We have problems when we gybe of the old pole going the other side of the shroud, is this just a technique thing or is there something to be adjusted

I get that too. I assume that its technique and that you should get the crew to throw the pole back harder. But then maybe the elastic traveller for the pole projects it forward again?

i think the crew need to hold the old guy fairly tight a they go for the pole , guess that would keep it close

liam where are you  you are the wiz on these things

Do you drop the pole off the mast before or after the jibe - never tried twin poles but considering it!

Pole down, gybe main, pole up.

Mine goes behind the shroud probably every third gybe. Tried allsorts, given up!!

Which end of the pole goes the incorrect side - the inboard end or the outboard end.  We have both happen, but not that regularly.  Sometimes the problem is that if you do a late pole off then gybe and the boom immediately contacts the shroud there simple isn't time for the pole to stow itself in the correct place.  Also if you have a big roll on as in light winds during the gybe, then gravity can bugger it up.  Thirdly if the throw back from the crew is overly energetic and slightly misguided it can do for you in the same way!

Good news crews.  Half the time in light weather it's the helm's fault.  As he/she pulls the boom back a bit to get the top batten through,with the boat still heeled to leeward slightly, the outer end of the pole just neatly pops around the shroud

This hardly ever happens with my set-up (ok I haven't been sailing that much this year I admit but I havent changed the set-up for at least 3 or 4 years).  The main difference between what I have and the common layout is that the attachment for the elastic the poles run back on is only a few inches above the ring on the mast.  I hadn't thought about it before but of course it will hold the pole closer to the mast just after you unclip it and that is probably why I don't have this problem.  I have never thought there was any disadvantage to having the elastic running lower and in theory it will have less potential to alter mainsail shape and the lee side flow.

hum sounds a good solution

i was thinking of having some loop on the boom towards the mast to hold it closer but maybe that would get in the way

Why is it a problem, as long as it is only the outboard end it will soon pop back when gybing next or at the drop when you tack, it does not affect the spin shape if it was a spin gybe. I know it looks untidy but that is all.

ah why is it a problem

it is snagging the sheet of the spinny by the fact that the pole is on the other side of the shroud forshortening it   horrible spinny shape as a result

Not sure why having the elastic lower would work better.

On Chambulls the elastic is higher than Snakey B, and I can't recall an outboard end problem on Chambulls, but have experienced it several times on Snakey B.

I think that is because I avoid the elastic being too tight to aoid mis-shapping the sail, and the lower elastic means that with a bit of slack the downward slope to the end of the boom soon disappears and in fact becomes a 'dip' under the weight of the pole that stops it going all the way back and hence being pushed out in front of the shroud.

Three solutions come to mind
1. crew takes more care pulling the pole back rather than just letting it go
2. tightening the elastic to keep the 'slope'
3. having an additional 'recovery elastic' in the same way as I used to have on my single pole with a launcher, the down side of the recover elastic it the black eyes the helm gets. I have never seen this on a twin pole system.

As someone who has been using twin poles for over 20 years, I can tell you that elastic recovery systems were tried.   The NHS got an injunction banning their use as they got fed up of stitching up helm's foreheads and eyelids.

ok thanks will try these things

We have an elasticated takeup on the pole downhaul so that when the pole is taken off before the gybe the downhaul slack is taken up thus helping to stop the pole swinging away from the mast at the front end, which is where I presume that the probelm occurs. This also helps keep the boat a bit more tidy as well, which must be a benifit for the crew.

fyi Both Chambulls & Snakey B have an elastic take up on the downhaul

I sniggered at all the postings about poles going the wrong side of the shroud, confident in the knowledge that it had not happened to me for months.

Blow me, three times in the last race on Saturday, including one where the sheet went round the pole end as well!

Serves me right.

I like the old "sheet around the boom end" Always makes me laugh. Blame it on crew technique.

I had the pleasure of sheet around the boom end a couple of weeks ago but it was after a turtle capsize with the spinnaker up so not really crew technique to blame. Almost threw myself out of the boat trying to retrieve the sheet once the boat was righted.

The real killer though is sheet behind centre plate. Definitely crew technique. Nearly lost crew off of foredeck the other week sorting that one.

No the REAL killer is getting your pole downhaul trapped under your mast foot - believe me. This happened to us at Salcombe last year - the worst string-jam in 15 years of racing Merlins. How it got jammed there is still a mystery but no amount of mast rake & pulling would free it. 

String - if it can, it will.

Sure it has something to do with super string and chaos theories!

remember i ve only got paws to deal with these things

but you also have teeth