Sailing Downwind

Neil David
Jan 10
1 min read

Advice for Running Downwind

When running in light to medium airs you may sometimes find the Laser goes faster with the boom let out to only about 80 degrees so that the winds flows across the sail from leech to luff.

When running in heavy airs do not be afraid to sail by the lee and, you may even find letting your boom out past 90 degrees on occasions may make the Laser a bit more stable. And it may even save you a gybe. Do not be afraid to experiment with the ‘unconventional’. Laser racing is seldom boring.

Recent Posts

See All

Sail Selection for the RC Laser

Choosing the Right Sail When the ‘A’ (large; light weather) and the ‘B’ (middle-size) sails get near the upper end of their wind range, they develop a pronounced weather helm. This means that they dri

De-bonding of Reinforcing Strip on Sail Trailing Edge

The sails on the RC Laser are virtually indestructible but there is one aspect that occasionally (rarely) causes a problem. A mylar reinforcing panel is glued along the leach (trailing edge) of the sa

Mast Bend

We need to be able to control mast bend so that we can shape the sail for upwind sailing in different wind strengths. We do this by changing the tension in the sail (by moving the inner outhaul slider

Comments