Did not get to race today dammit.

Hoisted kite before the start to check I'd not rigged it sideways etc. All fine. Flipped the halyard to drop and the Spinlock cleat made a bid for shelter, breaking free from it's moorings and shooting up under the foredeck. As I was planing at the time with only 40 yards of pond to play in, the adrenaline did spike a bit, particularly as I then discovered spinlocks don't like uncleating in this situation.

So, race over before even starting.

Back ashore, out screwdriver, only to discover it only uses bolts tapped into the base of the aluminium mast turret. Worse, the aft most bolt now slides in and out of its (ex-)home without the need for any of that boring rotation nonsense, nor any requirement for tools. The forward one is not much better.

Not sure how to fix it, but I've emailed Rob at RS and asked for advice, which i will share as and when.

But next time you are with your boat, check your Spinlock is held down securely!

And, for the avoidance of doubt, of course I only hoist by pulling the halyard from behind the block, not direct from the cleat

Clive

When you say "flipped" Clive, exactly how hard did you kick it?

Now getting a foot in there to kick it would be a work of genius.

Nope, just controlled gentle flick, same as ever. No big deal or out of the ordinary, I'd have said

Heard back from Rob, who says

The latest ones are screwed in place and there is plenty of wood under to fix it to: you need a No8 * 1� self-tapper for the forward fixing and a number 6 for the rear (that is the biggest head that will go through the spinlock). The only issue with doing the job is getting access to it as it is all a bit tight, I have used a quick change drill bit in an extender (2.5mm bit) to drill a pilot hole, then a long driver to screw them in (you have to put the driver through the cut out in the mainsheet turret to get to the screws). Other than the issue of getting access, it is a quick and easy job!