Easy-Up Mast Raising

I began to think about how I could handle the MacGregor 19’s mast with increasingly limited abilities as I get older...

by Jerry Culik

The mast on my WW Potter 15 weighs about 10 pounds. It’s easy to step, and I’ve dropped it only once—the very first time I tried to rig the boat. The two-part mast on my MacGregor 19 powersailer, on the other hand, is almost 24’ long and weighs 45 pounds, thanks to a couple of heavy stainless-steel fittings. After investigating many mast raising approaches used by trailersailers, I built a stout pole crane and added baby stays to keep the mast centered until the shrouds could take over. Standing on the foredeck, I was comfortable using it only with the boat sitting on the trailer. And since the crane was too big to stow on-board, it was always left behind once the boat was in the water.

After using this setup for one season I began to think about how I could handle the MacGregor 19’s mast with increasingly limited abilities as I get older. And being able to lower and raise it after the boat was afloat would allow me to drop the mast to clear bridges and while at anchor—a very useful feature should the winds really pick up (and I would then use the big outboard for propulsion). During the cold winter months on the Chesapeake Bay (and while nursing a bum shoulder), I had plenty of time to dream about future sailing days and to think up ways to make it easier to trailer, rig and sail my boats. My overall goal in this instance is to get the MacGregor’s mast up and down without using extra equipment or by standing on the foredeck. And ideally I’d be able to remain in the relative safety of the cockpit while messing around with the rig…

Easy-up Mast Concept

This idea is based on stepping a production trailersailer’s mast on the cabin floor – instead of the cabin top. It was inspired by Norm Wolfe’s Piilu, a Michalak-designed “Normsboat” sharpie that has a “walk-through” cabin and carries a balanced lug sail on an unstayed mast. To raise his mast, Norm drops the shaped foot into a pivot on the cabin floor, walks it up, and then latches it into the partner on the side of the cabin. When he’s done sailing for the day, Norm drops the sail and mast, and then stows the rig on the cabin top out of the way—there is less windage and he feels better with the whole kit down and secured should something blow up overnight. And with no stays to deal with, it’s a quick process to get the mast up and down.