I have a strong preference for conventional rigs (slap-reefing) with a good slide system, triple reefing setup, and lazy jacks or the Dutchman system for ease of dropping sails. This is a relatively simple, time-tested system that requires a bit more work for the crew but it has its advantages: better sail shape (performance), full-batten capability, less weight aloft, and ultimately, better reliability. If in-mast furlers (IMFs) jam, it is likely to happen at an inopportune time. I am not a fan of IMFs for this reason. Nevertheless, the conventional versus the IMF rig debate rages on.

Now to IMFs… many (say over 50%) of new monohull cruising boats over 40 feet now are built with IMF systems and this includes premium "blue water" boats - Oyster, Halberg-Rassey, Hylas, and Amel to name just a few. Production boats such as Hunter, Beneteau, and Catalina use them. Charter fleets which use many of these production vessels in their fleets use them extensively.  Most of the charter boats in the East Med use them.

The greatest attribute of IMF is it tends to make for lazy and poor sailors to stow the sail and turn the motor on. Given that many charterers are usually not the most experienced sailors, today’s IMF systems must be reasonably robust and reliable. If they were not, it is hard to imaging all the charter companies spending money on sail and IMF repair/maintenance. IMF systems did come a long way in reliability and performance…for example, the newer Selden IMFs are better than systems from the late 80s to early 90s.

Many owners of newer IMF systems are satisfied and will accept the sail shape and performance issues as a tradeoff for easier sail handling and stowage. IMFs do require more care during the furling to avoid possible jams in the furler system. The variables are angle to the wind, halyard tension, boom position, and furling line tension.

Many of these IMF system sailors are not long-term cruisers. Those in the charter business and weekend sailors tend to use their vessels in relatively good weather when conditions are mild. For weekend sailors, I believe that IMFs serve their purpose and seem to be a popular feature on new sailboats.

Although I never experienced it personally, I believe that long term IMF cruisers will sooner or later be faced with some type of issue or jam while underway in moderate or heavy weather. These situations may tend to occur while underway in a reefed situation or in strong winds. A jam under this scenario leaves ugly options as one cannot drop the main if it is reefed in at all. Often a possible solution is to wrap the mainsail manually around the mast and lash it to the mast, a difficult task in 30+ knots of wind. I have seen several vessels with jammed IMFs during my cruises returning to port with their sails wrapped around the mast.

What about jib furlers? I am a proponent of jib furlers because they have also come a long way in terms of reliability. With jib furlers, I am willing to accept the downsides of possible jams and sail shape issues when reefed as they are more easily fixable.

For those cruisers that must have a mainsail furling system, I would recommend an in-boom system, such as, those made by Schaefer and LeisureFurl. Furling booms do jam as well, but the sail can be dropped to deck a lot easier. Of course, there is the issue of cost.

For longer term cruising situations, I prefer the tried-and-proven method of slab reefing with a good batten car system and lazy jacks. With single line reefing I can make a reef as quick as IMF sailors. And, if all else fails, can easily drop the main. Of course, if one wants to be spoiled a bit, just install an electric halyard winch.

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To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea ... cruising, it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about.

"I've always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can't afford it." What these men can't afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of security. And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine -- and before we know it our lives are gone.  What does a man
need -- really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That's -- in the material sense, and we know it.

But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade. The years thunder by, the dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed.

Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life?

by Sterling Hayden, Actor, Author, Wanderer
  

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bow lines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
by Mark Twain, Author

Genre: Music Promo
Format: HD Video
Length: 3:22 minutes
Rating: G

Dave Calhoun performed "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes" among many others, live at the Qwest Field Events Center, Seattle Boat Show, Feb. 3, 2010. Based on a trop rock musical style, his repertoire consists of 100+ songs, including many Jimmy Buffett favorites.

(Released 2/8/2010)

There were two twin brothers named Joe and John. Joe was an old salt and was the owner of a dilapidated old boat. It came to pass that John's lovely wife died the same day that Joe's boat sank in San Francisco Bay.

A few days later a kindly old lady met Joe on the street and mistaking him for John said, "I am sorry for your great loss. You must feel terrible."

"Ohhh, Hell NO!," replied Joe. "Fact is I'm sorta glad to get rid of her. She was a rotten old thing from the beginning. Her bottom was all shriveled up, she smelled like a dead fish, and she was always losing her water. She had a crack in the back and a pretty big hole in the front too. The hole got bigger every time I used her and she leaked like crazy. After a while, it got hard to keep her upright."

"But what really finished her off was these four tough guys who rented her for a good time," Joe continued. "I warned them that she wasn't any good, but they all wanted a go with her anyway. The dammed fools all tried to get on her at the same time and it was too much for the old girl. While they were trying to get into various positions, she split right up the middle."

The old woman fainted!

My soul is full of longing
For the secret of the sea
And the heart of the great ocean
Sends a thrilling pulse through me

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Poet

As I cast off for that very first time,
The "rope" in my hand has now become "line".
And hauling the sails to the top of the mast,
That "rope", now a "halyard" holds strong, taught and fast.
Then sailing in brisk winds full force on a beat.
The sails are trimmed in by that "rope" that's a "sheet".
And now at my anchorage with sails safely stowed,
I trust in that "rope" that now serves as a "rode".
Through all my life I will never lose hope,
Of a reason or time to play with a rope.