Mainsail Trim 101

It’s easy to assume accurate mainsail trim is only of concern to racers, but nothing could be further from the truth. Aside from increasing boatspeed, a well-trimmed main will reduce heel, minimize weather helm and decrease leeway. The result is shorter, more comfortable passage times and more enjoyable sailing in general, especially when sailing to windward.

One of the first things many of us were taught is “a flappy sail is not a happy sail.” However, simply keeping your sails full is only part of the story and often leads to over-sheeting, i.e., trimming your sails in too tight, which increases weather helm, or the tendency of a sailboat to want to round up into the wind. This in turn makes the boat more difficult to steer. It also makes things more uncomfortable in general by increasing the angle of heel.

TWIST

Pretty much every sailor is familiar with the function of telltales on the luff of a jib or genoa, and as a consequence do their best to keep them streaming. Mainsail leech telltales, however, are not as well understood. Ideally they should stream horizontally as well. In the event they start disappearing around onto