Foolishly perhaps, but I must leap into this discussion. I used lazy jacks
for years and thousands of miles of cruising. At sea, the option of heading
up to douse or reef the main was usually not an option. Lazy jacks in these
conditions were lifesavers. There were times in a sudden squall (always at
three in the morning) where the only thing I could do was to release the
main halyard and maybe get a single gasket to bundle the main and head back
below out of danger and ride it out, knowing the main is safely captured.

However, to placate the naysayer, I did rig my own special lazy jack that
had a single point where the entire rig could be loosened or tightened
instantly right at the gooseneck. This lazy jack eliminated the standard
topping lift as well (no wild wire whipping around all the time beating at
the roach). I've never discovered a commercial lazy jack that was suitable.
Also, I eliminated the roach and battens. The sails or stitching never
suffered from chafe or other damage from these lazy jacks. Without these two
modifications, I would agree with previously posted points of view. But I
wouldn't go to sea without lazy jacks.

As for the trysail. This is a killer. The time to set is a bad time on deck
for anyone. It is slip and slide time with the squid and flying fish
competing for the same deck space as feet. The days of many crew aboard
needed to execute this hoisting are past, leaving this evolution down to a
one-maybe two-person trial. Flogging sheets really hurt! Also the days of
sailboats with no engines or unreliable, underpowered gasoline engines are
also past-almost. The best trysail today is a good reliable diesel
engine-unless, and only if you are racing under sail. There, I've said
it-what no one will speak. Spend that extra money and effort that goes into
the trysail rig in keeping that diesel completely reliable.

Or do what I've finally done and that is to go to an in-the-mast roller
furling main. Pull out three or four feet without leaving the cockpit and
you have a trysail, no flogging sheets, no struggling with wet sheet metal
(what the sailcloth seem like at the time trying to set it up) and no lazy
jack. I've sailed the Pacific with this rig and find it most suitable
especially for short-handed sailing. But this is a new subject.

There-have at me!

Tom
MOONSHADOW Panda 40

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Received on Wed Jun 08 13:38:58 2005