Tera Tweaks and Upgrades

These notes and upgrades are as fitted to Matt Taylor’s boat, 1747, which won the World Championship as a Pro in 2011 when sailed by older brother Will and continues to be fast for Matt.

The improvements are not the most sophisticated but are designed to be simple and work following the KISS principle (keep it simple stupid). There are other ways to achieve similar results and I am sure any of the experienced sailors / parents will be more than happy to explain what they have and how it works. As I say others have developed more sophisticated solutions.

I list the items in order of importance vs cost. (some cost very little!)

1. Rudder retension. New boats are supplied with rings to go on the bottom pintle. Old boats with plastic clips per bigger dinghies don’t work and rudders can often fall off during capsizes making the situation a whole lot worse. Get a ring and always fit it!

2. Rudder downhaul. New boats are supplied with elastic downhauls and rope uphauls. When sailing it is essential that the rudder goes fully down and stays there. The simple solution is to swop the downhaul so it is rope and make the uphaul elastic or better still change the elastic for rope. 3. Rudder angle (almost free!) It is essential the rudder blade goes down fully as otherwise the helm is heavy and difficult to control. Push the blade down hard and with a permanent marker mark the blade and rudder stock with a line to show when the blade is fully down – easy for sailors and coaches to check on the water. Newer boats with black rudder stocks need the black mark drawing on some white insulating tape so it stands out.

4. Foils - there is concern in the class about the new alloy foils which leak. Don’t worry about it! When the foil is in the water any water inside it is at a neutral buoyancy to the water surrounding the foil. Yes a foil full of water is heavier in air but not when in the water in use. Don’t get sucked into the debate and certainly don’t bother trying to empty water out of foils on the water. If you really must you can take the top off the blades and then push the bottom off with a long stick and then reseal with lots of sealant – Sikaflex or similar. Getting the ends off isn’t easy and it isn’t a guaranteed fix so not for the faint hearted!

5. Traveller length. The traveller as supplied by RS is generally too long. To go upwind well you need to be able to sheet block to block like in a Laser – most particularly in a Pro Rig. Traveller should be tied as tight as you can get it so block doesn’t lift anymore than in the picture below. Just a case of moving the stopper knot. Incidently the traveller should be rigged through the fwd holes of the two grab handle holes aft. 6. Traveller blocks. These should be taped up with electrical tape as the attached photo. This is to stop the blocks falling over and locking up on themselves. Some sailors swop these std blocks for a Selden or Harken block combination which have ball races for smoother running. Fine if you are happy to spend the money but not necessary in my book and these blocks with metal cheeks chew up the side decks when right outboard. Some boats then resort to fancy padding to alleviate this.

7. A better solution for the clew tie down is a Velcro strap like Lasers use. They can be bought for less than £10 on eBay. The metal clew hooks have been known to catch other sailors and pull them out of their boats. They should be cut off. You can also make a clew tie down with a loop of rope and a bobble for even less cost which is a popular option.

8. Mainsheet. The mainsheet needs to be long enough to go past 90 degrees when sailing downwind. As with Lasers the fastest way downwind is to sail by the lee with the wind coming across the sail the wrong way – thought to be at least 20% faster. Length should be 9.3m of 6mm rope. The rope should be tied off on the end boom block with a stopper knot, just like a Laser, again so you can sheet block to block. No bowlines or anything else to stop the blocks actually touching each other.

9. Wind indicator – to help with sailing by the lee you need to know where the wind is. Masthead burgee is best – cut a notch in the top mast bung to help locate it. Alternatively but less useful is one of the Hawk indicators that clip to the mast. Remember to mount upside down to stop other boat’s mainsheets ripping them off in the pre start. The addition of corks mean they float if they do come off. Class rules say you are only allowed one wind indicator so you have to choose what works best for the sailor – not the parent on the shore trying to spot their offspring!

10. Kicker – most important upgrade, but probably the most expensive. To do well you must be able to adjust your kicker on the water. RS sell a Selden set-up which gives 6:1 adjustment with a cleat system that can be used at all angles. Important to have a handle so it is easy to pull. The tail on the handle can be tied to the top of the daggerboard so the handle doesn’t fall out of the boat. It needs to be used with care. The most common reason a top mast breaks is because the kicker isn’t eased at the top mark on a breezy day particularly in the Pro Rig. Selden 6:1 Race Kicker – more or less essential!

11. Outhaul. The National Squad used to adjust the outhaul for every race leg but now seem to set the outhaul for a wind and wave set-up and don’t adjust it at all during a race. It is helpful to have a system you can adjust on the water though. There are many variants of this system all broadly similar. Class rules require a quick release system so a stopper knot in the end to attach to the boom fulfils this well per the photo below. I would then have a Harken air block attached to the boom end and lead the outhaul forward. The front end is well depicted above. The system on Matt’s boat is as per the pictures of the black boom further down. Rope lengths for that system are 2.3m for the main part and 0.8m for the forward part both 4mm. He has one air block and hook on the sail and one plain air block, one plain block for the forward end and ball end stopper and some lacing string to tie off the outboard air block tight against the end fitting. The max number of blocks is defined so be careful to use them to reduce friction in the best places.

Matt’s Set-up with two blocks at the outboard end. 12. Cunningham. This should be a continuous system that allows it to be tensioned when sitting out and also released by pulling on the line with the loop in it. Rope length is 3m of 4mm. One Harken air block, one ss thimble, some hose to make a handle and a metal ring to help with the release. These photos aren’t super clear so probably best to ask me to show you Matt’s set-up. Rules have been clarified to allow the use of two blocks so you can substitute the thimble for a block if you wish. The Cunningham is rarely used and only in a blow so not super vital until you need it. Pulled on hard upwind when you need to depower and released downwind so you need a system that works.

If any of these don’t make sense do catch me in the boat park and I’ll be happy to explain and demonstrate. This system in particular needs a fair bit of setting up to get knots and blocks in the right places to work well.

Good sailing. If you get hooked don’t be afraid to enter the National competitions as there are sailors of all abilities there for you to race against and you will soon make new friends to have fun with.

Mike Taylor 15Sep14