• I work hard to not "Over-Kill" my boat with heavy lines, the loads on a Lido 14 are fairly small, therefore, the lines can be small to save weight.

• The current generation of high tech lines such as SPECTRA, VECTRUS, and other similar fibers are plenty strong in their smallest diameters to handle the loads on a Lido 14. People also think by upgrading to a high tech line that there might be high costs involved. I have found that moving to a Spectra or Vectrus line can actually be cheaper since there are no covers for the line, which is where the high cost of materials comes into play.

• When purchasing lines it is important to know what type of material is best suited for the application on the boat.

• Remember the high tech lines on today’s market are meant to stay out of the reach of the UV light, I make certain to remove halyards, and or cover the boat when it is not in use.

• The UV light from the sun has fast and horrible results to the new breed of lines.

• To conserve weight make the lines on your boat just long enough, try to remove excess tails.

• No Halyard shackled, had too many break while racing, simply tie a bowline for the jib halyard and a double pass through and a bowline for the main halyard…(works every time)

The mainsheet on the Lido 14 does not need to be an overly excessive heavy line. I use ¼ inch diameter line that is fifty (50) feet long. The fifty (50) foot long line provides plenty of line for the double purchase at the end of the boom to the transom/traveler block and back to the boom. The mainsheet block on the end of the boom has a becket on it, on the end of the mainsheet I splice the sheet to a snap hook that can connect to the becket on the boom. When sailing in winds where I do not need the extra purchase of the second line I will disconnect the snap hook and sail with a single purchase system. This does two things for me

1. It lightens up the boom in light air, which allows the leech of the main sail more freely.
2. It allows there to be better control of the sail in lighter winds.

One important characteristic of a mainsheet is that it is a non-water absorbing line that is friendly to the hands, and does not kink or knot easily. There are new lines out there specifically fitting of this requirment, by Rooster Ropes of England (mainly developed for the Laser) that sound like an ideal line for the job.

The jib sheets on the Lido 14 are 3/8 " diameter non-water absorbing lines. Depending on what your crew is comfortable with, the smaller the better. The idea behind smaller lines is that there is less weight in the line, this can be very important on the Lido since the heavier jib sheets can drag the Lido jib leach down in light air. There are a couple of different ways to connect the jib sheets to the sail and also a couple of different means by which the whisker pole can be attached to the sheets when sailing off the wind.

Check with your sail maker and see what the local guys are using for the connection of the jib sheets to the jib.

The way I rig my traveler is with the new all line ‘Crosby’ style traveler. The trick to this traveler is to tie the system together with the knots so that the mid point knot holding the block or the mainsheet is only 22" above the center point at the transom from the keel of the hull (misd point of the bottom of the transom) I use a 1/8" spectra line that completes the triangular run on the inside of the transom, then ends at a block the lies on the cockpit sole. So that I have a two (2) to one (1) purchase on the adjustment of the traveler, I attach one end of the control line to the centerboard knee, then run that line back to the block on the cockpit sole, then finally back forward to a block up near the front of the centerboard trunk. From the block at the forward end of the centerboard trunk, I run the line back aft along the top of the centerboard trunk to the cleats just behind the mainsheet block / cleat.

This system works very well, I have plenty of power to adjust the traveler, and I can adjust the system from the hiked position. When tying the system into the transom make sure you do not exceed the 22" limit imposed by class rules and make sure the mainsheet block on the traveler can freely move all the way to the outboard edge of the transom. Place the turning clocks on the transom on the inside of the transom as far outboard as possible (right near the transom side-deck joint). Also, make sure to through-bolt the turning blocks.

As of the 2001 Nationals Association meeting the whole boom was taken into question. The Association voted on, and approved, a new Outhaul system with internal rigging. We will just have to see how the new boom systems shape up. My suggestion is that now that we can have any number of purchases on the Outhaul do it (make the crew’s job easier).

Since there are no conditions set on the Cunningham by the class organization I have used my Laser experience in the Cunningham. I use a 3/16" Super Pre-stretch Marlow in this application. I find the Super Pre-stretch is a good "gripping" line for the cleat and something that my crew can pull downward (towards the base of the mast) to tension and cleat. I start the line through a eye (fairlead) at the base of my mast. On one side of the fairlead there is a small bowline. From the other side the line goes up through the sail, back down to the bowline, then back up to the sail, and finally downward to the cleat on the mast. This is a similar system that all Laser sailors use on their cunninghams. It provides plenty of purchase on the Cunningham, and is easily adjustable.

The Main halyard on the boat is 40’ long, this gives plenty of line to play with. The main halyard has gone through several configurations on my boat. I started out using 1/8" spectra, however I found that line extremely hard to cleat on the standard pre 6000 series mast step with the horn cleats. The spectra line was always slipping, one of the attributes of spectra is that it is a slippery line. I now use a Vectus line, which is a little more abrasive and has worked perfectly for over a year now. Watch out though replace that Vectrus every year.

Write up on the Jib Halyard system to come soon…Basically, Spectra to the turning block system. From the turning block system I use 3/16" Technora, which cleats well and is easily handled.

Since the introduction of the new rules by the class that allows the vang to have any purchase necessary for the application, the vang has been transformed into one of the most important control lines on the boat Before the vang could have any number of purchase it was a system that was really unwieldy to control, thus ignored by a large portion of the fleet. I run the tail end of the vang along the top of the truck to just behind the mainsheet block just as I do the traveler control line for cleating and control. After continual work I have refined my vang to be a sixteen to one cascade purchase system. You would think that a sixteen to one system would be plenty, but by adding the cascade member it nearly doubles the sixteen to one purchase. This offers more then enough control of the vang and makes the system very easily controlled from the rail while hiked.

The line that I use for the system is a SPECTRA 1/8" diameter line that works at the purchase end of the system. After the purchase the 1/8" SPECTRA is spliced into a 1/4" line that makes the vang an easily cleated and controllable line for the comfort of the hands. Just like the traveler control, the vang has two cleats for each side of the boat for adjustment while on different tacks.

The Vang should also have a bungie of ¼" or smaller attached as a floater line. This bungie acts to pull the slackened vang towards the gooseneck, to keep the area clear for the crew. This is important when sailing to weather in light airs and roll tacking the boat (maintains a clear area for the crew to roll from one side to another.)

This line should be something that is simply comfortable to pull on, a line that fits nicely in the hands of the user, and one which shouldn’t be longer then needed since this line has the tendency to get sucked into the mainsheet block or wrapped into the hiking straps. I run the control line for the centerboard to the usual position on the side of the trunk, where I can easily reach the line when at the turn of a mark. ¼" line of non absorbing material is usually a good pick

By Tom Jenkins Version 1.3