David Thatcher is correct when he states that gibing causes batten breakages. On Arcadian I once broke three battens in the 700 sq ft mainsail when I did an involuntary gibe in about 15 knots of wind and a very rough sea. I never had any batten problems on the 500 sq ft foresail and only had problems with the main when gibing. The main battens were 21.5 ft long and the foresail 17.5 ft. They were made of redwood, which can be a bit brittle, so could have been adequate if made of Douglas Fir, but they would have been about 30% heavier.

Like you Scott, we're waiting to see if batten breaking is an issue.  We've been downwind in 18 knots with mains in delta configuration and no problem so far.  The battens on the mainsails are 3/4" x 1-1/2" fir and are only 8' long, so they're pretty strong.

We hope to get out on a second round of sea trials in a few weeks and will be reporting on that and other details.  

For those JRA members and visitors who do not yet know David and Pearl they are an intrepid couple in their 60s whose adventures past and planned would be daunting to many half their age.

Together they made the tiny Minimus l (a venerable Cape Dory 25, that they bought for just $2500) ready for their 1st ocean sailing adventure as a couple.

Engineless they sailed from California across the Pacific to French Polynesia in 2017 visiting amazing places before parting with her in Raiatea in August of that year and then flying to and touring New Zealand then returning to the USA and beginning the next chapter of designing, building and now this past month, sea trialing Minimus ll.

You can read about their adventures with Minimus l here Voyage of Minimus l.

For more about Minimus ll, a junk rigged catamaran on which they plan to embark on future adventurous journeys, go here Minimus ll to read about her design, build and 1st sea trial.

David and Pearl are, for me at least, shining examples of the spirit and character that can be found in so many for whom sailing is better on a junk. 

I shall close with these words from their blog in August 2017:

"Two years ago we rescued Minimus from an inevitable journey to the scrapyard. In return she has been our home, refuge, transportation and, above all, a passport to adventure. She has taken us to the fabled South Pacific. She has allowed us to explore exotic islands. She has helped to fulfill a dream for us. Perhaps she has also suggested a way that others might follow. It is the nature of adventure to meet the unexpected. Indeed, we met with it many times, in the discovery of myriad life forms inhabiting the ocean we sailed on, in close encounters with whales, in a mysterious illness, in the delight of new friends, to name just a few." - David and Pearl.