Been there. Done that. Bought the mast to prove it.

I broke mine in the exact same place. However I was not running my mainsheet as loose as that. I was travelled down and stuffed a wave which stopped the boat. Sounds like a shotgun blast doesn't it?

So did it happen stuffing a wave?

On a side note, it's unfortunate that the skipper wasn't aware of the importance of mainsheet tension.

Mike Hill
www.stlouiscats.com