SouthernFurl In-Boom furling systems withstand Sydney Hobart test

by Sail-World.com NZL on 23 May 2016 Have you ever scared your family when you got stuck with too much sail up when you should be reefed?

Southern Spars’ range of SouthernFurl booms are the answer – letting you reduce sail quickly and easily without leaving the safety of the cockpit.

Southern Spars in-boom furling technology changed the game for superyachts with furling main sails. Their design team have since done the same for yachts of smaller size and smaller budgets – from 35-70 feet.

Setting the SouthernFurl aside from its rivals is an open-front design means the booms forgiving of less than perfect furls. It also allows for full-length battens, giving a better sail shape and reducing flogging, making your sails perform better and last longer.

Easily retrofitted, the new range of booms are fully constructed from carbon fibre, so are light, stiff and strong for maximum sail performance and easy handling. It also means they don’t suffer from corrosion, unlike other furling boom systems.

So strong are the SouthernFurl Booms, that one Moody 54DS equipped with a new SouthernFurl boom successfully completed the Sydney to Hobart Race in particularly trying conditions.

Peter Hrones of Windcraft Sydney, who sailed on the boat, was more than impressed with the SouthernFurl.

“The Southern Spars boom looked beautiful, and it performed fantastically when required,” says Hrones.

“We could reef or un-reef during a tack. So eventually we got it down to only 10 seconds to shake a reef, without losing any speed.

'This was the difference in beating our friends in the Hanse 495. Also, the strength of the boom is incredible. We accidentally gybed twice due to some freak waves in the Bass Strait and the boom was as solid as a rock.

'I believe any other boom would have broken under these same conditions.”

For more info, quotes and to check out the SouthernFurl booms in operation take a look at their dedicated website www.southernfurl.com