That’s just crazy enough to work! But what to call this genoa/spinnaker?” And so was born the gennaker.Ī gennaker won’t fly upwind like a genoa. One day several years ago, someone thought: “maybe we should take a genoa’s form (asymmetric dimensions, head and tack pinned down, a couple of sheets tied to the clew) and give it more girth, like a spinnaker. with only one corner (the clew) allowed to roam freely (with sheets attached to keep it under control).Triangular, with not nearly as much girth as a spinnaker,.Here again, the racing rule measurement guidelines help further define the standard form of a jib or genoa: If you google ‘Genoa’, this is what you will probably find: “a large jib or foresail whose foot extends aft of the mast, used especially on racing yachts.” All jibs and genoas are asymmetric divide one in half vertically, and the two resulting pieces are hardly mirror images. Zerogradinord / Melges 32 Class Association What is a Genoa? A wide, curvy, sail like this simply won’t fly upwind. We won’t go into the specifics of sail measurement protocols here, but the purpose is to see that spinnakers carry substantial girth (width) and are therefore useful when reaching/running. While symmetric spinnakers and asymmetric spinnakers look different, they are both spinnakers under the measurement guidelines of most racing rules. They are also used by cruising sailors because they are easier to handle than symmetric spinnakers. Hmm, that sounds a lot more like a jib or genoa…Īsymmetric spinnakers are popular on boats that have permanent bowsprits or retractable poles. the clew (attached to the two sheets that run down each side of the boat).the tack (attached by a short adjustable tackline to the bow/bowsprit).the head (attached to the halyard and hoisted all the way up the mast).Over the past few decades, another spinnaker type has become increasingly popular – the asymmetric spinnaker or “A-sail.” An asymmetric spinnaker has three distinct corners: They fly well when sailing “deep,” with the spinnaker pole squared well aft – or as the dictionary says, “when running before the wind.” Symmetric spinnakers remain a viable sail type for downwind sailing on boats equipped with spinnaker poles and the necessary running rigging. (Told you it was complicated.) Fleet of symmetric spinnakers. Unlike a headsail, there is no defined tack or clew both are clews, until the pole is attached and that corner becomes the tack. The windward corner is held out with a pole attached to the windward side of the mast, and to change course (or jibe), that pole is switched to the opposite corner. Divide one in half vertically, and the two sides are mirror images. We now describe the spinnakers in the picture below as symmetric spinnakers. Symmetric Spinnakers and Asymmetric Spinnakers Today, things are a bit more complicated. What is a Spinnaker?Ī popular online dictionary defines spinnaker as: “a large three-cornered sail, typically bulging when full, set forward of the mainsail of a yacht when running before the wind.” When spinnakers were all symmetric, that dictionary definition would’ve been fine. First, let’s make sure we understand the two original sail types: the spinnaker and the genoa. The gennaker is an all-purpose downwind sail, while spinnakers are built for specific downwind apparent wind angles.īecause designs are changing so quickly, the term gennaker can seem complicated. What exactly is a gennaker? In short, a gennaker has a genoa’s form (asymmetric, head and tack pinned, sheets tied to the clew) with the wide girth of a spinnaker. Unlike the spork, gennakers are an entirely new sail type that demonstrate the sailing industry’s leading edge. Like the Spork (a combination of spoon and fork), the name gennaker came from combining two very different sail types into one: a genoa and a spinnaker. GENNAKER AND SPINNAKER: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE? Understanding these two sail types can help you figure out which will be best for your boat.
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