If you've been suffering from bowsprit envy lately, it's understandable. Compared to a symmetric spinnaker setup, a bowsprit-tacked asymmetric sail requires only a tack line and sheet, which simplifies sailhandling from the cockpit and requires fewer crew. Rather than go through the trouble and expense of adding a bowsprit that retracts into your hull, consider the new Forte Carbon Sprit Kit.

Intended to retrofit boats 20 to 50 feet, the Sprit Kit includes an engineered carbon-fiber sprit and a choice of easy-to-mount deck and sail-attachment hardware. The Sprit Kit comes in small, medium, large, and extra large, to accommodate boats of varying displacement (up to 9,000 lbs, 18,000 lbs, 36,000 lbs, and over 36,000 lbs, respectively). The Sprit Kit includes hardware to support the pole at its outboard bow end and its inboard end in one of two ways: For a fixed sprit there's one saddle and one inboard-end deck fitting, and for a retractable sprit there are two saddles. The saddles are sized to fit each sprit size and the bottom surface can be cut to fit the deck's contour. The inboard-end deck fitting consists of a Schaefer Marine Quick Connect deck plate, a machined-composite end fitting, and a machined-plastic outboard end cap with through hole for a tack line.  There are multiple loupes for various sail attachments. Kit prices start at $1,495.

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