I've been given an O'Day Javelin and I would like to make it a little more family friendly. Right off, I will acknowledge that I'm sort of asking this boat to be something it's not. I get that, and in a perfect world I would just go buy a perfect boat. But to tide me over until the rapture (which I expect to leave me with plenty of time for sailing in my favorite lakes) I would like to make a few rigging changes. Before I do, I'm hoping someone here has tried to do the same (or similar) and might share some first hand experience.
My biggest gripe is that with two kids, my wife, and myself in the boat we have plenty of room until I start working the boat. Then it becomes a nightmare. The jib blocks and lines end up right where someone is sitting. The main sheet runs up in the middle of the cockpit, almost always right where someone is sitting. Then, of course, there is 5 feet of tiller and extension clearing the deck aft the CB trunk. The boat was made to be crewed by two people and it seems like it would be great like that. I'm willing to give up a substantial amount of performance if necessary in order to open up the cockpit space a bit.
Here's what I would like to do:
Is there more to it than this? What am I losing by shifting my rigging this way other than some marginal performance?
My biggest gripe is that with two kids, my wife, and myself in the boat we have plenty of room until I start working the boat. Then it becomes a nightmare. The jib blocks and lines end up right where someone is sitting. The main sheet runs up in the middle of the cockpit, almost always right where someone is sitting. Then, of course, there is 5 feet of tiller and extension clearing the deck aft the CB trunk. The boat was made to be crewed by two people and it seems like it would be great like that. I'm willing to give up a substantial amount of performance if necessary in order to open up the cockpit space a bit.
Here's what I would like to do:
- Move the mainsheet block forward. Ideally, all the way to the deck.
- Rig mainsheet to end of boom instead of mid-boom.
- Move jib cleats to outside of the cockpit and forward (close to deck).
- Fit rudder with a Norwegian tiller.
Is there more to it than this? What am I losing by shifting my rigging this way other than some marginal performance?