Matt wrote:
Hi,
I've recently sold my main\jib TS and bought a cutter rigged ketch
and have come up with a few things I'm not too sure of.

I've got a yankee cut Jib and self tacking staysl I tend to use when
it's at all blowy or likely to be. I've also got a very large Genoa I
use when it's not. I thought that with the Genoa you keep the staysl
down as you don't want to smother the Genoa. I read a comment where the
staysl was used with a genoa. Is this worthwhile\possible with a large
genoa?

Now I know this one is subjective.........but, I feel very comfortable
with the jib\staysl cutter rig, particularily in bad weather. My wife
is keen on a self furler and I can appreciate that most of the time I
probably would find a furler made things easier.

Now the question is, given that our game is cruising , is it
(a)possible (ie how do you hank jib on with furler) and (b) practicable
to switch between the two?

I guess what I'm asking is do many cruisers actually do this.

O.k last question. I'm yet to fly the kite shaped spinnaker. Is this
sail set with two poles similiar to twin headsails or like a
conventional spinnaker. Is this sail only for running?

I've got a ways to go on the learning curve so hope these questions
make some sense.

Thanks

My last boat (heavy displacement 30' mono) and current boat
(light displacement 40' catamaran) both have cutter rigs.

1st boat started with staysail + yankee for foresails.

Sailed well in stronger winds (15+) but not enough sail area
for under 15. We put a furler on it and a genoa. That
made it sail well to about 8 knots.

In stronger winds (say over 25 knots) the rig was staysail +
little bit of genoa for extra drive, say 30-50 sq. ft and 1
or 2 reefing mainsail. Went well and the tightly sheeted
staysail helped us stay close to the wind.

Our current boat is much the same, only we can delay reefing
a bit more and need to reef less. Goes faster too

I occasionally would set the staysail when reaching for a
bit of extra drive but not often.

Furling:

You can convert a genoa to furling operation relatively
simply, but if the genoa is a light fabric it will distort
when reefed in heavier wind. A purpose built "all purpose"
furling genoa will do better, especially if you have luff
flattening devices in it.

You can convert the yankee the same way and only put it on
if you anticipate heavy winds. In practise I doubt you or
most others with this setup will do this, given how
convenient the furler is. A lot depends on your cruising
locale and if heavy winds are frequent or rare.

Evan Gatehouse