Check the TODSF By-Laws at the TODSF WEB SITE for more information on sail types and sizes authorized for racing.

Bill Bell, #41, Kialoa

I believe in shortening the foot of the main by a foot or so. Sometime you might take your present main and have a good sailmaker remodel it. This will result in cutting off some of the worn leach material and give you a very nice sail to play with. I did it, it worked fine.

A.J. Matthews, #605, Ay Mon

I purchased a loose footed main for Ay Mon about a year ago and I couldn't be happier with it.

In all, I have four distinct advantages with it. First, the adjustment at the out haul is improved because of the lack of friction under load as with the rope or slides. There is simply nothing to bind it except the force of the sail itself. That is eliminated entirely by sheeting out. Second, reefing is easier because you don't have that mess of extra sail material that will get in the way of your reef lines. I have a piece of track with two sliding cheek blocks on the side of my boom. The tack of the reef line is simply ties around the boom just behind the cheek block before it goes up to the clew then back down to the block for reefing. There is no need for a bolted or fixed eye for the attachment. Next, I have much finer control of my sail shape. That is oh so important while I am racing. I find that I tinker with my main more often with less fear of screwing up the shape and losing speed because the result are more immediate (I can see it on the knot meter). Lastly, it makes removing the main much easier because I don't have to worry about pulling the foot forward. I can either unshackle the clew or pull ONE slide forward and it is off. Getting her back on is less work too.

Other suggestions for your sail? two reef points and full battens for the upper two batten points, with standard battens for the two lowers.

Banks Sails down here in Tampa did both my main and my new #1. I am very happy with them. The main was $1,150.00. What I liked best about them is the hardware on the sail was better than the other lofts that I checked out.

Brian Paul Griffith, SEPIBAJEZUS, #346

If anyone cares, there is a one design class by the name of the SHEILDS class. This is an older class boat but it is still thriving on both the east and the west costs. Both the main sail and the jib fit the TRITON pretty well. The jib is a little small but very comfortable for those lazy sails. The main is just about perfect, minus just a touch of canvas on the trailing edge. Because TRITONS are few and far between in my neck of the sound I resorted to using these very reasonably priced (latest set free of charge) used sails as an alternative to purchasing new sails or used Triton sails.

With the thousands I have saved in sail expenses I have been able to have a much more resonable budget for the SEP' and put more money into other areas of upkeep. (Like all new harken running rigging and oversized, two speed, self tailing winches not to mention all the rest of cool stuff that sailing freaks like myself like to get there hands on.)

Celeste, #141

The previous owner of my Triton was hell bent on winning races, and had a main w/2 reefing points and a 180 made for it by Quantum. I think I have the specs. if anyone thinks it would be worthwhile posting it on the Triton site, or I can fax it to anyone who would like to see them. The main is really nice, and I never thought I'd appreciate the value of double reef until I got out in blue water. I think Conception would have been far more harrowing if not for the minimized sail area. Of course the sail configuration relies on the boom setup, Andy also replaced this after busting the original in a race. I can take some shots if anyone is interested, and I have been meaning to photograph my recently installed outboard & bracket. It sure was a pain to install.

I've attached the quote from Quantum for my loose footed main. I'm not certain which of the two options is actually installed, probably the first. Hope it is of use to the group. (ed note: The spec's shown are for the current TODSF By-Laws. Other Triton One Design fleets may require different specifications.)

Larry, Dogstar #607

Bolero, the fastest boat in our fleet switched to a loose footed main a couple of years ago. When I sailed Bolero in the Nationals, I found out just how good an idea it is. The loosefooted main combined with a powerful outhaul allows you to flatten, unflatten the sail in a few seconds and in any wind conditions. In a stronger breeze we could really feel the boat "change gears" by pulling on the line. On Dogstar the rope on the sail's foot is in a slot. It's hard to adjust even at the dock.

Loosefooted main and easily adjustable outhaul is certainly something I'd reccommend.

Steve, Sea Dog, #184

I had a Doyle Mainsail made 3 years ago and it has full battens for the top 2 and partials for the bottom. I have no problem raising or lowering. The sail track(Bronze) has become sticky from time to time and then I just squirt WD-40 on the cars. Amazing what a difference it makes and one application lasts at least a year.