False Statement – Balance Lug Rig Performance is less than conventional boats.
A real club race in real time. Conventional thinking is demonstrated to be wrong “Lug rig performance is reduced because of the crease in the sail” – busted. Not only in terms of general performance but also gets the affected side wrong. We race lugs so we know.
The Theory about the “Crease in the Sail is wrong and has always been wrong.
This theory is wrong and always wrong because it predicts that when the mast is to leeward of the sail the Lug rigged boat is slower. In experience this is opposite. Even traditional Breton sailors know that a balance or standing lug is best with the mast to leeward.
RELATED LINK – All our Lug Rig Articles – over 20 directly useful articles on setting up and thinking about lug rigs.
The video is down the page of lug vs Lasers and Fireballs – Bermudan rigs – in a normal club race. To make your lug rigged boat go like this we have this page of lug setup and tuning resources.
However in week by week racing of a fleet of Oz Goose Sailboats on standard racecourses for three years the lug rigged boats are fastest on the tack with the crease in the sail! Speed is easy, boat is nicely in the groove and pointing and footing are both available. On the other tack the groove is more difficult to find – but actually no speed difference with good sailors once the groove is found.
Theory busted. It was always wrong but everyone assumed it was right so never tested it.
but even on the “bad tack” the boat can perform well if speed is found before pointing high.
Does this mean that Balance Lug Rig Performance on BOTH tacks upwind equal with bermudan?
Again, conventional thinking is that balance lug rig performance boat entering a race against conventional rigs would have no chance. Lug vs Bermudan should be tragic for the lug … however …
… here is a video of Enrico Franconi racing his Goat Island Skiff with a fleet of Fireballs and Lasers.
The lug is fast downwind as most people will expect. Particularly on a Goat Island Skiff with its light weight narrow waterline and big mainsail.
What about Lug vs Bermudan upwind against the conventionally rigged Fireballs and Lasers?
The Race Video – Lug Rig vs Conventional rigs in real time full video
Well … have a look. Most of the race is here with a GPS track.
Video image can take a moment to load.
Light winds are a good test of a boat’s general efficiency. Upwind it is a pure test of the Lug Rig Performance. Waves make the differences more complicated as hull drag varies and wave height may vary on the race course. Smooth water has all boats on their design waterline with no additional drag from impact.
The Goat Island Skiff is effectively a modern dinghy with a light hull, reduced wetted surface and a generous sail area. Not to mention excellent foils. Most people who have built the GIS say making the foils is one of the most satisfying parts of the process.
If Foils, rig, adustability and the sailor is good then Lug Rig Performance has very little deficit.
All Rigs benefit from the same setup strategies
The Balance Lug rig was more or less the small boat racing rig of choice up until around 1900.
I think what happened is when Bermudan rigs started getting a few percent advantage – enough to win races – then the development of the lug rig stopped. Everyone switched. Or almost everyone.
From that point, particularly with the influence of the bendy rigs developed in the Star Class, the interaction of spar and sail became more recognised.
Also that control of twist was a century long search – with the largest performance improvements coming down to that one factor.
Sails are sails and the theory should be the same for all.
Thus lugs can benefit from modern thinking about controlled spar bend to depower the rig and control of sail twist.
Not really Lug vs Bermudan at all – all rigs benefit from the same approach
Many of the setup strategies that were gradually applied to Bermudan Rigs were never applied to Balance lugs. Control of twist, Control of sail depth and Automatic Response of the rig because of tuned spar bends and sail edge rounds. It is isn’t really Lug vs Bermudan, it is all rigs benefiting from the same advances.
For lugs that is changing with a co-operative approach of people sharing information.
Also Balance Lugs were not chosen to go on the best of the modern hulls and usually didn’t benefit from the best foils.
But if we make sure those development are applied equally to Lug Rig Performance we find something interesting in real life and real experience.
Here is our article on controlling sail twist on real balance lugs.
To recreate or rediscover the setups for lugs requires the same job as the bermudan sailboat classes have done. Record stuff and document it. Share information.
So we can lift the performance of lug rigs even further.
See our resources here
Everything Lug rig and lug sail?
Goat Island Skiff Plans – Traditional boat with modern performance