I've installed a roller furling and a Garhauer rigid boomvang on my Mirage 25, primarily to eliminate the topping lift. I want to run a line from boomvang back to cabin. I currently have two halyard lines running through a two-wheel organizer to a twin-rope clutch. I was thinking about installing a cleat on the mast to cleat off the jib halyard for the furling. Once up, it'll pretty much stay untouched all season. I'm not a racer, and never really played with the genoa halyard tension and don't know if I ever would. I would then run the ridged boomvang line back to the twin rope clutch. Does this sound like a good plan, or is it better to install a cam cleat setup or rope clutch on other side of cabin?
Sue & Larry respond:
Your plan sounds like a good one to us. It's very common to leave your jib halyard on a cleat at the mast, especially for a cruiser with roller furling. We did this recently ourselves on our own boat, Serengetti, as detailed in our article Leading Sail Control Lines Aft.
Don't completely dismiss the idea of adjusting your halyard tension from time to time. In conditions of higher winds, tightening your jib halyard will flatten your sail and allow you to point higher. Conversely, slackening your halyard in light air will often times allow you to keep the boat moving by way of a fuller luff. Also, many sailmakers recommend loosening halyard tension when the boat is not in use to promote longer life for the sail.
As for equipment recommendations, we'd stick with Schaefer, Harken, and Ronstan for general hardware, and Spinlock for sheet stoppers. These companies make good products and, more importantly, provide excellent customer service.
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