Sailing a tri very fast on a close reach. Crew is holding the jib sheet...

...in case the leeward bow starts really plunging, and another crew has ahold of the mainsheet.

Suddenly, leeward bow plunges deeply, and the boat slows dramatically in a huge surge of spray, as the stern begins to lift. Which line would you release first to dump the most air the quickest? Mainsheet or jib sheet, and why?

What other maneuver, if any, should the skipper attempt, in order to recover from this dangerous situation? Three of us have disagreed, so we thought we would bring the question to the board. Thx in advance.

 

Helm movements have much quicker response than sheets.
Head up to feather (close reach)
Dump main. No movement on jib.


I guess.....

But if is in response to a gust, (not just going under a wave), then we have a change in wind direction! (relative to the boat)

 

Release both sheets at the same time. Why choose one over the other?

 

I agree with Gonzo but I'd also make a quick "jerking" move pushing the tiller away(to leeward) than back real fast. The rudder should cause the lee ama tip to pop up. Best to do this before the ama bow buries. Don't let the situation progress to the point of burying the lee bow-if the tiller "jerk" doesn't work immediately release both sheets. And consider adding a rudder t-foil......

 

On our racing fleet we normally blow the jibsheet first followed quickly by the main sheet if that doesn't work. Our observation has been that trimarans are much more resistant to pitch poling than catamarans and normally save themselves even with fairly ham fisted handling. On a large multihull the preferred course of action on a close reach is normally to come up rather than head down.

 

I would post this question on sailing anarchy.
More actual sailors over there and some real multihull "pro's"

 

I'd forget the tiller, by this stage it's losing relevance. Sheets are paramount in particular the headsail as the sheet is direct to the clew whereas the main has more turns.

Definitely time to reduce sail, speed will be maintained with less stress on sails rig and crew.

 

Easy ... Crew has Jib Sheet and Traveler, Skipper has tiller and mainsheet. Since skipper has head out of boat looking ahead at waves etc. the crew should be ready for disaster prevention.

It is drive from the sail plan that is forcing the lee bow down. This force acts through the centre of effort of the sail area. This centre is higher on the main than the jib. Killing the main reduces the bow down force the most.

Dump the traveler followed by the jib sheet. This kills the most drive acting high on the rig. The traveler should be the quickest solution.

The skipper must not stall the rudder(s) and should drive *down* to sail the boat under the rig as the pressure is coming off. You will need to be low to power the boat back up to speed before you can point again.

The traveler is the fastest reacting safety valve you have. Use it.

Cheers,
Randy

 

Retro Dude, and the others who have posted so far, thx for your efforts. Retro, I believe the same re your comments. My only reservation is heading down from a close reach. Certainly need to have the jib sheet released to take pressure off the leeward bow if you are turning down. Heading up to luff as the jib sheet is released might work, but the apparent wind definitely increases with that maneuver, until the jib starts flogging.

 

Jib off first then main traveler

Letting off mainsheet will induce twist in the sail - twist is not your friend in this instance