Me too!
Gerald, I've got a Hunter Vision 32 which I race and I've had the same problem, as I guess most Hunter owner do. I orginally considered going out 1 foot from my existing 6" bowsprit (all the distance the local marina will let me do and still keep my slip) and up 4 feet on the mast. This would have DOUBLED my geneo sail area. Wow, I was excited about that! (I have a fractional rig, and a 129% jib with only a 8.3' J and a 33' I.) Obviously this would produced better performance in light air, given I had got a new drifter (light weight 155% genoa). Clearly this is the most direct approach to addressing the concern and adding (replacing) an existing bowsprit is not that big a deal. In my case however, after lots of thinking and plenty of advice from folks I trust (including my sailmaker), as well as a discussion with my local PHRF board (who would have hammered me for 21 seconds a mile), I decided to do something different. Instead I decided to go with a new 1/2 oz gennaker, cut as a "runner", so I can go deep in light air. I decided to go up the mast 5 more feet and this increased my sail area well over 50%. This design is good to about 6-7 knots apparent wind (10-14 knots true wind as the sail is to be used from 120 to 160-170 degrees down wind) before risking sail damage. My sailmaker convinced me that this will yield the same performance as adding the bowspirit for less money and I'll take a only 9 second PHRF rating bump. I ordered it last week. I plan continue to use my old, all purpose 3/4 oz gennaker to reach since reaching has never been a problem in light air. I'll use the new gennaker to run in light air and am very excited about my prsopects. This solution might be much easier and cheaper for you too, if you already have a gennaker. Even if you don't, you might want to seriously consider it, since by buying two gennakers with different cuts you'll accomplish the same results at a comparable cost to replacing the bowspirit. (Remember that you would also have to buy 1 or more new sails and add some additional deck hardware as the new bowspirit would most likely require new tracks, blocks, etc.) The only variable my solution does not really address is the possibility of bringing the new bowsprit out 3 or more feet. Note that you'll get a lot more sail area by going out than going up. As I mentioned, this wasn't an option for me do to slip size, so I didn't seriously consider it. Besides, I figured it would probably be an ongoing problem with PHRF, as well as at resale time. Hope this helps. Best, Rodger Beard Monarch Beach, CA
