"Doug Dotson" dougdotson@NOSPAMcablespeedNOSPAMcom wrote in message ...
True on a powerboat, not for sail. Proper place to fly the ensign is
off of the luff of the mainsail. Next best place is off the backstay as
per your original post. Going up the backstay isn't a big deal.

Doug


You are wrong. Where is one to put the flag when at anchor or when motoring?
And, if the flag is flown off the mainsail it should be two-thirds of the way
up the leech. Fifteen feet doesn't quite get it.

It is wrong to fly the flag off the backstay because the angle is incorrect and the
flag does not display properly.

Then there is the problem of courtesy flags which are shown off the starboard
spreader. They should be above the ensign as a courtesy.

A flagstaff on the stern if the proper way to display the flag on modern sloops.

CN