59° North Sailing · video

What this video covers

Andy Schell and August Sandberg discuss ordering a new sail inventory for Isbjørn, a headsail-driven offshore boat, using the occasion to evaluate what has worked over nearly a decade of hard use.Watch The existing sails — a mainsail fitted in February 2016 and two jibs added shortly after — are HydroNet cloth, Dacron woven with Spectra, and have covered 59,133 miles over three years, seven months, and 17 days underway as of December 2023.7:05 The pair calculate that a typical coastal cruiser sailing four weeks a year would need 48 years to accumulate equivalent use.10:10 Both conclude the HydroNet construction held up well enough to order the same material again, rejecting membrane/carbon-fiber laminate sails partly because woven cloth resists mildew better in northern climates.14:52 The discussion covers headsail-driven versus mainsail-driven boat design, the tradeoffs of a 135% Genoa versus a smaller blade, the Solent double-furler setup (as used on the Saga Yachts 43 and Outbound 44/46), tacking limitations of a Solent rig, and whether to add a Code Zero.25:17 Andy is also preparing Spica for the Gotland-Rund race, starting from Sandham via a feeder race from Stockholm.3:13

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