rig tuning

[Tim Stewart]

I know that to get a rig tuned correctly the yacht should be sailing as you're tuning, but many people just tune their stays whilst along side. Can anybody give me advice regarding this. For example - are tunes along side sufficient enough for the crusing sailor who just likes to take it nice and easy going from 'A' to 'B', and full sailing tunes for the racing sailor who likes to push the limits.
I look forward to the replies.
Tim.

[Brion Toss]

Hello,
We do far more static (dockside) tunes than dynamic, partly because, after long practice, we are generally able to get mighty close to right at dockside, and partly because too few of our clients want to pay us to sail around the bay with them. But one should always at least start with a static tune, and get as close to right at possible. That way the dynamic tune is a matter of refinement. If you leave the dock with no tune, it is extremely difficult to get one under way.
And a cruiser's tune does not need to be quite as obsessive as a racer's, true, but this is largely because the system context is so much more refined on a racer ó closer tolerances due to less elastic materials and configurations, and tweezy hulls. But that isn't the same as saying that a tune matters less to a cruising boat. The right tune is an elusive item.
Fair leads,
Brion Toss