Hey Mike,
No problem, you just have to be ten feet tall!
Well, not really. You climb up on the mast at the base and stand there and reach up and aft to the shroud lever and open the lever and pull the extension pin. Then climb back down to the lower hull and pull on the righting line and up the boat comes.
As to the captive mast step housing and ball: Get those parts from Aquarius Sails and adapt them to your present system.... OR ,,, Before you extend the upper shroud, tie a short piece of line tightly connecting an eye strap located at or near the bottom of the mast to the main beam. It is just a short piece of line going through the eye strap and around and under the main beam. Pull it tight and tie a square knot. This loop will keep a non-captive mast step connected. Then extend the shroud and right the boat. No problem. I have helped several sailors rig other brands of boats this way. Some boat owners have even installed a cleat on the bottom of the main beam to eliminate the need for the square knot.
Opening the leeward shroud lever is a "go fast" in light air downwind in that it allows much more mast rotation. It takes the tension out of the leeward shroud and then the mast can push it out of the way and rotate much more.
Good Sailing,
Bill