NEW SAILOR

Introduction

As you will find out there are many different types of sailboats. They vary in size

of hull, length of mast or masts, types of rigging and sails, etc. They range from small

single person dinghies to large tall ships that can carry hundreds of people. Sailboats are

classified by their sail configuration and their hull type. There are five different types of

TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION

MASTHEAD SLOOP:

What is a masthead sloop? ……………….Page 2

Parts and function of the masthead sloop sail....………Page3

Parts and function of the masthead sloop rigging……Page 4

Parts and function of the masthead sloop hull…………Page 5

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modern sailboats: sloop, cutter, catboat, ketch, and schooner. All these classifications

have multiple minor variations in sail, rigging, and hull within their respective

classifications.

The emphasis 0f this article is going to be on the sloop, more specifically the

masthead sloop. The purpose of this description is to familiarize new sailors or

prospective sailors on the main parts of a masthead sloop and their basic functions. This

is not intended to be a description on how to sail a masthead sloop. Specific detail will be

provided on the three main functional parts of the masthead sloop in terms of actually

sailing. These three parts are the sails, rigging, and hull.

What is a Masthead Sloop?

First of all, what is a sloop? The

sloop is the most common sailboat on the

water today. The sail configuration of the

sloop consists of a mainsail and foresail.

The sloop is the simplest and easiest type

of sailboat to sail in respects to the overall

size. A small sloop can be crewed fairly

easily by one person. There are several

variations on the basic sloop design, such

as adding more than one foresail, or the

fractional rig (Figure 1). A fractional rig

sloop is one where the foresail does not extend all

of the way to the top of the mast which can give

the boat better performance in some

conditions. However, the focus of this

description is the masthead sloop. The

masthead sloop is a sloop in which the

mainsail and the foresail or the jib (both sails)

extend to the top of the mast (Figure 2). Not a

huge difference but significant enough to note

the difference between the two.

Figure 1

Figure 2

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Parts of the Masthead Sloop Sail

There are many different parts of a

sail and they all do different things. It is

necessary to know these different parts so

that you will know how to use the sail to

your advantage and also be able to use the

sailing lingo (which can get confusing) as

best you can. As stated before the

masthead sloop has two sails, the mainsail

and the foresail or jib sail. The main parts

of these sails are the leech, luff, head,

foot, clew, tack, and centre of effort

which are illustrated in Figure 3. The leech

is the back of the sail and it is important in

determining position of the foresail . The

luff is the front of a sail and this part is

important in finding the best sail trim for both the mainsail and foresail. When either sail

begins to “luff”', the luff of each sail begins to flap which means the sail is not pulled tight

enough or the boat is too close to the wind. The head is the top of the sail and is where

both the mainsail and foresail are hoisted up the mast. The foot is the bottom of both

the mainsail and foresail where they are attached to the boom. There will be further

discussion on the

boom in the

rigging section.

The clew and the

tack are the lower

corners of the sail.

The clew is toward

the rear or aft of

the boat and tack is

forward on the

boat (figure 4).

Both the clew and

the tack are tied to

fixed positions on

the boat. The centre of

effort is the part of the sail

Figure 3

Figure 4

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that generates the most lift from the wind making it the most important part of the sail.

Parts of the

Masthead Sloop

Rigging

Sailboat rigging is

another of the vital

systems that a sailboat

has. The rigging is the

complex system of ropes,

lines, and hardware that

support the mast and the

sail. The rigging is often

the most overwhelming

part of learning how to

sail. Rigging is used to

control the sails and

therefore the propulsion

of the boat. The rigging

has to be properly tuned

and maintained to control

the speed and to a certain

extent direction on the

boat. Since the masthead

sloop is a single mast

sailboat it has to have the

appropriate rigging. On any sailboat there are two types of rigging, standing rigging

and running rigging. Standard rigging is rigging that supports the mast and running

rigging supports the function of the sails. Before we get to the rigging as a refresher, the

mast is the center spar to which the mainsail and foresail are attached and the boom is

the horizontal spar that extents to the rear of the boat and is attached to the foot of the

mainsail.

The standing rigging includes: the shroud lines, spreaders, headstay,

backstay, and boom topping lift (figure 5). The shroud lines are the lateral stabilizers

of the mast. The spreaders separate the shroud lines from the mast. The headstay is a

cable that supports the mast from the front or bow of the boat. The backstay is a cable

Figure 5

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hat supports the mast from the rear or stern of the boat. The boom topping lift is a

cable that supports the boom when the mainsail is taken down.

The running rigging includes: the halyard, sheet, boom vang, outhaul, and

reefing line. The halyard is the line used to raise or hoist the sail. The sheet is the line

used to adjust the sail against the force of the wind. The boom vang is the line that

holds the boom in place. The outhaul is a line that places backward tension on the clew

of the mainsail. The reefing line is used to shorten the sail.

Parts of the Masthead

Sloop Hull

The body or fuselage of a

sailboat is the hull. Hulls provide

buoyancy required to carry cargo

and people and also to provide a

platform for mounting the sails.

The functional sailing part of the

hull is the simplest part of the

entire sailboat. The hull on all

sailboats consists of the bow, keel,

stern, and rudder (Figure 6). The

bow is the forward part of the

boat. The stern is the rear part of

the boat. The keel is a structure that

extends down into the water that

improves stability, maneuverability and limits lateral movement in the water. The

rudder is a movable vertical plane at the stern of the sailboat that is used to steer a

sailboat.

Conclusion

The masthead sloop is one of many different types of sailboats that are available to

sail today. It is one of the most common types of sailboats on the water and is useful to

know about its sailing system. Having read this article you now have a fundamental

understanding of the parts of a masthead sloop sailboat. All sailors and sailboat owners

need to know this information if they plan to learn how to sail this particular boat. If this

Figure 6

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is your very first introduction into sailboats then this information will also be useful as

you learn about other types of sailboats as well.

References:

" K e e l b o a t C o u r s e - B o a t s a n d R i g g i n g . " U S S a i l i n g . U S S a i l i n g , n . d . W e b . 3 1

M a y 2 0 1 1 . < h t t p : / / w w w . s a i l i n g u s a . i n f o / p a r t s _ o f _ t h e _ b o a t . h t m > .

" P a r t s m o f a S a i l . " S t a r t e d S a i l i n g . S t a r t e d S a i l i n g . c o m , n . d . W e b . 3 0 M a y 2 0 1 1 .

< h t t p : / / w w w . s t a r t e d s a i l i n g . c o m / p a r t s - o f - a - s a i l . h t m l > .

P a r t s o f a S a i l b o a t . " G o S a i l i n g . G o S a i l i n g . i n f o , n . d . W e b . 3 1 M a y 2 0 1 1 .

< h t t p : / / w w w . g o s a i l i n g . i n f o / S a i l b o a t % 2 0 P a r t s . h t m > .