Probably the most thought out purchase of this boat build is the sails. We looked at so many options, and it came down to getting great advice. After an expedient one month build for three big sails, they arrived by truck from Maine Sailing Partners this week.

The octagon box is the Tides sail track for the mast – rolled up and 48′ long. We had to replace the one that came with the mast due to lowering the gooseneck position (resulting in a longer track and sail hoist distance).
The dyneema and Dacron blend cloth weave looks fantastic in person! The mainsail weighed in at about 85 pounds, but look at how compact it is compared to complicated laminate sails. This should be so much easier to handle in stowing/covering, yet it’s still a race-competitive durable sail. Can’t wait to hoist!

The jib is unusual in two ways. It is fully battened horizontally, so it will be stored in a zipper bag, still hanked on when not in use. And it’s reef able, so we’ll have an adjustable tack leading back to the cockpit. The excess part of the reefed sail gets folded up against the hoisted portion and covered up by an integral zipper pouch. This will all make more sense when we can show you photos with the mast up.

The third sail is a masthead reacher that will fly from the bow sprit and roll up on a Colligo furler. We made it solid blue, using a simple nylon cloth – not intended to be an upwind sail.

We also made a change on deck to better match the jib. The tracks for the jib turning cars are now athwart ships to keep the jib clew always the same distance from the forestay. We can trim the sail sideways – closer to the mast and centerline or opening up the slot without de-powering the sail.

The jib on this boat is planned to be a real workhorse in so many conditions. Really looking forward to learning how to make it perform well!

Final details of interior fabrication are finishing up and we’re on track to roll on primer throughout the boat insides this weekend. Three years of working towards paint – it’s finally coming true.