Let’s see if I have this right. Upwind you want the center of effort over the center of rotation and downwind the center of effort should be forward of the center of rotation. Get those right and the boat will be balanced; get it wrong and there’s little you can do to get the boat to sail the way you want. Adjusting your mast rake even one degree can make all the difference.
Pro Sailor and sailing supply company proprietor Juan Mauri flew in from Texas to explain this at the January meeting—and also to ask how we can get more sailors and boats out on the water. Interestingly, he said that building boats that sail with smaller crews had a perverse effect, reducing the number of sailors because all those extra crew people are now on shore.
The board of directors this month voted in seven new club members and three of them were at the meeting to receive a welcome from Commodore Chris Smith and the crowd.
