' Sail Control Range

 

When rigging your boat make sure you have your controls set up so you can pull enough tension on your kicker, Cunningham and the outhaul (outhaul to a lesser extent), as the wind speed increases. So many sailors in the fleet do not have their control lines set up correctly so that they have the range available to pull enough tension to depower their sail in heavy winds. When setting up the lines ensure that you have some reserve travel left when you have pulled your Cunningham and kicker on at what you think is max.

 

This is essential in all three RS Aero rigs. Abigail's RS Aero 5 rig is set up this way too (be aware the boom is a little higher when the kicker/vang is slack in the RS Aero 5, due to the bendier mast) and this has particularly helped her as a beginner when the wind speed increased. This enabled her to sail in stronger winds than she thought possible by flattening off the sail fully to make it easier.

 

Hope this helps. Stay Safe. Chris '