Running Rigging 101
By David Van Cleef
Preparing your J/22 well onshore is one of the easiest ways to gain an advantage over your competition. One area easily upgraded for minimal cost and effort is your running rigging. However, selecting the proper rigging for the application requires a little more thought than the color of your line.
When selecting the proper running rigging for your J/22, it should be based not only on performance, but also on reliability and cost. Matching the proper materials to each application will allow for longer use and fewer breakdowns on the race course. Each rigging application emphasizes certain qualities in the line, such as chafe resistance, tensile strength to weight ratios, the degree in which they elongate under load, moisture retention and UV degradation. These qualities are the reason there is such a diversity of line available today to choose from. Among the more common synthetic fibers available toady are Vectran, Spectra/Dyneema, Technora, Polyester and Polypropylene.
MAIN AND JIB HALYARDS
For main and jib halyards, a Vectran core with a polyester cover is your most competitive choice. Vectran provides a very high breaking strength with low moisture retention while yielding good abrasion resistance. The polyester cover provides protection from chafe and UV rays.
SPINNAKER HALYARDS AND JIB SHEETS
Spectra/Dyneema core with a polyester cover is your best performance choice for spinnaker halyards and jib sheets. Spectra/Dyneema provides a high breaking strength, excellent abrasion resistance and no moisture retention. This allows the lines to run smoothly while resisting kinking and hockling.
CONTROL LINES AND MAIN SHEET
The primary consideration on the remaining running rigging is moisture retention. These control lines and sheets should be made of a core of polypropylene/spectra blend with a polypropylene cover or a single braid made from the same fibers. This will allow your line to bend well through blocks and sheaves, and very importantly, will allow no moisture absorption. Any moisture retained in your running rigging will greatly reduce the performance of your line and its handling characteristics.
LINE TERMINATION
Now that we have chosen the proper material for each halyard, sheet and control line, it's important to remember that the line termination (whether it be a shackle, a winch, an eye splice or a whipped end) will be equally as important as the line selection itself. Most failures in running rigging assemblies are not in the line segment itself, but at the ends.
SPECIAL CARE
As with most high modulus fibers, care must be taken when going around corners to ensure that the fibers load evenly. Splices and knots will weaken lines depending on the line, the type of knot and the quality of the splice. Line becomes significantly weaker in a knot because the outer strands in the bend are forced to carry most of the load while the inner strands take very little of the load. A bowline can reduce the strength at the knot as much as 65 percent. Meanwhile a properly executed splice can retain up to 85-90 percent of the line's strength.
COMMON RIGGING FAILURES
Over time, running rigging does fail. To ensure continued reliability, however, all lines need to be cared for. Chafe is the most common cause of premature ageing of running rigging such as bad sheet leads, lines running over metal such as booms or shrouds and halyards rubbing against spreaders for extended periods. If you sail in salt water, repeated soaking without a fresh water rinse will accelerate abrasion and not allow for the line to dry completely. A line that never dries will age quickly. Additionally, when possible, store your running rigging out of the sun. UV rays quickly break down the synthetic fibers.
Preparation is the key to success in any sport; the same is very true in sailing.
The selection of proper running rigging and the proper care of lines will give your crew and boat the edge on the competition by making the boat as functional and easy to sail as possible. If you properly maintain your lines, store your rigging out of the sun and replace your running rigging when it shows signs of ageing, you will increase the last of your equipment and reduce the possibility of breakdowns on the race course.
After all, when it comes down to it, boat handling is a key part of any race. It doesn't matter how experienced your crew is if your running rigging isn't working well, as your boat handling will suffer along with your results.
Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at david@vcperformancerigging.com or 410-295-7515.
