For me the asymmetrical spinnaker, aka gennaker, aka drifter is a substitute for a genoa. Here's how I see the costs/benefits. Asym advantages: Need less hardware: just a spare halyard block and pole bracket, no expensive track. I did add multi-use fairlead/cam cleats on each side. Doubles as a spinnaker. I've found it works well flown well forward of the headstay. Cheaper, lighter sail to handle. Colorful, "fun" sail. Genoa advantages: Can be used on the wind. Asym can't used with wind forward of a beam reach. Can be tacked. Asym must be taken forward of the forestay to switch sides. Can be used in heavier weather (but would you want to?). Asym is a light sail, hence "drifter". Bill Riker M-15 #184 Storm Petrel -----Original Message----- From: montgomery_boats-admin@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:montgomery_boats-admin@mailman.xmission.com]On Behalf Of Howard A Sent: January 16, 2002 7:31 PM To: montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: M_Boats: Twin Forestays Which "Howard" would that be? I hope it isn't me. I've got 3 headsails, but only use them one at a time. I do have a spinaker halyard, but don't have a sail to use it on. Dead downwind I'd be running wing and wing (main out and jib poled out on the opposite side). As I understand it, the skinny on twin forestays is that for the most part, they are a bad idea. You can never get enough tension on them from the backstay to keep the one in use from sagging and giving you a bad sail shape on the wind. If you have them, you must leave the one not in use a little slack so that all the load is on the active one. You might be able to use them both downwind. For our boats, a bettter solution might be an asymetrical spinaker or large drifter set flying and/or poled out on a spinaker halyard. But that will involve going forward to take it down eventually. Bill Riker uses an asymetrical spinaker on his M15 and it works really well, as far as I can tell. It went up when it needed to, and came down when it needed to, and it didn't look like it was a problem. I don't have one, but I understand that being made of light nylon, you can stuff them in a bag instead of having to fold them. If so, it would make life easier. Howard M17, #278 Steve R wrote:
Does anyone have twin forestays on a M-15? (or M-17 for that matter?) I found a reference in the archives that Howard uses two foresails to run downwind, but I do not know if that means two forestays or if the two sails are hanked on to the same stay. Is it possible to have one sail in use and one hanked on and ready to hoist if the weather changes? You would have to deal with one set of sheets being on top of the other. Any other issues that I do not envision? I am trying to get roller furling without the big bucks or increased set-up/take-down times.
Steve R. M-15 #119 Lexington, KY
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