"Flying Pig" wrote in message
...
"Wilbur Hubbard" wrote in message
anews.com...

You know nothing about sailing.

The wind was from the east. It follows, then, that Skippy was reaching
while headed north.

There is a northerly set to the current in the Gulf Stream which would
tend to skew the east wind-driven seas somewhat so they have a slant
towards the south west.

If Skippy had angled towards the inlet instead of squaring it off like a
newbie rube, the Flying Pig would have experienced nice broad-reaching
winds and the fastest point of sail. The seas would have been somewhat on
the starboard quarter - also not an uncomfortable direction under a press
of sail which keeps rolling to a minimum.

Now, run along, you bother me . . . Come back when you become informed.


Wilbur Hubbard


Heh...

First, you're ALMOST right. The wind was from ~080-100T.

Well, if that isn't a wind from the east then I'm the boogey man.

You totally neglected that forward motion doesn't move the apparent wind
aft, it moves it forward.

If you have a 20 knot wind out of the east and you are proceeding north and
you are making ten knots towards the north then you will have an apparent
wind of 45 degrees. I said nothing about the apparent wind going aft. I did
say you were on a reach. 45 degrees is defined as a 'close reach' the last
time I looked.

When you're doing 10 knots in still air, you get 10 knots of wind on your
nose, e.g. When there's 20 or so coming from the side, that makes for 25
or so from forward of the true wind at 10+ knots of boat speed. That's
why, if you look at our track we were slightly west of north COG, in order
to minimize the forward angle of the apparent wind

I explained it above more competently and less lubberly than you just did.
The course I saw from a little south of Biscayne Bay on up towards Ft.
Lauderdale appeared to me to be due north.

Second, you're also ALMOST right. The stream (or, maybe, and/or tide, as
the NOAA folks said the west wall was 19 miles offshore, more than we were
at the time)

Wrong! I can measure miles off on the Google map displayed and you were
right in the Stream. You had a northerly set of at least 3 knots and you
don't get that unless you are experiencing the Gulf Stream current. Those
'wall' predictions are often wildly inaccurate. The wall is not a static
entity - it shifts to and frow quite quickly at times and it develops eddies
and loops.

motion at the time made it necessary for me to turn south in order to keep
the COG due west,


Well, duh! As I said you were experiencing about a three-knot northly set
because of the Gulf Stream current. Of course you would have to fudge some
southerly direction in there in order make progress due west. That's all the
more of a display of stupidity to make a 90 degree turn when you should have
angled over to the inlet and saved yourself time, distance and embarrassment
from those of who know how to plot a course when a current is involved.

as it wanted to push the boat north. So, while the boat's moving north in
a dead downwind COG mode, it creates the effect of bringing the wind
forward from the stern, and thus my apparent wind at 120-150 port...

Wrong. When you are going due west in a wind from the east you will
experience an apparent wind directly from astern. If you have to crab
somewhat south to offset the northerly set then the apparent wind will be
off the port quarter, just like I said.



Gott im Himmel! I wasn't even out there and I know what was happening better
than you do. You should be ashamed of yourself, d00d!


Wilbur Hubbard