Run 9 completed
Hi all,
Yesterday we got up bright and early in preperation for a days sailing. I got the team together and rallied the help of a couple of keen locals in Naude and Wally.
Helena was feeling much better and was helping us get set up.
We hit the course early as the tide would be going out from midday. Helena took on the video camera duties on the shore whilst I took the others up to the start of the strip to help set up Sailrocket.
The tide was well on the way out when the wind finaly began to kick in. I left all the rig raising gear on the boat as we weren't planning a fast run.
Whilst I was climbing in the cockpit and preparing all the ropes the guys holding Sailrocket let it get away from them. The wing powered up and Sailrocket strained against the anchor point. I told them just to let it go as their was nothing else they could do. The pod submerged and the outboard end of the beam filled with water. The nose of Sailrocket began to lift as she slewed around on the anchor point. The anchor point is on the rear end of the boat so that she will turn downwind in an arc on the anchor line when the nose is released. This she did as the pod popped back up and the beam end drained quickly.
I slipped the line and we were off.
The new 'anti-bungee' system was pulled on to disengage the spring tension on the flap. About 60 meters of kite string and 17 Harken Micro blocks worked perfectly as the flap came on to windward as planned. The wind was still quite light as I had to hunt around to get the flow attached to the wing. Sailrocket was quite slow to turn as the fixed skeg dampened the effect of the large low speed rudder. The ungainly launch had meant that I hadn't turned on the onboard camera or attached the microphone. I fumbled briefly with this and was annoyed that this element had slipped. Still, we had both the GPS systems on and the data logger was flashing it's little green heart-beat.
Sailrocket picked herself up and scooted off at around 20 knots. The wind was still quite aft so there wasn't alot of power left as I beared away and headed down the course. She seemed happy to sit on 20 so I checked other systems out. The hand tiller worked very well but it didn't feel natural as to the effect it had on the boat. It's on my left hand side and runs fore and aft alongside the boat. I need to push forward to bear away and pull back to come up. This wasn't automatic and I needed to think about it a couple of times. I'm sure it will come good with practice... which was what this run was all about. Either way, Sailrocket was very responsive... but then she always is at these speeds. Further down the course I dumped the flap by activating the 100kg combined load of the bungee system and the central flap sprang out into a negative setting. I let the mainsheet go and once again the wing continued to fly whilst still developing quite a bit of power. I had backed off the negative flap angle from the first sail from -15 to -14 degrees but it still seems to deliver alot of grunt.
I was getting to the end of the course so I stopped and brought her to the shore where the strong hands of Hiskia and Andreas caught her.
It would have been nice to have done another run but the tide was getting low and this can bring on a number of complications especially if the wind picked up... as it did. It means that we can't go direct from speed-spot across to the yacht club but have to skirt around a large sand bar by venturing out into rougher water.
That and the fact that we have to run further off the shore and so on.
The key points from the sail were-
-I need to spend more time in the cockpit getting accustomed to all the new systems. Some things need to be more automatic. I already have alot to do and most of this can be done as a sort of pre-flight ritual. Video, 2 GPS systems, data logger, comms, audio recording, sheeting positions, rudder uphaul triggers, flap deployment triggers etc.
-We need to pay more attention to how we have the boat configured whilst under tether at the top of the course as a 'run-away-Rocket' could get messy and really stuffs up any form of a pre-flight.
-The rudder load was very light and neutral which could be a problem at high speed with the big rudder down. The new fixed skeg currently under construction should be fitted asap so that we can kick the big rudder up as soon as we are under way.
-Once again the comms system did nothing throughout the run and needs to be improved.
-Practice, practice, practice. From here on in we need to get out on the water at every opportunity. These next two weeks are all about sailing and I want to be able to push this boat hard ASAP. We can't stay down here forever. In fact, Helena has to return to the UK next week so I will be down here on my own for a bit. Thankfully Malcolm will be coming down for a week. Financially the pot is definitely half empty so the pressure is on to make the most of what we have.
It is now the following morning and it's a glorious one at that. Today it is forecast to really blow. I will spend the day finishing and installing the new skeg in preperation for tomorrow.
Hopefully it will be the final piece in a big puzzle.
I will sail next time with the big rudder raised just using the small rudder and the 'skeg-flap'. This should be a safe high speed arrangement. After this I will then sail without the high speed rudder and just on the skeg-flap rudder. This should be the ultimate arrangement.
Cheers, Paul.
Yesterday we got up bright and early in preperation for a days sailing. I got the team together and rallied the help of a couple of keen locals in Naude and Wally.
