Blog | upffront.com

The practice of kedging has been used for hundreds of years as a method of manoeuvring or orienting a sailing vessel against tide and wind. A kedge anchor is typically smaller and lighter than the primary anchor, making it easier to handle. Modern cruising yachts continue to use kedge anchors for a variety of purposes including to provide additional holding power in strong wind or to maintain the alignment of the vessel in a narrow anchorage where there is not room to swing. In this blog we look at how racing boats use kedge anchors to hold fast in light wind and adverse current. 

For racing yachts and cruiser/racers with a fixed (non-furling) headstay there are really two possible methods of attaching the luff of the jib to the wire or rod forestay: in a luff foil, or with hanks. In our recent survey of the UK doublehanded fleet we found 56% of respondents using luff foils compared with 38% on hanks. In this blog we explore some of the things to consider when making this choice. 

A bowsprit is now an almost inevitable feature of a racing yacht or performance cruiser and there are also a number of off-the-shelf retrofit options available. The uptake is due in part to the popularity of asymmetric downwind sails which offer ease of handing, particularly when sailing with reduced crew. But even for a predominantly symmetric spinnaker boat, a bowsprit is necessary for flying a code zero or other specialist reaching asymmetric. In this blog we look at how to best setup a bowsprit to suit your sail inventory. 

Spring is approaching and we start to think about getting our boats ready for the coming season.  

And whilst there are some jobs that are obvious, like servicing engines, repainting, varnishing woodwork, and checking sails, here is our list of 10 jobs that could easily be overlooked but are potentially critical for you to enjoy a safe season ahead.  

This list is not exhaustive, but should give you food for thought!  

Image credit: Calanach Finlayson 

A fiddle or violin block is a twin-sheave block with a difference. Typically cheaper than a standard double block of equivalent size, its low profile makes it ideal for on-deck purchase systems. In this blog we explore the pros and cons of fiddle blocks and where they can be put to use.  

Image credit: Spinlock 

It’s a breeze-on day, you have rounded the top mark, set the kite and everything is just about under control. The bowman, now providing ballast at the back of the boat, calls in the gusts. As the pressure reaches the boat you expect to accelerate and start surfing the next wave but instead you hear a zipping noise as the halyard runs through the clutch and the belly of the kite billows out in front of the boat, just above the water. Anyone who has experienced this knows the nightmare of a slipping clutch. If you are lucky, you might be able to keep the boat under control and winch the spinnaker back to the top of the rig. If you are less fortunate, it’s easy to broach or turn the kite into a trawling net. In this blog we look at some of the possible causes of a slipping halyard and how these can be resolved.