Sailing the Rocket 22 is different from other high performance keelboats. Her all up sailing weight is not super light and she carries a huge sail plan. Crew weight and the heavy keel bulb supply amazing stability when the boat is underway. With her moderate weight the Rocket 22 carries her speed through most maneuvers, in this respect she sails like much larger boat. The boat should be steered with the sails as much as possible; use the relative trim of the main and jib sheets to bring the boat into the wind and to bear off. Enter your maneuvers with the boat very upright for top control. Sail the Rocket very flat in all but the lightest winds. Remember, you have lots of sail power and stability; position your boat and your crew to take full advantage of it.
The Rocket 22 has a very wide groove upwind. With the sails trimmed in she will point with anyone; her long waterline and great stability allow you to sail low and fast when conditions warrant. Use this wide groove to your advantage, in rough water or gusty conditions keep both the main and jib sheets eased and the sails well twisted; you’ll be the first at the weather mark by sailing faster than the others not by sailing higher. In smooth seas and steady winds you can close the leeches for more power by sheeting the main and jib in harder and easing the cunningham. Need to blow someone off your hip at the start? Just drag your sails in and point your Rocket to the moon, you’ll be amazed. Need to roll over someone near the weather mark? Drop the traveler, put the bow down and hang on. Let the long waterline, huge sail plan and powerful hull do the job for you.
Tacking the Rocket 22 is super simple in virtually all conditions. The huge cockpit makes crew work a breeze. The boat has enough weight to ensure that very little speed is lost through each tack and she has plenty of sail to get back up to top speed quickly. To initiate the tack the jib sheet should be eased slightly just before the helm is put down (steer with those sails). The jib should remain eased as the tack is completed and the main should also be eased as it begins to fill on the new tack. Keep both sails eased until the boat is back up to speed.
Sailing downwind presents a strategic question for a Rocket 22 team who may have opted for both the sprit and standard spinnaker pole configurations. To generate the most straight line speed you can set up with the asymmetrical spinnaker which will also allow you to sail the hotter angles. For round the course efficiency and to stay ahead of the fleet straight downwind you will want to use the conventional pole and a symmetrical chute. This flexibility will allow you to stay ahead no matter what point of sail you are on. Setting and gybing a conventional spinnaker on many 22 foot boats can be a nerve wracking experience, but with the Rocket 22’s amazing stability this can be done with ease. With a bit of practice you will think you are sailing a much larger boat. Gybing the Rocket 22 with the sprit configuration is a surprisingly straightforward maneuver as the sprit is long and the foot of the spinnaker is quite short so the sail passes easily around the forestay. As with tacking you should begin your gybes with the boat sailing fast and very upright. It is important that the boat be sailing flat throughout the gybe. The spinnaker is gybed without easing the sheet until the last moment. Trim the spinnaker sheet slightly as you bear away to keep it from collapsing then allow the spinnaker to backwind against the forestay before releasing the old sheet. Finally, pull in the new sheet and allow the spinnaker to blow past the jib luff.
These few tips should whet your appetite for sailing the powerful, fast and fun way on the Rocket 22. We’re convinced that once you have tried this kind of sailing you will never want to go back to sailing without the sailpower and stability you have when you’re sailing a Rocket 22.
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