Europe mast rake basics

In a Europe, mast rake acts very much like the sheet: it controls the tension of the leech (the twist of the sail). As soon as there is a little more wind, you pull the boom down to deck of the boat. At this point, you can no longer control the sail leech tension (twist) with the sheet, although you can adjust the sheeting angle with the traveler. Now it's the mast rake that determines how tight or loose the leech of your sail will be.

Lots of rake (mast aft) means that you have little tension in the leech, the sail will twist some more and the leech is more open. This makes the boat easier to hang down, allows more freedom in steering around the waves (the boat does not heel over as much when you bear off). As there is less "pre-tension" in the leech, the sail will open up easier in the puffs and the boat is more forgiving. The price you pay is you lose a little in pointing ability and the boat may feel "lazy" in the lulls (less wind).

When you put the mast forward and pull the boom down to the deck, you get more tension in the leech. You end up with less twist, the sail will not open itself automatically as easily when a puff hits and you have to steer very accurately to keep the boat upright. This works best in flat water and when the wind is steady.

Think of mast rake and the tension it puts on the sail leech a little like the suspension of a car. On a bumpy road, a soft suspension is nice. On a nice, even road, you can have a stiffer suspension.

For our sail, a typical rake figure would be 545 cm. 540 is lots of rake, 550 is little rake. When the mast bend is right and the mast & sail work well together, you don't need to adjust the rake (or need to adjust only a little) from light winds to heavy weather.

Less rake

More leech tension, tight leech. Boat is more difficult to keep up, more critical to steer, cannot bear away in waves. Better for flat water and when you are not overpowered .

More rake

Less leech tension, open leech. Boat is easier to keep up & steer around the waves. Better for choppy conditions and when you are overpowered.