A
jib (also spelled
jibb) is a triangular
staysail set ahead of the
foremast of a sailing boat. Its
tack is fixed to the
bowsprit, to the
bow, or to the
deck between the bowsprit and the foremost mast. Jibs and
spinnakers are the two main types of
headsails on a modern boat.
Modern yachts and small craft
A
jib, left, compared to a
genoa, right. The foretriangle is outlined in red.
On a boat with two staysails the inner sail is called the
staysail, and the outer (foremost) is called the jib. This combination of two staysails is called a
cutter rig (or a
yankee pair) and a boat with one mast rigged with two staysails and a mainsail is called a
cutter.
On boats with only one jib, it is common for the
clew of the jib to be further aft than the mast, meaning the jib and mainsail overlap. An overlapping jib is called a
genoa jib or simply a
genoa (see illustration).
On cruising
yachts with more than one jib, it is common for the innermost jib to be
self-tacking, either by using a
boom along the
foot of the sail, or by
cleating the jib
sheet to a track, or both. On other cruising yachts, and nearly all racing sailboats, the jib needs to be worked when tacking. On these yachts, there are two sheets attached to the
clew of the jib. As the yacht comes
head to wind during a tack, the active sheet is released, and the other sheet (the
lazy sheet) on the other side of the boat is pulled in. This sheet becomes the new
active sheet until the next tack.
Traditional vessels
Schooners typically have up to three jibs. The foremost one sets on the topmast
forestay and is generally called the
jib topsail, a second on the main forestay is called
the jib, and the innermost is called
the staysail. Actually, all three sails are both jibs and
staysails in the generic sense.
A
square-rigged ship typically has four jibs (though vessels with more or fewer exist).
From forward to aft, these sails are called:
See also
Category:Sailing vessels and riggingCategory:Ship constructionCategory:Sailboat anatomyCategory:Sailing ship elementsCategory:Nautical termsCategory:Articles lacking sources (Erik9bot)bg:Фокca:Floccs:Kosatka (plachta)da:Fokde:Fock (Segel)es:Foqueeo:Ĵibofa:جیب (بادبان)fr:Focis:Fokkait:Fiocconl:Fok (zeil)no:Fokkpl:Fokru:Фок (морской термин)fi:Fokkasv:Fockzh:艏三角帆
