A little mishap today

Newsgroups Archive Prior to 2025
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Today, while sailing downwind in 16-18 kts, full main, sail way out there, clocking about 8 kts STW, I hit a wave from a boat. The mast flexed (boat slows down, mast tip does not, mast bends forward, requiring the luff of the sail to be a bit longer) and ripped the tack cringle/grommet out of the sail. Anyone else have a similar experience? I suggest we all keep the potential squirreled away for future reference.

I do a lot of sail/canvas work. Cannot do this repair - I don’t have the tools for setting a grommet the size needed. Off to One Sail tomorrow, hoping they can repair it pronto!

lloyd herman
Rendezvous, 30U
Port Washington, NY

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Sorry to hear this Lloyd. I would have guessed the halyard and sail would have stretched enough to prevent that kind of damage.

Are you using a super low stretch fiber in your halyard, like dyneema ?

Did the grommet pull straight down or or at an angle indicating maybe tension on the choker contributed to the failure ?

You had much better wind today than we had in Westport, CT.

Rob
s/v SOAVE
NS33 #009
Cedar Point YC
Westport, CT

On Sunday, August 24, 2025 at 8:53:08 PM UTC-4 Julie & Lloyd on Rendezvous wrote:

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Maybe … if the chocker is tight then the boom will require more effort to lift as the mast flexes forward. . Also having the sail out for a run the effort of the mast movement is not in line with the leech…and the wind pressure on the leech is greater.

How old is the sail?

I tend to have a loose choker down wind, not for much more of a reason than I don’t think a flat sail matters … but I defer to folks like John N to weigh in here.

Over the years I have used the choker as a adjust of last resort…

On Sunday, August 24, 2025 at 5:53:08 PM UTC-7 Julie & Lloyd on Rendezvous wrote: