Mast

Mission: the muscle and winch hub at the base of the rig; connect foredeck and cockpit.

Duties

Every hoist: stage and jump the halyard or take the sail’s weight until it can be winched; “Made!” calls from here or Bow — agree which per hoist.
Pole side at the mast: topping lift and downhaul so the pole end sits at the right height and Bow isn’t wrestling it.
On gybes: control the pole end via the trip line; take the mast hook when Bow frees it.
Pre-set vang, outhaul, cunningham and twings for the leg.
Jib halyard for hoists and the controlled drop; feed and clear lines so the foredeck never fights spaghetti.
This station also runs the pit (Oh! arrangement at six crew): all runs aft of the mast clutched, flaked and ready; winch the last ten feet of every halyard; call the drop sequence (“Ready to drop… DROP… clear!”); feed the spinnaker tack-line and pole height at the set; keep the cockpit clear — aufklaren is a continuous background duty, not a job. Between maneuvers, the idle-time intelligence seat: watching the other boats — and downwind the aft-facing lookout: call puffs and shifts coming down the course (Call the wind from aft).

Owns: Set the pole height, Drop the jib at the set, Hoist the jib at the douse, Pack the spinnaker, Jump the spinnaker halyard, Lower the halyard in bursts, Stuff the kite below, Call the wind from aft. Assists: Trip and gybe the pole.

Sailing