Points of sail

When sailing a distinction the courses to the wind after the incident angle of the apparent wind with respect to the longitudinal axis of a sailing vehicle.

Apparent wind refers to the perceived onboard wind which results from the interaction of true, atmospheric wind and wind it. The apparent wind is also called board wind, its direction is indicated by the pennant at the top of the mast of the boat. Depending on the course to the wind, the position of the sails and her trim differ.

With price here is only the angle of the vehicle to the wind meant (0 ° to 180 ° in the wind before the wind). For the nautical term course of a ship see Course (navigation).

At the Wind

At the wind (even when wind) referred to in sailing a course in which the incident angle of the apparent wind is less than 90 °. The smallest yet segelbare angle is called to the wind or into the wind. In Rahseglern he is in the range of 80 ° to 90 °, in modern example slupgetakelten yachts depending on the ship type at about 30 ° to 45 °. Full and in contrast, ie the fastest course to windward, where the helmsman - " to pinch height " instead - something falls and ensures a full set of the sails.

On a close-hauled course, the air flow is mainly used in the glider, similar to an airfoil on the aircraft. The sails are hauled, so moved to the middle of the ship, and trimmed flat. Square rigger can hardly go to the wind, as they draw propulsion mainly from wind pressure on the sail.

In The Wind

If the highest possible segelbare angle below the wind, no more propulsion is generated. The boat is then available in the wind, and the sails kill. A goal that is in this wind sector can be started only by crosses. Known as the turning angle size of the non segelbaren wind sector is a measure of the cross features a sailing ship.

The sailing maneuvers, wherein the bow of the ship to the stopping of (stop of the ship ) is rotated in the wind is referred to as Aufschießer.

Half Wind

Half wind called a course in which a wind indicator on board approximately perpendicular ausweht, so the apparent wind incident at about 90 °. The sails are compared to the close-hauled course slightly open ( " eased the pods "). During caused on a half wind course to be the largest part of the propulsion flow through the sail, and another part is also due to wind pressure on the sail.

Downwind

On a downwind or downwind, the apparent wind falls " angle from the rear Coming ", expressed seamanship: abaft as abeam, a; is called the wind on Raumschotskursen as backstay breeze. The propulsion is optimized by an even more open feathering and a somewhat bauchigeren sail trim.

After some authors' opinion, any wind is called " space ", which lies between upwind and downwind; Accordingly, they consider only half the wind as a special case raumen wind.

Against the Wind

Against the Wind is, a course where the apparent wind from astern, exactly from behind incident. Here, have vehicle and true wind (and thus the apparent wind ) the same direction. On this course of propulsion is generated by wind pressure and no longer flow to the sail.

Slupgetakelte boats are often unstable when moving from the wind in their price behavior and threatens' to get out of hand, "so that it can easily lead to the unintentional jibe, a so-called patent or folding neck. To prevent this, a bull pennant may be placed. To avoid that the foresail incident because it is in the lee of the mainsail, it can be ausgebaumt, eg with a spinnaker pole. If the booming out on the opposite side of the mainsail, this type of sailing is also known as a butterfly sails.

Under normal Sails especially catamarans, but also yachts and dinghies are usually faster when they cross from the wind, so go on changing Raumschotskursen. Especially in rough water cruising is preferable to the butterfly sailing also for safety from the wind, because the risk of accidental jibe is the butterfly very large if the course can not be maintained very accurately. To aft winds to offer as much attack surface, are on downwind downwind and often large, bulbous special sails, spinnaker or gennaker such as used.

More dependencies

Which of sail sailing vessels sailing on the cheapest or reach their highest speed, can not be generalized because it depends not only on the vessel design and the specific hull speed, but eg also on the nature and extent of the sails, the respective wind speed and the currently prevailing swell. For example, square rigged tall ship, like the earlier trade sailing ships, predestined by their design for courses, where moderate wind incident almost aft. Racing yachts, however, can quite easily reach to close-hauled courses its highest speed when not being hindered by heavy seas. Are you there faster than even on a downwind leg, in which the canopy is increased enormously by huge spinnaker.

Many cruising boats reach their Standardbesegelung ( mainsail and genoa ) with moderate, perpendicular or slightly aft of incident wind their optimum at which the sail can still be fully set and the boat is not heeled excessively ( tilts Lee). In this course, the drift is also still moderate, the wind shifted, the boat relative to the control rate. Sailors on dinghies take the other hand, even a higher drift in purchase to get the boat from the trawler on the plane. Due to this reduced water resistance they reach a sharply incoming speed increase.