Dear All,

Firstly I'd like to thank everyone who posted on the Traveller Subject as all the problems you encountered and solved helped make fitting my traveller much easier.

Now I've got a question regarding using it because my Wave is the only boat I've sailed so I have no experience of using a traveller. I think I can understand the theory behind how the Traveller works (but please correct me if I've got it wrong). It pulls down on the Clew to keep the sail tight (pulled down towards the stern) so keeping a better sail shape. Have I got that correct? So I’m wondering if I should still keep the mainsheet fairly tight, even when the sail is let out as far as it can go (when sailing Down Wind) so that the sail shape is still kept correct. Or will the traveller keep the right shape regardless of how much mainsheet I let out. I apologise for not explaining myself very well

Also, any tips on using the traveller would be extremely useful to me.

Regards, Tim

The only point of sail it will help you is a close to broad reach. You should not sheet hard, rather let the sail out until the backside telltales flow. Downwind you just let the sail all the way out. You can let the traveler off as well.
Rick

Dear Rick,

Thank you for the advice. I'll try it out next time I take the boat out.

Regards, Tim

To me, as a woman, I would like a traveler primarily in strong wind for deep reaches and straight downwind. It would allow me to let the foot of the sail out with the traveler but rein in some of the twist-off at the top of the sail by using the sheet. I want to get rid of some of that power up at the top, which is causing the boat to want to pitchpole -- and I don't have enough weight at the back of the boat to counteract that power.

And I also think the traveler makes jibing much safer and more controlled in windy conditions. Again, I would be able to keep some of the power out of the top of the sail, while getting more power advantage out of the lower part of the sail. If the main is cleated in a controllable position, when you jibe the sail by throwing the traveler across, you won't get that sudden forward thrust at the top of the sail when it hits the other side and causes you to stand up on your nose.

As it is, since I do NOT have a traveler, in windy conditions, I do a "controlled jibe," like monohulls do, by sheeting in my main as I am going through the jibe and letting the sheet out again on the other side.