Policies and statements.

Privacy policy

Lion Sailing respects the information you share with us. This policy explains what we collect through this website, why we collect it, and the choices you have.

What we collect

• Quote and contact requests. When you submit a sail quote, a designed sail, a rigging or carbon inquiry, or the contact form, we receive the details you enter: your name, email address, boat information, and any notes or design choices. Spec sheets you download or send from the sail designer also stamp the date, time, and IP address of the machine that created them, so the loft can tell copies apart.
• Orders. When you buy from the shop we receive your name, email, shipping address, and the items you ordered. Payment card details go directly to our payment processor and never touch our servers.
• Newsletter. If you subscribe to updates we store your email address until you unsubscribe.
• Search. The words you search for go to our store to find products and are counted by Google Analytics, and a longer sentence (such as "a mainsail for my J/70 under $2,500") is first sent to Cloudflare Workers AI, the service that also hosts this site, to be turned into search filters.
• Voice search. If you search by voice, your browser's maker (Apple or Google) turns your speech into text, and no audio reaches our servers.
• Site helper. What you type into the helper goes to Cloudflare Workers AI to work out what you are looking for and is not stored on our servers, the conversation is kept only in this browser tab, and if you choose Email the loft, your name, email address, question and the conversation so far reach the loft as an email, which is the only copy.

How we use it

• To answer your inquiry, prepare your quote, and build and deliver what you order.
• To send transactional email about your request or order, such as confirmations and shipping notices.
• To send occasional news only if you subscribed, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Who we share it with

We do not sell or rent personal information. We share it only with the services that make the store run: our payment processor (Stripe) for charges and refunds, our shipping carriers for delivery, and the measurement services described under Cookies below. Each processes your data under its own privacy terms.

Cookies and measurement

Some storage simply keeps the site working: a session token holds your cart together while you shop, and our bot check sets a short-lived token when you submit a form.

We also use two measurement services, both of which set cookies:

• Google Analytics. Tells us which pages and products people look at, records use of the sail designer (opens and PNG or PDF exports), and records when a quote request or an order is completed. We use those completions to judge which advertising is worth running, so this data does reach Google Ads.
• Microsoft Clarity. Records how pages are actually used, including clicks, scrolling, and a replay of the visit, so we can find layout and navigation problems. We use it to fix the site, not to identify you.

Both services process this data under their own privacy terms, Google's and Microsoft's respectively. Neither is used to build an advertising profile of you on other websites. If you would rather not be measured, a standard content or analytics blocker stops both, and nothing on this site stops working if you use one.

Enhanced conversions. When you complete an order or send a quote request, the Google tag also sends the contact details you gave us for it (your email address and, for orders, your name and shipping address) to Google. They are turned into a one-way code in your browser before they leave it, so Google receives the code rather than the details themselves. Google uses it only to measure whether an ad led to that order or request, under its customer data terms, and not to target ads to you. A blocker stops this too.

Retention and your rights

We keep order records as long as accounting rules require and inquiry records as long as the conversation is live. You can ask us at any time to show you, correct, or delete the personal information we hold about you: write to [email protected] and we will respond within 30 days.

Accessibility statement

Lion Sailing wants every sailor to be able to use this site. We aim to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at level AA.

What we do

• Semantic headings, landmarks, and labeled forms throughout the site.
• Text alternatives on meaningful images and sail previews.
• Color contrast checked against the brand palette, with information never carried by color alone.
• Keyboard operability for navigation, forms, product galleries, and the sail designer.
• Reduced-motion preferences respected on animated sections.

Known limitations

Some photography sourced from regattas lacks detailed descriptions, and the sail designer's click-to-paint canvas offers a simplified experience for screen reader users; the quote form beside it captures the same request in plain fields.

Feedback

If any part of this site is hard for you to use, tell us at [email protected]. We treat accessibility reports like breakage: they go to the front of the queue.

Warranty

Everything we sell is built to be used hard. If it fails because of how it was made rather than how it was used, we make it right.

Apparel and gear

Apparel and soft goods from the shop carry a two year warranty against defects in materials and workmanship: failed seams, delaminated fabric, broken zippers, and hardware that lets go under normal use. Send a photo and your order number to [email protected] and we will repair, replace, or refund the item.

Sails, rigging, and carbon work

Custom sails, rigging, and carbon components are warranted against defects in materials and workmanship for one year from delivery. Because these are built to your boat and program, warranty terms are confirmed in writing with your quote. Racing damage, chafe, UV degradation, and improper storage are not covered, but our loft repairs those too; ask us for a repair quote.

