Sorry, I don't have a pix right handy, but I'll try to do a better job explaining it. My new main has an actual traveler track, with a little harken traveler, right on the Clew, so I don't use an "inhaul" anymore. But if you've got that plate with 7 holes in it, here's what I used to do...



To point high, you want to flatten your sail. This reduces the power, but reduces the drag more, and shifts the lift vector slightly forward, if your battens are tapered right. To flatten the main, you downhaul alla way, sheed hard, and you want your mainsheet to pull the clew aft. This is accomplished by hanging the mainblock from the forward-most hole in your clew plate.



Now you want to go off wind, reach, or downwind, you want a fuller sail. Okay, you want to pull that clew forward now, but your mainsheet's pulling diagonally down-and-aft. Short of re-hooking, what's to do? Wouldn't it be cool if you had put a loop of line through your clew plate and your super-gromet at the Tack? When you tighten the slip knot in the loop, it pulls the clew forward, towards the Tack, putting fullness or "camber" back into your sail. So it's a 7 foot long loop, along the foot of your sail, passing through the control points at each bottom corner. Tighten it up, it turns into a long skinny "D" shape, and you can tack without loosening it up, too... just pop the bottom batten over to the other side!



What's a "cut-the-rope-as-you-sail variety"?

Mine just holds the jib halyard, and I loosen the jib sheets and honk on it to harden the luff.



keep one hull dry.



Ed Norris