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Reducing mainsail area effectively is an essential aspect of depowering the boat as the wind strength increases. For offshore racing or cruising it is particularly important to be able to do so quickly and safely and this becomes even more critical when sailing shorthanded. Without weight on the rail, the need to reef comes earlier and the ability to deal with a situation is reduced. A mainsail reefing system should be reliable, quick to operate and produce an adequate sail shape once reefed. In this blog we discuss 4 options for taking a slab in the main. 

The Sea Sure brand first appeared in the 1960’s at the start of the boom of dinghy sailing in the UK. However, prior to that, the company made a name for itself producing components for Spitfires during WW2. Post-war, they were looking for new cross-over markets where they could capitalise on their skills for designing and fabricating fittings and their location on the south coast of England made the rapidly expanding sailing sector a natural progression. 

Regardless of material choice (wire, rod or composite), there are two main types of lateral rigging configurations, referred to as Discontinuous or Continuous rigging. In this blog we outline the differences between them, their relative pro’s and cons, and finally the impact of different standing rigging materials.

©Future Fibres

Upffront.com is all about performance sailing hardware and rigging systems. The heart, and driving force, of any sailing yacht is its mast and standing rigging which support the sails. If you are interested in optimising / upgrading your sailing systems it is important for us to have a common language, so we can share performance improvement ideas and options. In this blog we outline the key terminology of modern masts and rigging.

Having established the significant advantages of reducing rigging weight aloft (view previous blog here), next we would like to look at the composite rigging options available on the market. However, before we get to that point, we need to take a little diversion into basic material properties to provide some background context.

Upffront.com is constantly striving for lighter, faster and safer sailing for all boat owners, regardless of sailing style. Composite (or synthetic) rigging is one of the biggest and most cost-effective performance improvements that you can make. In this blog we look at the benefits of switching from wire or rod to composite standing rigging.