[Rhodes22-list] Why Do You Want An Adjustable Length Whisker Pole &
What Are The Uphaul & Downhaul Used For?
Roger Pihlaja
cen09402 at centurytel.net
Fri Nov 19 15:46:20 EST 2004
Bill,
You're welcome! My tri-radial spinnaker cost about $800 based upon "Snowflake" pricing during the winter of 1988/1989. I purchased the sail from the Doyle sail loft in Houston, TX. I don't know what a comparable sail would cost today or what the UPS cruising spinnaker cost. My cruising spinnaker came with the boat when we bought it in 1987. It's the only sail left from the original inventory of sails that came with the boat.
A whisker pole is much more than some dumb piece of aluminum tubing stuck out in the wind. It's one of the most important pieces of foresail trimming hardware on the boat. It's useful on any point of sail more downwind than a close reach in wind velocities from near dead calm to a full gale.
Why Does The Length Need To Be Adjustable?
Unlike a spinnaker pole, a whisker pole has to be able to handle a much broader range of foresail sizes and designs. The length of a PHRF legal spinnaker pole is <= the so-called "J" dimension on a sloop rigged sailboat. On a Rhodes 22, J = 106 inches & that's the length of my spinnaker pole. But, note that the length of my whisker pole adjusts from 79" to 138". This range of length allows me to position the clew of my foresail for optimum sailshape no matter if I'm flying the cruising spinnaker, the 150% genoa, or if I've got the genoa roller furled down to 50%, or anything in-between. Plus, the optimum sail trim location for the clew of the foresail in terms of height off the deck and distance off the boat's centerline changes with point of sail. Being able to adjust the height and length of the whisker pole is the quickest, most practical way to achieve this foresail shape trimming capability. Also, with a big foresail, like a cruising spinnaker, a whisker pole enables you to trim the foresail to minimize backwinding the mainsail.
What Are Uphauls & Downhauls & Why Do You Want Them?
The link will show you a picture of Dynamic Equilibrium flying a tri-radial spinnaker on a very light air close reach. Note how I have the height of the inboard and outboard ends of the spinnaker pole adjusted such that the pole is very nearly level with the clew of the spinnaker. Also note the uphaul (some people call this a topping lift) rigged to a bridle near the middle of the spinnaker pole & above it running to a block about 3/4 of the way up the mast.
http://www.rhodes22.org/rhodes/pics/spinnaker.jpg
On this very light air day, I didn't bother with rigging the downhaul because it wasn't necessary. But, if I had connected the downhaul, it would appear to be a similar bridle near the middle of the spinnaker pole but below it. The downhaul is piece of tackle which is rigged like a boom vang to a point at the base of the front of the mast. Note that both the uphaul & downhaul control lines are led back to the cockpit so that the vertical height of the outboard end of the pole can be adjusted without leaving the cockpit. The uphaul supports the weight of the spinnaker pole and at least some of the weight of the spinnaker plus the windward sheet. Using this technique, it becomes possible to sail in winds that are too light to properly inflate the sail if it had to support all of its own weight. In waves or chop, the use of the uphaul and downhaul will fix the position of the tack of the tri-radial spinnaker (or the clew of the sail in the case of a cruising spinnaker or a big genoa). Without this rigging, shifty winds and the boat rolling around underneath the sail can cause the sail to collapse. With the control lines, not only is a collapse much less likely; but, even if a collapse does occur, the position of the sail is held in an optimum position for quickly reinflating when the boat rolls back or the wind picks up again.
The downhaul becomes very important in heavy air &/or a heavy sea. Have you ever watched the end of your boom rise up when a gust of wind hit the mainsail while the boom vang was not tight? A similar phenomena occurs with head sails if the pole is not held down. This rising up phenomena is undesirable for several reasons:
First of all, allowing the pole to rise up causes the sail shape to become much more rounded or full. In heavy air, this is exactly the opposite of the desired flat sail shape. Not only are you losing thrust; but, the more rounded sail shape increases lee helm & heeling, thus making a broach much more likely.
Second, without the downhaul, the kinetic energy in every gust of wind is, in effect, being "wasted" by doing work lifting the pole & deforming the sail shape. By holding down the end of the pole, the kinetic energy in the gust of wind is transferred into accelerating the hull thru the water. This effect is very noticeable & highly addictive. The 1st time you experience the acceleration from a gust of wind hitting a properly rigged spinnaker, you will be forever hooked.
