"Heaving to" with and Island Packet

Does anyone have any experience or advice to offer concerning heaving to with an Island Packet. I have done a limited number of solo open ocean passages and have often thought it would be nice to be able to "heave to" to get some rest/fix broken equipment/make a meal/etc. I know the theory of how it is done - at least I think I do - but I don't have any actual experience. I would be interested in experiences from the group regarding heaving to with an Island Packet. Like - sail configuration, wind, sea state, helm control, SOG, seakindliness, IP model, etc.

Thanks
George
S/V Delicia

George,
Heaving-to in an IP is simple. Get onto a beat at say 50 degrees to the wind. Tack but do not release the jib sheet: the jib is now backwinded. Now throw the helm back as if to tack back. Fasten the helm - I recommend you tie down the wheel rather than just using a wheel brake -and you will be hove-to. The Main and rudder are driving one way, and the back winded jib is countering them. You will end up about 55 to 60 degrees off the wind; the ship will forereach a touch and even in a big blow and large seas, all will become relatively quiet.

You need some sea room. You should also practice before you need to do it for real,for example to make a repair. I have done this many times for a mid-ocean swim (but do leave one man aboard!) and several times to make repairs - once on a new 485 to fix a radar pole that was swinging athwartships a foot or so back and forth along the stern rail because the commissioning yard had used too large a rail clamp: and perhaps the most memorable was on a brand new Hylas 49 when the mast started moving (At least the rudder did NOT fall off!) - the rubber pads used at the partners were half sized by the commissioning yard in Florida and dropped out mid-ocean. Never has a boat hove-to faster, and then dropped all her sails quicker!

I believe that all IP dealers should be required to show a new owner how to heave-to. It is the second most important thing on an ocean boat, after a boom brake.

The amount of sail is, as usual, relative to the conditions: I have successfully hove-to in 30 knots with a third of a jib out and half an RF main. Even in light airs I would recommend that you shorten your 130 jib on your 40 enough that the backwinded sail is not rubbing against the windward shrouds.

Try it and let us know how you get on.

John Knight
SV Adventuress IP420
Marathon FL, bound for ??? where the wind blows us.

John, I'm getting mixed messages here.

Adventuress wrote: Tack but do not release the jib sheet: the jib is now backwinded. Now throw the helm back as if to tack back. Fasten the helm

This is what I was thinking would heave-to the boat... And the sail/sail/rudder configuration I see here is:
- jib
/ - main
- rudder

Then you say

The Main and rudder are driving one way, and the back winded jib is countering them.

I would have thought the jib and rudder were driving one way, with the main countering them. The jib and rudder are trying to get to one tack, the main trying to drive to the other, in other words.... The picture I'm seeing from this quote is:
/



What am I missing here, Please......

John,

Thanks for the info. On my 40 I can back wind the stay sail. Do you think I can heave to with just the stay sail and a deeply reefed main in like 30+ knots, or do you think I will always need the genoa?

Thanks again
George
S/V Delicia

George,
In stiff winds you can certainly heave to under backwinded staysail and reefed main. The only question I would have is (unless on the staysail you have removed the club boom and added regular sheets)you will have to go forward and put a line on to secure the staysail clew to windward to backwind it. Why bother to do that when you can easily backwind a deeply reefed jib standing in your cockpit?

I think the key point with heaving to with a backwinded jib (and I and Chuck on CYAN just discussed this today) is to reef it far enough that the clew is forward of the shrouds, so that for an extended heave to, the sail is not chafing on the windward shrouds, but rather the sheet is taking the friction on the upwind shrouds.
JFK
Adventuress IP420
Harbor Cay Club Marathon FL