System for trimming the mast of a sailing yacht

In a sailboat having a hull, a mast projecting upwardly from the hull, a forestay fixed to the top of the mast, an aftstay fixed to the top of the mast, a first hydraulic cylinder connected to the hull at a forward location thereof and including a piston connected to the forestay, a second hydraulic cylinder connected to an aft portion of the hull and including a piston connected to the aftstay, the improvement comprising control means simultaneously supplying one of said hydraulic cylinders with fluid while exhausting the other hydraulic cylinder of fluid for moving the fore and aft stays simultaneously to trim the mast in either the fore or aft direction as desired, and wherein said control means includes a hydraulic control cylinder and first and second hydraulic fluid lines respectively interconnecting the opposite ends of the hydraulic control cylinder and said first and second hydraulic cylinders, and wherein said control cylinder includes a control piston, and wherein there is further included drive means for moving the control piston in the control cylinder for supplying and exhausting hydraulic fluid from said first and second hydraulic cylinders simultaneously, and wherein there is further included a hydraulic fluid reservoir, third and fourth hydraulic lines communicating with the control cylinder on opposite sides of said control piston and means for selectively communicating said third and fourth hydraulic fluid lines with the reservoir.