Seriously, why do people like in mast furling?

[FutureStories]

I understand the appeal to a furling main, but in mast is down right scary!

Everyone says "it's gotten so much better"... better implies there's still failure. And when you've got the mast partially furled in and it jams if you've got to reduce area more than what are you going to do???

My astonishment with people's obsession with in mast furling lead me to talk to some riggers with a booth next to mine at the sail show this past weekend. And they confirmed all my suspicions and made some other good points I hadn't thought about other than safety... (but why do there need to be other options above safety, shouldn't that be the primary concern???)

After hanging out with the riggers for a few days and drinking many beers together we talked about a few main points that you should probably consider when thinking about a furling headsail:

Pros to boom furling:
-full battens (saves on sail cost overtime)
-sail can be dropped even if furled jams! Then you flake it like you would any other main)
-accessibility (if the sail does jam you can fit your hands in and adjust it safely on deck)
-manual override (electric winch is customary, but if you've gotta get down and dirty to crank it you can)

Negatives:
-cost (its expensive, about $20k expensive, BUT in boom mains can last over twice as long as in mast, also the hardware CAN be taken with you to your next boat and the old boom can be put back on)
-it's bulky (but you're really not supposed to hit your head on them anyway!)

If you don't have the money for in boom furling get yourself some lazy jacks and a good pack! They work great, and won't be a safety concern.

If you're too lazy to handle lazy jacks and too cheap to get in boom furling go buy a power boat.

Sorry for the rant, but it had to happen! I've been frustrated with the in mast furling obsession for a while.