48% off (Sale price $130.00, Reg. Price $250.00) :: Choice of: Week-Long Sailing Lessons for One Child Week-Long Sailing Lessons for Two Children Week-Long Sailing Lessons for Four ChildrenSession times include 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. or 12:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m.Sailboat Rigging: Controlling the WindJust as a motorboat needs an engine, a sailboat requiresrigging to make it move. Check out Groupon’s guide to this system beforeplanning a jaunt on the seven seas.A sailboat’s rigging is easy to find—just look up at the network ofropes, lines, and tackle that connects and controls the beams (called spars)and sails. It takes study and practice to use the rigging to fully turn thewind to your advantage, but a few basic terms can help novice sailors begin tounderstand the intricate web they see.Standing rigging: This is the system oftaut, unmoving lines whose tension holds up the masts and other woodenstructures, which would otherwise be prone to sway in the wind and get snappedoff by griffins. The mast stands tall with the help of two kinds of lines.Stays run fore and aft, with the forestay oftenused to hold a foresail (called a jib or a genoa). These lines are often madefrom steel for durability and strength. Shroudsrun from side to side, and often two or three each will connect the mast portand starboard for stability’s sake. Running rigging: This consists of all theflexible lines and ropes that manipulate the sails, and they may be made fromhemp, cotton, polyester, or jute. Though a sheetmight sound like a playful word for sail, it’s actually one of the lines thatcontrols the sails, keeping them taut and flexible enough to match the wind’sspeed and direction. Like any part of the rigging, a sheet won’t do its job ifit’s flapping loose—giving rise to the phrase “three sheets to the wind” toconvey a drunkenness akin to a ship’s bobbing off course.Halyards are the other main components of therunning rigging, and their operation is simple—pull the line tight to raise thesail, let it loose to bring it down when you need to paint something cool onit.
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