Now Articles March 10 (2) Bubble and Squeak – English Recipe and Fun History Quick Move Now Articles February 10 Quick Move Now Articles January 10 The History And Meanings Of Pop Art Prepare For Bootcamp Ebook Torrent Quick Move Now Articles January 10 (2) Why do Companies opt for Freelance Bookkeeper now? EBooks on behalf of The iPad - A huge App What iPad Reader For eBooks Should I Get?