Anchor Riding Sail

Breeze On likes to swing at anchor. A lot. The stronger the wind the more she swings. It can be a problem if we are close to other boats in a tight anchorage. Also, the swinging puts lateral pressure on the anchor, making it more likely to drag.
Last year I made an anchor riding sail from a kit I purchased from Sail Rite. It is a small sail that is attached to the backstay of the boat and pulled forward. It didn't make a bit of difference in how much Breeze On would swing. so we gave up on it. Last week we were anchored near a boat that was using an anchor riding sail and it seemed to be working. The boat hardly seemed to swing at all. We met the boat owner and asked him about it. He said he rigs his close to the center line (not what Sail Rite instructs) and pulls it as tight as possible. It is a little tricky on our split backstay but George finally found a way to make it work by rigging a block to a cleat at the bow and running a line from the sail, up to the block and back to a winch. We can winch the sail nice and tight and it reduces the swing from 70 degrees to 50 degrees. Since it shades the solar panels George puts it up at night and takes it down in the morning.
The wind is finally supposed to ease up enough that we plan to sail over to Long Island tomorrow. We have heard from a few people that it is worth seeing.