Alan - Maybe either my question or my understanding of what is being done wasn't clear. I assumed that with the lines always attached to the chute that it wasn't possible to dog down the forward hatch. If that's the case, then on the upwind (not downwind) leg you must occasionally get water over the deck and consequently down the hatch. My crew's experience has never let them believe me when I tell them the J is a "dry boat". If the hatch can be dogged down with either lines sticking through into the boat or chute corners hanging out through the hatch, isn't it hard on the lines and/or the chute? Or am I just missing the whole point and all lines are disconnected?

Ok, Kent. I see where you are coming from. My understanding was that the lines are detached from the sail by the sewer crew and passed back up to be re-rigged by the foredeck crew right after takedown. Just like a companionway douse only in a different place. The sail is then flaked and bagged as usual.

We takedown through the companionway so I may have misconceived how its done. I sailed on a J41 where we doused down the hatch but I wasn't part of the pointy end crew. My recollection is that the lines were disconnected and passed up. But I was busy with mainsail trim so I wasn't watching.

Those of you that douse down the forward hatch, please chime in and tell us how its really done.

We've been dousing down the forward hatch for the last few years due to my experience in bigger boats and J-29's. We douse the spinnaker under the jib (leeward) or to windward as the situation requires and stuff it down the hatch with all lines connected and close the hatch. When the boat is settled out upwind, the pit person goes below, disconnects the gear from the sail, connects it together and tosses it out the hatch. Then they re-pack. Foredeck clips the gear back to the lifelines and clears the halyard leaving us ready for the next hoist. It works pretty well especially if you can open the hatch past 90 degrees. My orignal hatch did not, but I put in a new one that does (for different reasons). I've sailed on a 29 that removed the locking brackets so the hatch would open fully.

Ed Austin
Chinook

We also have a cleat on the mast for the spin halyard, and never take it back to the halyard stopper in the cockpit.

The compainway bag we use on Planxty is just a square spinnaker bag North happens to be using lately. It's magically the perfect size! I'm sure that wasn't really planned

Re-pack the chute? Detach sheets? No need for either! What comes down must go up (well, most of the time at least). We never have to send someone below to re-pack. Stuff the chute into the bag, leave everything attached, and set right from the companionway. The crew stays up on the rail (where they belong).

The reason for detaching the chute is that we sail mostly PHRF and use more than one chute. So, what comes down, may not go back up.

Just an update on the topping lift cleat on the mast idea. In the current issue of Latitude 38 (a Left Coast freebie sailing mag), there was a suggestion to install the Harken cleat "upside down" on the mast above the topping lift exit. That way the foredeck/mast person can control the lift while putting up and/or taking down the pole. Then when the cockpit crew is ready to control the pole, all they have to do is pull on the topping lift, it pops out of the cleat, and they have control in the cockpit. We tried it this Spring when rigging the boat and it works great. Sometimes you just have to slap yourself upside the head and say "why didn't I think of that?" The only caution is that Latitude 38 recommends that your exit plate be the kind with rollers above and below the line so that when you pull up it doesn't chafe.

A note to those of you launching from the pulpit. Our bow lights are mounted on the top rail of the bow pulpit (I've seen other J30s were this is not the case). In certain situations, the chute can hang up on the bow light. A few months ago we launched for a broad reach in about 15kt winds, as soon as everything was up, I looked under the boom to see how the chute looked and there was a big square hole ripped out of it. Of all the times we've launched downwind thats never been a problem. Make sure whoever is on the halyard is watching the chute come out of the bag, especially on a broad reach.