Question: Did you change your boom to carbon fiber or just your mast?
Answer: No, we stayed with our old aluminum boom since it works fine and is in good shape. (Keep in mind that we only replaced the mast because the old aluminum one was worn out.) Also, the performance benefits from a carbon boom are minimal since it is relatively close to the boat’s center of gravity.
John was born and brought up in Bermuda and started sailing as a child, racing locally and offshore before turning to cruising. He has sailed over 100,000 miles, most of it on his McCurdy & Rhodes 56, Morgan's Cloud, including eight ocean races to Bermuda, culminating in winning his class twice in the Newport Bermuda Race. He has skippered a series of voyages in the North Atlantic, the majority of which have been to the high latitudes. John has been helping others go voyaging by sharing his experience for 25 years, first in yachting magazines and, for the last 20 years, as co-editor/publisher of AAC.
