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Post by mesteve on Feb 8, 2022 15:17:46 GMT
What speed do you use for passage planning?
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Post by Fabrice-Erta on Feb 8, 2022 15:49:22 GMT
Hello,
I generally use 5knts, which makes easy mental conversion and is not so far to average in my Med region
May be different on other area's where the wind is more regular .
Fabrice
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Post by Zanshin on Feb 8, 2022 17:29:17 GMT
Each passage has a different speed, with the prevailing winds playing the biggest factor. So going downwind on a transatlantic would give a different speed from sailing against prevailing winds and waves on a long passage. I also will "cheat" on medium to short passages so that if the wind calms down below a certain speed (usually I choose 3 knots), I will motorsail or even motor.
In the Caribbean where most passages are in 15 knots of wind from the beam I used 5 knots for my 43DS and most of the time I averaged a bit more.
Now with the longer hull on my Jeanneau 57 I use 7 knots for planning and usually make 8 knots. For the Annapolis-St.Martin passage I usually choose 6 knots because of the big Atlantic waves and adverse winds/currents, but I've managed to beat that conservative estimate each time.
Which waters or route are you looking at?
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Post by mesteve on Feb 8, 2022 17:44:12 GMT
North-bound up the Atlantic coast, outside, this spring.
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Post by Zanshin on Feb 8, 2022 18:05:19 GMT
If you go out far enough to hit the gulf stream, you should easily make 5 or perhaps even 6 knots. The Gulf stream is going to give you 2 knots or so, but you need to go offshore to hit it and many prefer to stay closer to land (I believe it is safer out there - nothing to hit and less traffic as well). See polar.ncep.noaa.gov/global/monitor/If you are doing day trips then the Gulf Stream will be out of reach. You can download the Pilot charts to get a feel for typical winds for your time of year and location - but the weather patterns are changing so they might no longer be really accurate. But generally you should have good wind direction on that trip.
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Post by shenandoah on Feb 8, 2022 18:13:28 GMT
Mesteve, I sail up and down the US East coast in our SO440 and we use 6.5 knots. It is usually pretty accurate. If you use Predictwind for weather routing they will give an estimate based on the boat's polar. You can use a percentage of the polar target as it would be difficult for a boat fitted out for cruising to hit 100%. I use either 80 percent or 90 percent depending on my crew - we reef earlier when the admiral is on board. It usually is pretty close to the 6.5, may vary as much as half a knot due to conditions.
Ultimately, we track all of our passages and record the actual average SOG in our log book. We track the passage from inlet to inlet, and then record the piloting time on the inside separately. We want to know total time, but are primarily interested in how fast we are sailing. Piloting time is not under our control as we may have to wait for a bridge or there are no wake zones etc.
Hope that is helpful.
Warm regards,
Chuck
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Post by mesteve on Feb 9, 2022 14:00:00 GMT
Thanks,
I plugged in 6kts but wanted to make sure I was being realistic.
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Post by rxc on Feb 9, 2022 20:42:58 GMT
6 kts as a first approximation. Then you have to take into account current, obstructions like bridges(ICW), and sea-state. Every passage is a new adventure. Usually better to plan for a later arrival and then arrive early, unless you need to deal with an inlet where you have to arrive at a particular state of the tide, or are going thru Hell Gate in NYC, where the current is important.
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