I made a mast raising mechanism that works for me. It consists of a 6 ft. 2X4 with a fork on one end, an angle iron on the other, and a winch mounted to the trailer mast support column. The fork straddles the boom near its base, and is held in place with a pin made from 5/16 drill rod tapered on the end that is inserted through the fork and mast. The hole in the mast can be made easily with a tool called a 'unibit'. It's a tool that lends itself to drilling holes in thin aluminum, and increases in diameter in steps as it drills further into the metal. You could probably find one in the tool department at Home Depot or Lowes. The angle iron is bolted to the other end , to which the forestay and the line from the winch are attached. It helps to have a second person stand beside the mast as it's being raised to keep it from swinging off center. Lines can be rigged to prevent this, but it's just easier to have an extra set of hands. The force required to keep it in line are very light and require very little strength to accomplish. It also helps to have someone lean forward against the mast while the forestay is being attached, as this will allow the use of both hands instead of having to use one of them to hang onto the forestay.I don't have any pictures at present, but the next time I raise the mast (June 7 at Reedville, VA,....CBC 2003) I'll take pictures, scan and e-mail them.