T&T: Steadying sail

[Lawrence Zeitlin]

On Oct 4, 2008, at 12:00 AM, John (Truelove) wrote:

> I'm surprised no one has mentioned the benefits of a sail downwind.  
> The PO
> had this small (I'm guessing 75 sq ft) sail installed when  he  
> bought the boat
> but "I only used it once." However, when we tried it off the  wind  
> we easily
> picked up a half-knot in 15 knots of breeze.


John,

A 75 sq. ft. sail used in a 15 KT following wind should contribute 2  
1/2 to 3 HP to the propulsion of your boat. That should account for  
the gain in speed. But then you no longer have a boat with a  
steadying sail. You have a motorsailer. ;-)

Larry Z