[Jeff_H]

I have been thinking about this question on and off all day. For cruising I think you are right that with a boat set up the way most cruising boats are set up with mast mounted halyards, I suspect that it is easier to use a snuffer because you have a longish walk from the sheet the halyard. But for cruising or single-handing with aft lead halyards, I think that it is probably easier to just raise and douse without a snuffer.

For racing, no matter how big a boat, or how the halyards are rigged, I really don''t think a snuffer makes any sense.

Jeff