No more duct tape

My tennis elbow has gone. Lateral Epicondylitis is very  common among Laser sailors especially and tends to get worse at regattas and for many it never goes away.  Sailors applying bandages, velcro straps and duct tape are common sights in the change room.  There are various theories. It could be caused by hanging off the mainsheet when hiking, or it could be the sheeting action and many blame the Laser’s heavy weather helm. 

Despite still sailing two to three days a week on my Aero, my Lateral Epicondylitis has now cured itself. It must be one or a combination of these things.

the black Aero sheet is much easier to hold

• The Aero has to be sailed very flat. In 18+ knots and like all sail boats, the main sheet has to be trimmed constantly. It is much thicker than the regular Laser sheet and can be easily held with no gloves or regular yacht gloves. So much kinder on the hands

• The weather helm is very light, the sheeting arm gets a rest on the next tack.

Having sailed both boats, my experience is that the Laser’s weather helm is the main culprit, my steering arm hurt the most. But the thicker Aero mainsheet significantly reduces the need to grip a skinny rope and this also reduces tension in the forearm.

Steve Cockerill says the Laser causes tennis elbow. Steve was interviewed by Yachts and Yachting following his win in the 2017 Aero Worlds. (full article)

Laser rudder rake causes heavy weather helm

Mark: You've come from a Laser sailing background. How comfortable is the Aero compared to the Laser?

Steve: I would say massively comfortable. When I was sailing at the Laser Masters' Europeans earlier this year my hips were giving me gyp, but I've just finished the Aero Worlds and I'm not in any pain. I'm tired, my knees are tired, my joints are tired and my back is tired, but I haven't got tennis elbow from steering upwind and I haven't got any pain in my hips. When you get in the right place and sit further back you get a nice, even amount of pressure on the back of your calves against the side deck, and with hike pads on you can really give yourself a nice hiking position. It really is very ergonomically designed for hiking and I've got to say I like it.

Unfortunately not everyone has access to an Aero and if you are still sailing a Laser and suffering tennis elbow here is one approach from a renown AUS Laser masters champion.

"I had bad tennis elbow a while ago. I got it from hanging off the mainsheet. It was so bad I couldn't even carry a coffee cup.  However I cured myself after about 6 weeks. Here is how:

I first received advice to seek a physio, tennis elbow is often caused by muscles higher up, ie not at the elbow. So I asked a doctor friend. He said he didn't know because he is a gynecologist :) but he did give me a vital clue that it is just inflammation.

Therefore no need to see a physio because I then knew how to solve it myself.

I noticed that it hurt when I lifted my straight arm up horizontal. So I started exercising to cure that by rotating my straight arms in small horizontal circles several times per day. Also I used duct tape on my forearm to keep the muscles from expanding. Plus I lie on the floor on my back straight legged and arms stretched above my head. I roll from side to side and I can hear the muscles and tendons cracking.

So I did those exercises plus duct tape when I sailed. I was still sailing 4 times per week but after three weeks of doing the exercises plus duct tape solved the problem and now my tennis elbow is 100% cured.

I still do those arm rotation exercise morning, evening, before, between, after sailing and I still use duct tape on my forearms.

So now I exercise the root cause. My arms and shoulder still hurt after a hard race but no tennis elbow. The rotation exercises crunch my back muscles which cures my sore arm and shoulder within an hour after racing.  

You could also ask a gynecologist just for completeness :)"

RS Aero - No Speed Hum

Have you noticed that there is no speed hum with an Aero?

This is Peter Barton's reply to one of my recent questions about the RS Aero.  Peter looks after the RS Aero out of the UK, and usually manages to get back to me over night. There is a 10 hour time difference between Australia and the UK.  

This time I was following up an question posted in this blog from the Tijuana Taxi.

Tijuana TaxiMay 20, 2017 at 9:06 PM

Great Blog Nick, well done on 2nd at the Nat's as well. One thing you didn't mention about the foils was the trailing edge, the designers have made this a mitre. When I first test sailed one I thought this had been filed to remove some dings, but on receiving my own boat the mitred edges were still present. I am pretty sure RS have not made mention of this in previous literature but my thoughts are by creating a laminar flow away from the rudder, cavitation is avoided and the boat steers even more effectively downwind than the Laser. I would be interested in your or anyone else's thoughts on this.

Hi Nick, Yes, that looked wrong to me initially too! I checked with Alex at RS who confirmed that the main reason is to stop/reduce the humming of the foils, it allows a cleaner re-attachment of flow, otherwise you get cavitation down the trailing edge which can cause the humming sound.

