Re: To foil weathercockin

Posted by CLC on May 18, 2007

An articulated sail on the bow of a kayak would have to be pretty large and complicated to work when you needed it to.

Better to design weathercocking out of the kayak's hull shape from the start, as much as you can. (And you can't eliminate wind effects on kayaks entirely or the boat tracks like a locomotive, which is just as annoying as excessive weathercocking.)

Another point is that adjustable skegs, an efficient way to adjust for wind effects, have another advantage over wind-rudders: In surfing conditions, they act like a surfboard fin to help keep the stern in back and the bow in front.

In the speed sailing world, where rudders and underwater foils are undesirable because they cavitate once you get up over 40 knots (!), wind-rudders have been tried.

You can see a wind rudder on "Sail Rocket," which is in Namibia at the moment trying to break the 50-knot barrier:

In Response to: To foil weathercocking by Camper on May 16, 2007

Replies:

• Re: To foil weathercockin by Camper on May 19, 2007