All good tips from the others.

1. the hook faces towards the mast
2. I run the hook end of the halyard through the ring and the bitter end back down outside the ring. This helps you make sure the two ends are not twisted and makes untwisting much easier.
3. you should do a quick short down pu11 on the halyard followed immediately by a quick down pull on the tack of the sail. You can do 100 of these in a minute and one will get it.
4. Finally, learn the proper technique for fixing things up the mast. You pull on the trap wires while on the beach. Once the mast starts coming down you grab the shroud and walk it down putting a life jacket under the mast head to keep sand out. Do the opposite to put it back out holding on the trap and putting your foot on the hull to let it down easy. This is quick and easy, some do it to tune their battens before every sail.

Good luck.

Matt