I have always had spinnaker poles with bridles, and my current boat #394 has bridles on the pole, however I was reading a book by a highly qualified world class racer, and he stated that if you can do away with the bridles do so. Well, I'm always willing to try anything minimalist with regards to race boat rigging and layout so I have re-rigged the pole so that the topping and downhaul both attach at the center of the pole. This all seems logical as the old bridle system was prone to tangling etc. but my new concern is whether the strength of the pole without end mounted bridles will be compromised.
