We went to Pinchot State Park in Lewisberry pa to sail the p16 for the first time
it was rather windy - and that seems to be rare.

started out with rigging failures. We could not get the main sail all the way up and we started moving out on the lake under jib power alone. While trying to get rigged I dropped the downhaul pin in the lake! Then we crashed (gently) into trees on opposite shore. then rigged the main sail in a reefed position using the stepping hinge pin for the downhaul pin. Then had criss-cross in main sheet and blanked out on how to rig the traveler. Then we crashed (again gently) into trees on launch shore - all the while heading down lake. At that point I was starting to get frustrated - i stayed calm though and eventually got the mainsheet untangled and rigged traveler correctly - then she worked... she is very fast and easy to sail. learned many things from the failures. we sailed up to the Quaker race day use area very smoothly and got to feel the power of the boat. she screams. we did not fly a hull but could have with ease. I love the way she sails. got to blow by people on other sail boats, canoes, kayaks and paddle boats...

Our exit was far more graceful then our entry. We pulled back into the launch area dropped the main on the way in and pulled up smoothly to the ramp.

So anyway - the pin i lost was a quick pin and I don't know what size it was! help! I need one by next weekend.

So the whole time you were sailing under a reefed main? If that was fast for you just wait for the full power of the boat.

I sail around a p16 fairly often and it looks like a nice little boat. The guy single hands it all the time and does a great job of keeping pace with my slightly faster boat as the wind builds.

Glad you have joined our ranks! Get used to dumb mistakes, they are a part of sailing!

NIce story....get used to speed as it can only go faster.

it sounds like you rigged on the water?

you should rig on land and look that nothing is tangled before

you hit the water.

Yes, always rig it fully, on land, to make sure all the little parts are there, then disconnect the mainsheet if you must (wind direction is important) to launch, point it into the wind and reconnect it. Ttrying to improvise on the water will only get you into a spot you cannot get out of.

LOL, don't let that get you down brother. I've been there. very few have text book sails there first time out. my stories are old to listen to but similar indeed. hang in there. Its like Crack the first time you fly a hull!!

CC

you've smoked crack? Hadn't heard that.

The whole time we were under a reefed main. I am glad that I remembered from the manual how to rig that way. I discovered the grommets on the sail to roll it and had some line - so the rig ended up looking/working ok.

I am learning quickly. My boat is a 1978 and it is in very good condition. It has a split tramp like an H16 - which is being replaced as soon as slo sails can get my new one made.

it was blowing hard and we decided to try to raise the main on the water. the main would not go all the way up - i could only just get past the reef stop on the halyard - so i pulled the pin to change to reef.

the pin dropping into the water was one of those experiences that happens in slow motion. i swear i could have counted every single rotation of the pin as it moved through the air and plunged into the water.

the 'temporary autism' that Malcom Gladwell discussed in Blink comes to mind...

[quote . . . i swear i could have counted every single rotation of the pin as it moved through the air and plunged into the water.

the 'temporary autism' that Malcom Gladwell discussed in Blink comes to mind... [/quote]

<img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> You may experience the same sensation the first few times you pitch-pole. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Not me, every time I've pitch poled my H-14, I end up in the water thinking, How the heck did I get here???? Then remember the leward bow being a little low!!! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

doesn't matter how hard the wind bl;ows, just aim it into the air. If that is off shore put boat in water, and lift bows up onto dry without dragging or placing on stones.

Yeah, if your pitchpolls are slow you have bad pitchpoll form. I know the feeling of being in the water out near the end of the mast trying to figure out how i got there.

I heard it was harder to pitch pole a P16 then an H16

So? It is a relative, moot, point.

Yeah, sure it is harder and my 5.2 is harder than it but you can still pitch them.

The most radical, violent pithpole I ever saw was by a new sailor on a P16. It was on flat water, right at the finish line. Accordingly it drew thunderous applause from the rest of the fleet! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

agreed. i was just trying to make conversation. logic suggests that temporary autism may exist during a pitch pole regardless of make and model.