Neighbors at Anchor

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This morning, we awoke to a new neighbor!  

I am a huge fan of bowsprits and bumpkins because they add sail area to a yacht without allowing you to overload the boat with useless clutter!

This boat has a rather short waterline length with long overhangs that are composed of spars. The bowsprit moves the headstay forward of the stem, and the bumpkin moves the backstay aft of the transom.  

If these spars did not exist, the yacht would need to have a longer deck to reach the stay positions, and a longer deck means a longer hull. A longer hull means more interior space, and more interior space will give the opportunity to store unnecessary items that will weigh down the yacht and degrade its sailing capabilities. 

Having spars increase the LOA without a longer hull removes the temptation to keep more stuff on board. It also helps lower the cost of building the boat because a spar is easier and cheaper to build than a larger hull. This will give the yacht a larger sailplan on a smaller budget, and that means that he can sail in more conditions with greater ease.