Helena was feeling much better and was helping us get set up.
We hit the course early as the tide would be going out from midday. Helena took on the video camera duties on the shore whilst I took the others up to the start of the strip to help set up Sailrocket.
The tide was well on the way out when the wind finaly began to kick in. I left all the rig raising gear on the boat as we weren't planning a fast run.
Whilst I was climbing in the cockpit and preparing all the ropes the guys holding Sailrocket let it get away from them. The wing powered up and Sailrocket strained against the anchor point. I told them just to let it go as their was nothing else they could do. The pod submerged and the outboard end of the beam filled with water. The nose of Sailrocket began to lift as she slewed around on the anchor point. The anchor point is on the rear end of the boat so that she will turn downwind in an arc on the anchor line when the nose is released. This she did as the pod popped back up and the beam end drained quickly.
I slipped the line and we were off.
The new 'anti-bungee' system was pulled on to disengage the spring tension on the flap. About 60 meters of kite string and 17 Harken Micro blocks worked perfectly as the flap came on to windward as planned. The wind was still quite light as I had to hunt around to get the flow attached to the wing. Sailrocket was quite slow to turn as the fixed skeg dampened the effect of the large low speed rudder. The ungainly launch had meant that I hadn't turned on the onboard camera or attached the microphone. I fumbled briefly with this and was annoyed that this element had slipped. Still, we had both the GPS systems on and the data logger was flashing it's little green heart-beat.
Sailrocket picked herself up and scooted off at around 20 knots. The wind was still quite aft so there wasn't alot of power left as I beared away and headed down the course. She seemed happy to sit on 20 so I checked other systems out. The hand tiller worked very well but it didn't feel natural as to the effect it had on the boat. It's on my left hand side and runs fore and aft alongside the boat. I need to push forward to bear away and pull back to come up. This wasn't automatic and I needed to think about it a couple of times. I'm sure it will come good with practice... which was what this run was all about. Either way, Sailrocket was very responsive... but then she always is at these speeds. Further down the course I dumped the flap by activating the 100kg combined load of the bungee system and the central flap sprang out into a negative setting. I let the mainsheet go and once again the wing continued to fly whilst still developing quite a bit of power. I had backed off the negative flap angle from the first sail from -15 to -14 degrees but it still seems to deliver alot of grunt.
I was getting to the end of the course so I stopped and brought her to the shore where the strong hands of Hiskia and Andreas caught her.
It would have been nice to have done another run but the tide was getting low and this can bring on a number of complications especially if the wind picked up... as it did. It means that we can't go direct from speed-spot across to the yacht club but have to skirt around a large sand bar by venturing out into rougher water.
That and the fact that we have to run further off the shore and so on.
The key points from the sail were-
-I need to spend more time in the cockpit getting accustomed to all the new systems. Some things need to be more automatic. I already have alot to do and most of this can be done as a sort of pre-flight ritual. Video, 2 GPS systems, data logger, comms, audio recording, sheeting positions, rudder uphaul triggers, flap deployment triggers etc.
-We need to pay more attention to how we have the boat configured whilst under tether at the top of the course as a 'run-away-Rocket' could get messy and really stuffs up any form of a pre-flight.
-The rudder load was very light and neutral which could be a problem at high speed with the big rudder down. The new fixed skeg currently under construction should be fitted asap so that we can kick the big rudder up as soon as we are under way.
-Once again the comms system did nothing throughout the run and needs to be improved.
-Practice, practice, practice. From here on in we need to get out on the water at every opportunity. These next two weeks are all about sailing and I want to be able to push this boat hard ASAP. We can't stay down here forever. In fact, Helena has to return to the UK next week so I will be down here on my own for a bit. Thankfully Malcolm will be coming down for a week. Financially the pot is definitely half empty so the pressure is on to make the most of what we have.
It is now the following morning and it's a glorious one at that. Today it is forecast to really blow. I will spend the day finishing and installing the new skeg in preperation for tomorrow.
Hopefully it will be the final piece in a big puzzle.
I will sail next time with the big rudder raised just using the small rudder and the 'skeg-flap'. This should be a safe high speed arrangement. After this I will then sail without the high speed rudder and just on the skeg-flap rudder. This should be the ultimate arrangement.
Cheers, Paul.
Paul Larsen
Mobile: + 44 (0) 794 684 1929
E-mail: paularsen1@aol.com
www.sailrocket.com
Mobile: + 44 (0) 794 684 1929
E-mail: paularsen1@aol.com
www.sailrocket.com
posted by Paul at 7:06 am
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