Melges 15 Test Sail and Review
Sail22 Test Sails the Melges 15
Sailing with my kids. Lucy driving and Cole trimming kite.
Since the new Melges 15 was announced we have been working on setting up a demo. We did this when the Melges 14 came out as well. But this time we have 3 kids and are in need of a more family boat that we can all sail. I never thought we would start out taking the kids sailing in 15+ Knits, gusting into the 20’s though! As we launched the boat I was expecting to go for a sail with my cousin, but instead…there they were. The older two (ages 6 and almost 4 years) grabbed their gear (bike helmets) and ran to jump in the Melges 15 with me. It was fairly quick trip out from the easement, but they both wanted to trim and get involved. I was pretty cautious as a mistake would have us swimming and the result could have been costly. As we sailed out I realized the stability and ease this new boat offered. Main and Jib only would be fine but we were still planing quickly. The kids loved it as we tacked around and headed to the dock. Safely maneuvering to the dock, we could easily make the switch to grab my cousin John. An experienced C Scow sailor, I put him on the helm so I could play around a little with the jib and kite. We were off sailing upwind to start so we could get a longer runway for a spinnaker run. We are now realizing it’s pretty windy and we had more than the 400# max in the tuning guide. I set the rig up 4 turns from base to be safe and didn’t hike extra hard or push the boat. Didn’t need to break anything on the first day! We tacked and launched the kite and started our run up the lake. The boat felt big with plenty of space. A large centerboard trunk that looked like it could have had a permanent board but instead has a daggerboard for simplicity and gives the crew a great place to put their feet whether short or tall. At 220 and 6’ tall I never felt too big for the boat in either position. Reaching for any of the control lines was easy as they are all close. So we gybed up the lake in the southerly planing with ease and never out of control. The rig was stable the whole time. Our speed maxed out at 14.5kts. I am sure we could have raised that number with a hotter angle but it was pretty puffy. After seeing how stable and strong things are two days later, I am confident there wouldn’t have been any issues with the boat holding up. Dousing was a breeze with the spin sock. One line hoists, launches the pole and sets the Tackline. Uncleat and pull the other direction and the kite is away and sprit is in. So back upwind we went. Waves weren’t big, but enough to bring some water in the boat. This allowed us to try out the bailers in the middle of the boat and the scuppers on the back. A clever bungee set up keeps the scuppers closed. But we needed them open so we released the bungee. We had some water in the boat the whole time but to be expected with still learning the boat. As we worked our way back to the dock we hit 7kts at times upwind. Very fast for a little boat. Watching my Dad in our whaler chasing us gave us more perspective that we were moving very well. The boat likes to go so footing and more scow like to plane upwind felt best. Now to the dock and time to see how things went.
Heading downwind in some big breeze.
Day 2 on the water was even better. Not as much breeze, but Becky was ready to go. She hasn’t sailed in many years since the kids have taken up a lot of her time, so I wasn’t sure how ready she would be. We left the rig where it was at 4 turns on and off we went. Upwind first to get a better runway. Then we popped the kite and off we went. Becky’s eyes lit up and she trimmed downwind like she hadn’t forgotten a thing. Light loads on this boat so no worries as we tried to learn the best maneuvers as we gybed back and forth. Talking about how it’s a lot like a Melges 24 but no loads and missing 9’ feet off the back. Even driving I could grab the vang at the mast or any of the control lines.
Moses driving with a spinnaker for his first time. 10.4kts max speed.
Next up before lunch was taking one of our Maxinkuckee Adventure Sailing kids for a sail. I did take the rig back to base for this sail. Moses started sailing in our program and he has improved every year. He was a natural on the helm and loved being able to watch his speed on the Velocitek Speed Puck. I lined up the puffs and Moses did the rest. Great to see how easy this boat was for a O’pen Skiff and Opti sailor to pick up. 45 minutes of sailing and this sailor was ready for some lunch.
Cole and Lucy enjoying all the space on the Melges 15.
As Becky ran some errands, I grabbed Cole(6) and Lucy (4.5) to go out again. Less breeze and I had heard that sailing without the jib would be fine. So off we went. Same plan but I took a phone for some pics this time. A short upwind and we then set and Cole trimmed the spinnaker. Trimming and gibing was a breeze for Cole. So much that Lucy took a turn and they both drove a little. Sailing without the jib was fine in a decent wind but we could have gone with the jib. The kids were a little bored in the light upwind sailing back but having the space and concave bow gave them a great spot to hang out. No crowding on this boat.
Family of 4 on a Melges 15…no problem.
Final lap of the weekend we grabbed Becky again. She loved the boat so much she lined up my cousin to watch Nora so we could all sail again. Jib back on and off we went. More tacking and gybing up and down the East shore or Lake Max. Running out of light and our 3 year old Nora not ready to sail yet, her terms, and we finished up our sail. Empty lift this time of year so we have the Melges 15 ready for more sails right away. I will do some reviews for the rigging and other side of what we do. Not a lot to upgrade as they got lots right on this boat.
Kids lounging as we sail back for Mom.
Cole trimming and Lucy driving.
The kids and I sailing downwind with smiles on their faces! Culver Academies in the background.