Sailboat Terms
Most of the terms defined so far have
referred to all boats. However, sailboats
have terms that refer to their use and unique
equipment.
Sailboats differ from powerboats in
two ways:
• The basic power to move sailboats comes
from sails and the wind.
• Sailboats usually have a large underwater
extension of the hull called a keel or centerboard
(Figure 1-4). The keel is a fixed
part of the structure. It is often heavy
enough to right an overturned sailboat.
A centerboard is hinged and swings into
position through a slot in the hull; it functions
like a keel in that it inhibits sideways
motion of the boat but does not help
right the boat. If the centerboard is not
hinged but instead moves up and down
vertically, it is called a daggerboard.
The following paragraphs describe parts
of a typical sailboat and Figure 1-5 (next
page) illustrates these parts.
• Spars are poles that support the sails.
• The mast is an upright spar on which sails
are set.
• A boom is a horizontal spar used to hold
the bottom of a sail.
Sails provide the boat’s propulsion.
• The mainsail is the boat’s principal sail
and it extends aft of the mainmast.
• Sails flown forward of the mainmast are
headsails.
• A jib is a triangular-shaped headsail
attached to the forestay.
• A spinnaker sail flies at the foremost part
of a sailboat with special rigging and a
pole. It usually replaces the smaller jib as
the headsail in downwind runs.
Standing rigging is a collective term for stays
and shrouds.
• Stays are wire cables or stainless rods that
support the mast fore and aft. There are
forestays and backstays. (Some sailboats
have only a forestay. See figure 1-6 sailboat
rigging next page)
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Figure 1-4. Keel and centerboard
hulls