From the May/June Issue, 1995

(This is the second of a series of exclusive tuning article on the Hobie 20 by Florida's own Bob Curry, 17 times United States National Champion � mostly on Hobies; 1983-85 World Champions on the Hobie 14, 1993 and still the current World Champion on the Mystere 6.0; the original crew for Randy Smyth in the 1992 Olympic campaign; and the 1994 Alter Cup Champion � held on Mystere 6.0s. Curry as been a weather forecaster for the USAF for the past 15 years. He currently lives in the Pensacola Area.)

Sailing the Hobie 20 in Light/Moderate Wind
by
Bob Curry

Definition: Light wind � 0-8 mph. Moderate � 9-17 mph.

1. Mast Rake
Start out at 5 inches behind the rear beam, increasing to 7 inches for moderate.

2. Diamond Tension
Begin with a Loos Gauge setting of 40 (300 lbs.). For moderate wind set the diamonds at 45(600 lbs.). At the higher end of moderate, set the diamond tension at 47 (800 lbs.).

3. Downhaul
Once the boat begins to fly a hull, it's better to use the trapeze(s) before you begin to yank on this control. The initial setting is to have a few wrinkles on the bottom of the sail.

4. Mast Rotation
Rotate to the shroud initially. At the higher end of moderate, rotate to the aft end of the daggerboard trunk.

5. Jib Leads
For the fore/aft setting, since all jibs are not alike, set it so your jib has an even break (so the top and bottom telltales on the jib both are doing the same thing). Set the in/out to halfway between the hiking strap and the inside hull shear.

6. Main Traveler
Centered.

7. Final Thoughts
Just as in a breeze (See March Issue), keep this boat moving! Be very careful on not oversheeting the main and jib. If you have to oversheet, make sure it is the main. (If the jib is oversheeted and main is undersheeted, you will be backwinding the main).

In the next article, I will explore the setting for downwind sailing in a breeze. Until then ...