Ah, the old mast R&R! We did that -- once. On the Pacific Coast, masts remain stepped for years and years, so it's really an occasion when one is taken down.

In our case, the removal was no big deal. The marina had a hoist that was (at low tide) positioned high enough to get a strap around the mast just below the spreaders. Getting the mast back was the real challenge. It took four -- maybe five -- of us in what appeard to the casual viewer to be a true Chinese Fire Drill;p

That was about 16 years ago. I now use a rigger to replace the shrouds. He just climbs the mast, measures the shrouds, has the new ones cut and then replaces them one at a time without the mast being stepped off the boat. All I need to do is write the check