Twin Jibs - is it cheating?

[The Smokester]

In your situation with roller furling, the simplicity and your familiarity of winging out the jib with one pole sounds like it will work just fine. To jibe the jib, roll it up and end for end the pole to the other side sheet. Or dip the pole end and clip it back into the dyneema loop. But that entails a trip to the bow.

The problem with twins is the complexity of the rigging. Twins with two poles are best set when they can be left up for an extended length of time.

Accidentally jibeing the main is to be avoided if possible. Several things can be done to mitigate 1) rig a preventer to the rail with a "fuse" that will break if the main goes aback on an accidental jibe. 2) Reef the main if it's blowing hard enough where an accidental jibe could damage the boom or gooseneck. This is usually about 20 knots TWS. 3) Drop the main altogether, and run with just the jib wung out. This assumes you can pull your main down when running in breeze. 4) handsteer, and don't run DDW. Keep the Apparent Wind on your ear rather than the back of your neck.

Of course barring reason not to, the fastest way downwind is usually to sail the closest jibe to the mark. If neither jibe is closer, good time for a nap or sandwich.

Thank you. I dip jibe since my pole is not the same end-for-end. I have preventers but not fuzes. I have always wondered how to size the fuze.

[Harrier]

Skip:
When I jibed, I used the end for end technique ala my Lightning. Mostly, I just kept going in the same direction, often rewarded by things shifting back to where they were!
I use a Dutchman boom brake to control the boom and prevent damage in the event of an inadvertent. Occasionally, during an accidental jibe while I'm sleeping, the boom brake ropes make a VERY LOUD screeching noise which would wake anyone up! The brake is one of the best gizmos I have ever added to Harrier. The first version finally died of aluminum corrosion. It worked purely through controlling rope slippage by varying its tension. The corrosion greatly reduced the relationship between tension and slippage. The later brake version depends some on an actual internal brake which is increased with a knob on the device. It still relates to rope tension as its main control.