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Deck designs that are influenced by round the buoy racing are both tiring and dangerous.
The ability to get around the side decks easily on a moving boat
in the dark is absolutely critical. Genoa tracks, blocks and shrouds placed in the middle of the side decks have no place on an offshore cruising boat. The perceived reason for placing sheeting tracks and inboard shrouds on a sailboat down a deck
is to obtain a better "sheeting angle" for windward sailing. While
it is true that a close sheeting angle coupled with a violin tight headstay will allow a sailboat to point a few degrees higher in a racing situation, the advantage is mostly lost when a boat has a roller furling headsail installed. It is impossible to obtain the necessary luff tension on any roller furling gear to warrant the dangerous negatives of cluttering the side decks. Shannons point as high as boats with inboard shrouds and sheeting if the other boat has roller furling. Inboard sheeting (with roller furling) has a great deal to do with "fashion" and very little to do with performance.
The deck design should also incorporate toe rails that are not too high to trap whitewater coming over the deck. High bulwarks can retain tons of seawater that creates a dangerous situation as it slowly drains. The trunk sides of the cabin should not slope too much for style sake as this creates a slippery place to lose footing. A flush deck with no raised trunk cabin provides very little sea protection to those in the cockpit. The companionway should be placed close to the centerline and away from the side of the hull. There should be a clear, continuous run from the cockpit to the bow for jacklines, so the crew can use safety harness without unhooking. Shannons have full length, useable handrails on the trunk cabin top and all lifeline stanchions and pulpits are 30" high