In the Thick of It. Drawn by W. T. Aylnard. O U T I N G

Vol. XLII SEPTEMBER, 1903 No. 6

SAILING A CUP

By WILLIAM E. SIMMONS

copyrighted photographs by james burton

HEN the Cup defender comes to nate officers. The first mate controls the the line, arrayed in snowy can- set and trim of the head-; the second W vas as carefully as a lady for a mate, under direction of the skipper, the promenade, we admire her trim appear- handling of the main-; the “captain” ance and graceful movements without a of the , the carrying outboard and thought of the labor involved in setting her taking in of the . There are also - sails and racing her to the finish. Without head men and men assigned to work in the stopping to consider the months of prepa- . But while each man has his desig- ration, the thrilling of the crew, stretching nated place, in an emergency every man and refilling of sails, and a hundred and not actually employed is required to lend a one minor details individually trifling, but hand where needed. Discipline, of , important in the aggregate, let us look at is the rule, while alacrity and coolness are the actual work of sailing the race. the special requirements. The height of the mast from the deck to The captain, at the helm, has his eye on the truck (upper end of the ) is 160 the trim and draught of the , the feet, the mast being 110 and the topmast most important detail in the art of sailing; 50 feet long. The distance from the for- but in his position at the wheel he cannot ward side of the mast to the end of the - see the head-sails, and as those must be sprit is 85 feet, of which 33½ feet is the watched by an experienced eye they are length of the bowsprit beyond the hull, or under the immediate charge of the first “outboard.” The length of the is male. This officer must be a man of good 115 feet and of the gaff 70 feet. The boom judgment, for if the head-sails are not prop- is the at the foot of the mainsail, while erly trimmed the yacht will not make her the gaff is the spar at the head. The hoist best speed. of the mainsail is 74 feet at the luff, or for- The full crew of the defender is sixty ward edge, and 146 feet at the leech, or after men. Besides these are the owner and his edge. guests, varying in number from six to a Nowhere than on a Cup defender is it dozen, as a rule efficient amateurs, who are more important to have a man for each ready to lend a hand at sheets or place and every man in his place. The in case of need. Formerly the crew was crew is divided into gangs under the imme- housed on the yacht, but that involved strip- diate command of the mates, of which ping her of interior furnishings when the there are usually two, and other subordi- time of the match arrived. This inconven- Copyrighted, 1903, by The Outing Publishing Company. All rights reserved. 646 Sailing a Cup Defender ience, coupled with the increasing size of holds it against the topmast, and the club, the defender and corresponding enlarge- which holds it against the gaff. There are ment of the crew, led to the employment of several different sizes of this to suit dif- steam tenders to accommodate the owner ferent conditions of the weather. The and his men. was the first of de- is the first triangular sail forward fenders to have a regular tender. At the of the mast. The is the other triangu- present time the hold of the yacht is used lar sail in front of the staysail. The jib- for stowing the sails actually needed in the is the sail set above the jib. There race. Even the duplicate sails are carried are many different sized jib-, from on the tender. the “baby” used in beating (sailing The mainsail, as the name implies, is the against the wind) to the “balloon,” set on

All Snugged Away for the Night; Sails Furled and Covered. principal sail of the yacht; namely, that the broad reach or the run. The yacht is between the mast boom and gaff. Above on the reach when it is sailing with the wind the mainsail is the “working” or gaff-top- on the beam, or side, and on the run when sail, the sail that fills the triangle between the wind is squarely behind. Intermediate the topmast and the gaff. This sail is not between the baby and the balloon are vari- used on Cup defenders except when the ous jib-topsails called “reachers,” and wind is too strong for them to carry one of numbered 1, 2, 3, according to the size. the different sizes of club-topsails. The The work of the day begins with the set- club-topsail is the sail carried in ordinary ting of the sails. In hard weather the weather above the mainsail. It is bent (at- working sails are set at the anchorage in- tached) on deck to the sprit, or spar, which side of Sandy Hook, but usually making Bringing Up a Big Jib from Below. sail is done while the yacht is in tow of her ing ready to hoist that piece of canvas, the tender toward the line. The distance from head-sail gang is bringing on deck the stay- the anchorage to the Sandy Hook lightship sail and jib done up in stops. A sail is done is about nine miles. After the yacht has up in stops when it is rolled into cylindri- taken the tow-line, while the mainsail gang cal form and tied with bands of cotton yarn is taking the tarpaulin cover off and mak- that will break easily when the sheet (rope

