Vareo rigging setup

This video is very specific to my own racing dinghy, a RS Vareo. The opening shots show some Vareos in action. Having said that, some ideas shown here are relevant to many other designs and all show how little details can make huge differences in both performance and ease of handling, even on a mass produced boat
Most daggerboards come with a thick rope handle. I changed to a thin rope inside a 12mm hose for several reasons. I have found that the knots on the thick rope can catch the mainsheet. The hose loop makes it much easier to adjust the board. It can be used as a temporary toestrap. I can easily grab it when scrambling back on board after a capsize.
The spinnaker sheets need to be endless, or, at the very least, have the ends knotted together so you don't lose them. A removable spliced-in link is the best solution. I have them extra long so that when overpowered the spinnaker can flog without being held by a too short sheet. In light winds I knot the ends shorter so it is quicker to get the sail setting after hoisting. BTW ensure that every sheet, halyard and control line is in a different colour!
The mainsheet horse must be tight. It's best to get it as tight as possible with both parts above the rudder fitting. Then it can be tightened further by pulling the lower part below the top rudder fitting.
I changed the through deck hole system to eyebolts as I was tired of constantly changing the traveller rope because of chafe (even though I use dyneema which chafes less than polyester). Bobbles (usually) stop the mainsheet block catching in the eyes. They should allow the block to move the whole width of the transom.
But the big change I made is to have a quick release cleat in the traveller. When released I can use it as an emergency boarding step.
The righting lines are oversize (6mm rope is ample) as I used some scrap rope. They are tied to the spi block loops as that seems to be the best place. When tied to the shrouds I found I tended to sink the bow when pulling on it, rather than right the boat.
Whatever you do, the Vareo rig is pretty wobbly, so I prefer to use lanyards on the shrouds, rather than shackles, to keep it as stiff as I can. (If the mast bends and flexes in a gust then the boat cannot use that power to accelerate). I fitted a through bolt at the hounds as I found one of the rivets had pulled out. The mast is very thin grp at that point.
I have a thick shockcord loop over the tiller. That does three things. It reminds me not to push the tiller over too hard or too fast when tacking. It helps keep the boat on course when hoisting/lowering the spinnaker. It keeps the rudder central when the boat is on its side so that, after righting the boat, it doesn't bear off onto a run and capsize again. Quick release universal joints should always be taped over "just in case".
A centre mainsheet makes gybing very easy as you can pull on the sheet to bring the boom over. You cannot do that with the Vareo (or Laser, Sunfish etc). So most people fit a "gybing strop". Normally that ends with a plastic ring round the mainsheet. But it is better to use a heavy block instead. That has less friction, but more important, the weight means the strop always drops down to the jammer so is easy to grab.
More below in the comments......
Thanks especially to Luke Fisher and the other Vareo sailors who's ideas I copied.
You can see my other 200+ videos here / woodsdesigns

[@WoodsDesigns]

Video comments continued....
Raising the mainsheet jammer is self explanatory. I used a small piece of nylon cutting board.
Again it's obvious that everyone will need to adjust the toestraps to suit their own body weight, leg length, and fitness. But you need to ensure it's easy to get your feet under so use shockcord to raise the straps off the sole. I like hooking under both straps when off wind as it makes me feel more part of the boat and I don't wobble. You need to be as attached as firmly as possible to the boat so that the boat responds when you move your weight. I guess it's similar to "tight girths" on a horse's saddle.
The spinnaker hoisting and lowering with automatic bowsprit sliding is a very clever system but does result in a lot of 90 and 180deg turns. So I use a low kink halyard (4mm Rooster Spinfast is ideal). I sewed in a contrasting line of stitches in the halyard just behind the stopper so I can easily see when I have got the sail fully hoisted. (tape tends to slide)
The aftermost turning block is on a short strop so that it is kept clear of the toestraps. I fitted a small block on shockcord so the loose tail is pulled forward and out of my way. The shockcord allows the small block to move next to the sleeve turning block to reduce friction and make it easy to grab when lowering.
I have a bobble not only on the spinnaker head end of the halyard, but also on the spi end. That's because I once got the tie-off knot caught in one of the spi loops so couldn't hoist the sail properly. (the wood stick is my paddle handle - essential when sailing alone in tidal waters!)
The tack strop is velcroed in position. I like it as slack as possible, as otherwise there is too much friction between strop and mast so the downhaul doesn't release easily. The spinnaker halyard tends to unflick the velcro so I put a piece of electric tape over the joint (hard to see, as it's black, sorry)
I once sailed without properly cleating the main halyard so the sail started slipping down. So I now make a double turn just under the gooseneck, so that won't happen again. The tail then goes to the normal shockcord hook and storage bag.
The underboom sleeve to stop the mainsheet dropping and catching on your head is far superior to the original through-boom system. The bobbles/parrel beads on the clew strop reduce friction. I mark the boom where the clew normally sits, which results in about a 200mm gap between boom and sail foot. I have an extra long tail at the mast end so I can easily reach in to adjust the outhaul (not often done TBH, usually only when there's a major change in wind strength)
After the mainsheet the primary sail control is the kicking strap, so this needs to be easily adjustable, so make it as powerful as allowed in the rules. And make it an endless system. Some early Vareos had the take-off eyelet on the aft face of the mast. So all the load was taken by 2 small rivets. So change it to the front of the mast so the mast takes the load.
Somewhat counter-intuitively, as you pull on the kicker the boom end moves out, not in. You want the boom end roughly over the transom corner, rarely further in. Further out still if its windy. I have yet to find the need to make the downhaul an endless system, obviously the outhaul can only be adjusted at the gooseneck.
As I said earlier, the spinnaker halyard has several potential friction points. So I no longer lead the halyard through the (unnecessary) forward bullseye. I have fitted the first halyard turning block (the one under the mast) on a short strop, it takes a bit of careful adjusting to ensure the halyard stays in line as it leads down through the mast step.
I fitted a small disc over the halyard because, before I did so, the spinnaker twice got caught in the block, causing small rips. Similarly the sprit outhaul block needs taping carefully so that the spinnaker doesn't catch in it
Hope that all helps! Comments and discussion on other ideas welcome!
Thanks especially to Luke Fisher and the other Vareo sailors who's ideas I copied.
You can see my other 200+ videos here ruclips.net/user/WoodsDesigns

[@ChrisTietjen_00]

What's your aversion to audio? Show and Tell is far better than Show and Read!

[@WoodsDesigns]

Because some people watch videos with other people in the same room, who don't want to hear the ones I'm watching. Because some people don't speak English and use google translate. Because the commentary has to match the video, so that might mean an silent period, or more likely, I don't have time to say all I want to in the time a short video clip is on screen. Because you can print out the text, but not audio.

[@bazfisher3363]

So so helpful thank you