Fruits Of My Labor (A-113)

[ebb]

If you are going to cruise the Ariel, you'll probably raise the boom so you can move freely in the cockpit without loosing your head.

Midboom on the Ariel is exactly over the bridgedeck. If you are going to dodger it, you will probably make that tall enough to get in and out without fuss.

Instead of putting the traveler way forward over the hatch where the forces are probably tripled to control the boom, I think the traveler could be designed to go over the cockpit end of the dodger. In such a way that fingers are protected. A hard dodger can be designed to help take the forces of a traveler. The block spread on the boom would be further aft, easier to haul, and probably have shorter tails. The almost flat top dodger design that Tony has designed would be PERFECT!

You may still have to have a new boom made, especially if a rigid vang is rigged along with the extra blocks. Traveler lines would probably stay at the forward end of the cockpit rather than draped over the tiller and tangled under foot like most have.

An independent arch for the traveler over the dodger could also be used for the forward end to fly a bimini or rig a snug tent.
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When I asked Sponberg (Yacht Design Inc.) what he would do about headroom in L.G.'s cockpit, he simply raised the end of the boom leaving the gooseneck in its original position on the mast! That's how it's gonna be on Little Gull.