help with downwind

[jonic]

we are curently cruising along the coast of Portugal to Gib for the end of september for a month of preparation before setting off on the Antigua rally. We sail a westerly corsair. She has a roller furler genoa, a spare genoa (no hanks) a cruising chute and a pole and an emergency inner forstay. our question is what will be the best and most cost effective downwind rig? Do we invest in a twin luff groove for the spare genny, or fly it free with it poled out and the other poled out on the boom (is this the poor mans rig?) or something else.

Thanks in advance

 

[ccscott49]

Sounds a good rig to me, couldn't you get a spare pole cheap somewhere and do the "twissle" thing or even just use two poles out from the mast? Might be worth looking at. IMHO

 

[tomboy352]

In the spring, I mounted a detachable roller reefing forestay immediately behind the forestay. It has been very successful......the best thing out since sliced bread. One of its benefits has been that down wind, I fly the big genoa from the original forestay on leward side. The smaller working jib, poled out on the windward side, from the new inner stay. No mainsail. The sails fill from 50 degrees either side of the stern. ie I could yaw and jibe through 100 degrees without having to attend to the sails. In light airs, we sail much better than goose wing. Weve taken 25 to 30 kts apparent , from the stern, in a heavey Skagerak sea for 14 hrs, by rolling the genoa to an equal size of the working jib. Sailing like a dream. The sail ballance was so good that the auto helm handled it with minimum of fuss . Exclam
We have a twin foil but I have to admit that I have never tried the same rig using it as it seems a bit problematical.