Backstay Option
Hi Jim, You can create a quick traveler / mainsheet tackle rig by running a 3/8" to 1/2" line between the cleats on the transom leaving slack in the line to clear the tiller arm. You then connect the tackle at the end of the boom to the line via a block of sorts that allows the mainsheet block to travel. This will transfer the load of the boom to the deck in two places (strong ones at that). The down side is that the rear cleats are tied up with lines all the time making using them a tad tricky. The plus is that by fixing one end of the "rope" traveler to one cleat, and knoting the other end of the rope to the other cleat, you can adjust the rise of the traveler for tight reaches (full tension on the traveler rope) and light air runs (slack on the traveler rope. I use a typical cleat hitch on the free end of my rope traveler that I can untie in a flash while under sail. I'm a former racing dinghy sailer and I had a rope traveler on my old boat that worked nicely once you get used to it. The backstay attachment of the main sheet was (some of us think) a poor man's backstay adjuster. It is reckoned that as the load on the main increased, the pull of the tackle on the backstay tensioned the backstay, forcing the mast to rake slightly aft, thus altering the center of effort on the sails. O'Day probably used that explanation to sell boats, but in reality, it's a quick solution for a trailerable daysailer. I would do relish the idea of trying to get my hands behind the fiberglass of the transom near the gunwhale. Talk about a tough squeeze! I hope this helps! Happy Sailing, Stu Timm. "Karakahl" 1979 O'Day 22
