The Day Sailer - Edition #72, Spring 1979 - Wm.C. Waggoner
While examining Len Fiock's boat in Palo Alto, I was reminded
of a
spinnaker rigging technique I first learned from Steve Colgate.
The device, called a Twing Line, is simple. It consists
merely of
having a one-inch ring or bullet block on the end of a line about
2 1/2 to 3
feet long on both sides of the boat. The line is deadended
through a hole
into the cuddy on the rear verticle side in the vicinity of the
Day Sailer
manufacturer plate. On the inside of the cuddy the line is
backspliced for
two or three inches.
When rigging, the spinnaker lines are passed through the ring
(or
bullet block) between the rear turning block and the spinnaker clew.
Twing lines can help in two situations:
It restricts lateral line movement to a certain point and helps
prevent the
sheet from becoming hooked over the end of the boom in a broaching
situation or when the spinnaker goes out of control.
It assists the crew in grabbing the sheet for spinnaker dousing.
If the
sheet is out of reach, the crew merely grabs the back spliced end
of the
twing line and gives a pull. The twing line is drawn through
the cuddy
hole and the spinnaker sheet is drawn to the side of the boat within
easy
reach.
In the above situations twing lines act as a safety device
in helping to
prevent precarious situations and assist the crew in spinnaker handling.