Donal wrote:

I'm not sure what a snuffer is...

Here is a description of one...
http://www.northsails.co.uk/sails/snuffer/snuffer.htm

Aye, that's what I was thinking - a thingy at the top of the mast that gets
pulled down. My first inclination is to be less than keen on it.


On the Sonata I crewed on last year, we
had a sock that led from a hatch in the foredeck, down into the
cabin. I liked that set up - I just had to help the spinnaker down,
while the cockpit crew pulled it into the sock.

I'm not sure that you are describing the same thing.

Nope, quite the opposite, if anything.


In my experience, it is less hassle to let the sheet fly and haul the
spinaker down through the companionway as quick as possible.
However, I only have experience on a 33 foot Beneteau ... It might be
a different story on other boats.

I can't say, since the sock on the Sonata is the only spinnaker stuff I've
done. When it works smoothly, it's very fast and slick. We used it for
racing, where it's rather imperative to get the jenny up and the spinnaker
down in short order (to maintain speed for as long as possible on approach
to a mark, and then be setting the jenny for the next point of sail as we
round the mark). I can't help feeling that the spinnaker filling up the
companionway would get in the way, especially if the race conditions were
such that we had to tack/gybe in the middle of our rounding maneuvre. Having
the spinnaker stowed as an intrinsic part of dropping it means that the
decks are clear right away, so emergency maneuvres are easier to deal with.

I guess this stuff isn't so critical for cruising, but what little cruising
I've done was done on the same boat, so I never really thought about doing
it another way. :-)


--
Wally
www.artbywally.com/FiatPandaRally/index.htm
www.wally.myby.co.uk