Third, in gusty conditions, the downhaul will prevent the spinnaker's shape from changing. This means the spinnaker is "ready" for the next gust of wind. Without the downhaul, the spinnaker tends to be much more unstable and likely to do something bad like wrap the forestay &/or collapse. Thus, the downhaul enables you to fly the spinnaker under some truly scary conditions. Life begins to get interesting when they post the small craft warnings! Surfs up, baby!
Although the picture shows a tri-radial spinnaker, cruising spinnakers behave in a similar manner. My whisker pole is not rigged with bridles for the uphaul and downhaul like my spinnaker pole is. Instead the uphaul and downhaul attach to a built-in fitting on the outboard end of the whisker pole. But, the principles of operation and functions of these control lines remain the same.
Finally, in the above picture, note the use of a spinnaker snuffer sock. You can see the white nylon snuffer sock all bunched up on top of the spinnaker. The snuffer sock has an uphaul and a downhaul control line and these control lines are also led back to the cockpit. The use of a snuffer sock permits single-handed sailing with a tri-radial or cruising spinnaker. It also makes it much safer to use the spinnaker in higher winds because the big headsail can be doused in a matter of seconds. To douse the spinnaker using the snuffer sock, the downhaul control line is used to pull the sock down over the spinnaker. The spinnaker collapses & is captured inside of a long nylon tube. It ends up looking like a big long white sausage hanging from the masthead.
Roger Pihlaja
S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
----- Original Message -----
From: "William E. Wickman" <wewickman at duke-energy.com>
To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Sent: Friday, November 19, 2004 2:04 PM
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Which Whisker Pole To Buy & Pole Storage
>
> Thanks Roger! I really appreciate the help. In poking around the FAQ and
> archives I noticed that you have contributed quite a lot of very in-depth
> review and analysis on many aspects of the Rhodes 22. We are very
> fortunate to have you around.
>
> Ultimately, I would like to get a tri-radial spinnaker so it sounds like I
> need to go with the T-track option. I will follow your instructions
> faithfully. Where did you buy your tri-radial? How does the tri-radial
> cost compare to the UPS cruising spinnaker? I'm just dreaming right now,
> but hey, my birthday is coming up this spring!
>
> Bill W.
>
>
>
> |---------+---------------------------------->
> | | "Roger Pihlaja" |
> | | <cen09402 at centurytel.ne|
> | | t> |
> | | Sent by: |
> | | rhodes22-list-bounces at r|
> | | hodes22.org |
> | | |
> | | |
> | | 11/19/2004 01:13 PM |
> | | Please respond to The |
> | | Rhodes 22 mail list |
> | | |
> |---------+---------------------------------->
> >------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
> | |
> | To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org> |
> | cc: |
> | Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Which Whisker Pole To Buy & Pole Storage |
> >------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
>
>
>
>
> Bill,
>
> The article below is a copy of a similar response I wrote for the list a
> couple of months ago. Hopefully, you will find it helpful.
>
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
>
> A couple of days ago, somebody asked for recommendations regarding a
> whisker
> pole:
>
> With a whisker pole, you have specify the length, the load rating, and the
> end fittings on each of the pole. On Dynamic Equilibrium, we use a
> Forespar
> M/N: HD 6-12-DL heavy duty, twist lock, telescoping whisker pole. This
> pole
> has two telescoping sections extending from 79 inches to 138 inches length.
> The outer tube is 1.875 inch OD. The end fittings on both ends of the pole
> are Forespar type "EL" self latching. Don't get anything lighter duty or
> your genoa will fold it half!
>
> This pole is too long to fit under the cockpit seats. It can be stored in
> the cabin.
>
> Since Dynamic Equilibrium is rigged to fly both triradial & cruising
> spinnakers,
> I routinely carry both a spinnaker pole and a whisker pole.
>
> The following two links show my spinnaker pole and my whisker pole stowed
> on
> the foredeck:
>
> http://www.rhodes22.org/rhodes/pics/Roller_Furling.jpg
> http://www.rhodes22.org/rhodes/pics/Family_On_Boat.jpg
>
> The 1st picture is an annotated close-up which shows the spinnaker pole &
> the whisker pole storage arrangement at the bow. The spinnaker pole is
> stored in a Forespar M/N: 30002 aluminum chock. The whisker pole is stored
> in a Schaffer M/N: 97-42 HD cast stainless steel padeye.