Peter

Have you noticed that there is no speed hum with an Aero?

I tried to take a photo of the edge of my Aero centre boat, but my iPhone camera could not get it the edge in  focus, so here a shot of an Aero board next to an ageing Laser board.  Apart from having a clever trailing edge, they simply look so much nicer.  And there is no rattle or hum.

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Comparing Downwind Stability - Laser and RS Aero

The fear of capsizing in fresh winds and high seas takes the fun out of dinghy sailing and for club sailors limits the range of winds that we prepared to sail in. Even if we are not that competitive it is better to be going around the course in one piece than watching from the shore.

The Laser dinghy is notoriously unstable downwind in more than 15 knots and terrifying in 25. The death roll is the most common way to wipe out caused by gusts pushing too much sail in front of the mast.  It also happens when sailors loose their balance on an unstable hull.

Last week I competed in the RS Aero Australian Nationals at the Black Rock Yacht Club. The venue is renown for creating some of the best sailors in Australia due to the tough conditions on Port Philip Bay.  And it stayed in character all weekend with winds up to 20 knots kicking up big seas.

In a Laser I would have come back to the club after the first race and a number of out of control death rolls. But on my new RS Aero I managed to finish all six races and win two, made possible because I could choose to sail conservatively down wind, stay upright and finish.

Sitting back, flat and stable in 20 knots

It proved to me that he Aero is simply a far more stable platform in strong wind which I put down to these factors.

1. The Aero hull shape adds stability being wide and flat at the back of the boat.

2. The Aero rig can take more vang downwind than a Laser,  keeping the sail behind the mast.

3. The Aero rudder is deeper in the water and actually works to steer the boat, allowing more control to keep the boat under the rig.

4. Being light weight, the Aero gets up on a plane in the gusts, goes faster, reducing the apparent wind pressure on the rig. The extra speed also gives more stability.

With a second place in the Aero 7 Aus Nationals, the take away for me is I can sail now in 'fresh to frightening' conditions and I can work on being less conservative down wind with confidence in the stability of the boat.

Brian Close Australian National Champion pushing the limits, me ultra conservative

Aero v Laser - wide and flat, the Aero has stability down wind and a fast planning hull on reaches.

Comparing Laser and Aero Foils

Aero Rudder

The first thing you notice when going from a Laser to an Aero is how responsive the boat is to the rudder and how light the rudder feels.

Upwind there is hardly any pressure on the tiller. Holding the tiller on a Laser upwind in a breeze puts real tension in the steering arm, there is significant weather helm, a big contributor to fore arm muscle strain.

Both boats need a lot of sheeting and this is hard on the sheeting arm. The Aero having a light helm gives one arm a break on each tack.

The Aero foils certainly look more efficient, the modern materials help and it is interesting to compare them.

The Laser rudder has a defined rake which is the cause the strong weather helm feel upwind. The Aero rudder is almost vertical.

Laser rudder

Both rudders probably have the same braking effect. When the two rudders are placed over each other they appear to have a similar surface area. The Aero rudder is longer and deeper in the water and has minimal rake which accounts for light weather helm feel.

The Aero rudder is very effective at steering while the Laser rudder lacks bite off the wind and down wind.

Downwind the Aero rudder actually works and the boat can be steered under rig adding to stability in 20+ knot runs.  The Aeros flat wide hull at the back also adds considerable stability.

Laser and Aero centre boards

Comparing the two centre boards, the Laser board seems to be a little larger, but not as deep in the water because it is raked back. The Aero centre board is deployed vertically and is skinnier and deeper.

On the water the Aero centre board is significantly better. There no vibration or humming when on plane, the board is properly fitted in its slot and does not ride up like the Laser board.

Aero rudder over Laser rudder

There is a trap to the Aero's more effective rudder and its light feel. Dinghy's are slowed by using the rudder, it acts as a brake.

Greater care has to be taken when using the rudder on the Aero,  it works so well to turn the boat it is tempting to over use it.  It is worth remembering Steve Cockerill's advice about using weight and sheeting to help steer.

Upwind on the in light/moderate breeze I hold the tiller extension as lightly as possible. This gives feedback to keep the boat flat just near the point where it is past flat and the balance changes to a lee helm.

The light hull weight means you have to scoot in and out a lot in puffy conditions. Fortunately the shape of the deck facilitates this, but more on this feature in future posts.