The spinnaker pole length (SPL) is 9.0 feet. This is measured when the pole is on the mast ring and is horizontal at a right angle out to starboard or port. The measurement then is from the athwartship centerline of the mast to the end of the fitting. This info is from the ECSA PHRF handicap certificate.

Marionette’s pole is 8.85 ft measured this way. It is a 2" OD aluminum tube with standard spinnaker pole end fittings. I have a 5’8” ft long T-Track that is screwed to the front of the mast that starts about 12'' from the bottom of the mast.

This is a rough sketch and an explanation of how the spinnaker running rigging is set up on Marionette. I’ll clean this up when I get a chance. Click for a large image

I use twing lines for jibing and holding the pole down. I tie small rope loops through the bottom of the upper shroud turnbuckles. These loops have a 10” tail so I can adjust the loop distance from the turnbuckle – which I rarely do. The loops are snug to the turnbuckle and the tails are tucked up into the turnbuckle boots.

I shackle a small Harken block to these loops and the twing line runs through this block. The twing line has a small Harken block tied to one end, the other end runs back to a deck mounted turning block immediately in front of the winch base, then up to a cam cleat on the outside edge of the coaming (see photo #1 below). The guy runs through the twing block and is snugged down to the rope loop block. This holds the pole down.

The sheet twing line is free with the block just running on the sheet. When you jibe the cockpit person pulls in the sheet twing bringing the spinnaker clew within reach of the person who is standing in front of the mast. This person unclips the pole from the bale, clips it to the old sheet, passes the pole in front of his body while tripping the release line to the old guy, and clips the pole into the bale. The cockpit person, meanwhile has eased the old guy twing and tensions the new guy twing. The helmsperson. of course, is timing the jibe so that this all happens smoothly :-)

The set up is easy because the twing line and sheet/guy block, and the loop block are coiled together. Just shackle the loop block to the rope loop, lead the twing line back to the turning block in front of the winch base and up to the camcleat on the edge of the coaming, Snug the twing line, camcleat it and run the sheet and guy through the twing block.

The rope loops also serve as the ‘padeyes’ to which we move the mast end of the vang. This holds the boom down and back – a vang preventer.

We almost never use a pole foreguy – maybe if it is really blowing and we have the pole adjusted high. We have a simple system for this – we rope tie a block to the main foredeck cleat and run a line with a snap shackle through it. The snap shackle clips to the lower pole bridle and the line runs back to a cleat on the outside of the coaming.

The spinnaker halyard is led back to a cam cleat on the aft end of the cabin top – starboard. The pole topping lift halyard is led back to an identical cam cleat set up on the port side. (see photo # 2 below). These camcleats can be used for the main and jib halyards as well - although I rarely use them for this.

The spinnaker sheet and guy turning blocks are located at the back of the transom deck. These are led back to the winches and then to the Trimmer or the camcleats on inside edge of the cockpit. (see photo # 3 below). These are used for the jib sheets too - They work well when single handing

Photo # 1 - Twing Line turning block and cam cleat set up

Photo # 2 - Halyard Camcleat(s) on aft cabin top edge

Photo # 3 - Sheet/guy Camcleats on forward inside edges of cockpit