>
> The 2nd picture shows the storage solution for both poles from a wider
> angle. The inboard end of the spinnaker pole is stowed in a 2nd Forespar
> M/N: 30002 aluminum chock mounted up on top of the cabin just forward & to
> port of the mast. The inboard end of the whisker pole stows on the ring on
> the sliding car on the front of the mast. I have the track on the front of
> the mast designed such that; when the car is slid down to the bottom of the
> track, the whisker pole clears the front corner of the cabin top and
> can be latched onto the HD padeye at the bow for storage. In the 2nd
> picture,
> you can see the whisker pole angling up to the mast just behind my knees.
> This storage arrangement puts both poles mounted down low for minimum
> center of gravity, no fouling of sheets & sails during a tack, and minimal
> windage. In addition, this storage arrangement provides a HD, large
> diameter handhold, mounted down low, suitable for hanging onto while
> crawling, right on the centerline of the foredeck. This arrangement is
> very useful when one must go forward in heavy conditions.
>
> Also in the 2nd picture, if you look up the mast about 18 inches below the
> spreaders, you will see another fixed ring on the front of the mast. This
> fixed ring is designed to work with the sliding ring on the track. When
> the
> sliding car is moved to the bottom of the track, the spinnaker pole fits
> exactly between the two rings. Of course, the whisker pole is telescoping
> and can be adjusted to snap onto both rings at the same time. Thus, both
> poles can be stored vertically against the mast. I don't normally sail
> that
> way because of the windage and extra weight aloft. But, this method of
> storage is useful while at anchor or a dock because it clears the foredeck
> of tripping hazards.
>
> I've been sailing with this spinnaker and whisker pole storage arrangement
> for quite a long time. The two attached pictures were taken in 1994.
> Daniel and Gary were 11 and 8 years old, respectively. Those two little
> boys are now 21 and 18 years old. Both of them are now a couple inches
> taller than me.
>
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Bob Weber" <ruba1811 at hotmail.com>
> To: <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Sent: Friday, November 19, 2004 10:41 AM
> Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Bill W attaching Whisker Poles
>
>
> > Bill, This year I purchased one of the smallest whisker poles that
> sailnet
> > offered. It is plenty sufficient plus it is light enough where you won't
> > need to mess with at topping lift. The only reason I would go with a
> larger
> > pole was if I planned to run a spinnaker. If you just want to keep the
> > Genny full off the wind it is perfect. Hopefully the link works
> > http://www.sailnet.com/store/item.cfm?pid=18433
> > You will noitice the price jumps up quite a bit as you start to get into
> > more serious poles.
> >
> > Bob Weber
> >
> > >From: "ed kroposki" <ekroposki at charter.net>
> > >Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > >To: "'The Rhodes 22 mail list'" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > >Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Bill W attaching Whisker Poles
> > >Date: Fri, 19 Nov 2004 08:25:15 -0500
> > >
> > >Bill:
> > > Somewhere in the archives and FAQ's is discussion on 'pad eye'
> > >versus sliding rail with adjustable sliding eye. I followed the
> directions
> > >at the time and installed a 1" four foot rail to the front of my mast.
> It
> > >works well, and probably much better than a fixed pad eye. The rail is
> > >just
> > >like the rails for sheets.
> > > When Bob Keller gets back from his trip to the coast, maybe he can
> > >offer suggestions. He is a guru on rigging poles and preventers on a
> boat
> > >without lifeline bases to attach to. I have both the spinnaker pole
> > >sliding eye and lifeline bases to use. I also have a toping lift to
> carry
> > >the weight of the pole.
> > > Cat boats are interesting with the mast forward. Good luck on
> > >selling it. It would be happier on the coast rather than an inland
> lake.
> > >
> > >Ed K
> > >Greenville, SC, USA
> > >~~~~~~_/) ~~~~~~ _/) ~~~~~
> > >Name: Bouncing mice.gif Type: image/gif Size: 7773 bytes Desc: not
> > >available
> > >Url:
> >
> >http://www.rhodes22.org/pipermail/rhodes22-list/attch/200411/19/Bouncingmic
>
> e.gif
> > >__________________________________________________
> > >Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> >
> >
> > __________________________________________________
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> >
>
>
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