Sailing Magazine
(Original pic from the archives of Richard Crockett & Sailing Publications).
by Richard Crockett
Over the last few days I have shared news about Helmut Stauch and his international exploits in a Flying Dutchman dinghy.
So staying with the Flying Dutchman thread, despite there being few left in this country, and even fewer sailing, here’s a feature from the September/October 1958 issue of SA Yachting – with some “go fast” tips.
“There has been much written about sailing and racing in general, and even about the FD herself and her unusual traits. In spite of the vast amount of available information we still see a surprising number of FD’s being badly mis-handled. I am going to try and help to correct this situation.
But first, here are some quick tips on “Beating in High Winds”:
• You MUST have a flat jib, a taut luff and trim it hard.
• To achieve the above without backstays, you must haul the main boom hard down. The entire mainsail is your backstay.
• To keep from being overpowered, slide the traveller out to leeward until the mainsail becomes a weather vane.
• Thus, the mainsail is not flogging and whipping; it is not creating drag or heeling pressure and it’s keeping the jib stay from sagging. It is working at batten tips only.
READ MORE HERE: 1958 09-10 – SA Yachting – tittivating – OCR
