Gybing Strap

When gybing on my Phantom, I'm used to grabbing the all the mainsheet rope between the blocks to pull the boom across to gybe.

On my Albacore the main sheet goes from a bridle at the stern, to a block at end of the boom, to a block midway along the boom and down to the main block on the thwart. Gybing ala Phantom doesn't work and I've now found out I need to gybe the main like a big boat in stronger winds ie. pull in a few armfuls of mainsheet to bring the boom in a bit before going for the gybe.

I would like to be able to fit some kind of strap to enable me to pull the boom across, but never having seen one, not sure how to rig it. Tried googling gybing strap but nothing came up so thought I would turn to the forum. How do people rig them? I presume they need to be loosely connected to the mainsheet so that the don't just dangle out of reach over the side, or is some kind of elastic used to the mainsheet turning block? Any pics would be great.

There another way, either without the gybing strap or to compliment it. It my two person boat the crew always assists the gybe by handing the boom over by means of pulling on the kicking strap. Two sail gybe they assist and soften the landing on the new side, three sail gybe I'm managing the kite sheets while steering into the gybe and they do all the work timing the boom coming over.

Yeah, look at the 200s Richard.

While I concur that in an ideal world a skilled forward hand throws the boom at the perfect moment, there's no harm in having the strop as well for when things aren't going ideally.

Edited by JimC - 02 Jan 15 at 10:22am

From my perspective i.e. symmetric, trapeze: the more the helm can do the better. My crew already has more to do than I....the gybing strop is a very useful piece of string indeed.

I use a stainless ring on ours, it has more weight to stop it riding up the mainsheet when you let it out.

That sounds very unpleasant.