preventer attachment to boom

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

The loop through the pad eyes is exactly the right way. This is much stronger than pad eyes or even the U-bolts with big backing plates. Like for so many things on sailboats, throwing more steel at things isn’t always the solution. Always look at how racers do things and they tie everything around the boom.

Yes. Beautifully rigged in the photos. That's the way to do it.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

I now realize that many sailors don’t know the easy way for preventers.

If you take a long line, tie it to the boom, then go forward to a bow cleat and tie it off, or go through a block there and lead it aft to the cockpit… those are all the HARD way of doing this.

Instead, you make the preventer in two parts. One is the long line but it isn’t tied to the boom: as it comes back from the bow, outside everything incl. the capshrouds, you tie it to your lifeline just aft of the capshroud.

On each side of the boom you create a short lead that is always attached to the boom. To deploy the preventer, you tie them together like in the video below.

Note that this easy method also works when the boom is already all the way out.

That's a classical way to do it, but I don't mind rigging with one long line. Because -- I always have a preventer on if the boom goes out beyond the rail, and while the boom is still inside the rail, it's no problem to attach the preventer to the end of it. I have a spliced dyneema loop which hangs from the Selden boom-end which has a preventer attachment. I just clip the preventer on to that and lead the preventer line through a bow cleat, back along the side deck through low friction eyes, through a midships cleat and to a spinnaker winch.


If I'm running a spinnaker and need that winch, I just run down the other side. I always keep the preventer on a winch so that I can adjust it every time I trim the mainsail, keeping and good and tight to prevent snatch loads.

[rslifkin]

A friend of mine rigged a pair of permanent preventers on his boat. There are 2 blocks at the bow with a line led up and back on each side of the boat. Before letting the boom out, you just clip the relevant side preventer onto the attachments on the boom and tighten it as necessary. Simple to use, has good geometry, etc. The only downside is the bit of extra clutter on the decks when they're not in use.

[Noahr]

I use one of these shock absorbers “Shockles” by Davis wrapped around my boom with preventer lines attached running to eyes on port snd starboard bow and then back to cockpit cleats .

[skenn_ie]

Have you got drogues ?

[markxengineerin]

Have you got drogues ?

If this question is for me, yes I have borrowed a drogue from someone- and have a sea anchor as well. Haven't needed to use either one yet but maybe on this trip.

[nuru05]

I use a bail shackle that clips to the end of my boom. I actually run my spinnaker sheets back and have a block that clips to my rail. It works really well and I am able to tighten or loosen it from the cockpit.

[Cheechako]

Preventers dont kill people, Jibes kill people. Maybe just eliminate booms if that's your focus, as they kill more people?

[skenn_ie]

Jordan-Serise-Drogues are credited with many survivals from severe conditions.