To Run Before the Wind in a Heavy

TO RUN BEFORE THE WIND IN A HEAVY SEA.—Have the boom topped up, so that the boom end will clear the combers if possible during the lee roll. Bend the boom-guy by making fast with a clove-hitch the thimble end to the boom, about two-thirds of the length of the boom from the mast. Take the guy forward, pass the bight round a cleat or snatch block, and bring the end back, and reeve through the thimble, and belay. Sometimes the guy is simply taken forward and belayed, or set up by a tackle.

If the sea is very heavy the mainsail should be stowed and trysail set. The squaresail, reefed, should be always set under such circumstances, but it is best to have the trysail as well, because if an accident happened to the squaresail, the vessel can be brought to wind and hove to under the trysail. The trysail should be sheeted pretty flat, as the sail will then tend to check the weather rolling and inclination to fall off. The foresail would be lowered, but a small jib should be always kept set.

Another reason for preferring a trysail to a close-reefed mainsail is that the head of the sail would be higher, and would keep the wind whilst in the trough of the sea, whereas a close-reefed mainsail might be becalmed. For the same reason, to avoid being becalmed, a reefed square sail should always be hauled close up to the hounds.

In running before a wind and sea great care must be taken that the vessel does not get by the lee; that is, that she does not run off so much as to bring the wind on the other quarter and gybe. The lazy guy would most likely prevent the boom coming over ; if it did not look out, and keep clear of the main sheet if you are near the counter; and lie down on deck, as, if the boom is brought up suddenly by the runner, it may break and sweep the deck.

Supposing the vessel gybes without any other accident, " meet " her promptly with the helm, and do not let her fly to ; then prepare to gybe the vessel back again if necessary ; get in some of the main sheet ; drop the throat or peak down; put the helm up and gybe her handsomely.

If when running under squaresail the vessel broaches to, that is, flies up into the wind and gets aback, brace the squaresail sharp up, and haul the weather jib sheet taut ; keep the helm hard up until the vessel is before the wind again. If the vessel flies-to quite head to wind, the squaresail must be stowed and the foresail set, if necessary, to back her head off.

It is generally supposed that a

large quantity of sail must be carried when running before a heavy sea, in order to keep ahead of the waves ; or, in other words, to avoid being pooped. This is not exactly the case, as the speed of large waves is much too great for any vessel to run away from them ; thus an Atlantic wave 200ft. in length (such as would be met with in a brisk gale) travels at the rate of twenty miles an hour, and no vessel could run at that speed. The height of such a wave might be about 35ft., but probably would be not more than 15ft. and the object of having much canvas set would be that a vessel might not get becalmed in the trough of the sea, and by suddenly losing her way cause an over taking wave to be broken up ; a quantity of water might then possibly fall on board. [It must always be understood that it is not the water which travels, but only the wave motion]. This would be termed "pooping," and to avoid such accidents square topsails have been much recommended for large cruising yachts, as, owing to their loftiness, they are unlikely to get becalmed in the trough of the sea. However, pooping more frequently happens from quite a different cause, in this way : as a wave advances it will sometimes grow in height and lose in length, and as a wave form cannot be sustained after a certain proportion of height to length has been reached, the crest of the wave becomes suddenly sharp and still higher, and ultimately curls over on the side it has been advancing. If this breaking up of a wave—which under such circumstances might rise to a height of 50ft.—should happen close to the stern of a vessel, she will be inevitably pooped ; that is to say, some of the water will fall on board, and the crew will have to hang on for their lives.

Large deep sea waves, when they approach shallowness, alter in form and lose their speed ; they become shorter and higher (deep-sea waves whose original height was 40ft. have been said to raise to 150ft. as they approach the coast), and then the crests, travelling faster than the troughs, topple over in broken masses. Hence waves in shallows or near the coast are more dangerous than deep-water waves.