Untitled Document 
Great Tips for All Boaters
The most basic
compass error is "Variation."
Variation is the angle between the magnetic and true meridian. In other words, the straight up and down the globe latitude lines of the earth are considered the true meridians, but the magnetic latitudinal lines are not straight at all.
Variation is the angle between the straight line true meridians and the magnetic meridians. It can be designated as EAST or WEST. The magnetic angle is either east or west of the true meridian. The amount of Variation differs dependent on your location. In the USA west of the Mississippi you will have an EAST Variation, while the east coast has a WEST Variation.
And there is nothing you can do about Variation except recognize its existence and make steering allowances for it. A boat's
compass hardly ever exists in a magnetic-free environment. It is subjected to magnetic forces in its surroundings in addition to the earth's magnetic field. Any other magnetic influences in its environment will cause the
compass to deviate from its ideal position along the magnetic meridian. This deflection is called "Deviation."
Just like Variation it can be either EAST or WEST.
While Variation does not change in a given location nor a different heading, Deviation changes when you change headings and does not change in a different location.
To handle these changes you need to have a Deviation Table a compilation of the degree of difference, either East or West, and usually for every 15 degrees of your headings.
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Having been in cat sailing since 1965 I have seen all sorts of inventions on ways to get your boat off land and into the water. Of all the ideas, almost always was a way to put small wheels under the hulls. Consequently, a few folks decided to get into the business of manufacturing
wheels to make life easier, particularly when cat sailing moved mainly to beaches.
At one time there were four different manufacturers of
beach wheels, but we are now down to only two:
- Cat Trax, who also make Tiger Trax (less money, but don't work well and don't hold up)
- Wheeleez, who actually make beach wheels for almost everything except cats.
These
wheels sets are not cheap, but by the time you "reinvent the
wheel," you will spend more money than the cost of these back-saving devices.
So, bite the bullet and you will be thankful for many years to come.
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You are Approaching the Leeward Mark
(6th in a Series about Mark Roundings)
From the last several issues remember there are Five Musts to anticipate when entering the leeward mark rounding. They are:
1) Prepare
2) Remember the Inside Overlap Mark Rounding Rule
3) Watch for the Pinwheel Effect
4) Slow Down to Win
5) Enter Wide, Exit Close.
You are Approaching the Leeward Mark (Sixth in a Series about Mark Roundings)
Last month we continued talking about the Inside Overlap Rounding Rule, but now we want to move on the Item 3, Watching for the 
Pinwheel Effect..
Keeping in mind the inside overlap rule, in Diagram 1, you can see that our Hero in Boat A appeared to be in pretty good shape coming into the pin. But, now he must give all those boats room at the mark. See 
Diagram
2.
In bearing away and allowing all the boats inside room, our Hero has had
to sail way too far downwind of the pin and has worked himself into a very
awful position on the outside of the Pinwheel that has formed.
The problems
he now has:
1) He now has no wind – all the boats are to windward of him and he is suffocating.
2) He has no place to go – he cannot tack off to gain clear air and must just hold position in the bad air condition
3) He has slowly sailed a lot of extra distance downwind of the mark and now must sail that distance again upwind in bad air – a
much longer course and at much slower speeds than normal.
At this point after sailing the outside of the pinwheel, his best tactic would
be to sail to the beach and get to the keg first.
Stay tuned in the next issue when we will show you how to avoid the dreaded,
dastardly Pinwheel
.
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We all love our multihulls.
However, one of the problems is the designs have to use Trampolines for
the most part to keep the weight down -- that is why they are faster than our
monohull friends. But, tramps deteriorate
in the sun and replacement or repair is normally done quite often.
CAUTION: Do not wait until late winter or early spring.
OnLineMarineStore.com has
a good number of trampoline manufacturers,
but at that time of the year they are swamped. Remember the old Adage: Poor planning and procrastination on your part do not make an Emergency on my part.
At OnLineMarineStore we
can make tramps for
all beach catamarans/multihulls and
almost all cruising catamarans/multihulls.
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Dear Captain Noah,
At our local court house here in Pensacola Beach, they are trying to have the Ten Commandments removed. What is that all about?
Christian Rights are Perishing
Dear CRAP,
The real reason that we can't have the Ten Commandments in a Courthouse is
pretty simple to figure out. You cannot post "Thou Shalt Not Steal," "Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery" and "Thou Shall Not Lie" in
a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians..,.
it creates a hostile work
environment.
Capt. Noah
Thought for the Month: Light travels faster than sound. That
is why some people appear bright.., until you hear them speak.
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For 20 years the Rick White Sailing Seminars ran
racing/sailing clinics throughout the world. They also had nearly 50 World
Class sailors come in as guest experts. Rick says, "I listened to every thing
these guys said. I let it all go in one ear.., then plugged the other one!
Consequently, there is wealth of racing/sailing knowledge in Rick's Sailing Seminar DVD. 
List
price is $149.95, but the price has been slashed to only $99.95, a 33% reduction
and a saving of $49.80
Learn 1. Total Boat Handling; 2. the Catamaran Roll Tack; 3. How to have Great Starts and Finishes; 3. How to have Great Mark Roundings; 5. Get Fast Downwind.
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