[bestfriend]

Sabre - I have 34' and 4:1. With the winds we have here, 4:1 can be tough on bringing in the traveler. But I normally don't have to. Dropping it down is easy, obviously. When I tack, I just leave it on the high side, then drop it down after I complete the tack. That way, I am not fighting against the force of the wind to bring it up to center. I would like to have 6:1 and will probably change it eventually.

As for the mainsheet, I play with that more than I play with the traveler. The traveler for me is mostly a succession of drops as the wind picks up and I power down. The mainsheet I like to play with for wind gusts and direction. I had a post a while back about my options for having it handy. The concensus seemed to be to run the line back along the outside of the cockpit to a block and a winch that I could install on the cockpit combing. Of course, the other option is just to get an autopilot!!!

Oh, and I think Keelhaulin just installed 8:1 with a fine tune on his traveler. You might want to PM him.