Abstract: A sailboat forestay or headstay assembly for hoisting, supporting and furling a jib, including a roller furling unit, a wire secured at its lower end to this unit and at its upper end to a swivel unit, and a furling-drive connection adjacent the upper end of the wire comprising a hexagonal rod attached to the wire as an extension thereof, and a hoisting element having a polygonal through passage which slides freely along the wire and snugly and non-rotatably onto the rod, to couple the sail to the wire for furling as the wire is rotated. Hoisting and sail-supporting connections in the form of bails are centrally pivoted on a rotary sleeve of the hoisting element, and the lower end of the rod is tapered polygonally, with a cylindrical section below, to align the sleeve with the rod during hoisting.