Wind and Sea conditions
For those new to Sailing, it is Wind conditions that determine what direction and speed we can do safely, with the Sea state making this difficult, or sometimes impossible, to carry out. Understanding Wind strength and direction in relation to the Course we want to travel, is therefore critical and helps determine the correct Sail to use to match the conditions, for example in 20 knots True, as below:
Sailing Term - Apparent Wind Angle from the Bow - Conventional Sail Type
Not possible - 0 to 30 degrees - Headsails just flap in the wind
Close Hauled - 30 to 40 degrees - No 3 Jib
Close Reach - 40 to 80 degrees - No 2, No 1 or Reacher Spinnaker
Beam Reach - 80 to 120 degrees - No 1 or All-purpose Spinnaker
Broad Reach - 120 to 150 degrees - Reacher Headsail or Runner Spinnaker
Possible/slow - 150 to 180 degrees - Largest Spinnaker Runner
So even in this simple example, we see the need to change Sails depending on the angle of the wind to the direction we want to travel. In addition, as wind increases in strength, it is necessary to use stronger Sails, of reduced size.
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