Hoisting the Mainsail. 648 Sailing a Cup Defender

by which the sail is trimmed) is pulled, the head- sails are affixed to the * by spring clips and hoisted in stops, to be broken out at the order of the skip- per. The mainsail is sent up first. With the gaff it weighs about two tons, and, according to the force of the wind, from twenty- five to forty men are put on the hal- yards. Then the club-topsail is sent aloft. There are several different sizes of this sail, to met the condi- tions of the weath- er. The choice of size is deferred un- til the yacht is out- side the Hook, so that the skipper may judge from the off-shore signs

Sending Up the Jib-topsail in Steps. what the weather is likely to be. The spars of the club-topsails are carried on deck, and the sail is bent while the mainsail is going up. The largest club-topsail of is the biggest ever made. The sprit is 76 feet and the club 62 feet long. Together they weigh nearly 3,900 pounds, and * The stay is the stand- ing wire to which the staysail, jib, or jib-top- sail is attached. The back-staysail are wire ropes stretched aft from the masthead, to support the mast. and the main-pre- venter- is the wire rope stretched from the truck to the stern, to hold the topmast. Sailing A Cup Defender 649

with the canvas at tached the com- bined weight is fully two tons. To set this lofty and ponderous sail is not easy in any weather, while in a sea it is difficult and hazardous. With those heavy spars wabbling aloft the merest slip may wreck the ship. At least two men are sent up the mast, one to the spreaders, or the jaws of the gaff, the other in a swinging chair above, to keep the sprit from fouling the rigging. If there are indica- tions or a blow the club-topsail is set over the working topsail to save time should it suddenly become necessary to reduce the can- vas. Though hollow steel sticks have Putting the Boom in Place. supplanted the old wooden mast, main-boom and gaff, wood still holds its place for club-topsail spars. To reduce their weight they are split, hollowed, and glued together. was the first defender to have a steel mast. It will be recalled that the experi- ment was not im- mediately success- ful. Until the introduction of the steel stick such a mishap as the dis- masting of a Cup Taking in the Balloon Jib. yacht was unknown. Notwithstanding called “finding out” a boat consists mainly the accidents following its introduction, in ascertaining the right trim of her sails. the steel mast is a step in advance. In Yachts are very variable in this respect, and this connection it is worthy of note that the skipper who fails to find out his boat the idea of hollow spars is not new. will not win races. The trim of the head- If the start is to be on the wind* the pre- sails is second in importance only to that of paratory step to crossing the line is the the mainsail, but not so difficult to deter- trimming or “flattening” of the mainsail. mine, for it is regulated chiefly by the All hands not otherwise employed are latter. therefore mustered on the sheet. From In very strong breezes a jib-topsail is not twenty to forty men are needed, according used on the wind, but in moderate weather to the breeze. The main-sheet of the Reli- the yacht will carry a small or “baby” jib- ance is made fast below deck, and men are topsail. Like other light sails it is sent up stationed there to handle it. The man who in stops and broken out when sheeted makes the sheet fast must know his busi- home. Though helpful, it sometimes gives ness, for should he let it slip somebody will trouble, as in case of the (rope from be hurt. The trimming of the sheet must lower end to hold it in place) parting. be smartly done, for a little delay will make Then the sail will run up the stay, form a a bad start. bag and seriously retard the yacht’s prog- The trim of the mainsail is of the utmost ress. Unless rigged with a a importance. More or less sheet than nec- man must be sent to the truck to take it in. essary will make a difference of minutes at With the yacht on the wind the place of the end of a fifteen-knot beat. What is the crew is along the weather rail, bunched as much as possible amidship, so that the * A yacht is on the wind when she is beating against it, and off the wind when she is reaching or running, weight will count in making the yacht i.e., sailing away from it. stand up. In the old style, narrow Eng- Sailing a Cup Defender 651 lish cutter most of the crew were sent below. In the Cup defender the men below, as well as the spare sails, are stowed to windward. As long as everything, including the wind, holds, all hands except the skipper are idle until the next tack,* but all eyes are busy with the enemy. Is she point- ing as well, or footing as fast or faster, or gaining or losing? The excite- ment of the race runs quite as high among the crew as among the spec- tators. When “ready about” is shouted by the skipper, there is life and bustle for a few minutes on the deck. Men spring to the sheets of the head-sails, for these must be freed on one hand and trimmed on the other. The main- sheet is untouched, for the traveler (steel bar across stern to hold main sheet ) takes it from side to side with the swinging of the boom. Comparatively few men are required to tend sheets in tacking, and, while the yacht is turn- ing, the remainder of the crew hustle across deck to what will be the weath- er rail on the new tack. When the yacht nears the outer mark the crew gives signs of life. There is hard and quick work to be done. Around the mark the yacht will be * The tack of a vessel is her position in beating relative to the direction of the wind. She is on the starboard tack when the wind is blowing over her starboard, or right-hand side, and on the port tack when it comes over the port side. The tack of a sail is its lowest for- ward corner. The rope attached to tack of a small jib-topsail, for the purpose of holding it in place and pulling it down, is also called the tack. Sending the Topsail Aloft. 652 Sailing a Cup Defender

