Re: [Amel Yacht Owners] Re: Reefing procedure
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Sv Garulfo
Based on our experience in the first months of sailing Garulfo with no real handover from the previous owner (language barrier) we would add the following points: 1. Make sure to know where the fuse boxes are for the furler motors and keep the accessible. Ours is in the sail locker and I remember having to move a few fenders away to reach it in the middle of a winter night, head down in large seas. 2. On that occasion we got caught by the "make sure the genaker halyard is well out of the way". That combined with an overluffing genoa in a downwind reach allowed the forestay to sway and catch the halyard and block the motor. So ease your sheets just enough to remove the pressure in the sail but not to send the whole thing shaking madly. The rig and sails will appreciate, anyway. 3. As mentioned before, be familiar with any manual override and possibly have tools to help you operate them, like a power drill with a winch bit adapter. I spent 20 minutes rolling the genoa manually on the aforementioned occasion. It kept me warm. 4. It is actually pretty easy to jam the in mast, we found, for us inexperienced people. Especially if you are over cautious and operate the mast unfurling quicker than the traveler, in an attempt to go easy on the latter. The sail roll then expands into the mast and quickly block out the slot. Careful watching (definitely 1st rule) will catch imrhat situation early and it's not too difficult to undo. We found that operating both motors together wroked just fine. The traveler might be a bit faster so worth pausing it very briefly when furling to get a tight roll. I like the idea of furling the main clockwise or anti-clockwise based in the tack. It would probably help a lot furling on a downwind course. Live and learn, Enjoy your Amel Thomas & Soraya Garulfo Amel 54 #122 Cap d'Agde, France
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