The boom/sail cover incorporates lazy jacks to help guide the dropping
mainsail into the cover.
On each side of the
mast, a 3/16" line runs from the spreader fitting down to
a loop in the bottom portion of each "jack." When not being
used as lazy jacks, the upper lines are clove hitched to a small bronze
padeye on the front of mast for storage.
The bottom portion(s)
of the lazy jacks are permanently attached to straps sewn onto the sail/boom
cover. Each bottom portion has a tied loop to which the upper
line connects to form the lazy jack. The boom/sail cover was
made with three straps, but I only use two: one near the center of
the boom and one closer to the mast. Additional straps at the ends of
the sail/boom cover attach to the boom-end fitting and to the mast.
To drop and stow the
sail, (1)the ends of the cover are tied to the boom end fitting and
the mast. (2) the top portions of the lazy jacks are attached to
the loops of the bottom portions with slipped half hitches (so they
can be easily popped loose) to form the lazy jacks. (3) I drop the sail about
four feet and start closing the zipper at the boom end, then
lower the sail as I guide and pack the sail into the cover, closing the zipper
as I go. The battens lie flat against the boom and stay in their
pockets. (4) When the sail is packed, I pop the top portions of the
jacks loose from the bottom portion loops and hitch them to the mast padeye. The
covered boom and sail stow inside the cabin alongside the starboard
quarterberth.
The lazy jacks are not
needed when raising the sail. I mount the boom to the mast and attach the
topping lift and halyard. Next, I feed the sail into the mast's sail
track, unzip about a third of the cover, haul up a bit of sail,
then completely remove the boom/sail cover, and haul away.
With this arrangement,
the mainsail goes up or down in just a few minutes and the cover keeps
everything clean and tidy. My jiffy reefing stays in place, too,
which saves another several minutes of rigging if I didn't use the
boom/sail cover.
