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How To: Sail

Today, sailing is usually done for leisure or pleasure rather than traveling or moving cargo. While shipping is still the most viable way of moving goods overseas, with the advent of the airplane, sailing has transformed from a necessity to a sport. Some people put their sailing skills to the test in sailboat races; some just find it exciting to be riding the ocean waves on a non-motored vehicle, using techniques which sailors have employed for thousands of years.

How To: Sail a sailboat

Sailing is a popular pastime in the coastal areas around the world. It is a skillful hobby where a person controls the motion of a sailboat in a race, on a cruise, or on a day sailing course. Maneuvering the sailboat can be tricky and movement is controlled by arranging sails to catch the force of the wind and using that to guide the boat. Basic sail techniques include steering and turning, running, reaching, sailing upwind, reducing sail, sail trimming, hull trimming, and heeling. Familiariz...

How To: Tie a bowline knot

This video describes how to tie a bowline knot in a few easy steps. To start, take a loose piece of rope in your right hand and make a loop about a foot away from the end. Then, take the loose end, bring it up through the loop you just made. Immediately after, wrap the loose end around the rest of the rope, and then bring it back through the loop and pull tight. Think of the loose end as a "bunny." Bring the bunny out of the hole, around the tree, and then back through the hole. Once you pull...

How To: Tie a double sheet bend knot

Need to know how to tie a Double Sheet Bend? This is a more secure version of the standard sheet bend, and an excellent way of joining two ropes of equal or different diameter. He's using flex rope, but it's a generally good way of securing two lines together.

How To: Tie a bowline with a few ways of securing it

Need to know how to tie a Bowline with a few ways of securing it? This way shows you how to secure it with a seizing so that it won't accidentally come undone. Included is a little variation of the bowline with a built-in seizing. If you don't have electrical tape to secure the bowline feed the bitter end back through the hole. It also makes it so you don't have a tail line dangling if you're towing something.

How To: Heave to in sailing

In sailing, the term "heave to" means slowing down the boat's progression in such a way that the boat doesn't need to be steered directly. Take a look at this instructional video and learn how to heave to in sailing. To do this, the rudder will need to be turned so it's forcing the bow into the wind. The rudder and the jib counteract one another in the process, and the boat ends up stalling.

How To: Heave to when sailing in heavy weather

This video talks about the principles of heaving to, which is nothing more than stopping your boat in the water with the sails fully up, without making the boat create much forward motion. There are multiple reasons why you would want to heave to, and one is when the seas are getting rougher and the winds are becoming too strong to safely continue sailing. Watch to learn more about these situations and to see diagrams of everything.

How To: Sail a boat

Sailing is a popular pastime in the coastal areas around the world. It is a skillful hobby where a person controls the motion of a sailboat in a race, on a cruise, or on a day sailing course. Maneuvering the sailboat can be tricky and movement is controlled by arranging sails to catch the force of the wind and using that to guide the boat. Basic sail techniques include steering and turning, running, reaching, sailing upwind, reducing sail, sail trimming, hull trimming, and heeling. Familiariz...

How To: Improve your roll tack technique when sailing

To some, sailing is more than just relaxing, it's a sport. When sailing at high speeds is races, you may find yourself in need of a way to get through a tack quickly. Being able to tack in sailing is good, but you need to perfect this into a roll tack. This allows you to turn more efficiently and with more speed. The ingredients of a good roll tack are a little hard to find. In this video, you'll learn the more straight forward things you can do to improve your roll tack.

How To: Tie a variation of the bowline knot for sailing

This is a home grown variant of the bowline, also useful for sailing. The bowline is tied in the standard manner in the bight of the rope. The running end is passed below the knot and follows the turn back around through the locking bend. The exiting loop can be used for lifting or for tensioning the line to tie down deck cargo. Check out this video sailing tutorial and learn how to tie a variation of the bowline knot.

How To: Tie a Portugese Bowline knot for sailing

The method demonstrated in this how-to video makes the Bowline knot quick and easy to tie. It is useful when you expect a blow and need to take a few turns around your winch to use as an additional hardpoint. In this case I am simulating a mast winch but the process can be used on a horizontally mounted winch as well. The secret is to form the bowline eye by capsizing an overhand knot. With the standing part in your left hand form a turn around the winch from top to bottom then cross the runn...

How To: Use an aft spring line in sailing

An aft spring line can be useful for a number of reasons in sailing. It runs from the bow of the boat backwards to a point on the pier. If there's a boat behind you, the aft spring line will be needed. Take a look at this instructional video and learn how to use this line in sailing.

How To: Tie rope bends

Knots and rope bends are two different things in that bends are a way to tie two ropes together so you can easily untie them. Learn dozens of easy rope bends in this free rope bend video series.

How To: Tie a permanent knot

This is not magic but a very useful and very easy way to tie two pieces of rope together without them ever slipping apart. This simple how-to shows how to tie two pieces of rope together without them ever coming apart. This could be very helpful for sailing or anything you need to tie a knot.

How To: Use sailboat basics

Learning how to sail isn't hard if you're near water, since chances are there will be a sailing school near you. Learn different components of a sail boat, how to raise a sail, and even how to sail against the wind with tips from this how-to video.

How To: Quick stop when a victim is in the water while sailing

A quick-stop-rescue is harder for a beginner to perform. But allows the sailboat to stay closer to the COB. It is also easier to keep site of the COB during the maneuver. Shown in the picture is the a final approach to the COB on a close reach. (Whether one approaches an COB on a close reach or in-irons will depend on your boat's maneuverability, position after your jibe, wind and sea conditions and helmsman's ability.) Quick stop when a victim is in the water while sailing.

How To: Gybe or jibe while sailing

In a jibe, the the stern of the boat is passed through the wind. both the mainsail and the jib have to be adjusted. Ideally, this maneuver is performed by three sailors, a helmsman and one working each sail. The mainsail is first centered at the beginning of the turn. As the stern passes through the wind, the mainsail is let out. The jib is adjusted by taking the sail's working sheet off the leeward winch and placing the new working sheet on the opposite winch, trimming the sail. Gybe or jibe...

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