What we need from you

Keep your order confirmation or invoice, tell us as soon as you notice the problem, and do not attempt structural repairs before we have seen the damage.

Payment terms

Stock items in the shop are paid at checkout. Work the loft makes or does for you is paid as a deposit when you order and the balance when it is ready.

Deposits and balances

New sails: a 50% deposit when the order is confirmed, and the balance when the sail is ready, before it ships or is collected. Rigging and made-to-order hardware: a 50% deposit when ordered, and the balance before it ships or is collected. Repairs, recuts, washing and service: no deposit, or 50% when the quote is over $1,000, and the balance when the work is ready.

When the balance is due

Within 14 days of the email telling you your work is ready. Finished work stays at the loft until it is paid. There are no late fees or storage charges.

Refunds of deposits

A new sail deposit is refunded in full until the cloth is cut; after that it covers the design and the cloth. A rigging or hardware deposit is refunded in full until the parts are ordered.

How to pay

By card at checkout or through a payment link from the loft, for any amount. For $1,000 and over, a bank transfer (ACH or wire) is preferred, as it carries no card fee. Checks are payable to Lion Sailing. Anything you pay over what you owe stays as credit on your account, and we refund it on request.

Clubs and fleets

Clubs and fleets can be invoiced on 30-day terms by arrangement with the loft. Write to [email protected].

Your account page shows your projects, what you have been charged and what you have paid. Questions about a balance: [email protected].

Rope care and safety

Rope is a consumable. It arrives at full strength and loses it from the first day, through load, sunlight, salt, heat and chafe. The figures we publish tell you what a new line does in a laboratory, not what yours will do in a year.

Published breaking loads

Breaking loads on our rope pages are average values, measured on eye spliced samples of new product in laboratory conditions at approximately 25 degrees Celsius. They are not a working load and they are not a guarantee. Size working loads to no more than 20 percent of the published breaking load, and lower again wherever the loading is dynamic or shock loaded. If you are not certain what your application demands, ask us before you buy.

Knots and splices

A knot can reduce a line's tensile strength by more than half. A splice made outside the recommended procedure reduces it considerably. Splices we make in our own loft are made to the manufacturer's procedure. If you splice a line yourself, follow that procedure.

Handling under load

Never stand near a rope under tension. A line that fails recoils with very high energy and causes serious injury. Keep loads clear of sharp edges and rough surfaces, and inspect winches, drums, sheaves and clutches regularly, because worn hardware destroys rope.

Inspection and retirement

Inspect every line regularly. No visual inspection can establish the strength a used rope has left, so treat visible wear as a decision point, not as a measurement. A line showing age or wear in any area should be re-spliced, downgraded to a lighter job, or retired.

Materials with specific limits

Lines with a Dyneema core must not be used above 50 degrees Celsius. UV sensitive fibres including Vectran and Zylon must be used with a protective cover, with direct exposure of the core kept to the shortest time necessary. Zylon is moisture sensitive and must be stored dry and out of light. Avoid contact with chemicals, and contact us if a line is contaminated.

Care

Wash lines periodically in fresh water to remove salt, grit and dirt. Dry them in open air, away from any direct heat source, and store them dark and dry. At the end of a line's life, dispose of it with household waste rather than leaving it in the environment.

Intended use

Our rope is sold for yachting and sport use only. It is not for lifting or lowering people, and any such use is prohibited. Any use that departs from the guidance on this page is improper use, and we are not liable for damage or injury arising from it.

Sustainability

We build things that last, and building things that last is the most sustainable thing a sailmaker can do.

• Repair before replace. Our loft services and repairs sails from any maker. A recut or a patch that adds seasons to a sail beats a new one going in the bag.
• Materials that earn their footprint. We spec cloth and laminates for the life of the program, not the season, and our apparel line is moving to PFAS-free durable water repellent treatments.
• Lean shipping. Orders ship in minimal packaging, consolidated where possible, from our loft.
• End of life. Retired sails become bags, covers, and practice cloth before they become waste. Ask us about taking back a sail we built.

Questions or ideas are welcome at [email protected].

Website terms of use

This website is provided by Lion Sailing for information and ordering. Content, imagery, and the Lion Sailing marks belong to Lion Sailing and may not be reused without permission. Sail designs you create in the designer are yours; submitting one grants us permission to use it to prepare your quote and build your sail. Sales, shipping, and refunds are governed by the store policies.