possible. In setting it a line, or , is made fast to the outboard end, which is then shoved for- ward until a goose-neck on the inboard end can be set in an eye against the mast, close to the deck. Another line passing through a block at the masthead is bent to the middle of the boom. This is the lift to relieve the strain when the pull of the sail buckles (bends) the boom. When the boom has been secured to the mast it is guyed aft at right angles to the rail or nearly so, according to the angle of the wind. The spinnaker boom is a long stick. That of the Reli- ance measure 85 feet, and its weight is more than a ton. While one gang is rig- ging the pole, the spinna- ker, which measures more than 180 feet on the luff, or outer edge, and which, even of the lighest mate- rial, weighs several hun- dred pounds, is brought on deck, bent to halyards and sheet, and sent aloft. What has been said about the size and weight of the boom and sail will enable the reader to ap- preciate the character of the work involved in set- Breaking Out the Balloon Jib-topsail. ting the spinnaker in less than two minutes, which off the wind, and as soon as possible all her has been done. While two gangs of the kites must be flying. A few seconds delay crew are busied with the spinnaker, a third may mean the loss of the race if the enemy is getting on deck the balloon jib-topsail, be close aboard. The spinnaker and bal- and a fourth is on the bowsprit taking in loon jib-topsail are to be spread, and, the baby. The balloon is about the same those being big sails, “beef” and time size as the spinnaker; the largest of Reli- are needed to handle them. ance is more than 180 feet long on the luff The , or boom, is a solid, and 85 feet on the foot. From seven to ten heavy wood spar, not easily moved, solid men are sent out on the bowsprit, where to give it strength and weight. It is set on they hold on with their elbows and rest the side opposite the mainsail, in running, their feet on a rope network attached to to carry the spinnaker. When inboard it the whiskers (side stays of bowsprit). The is lashed to the deck as near midship as head of the sail is passed forward from the Sailing a Cup Defender 653 hatch by a line of men on deck to those on skipper will be busy. In going to wind- the bowsprit. The man at the tip beds on ward he must keep feeling his boat and the and fixes the sail to the stay by holding her as close as she will go, but the the clips. Another gang at the same time strain is more menial than physical. On pulls on the halyard, and the head of the the run, however, the physical exertion is sail is at the truck as soon as the tack is at often very great. Generally speaking, a the stay. When the sail has been set a yacht steers harder off the wind than on it, strong pull at the sheet rends the stops, especially if the wind be strong, while some and the vast fabric bursts forth like an ex- yaw so wildly that it is beyond the strength panding cloud. of one man to control them. Reliance If the wind holds steady there will be steers very hard in a breeze on an easy little work for the crew on the home run, reach, and probably harder on the run. but if it should veer or fall light there will The steadier a yacht can be held on the be work enough. In either event the reach or the run the faster she will sail.

The Spinnaker Ready in Stops to Break Out.