[sailaway21]

The two devices, sea anchor and drogue, accomplish fundamentally different objectives. Either one, properly deployed in conditions of necessity, should be under a heavy load but should not be under the shock loading I believe that Dog implies. With either there is going to be a tensioning and slacking of the rode but only relative to the heavy strain the rode will be under in either case. The real enemy in either case will be chafe, again due to the strain.

The two devices handle the prospect of heaving-to in different manners and each may be more or less suitable for different designs of boats. Indeed the very definitions of the devices give a clue to their possible usage and appropriateness. The drogue is essentially a running before the seas device while the sea anchor is essentially a heaving-to device.

It seems that great strides have been made in the design and deployment of the parachute version of the sea anchor to where collapsing is no longer the issue it was in early designs made from military surplus parachutes. It's strongly advisable to follow any manufacturers recommendations regarding bridles, deck hardware, weights and swivels with any of the devices chosen.