The tricky thing about your question is that often boats have slightly different setups, making things easier or more difficult, so you mileage may vary....
I use my pole regularly. Took a little practice, and I am still refining my technique, but it can make a huge difference both to comfort and performance. For example, last night I was racing a Catalina 320, poled out and pulled far away on the downhill leg - one of the crew I chatted to afterwards said setting the pole made us act like we had pulled out a spinnaker! On a long downhill leg, I pole the jib to one side, and the main to the other (with a jibe preventer); with that setup I can go wind-on-wing for long periods with minimal effort.
Advantages: When set up, keeps the foresail in the right spot; more power, no flogging, looks pretty.
Disadvantages: Can be tricky to set when bouncy, or very windy.
Various hints:
- Ideally needs a minimum of 3 people: One to deploy pole, one to manage jib sheet, one to steer.
- Don't let the pole rub on the shrouds. That would be bad. So ensure you leave a gap.
- The pole generally works better when you deploy it "upside down"; clip into the mast bracket by lifting the pole *up* into the ring, not dropping it down from above. Makes it a lot easier to remove.
- I have a topping lift; find it very useful to help manage things, and makes sure I don't lose the pole while deploying (they are over $1k new!)
- My latest experiment is to install a bridle to the pole; the topping lift connects to a ring, set up in the middle of the pole (two equally-sized wire lines to each end fitting). A more experienced crew member tells me it makes things a lot easier as you can balance the pole when deploying...makes sense to me as when it is extended there can be a lot of leverage on it.
- FWIW, I used to have the pole mounted on the front of the mast - that worked but was a pain to use, so I now have it clipped to the stanchions with rubber chocks.
I hope this helps....
