Spill wind from the mainsail by easing the mainsheet or dropping the traveller, and if you are close-hauled, steer up slightly towards the wind. When the gust passes, trim back in and bear away to your course.
When a gust arrives the boat heels further, she tries to turn up into the wind on her own, and you have to pull the tiller harder to windward to keep her straight. The aim is to keep her on her feet and under control, and the quickest way is to take some power out of the mainsail.
- Ease the mainsheet, or drop the traveller to leeward, so the mainsail spills wind. The jib can usually stay where it is.
- Close-hauled, steer up a little towards the wind as the gust hits, so the front of the sails just starts to lift. This is often called feathering, and it lets you use the gust to gain ground upwind without heeling too far. Don't overdo it, or the boat will slow and stop.
- On a reach, steering up makes the heeling worse. Ease the mainsheet, and the kicker if the boat is still overpowered, and if necessary bear away a little.
- Downwind, bear away slightly with the gust, keeping the boat under the rig, and be careful not to go so far that you gybe by accident.
- The crew should be sitting on the windward side, ready to lean out.
When the gust passes, the opposite happens: the boat comes upright and slows. Trim the mainsail back in and return to your course. If you leave the sheet eased, the boat will feel sluggish in the lull.
Prepare before the gust arrives. Look upwind for the dark patches on the water, warn the crew, and have the mainsheet in your hand, not in a cleat, so that it can be let go at once.
If you find you are easing the mainsheet in every gust, the boat has too much sail up for the conditions, and it is time to reef.
More in the book: Chapter 10, When the wind gets up