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How-to
“WINTERIZING’S” OTHER DEFINITION
PREPARING BOAT & BODY FOR Winter Sailing by Alex and Jack Wilken
The days shorten. Hours of dark last longer than daylight. Cold and wet becomes the norm. In our November 2011 article—“If You Must Winterize”—we talked about how to “winterize” your boat if you were not going to use it for several months. But what if winterizing didn’t mean buttoning up your boat to sit unused for the winter? What if winterizing meant making some maintenance and mindset changes and upgrades so that you can better enjoy sailing throughout the winter? One of the joys of the Pacific Northwest is that the sailing season doesn’t truly end. You can sail all year, in almost any weather. If summer 2020 is any indicator, more folks will be on the water this winter than ever before. Boating is clearly at the top of the list of safe, socially-distanced, and highly enjoyable outdoor activities to enjoy during pandemic restrictions. And as opportunities for other activities become limited in the winter months, sailing remains viable; some might even say it gets better! Whether you’ve been more of a fair weather sailor or you’re new to sailing—if you have limited winter sailing experience and you plan to spend more time on the water through these months, there are considerations for you and the boat that will keep everything comfortable, safe, dry, and happy. In this article, an asterisk (*) means that we've written a longer article on the subject for 48° North over the years. MINDSET It all begins with mindset. “Semper Paratus” (Always Ready) is the Coast Guard motto. “If it can go wrong, it will” is Murphy's Law. As many sailors will tell you, Murphy was a sailor. These are always things to keep in mind when boating, but in higher 48º NORTH
winds and lower temperatures, you will be less pleased if you do not keep faith with “Semper Paratus” or run afoul of old man Murphy. Bigger breeze make it more likely for things to break or go wrong, and it increases unpleasantness when they do. Lower temperatures change how we have to deal with many things in order to keep them dry and functional, including our bodies. Winter sailing success begins with good maintenance practices and good seamanship. Part of this mindset shift is to think of fall as the ideal time to complete a major maintenance checklist. We often think of doing boat maintenance in the spring after months of little to no time on the boat. Yet, if you plan to use your boat during the windier season, autumn is exactly the right time to do your most rigorous checks and preparations of the year. RIGGING*: STANDING AND RUNNING Never something that should be neglected, it’s doubly important to ensure your rigging works well if it is to be under strain in winter winds. A full rigging inspection* is a good idea, particularly if you haven't checked it closely in a while. If you are thinking it might be time to replace part of the rigging, do so. Be proactive—that jib sheet with a little spot that’s chafed or fraying is easy to trust in a light summer northerly, but may well wreak havoc in a blustery November southerly (Figure 1). There are a handful of winter sailing realities that influence equipment choices, including in the rigging realm. First, windier conditions not only put more wear on gear, but often mean that things happen with less convenient timing—sometimes slower than ideal (making a sail change), sometimes MUCH faster (just
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OCTOBER 2020
