i have read that if you measure from the boom round your elbow and back to the boom again you will be able to find out how long your harness lines should be... I was wondering if thats the best way and does that apply to a seat harness?

powersloshin said...

With a seat harness the hook is lower than on a waist harness, so you could go a bit longer or position your boom a bit lower. Btw, you can read more about harness lines length on Guy Cribb's website, he explains more than this rough rule of thumb (rule of elbow :-) ?

On his course this year, first thing Guy strongly recommended was 28-30" lines for all. No matter what size or stature

kpb said...

i have read that if you measure from the boom round your elbow and back to the boom again you will be able to find out how long your harness lines should be... I was wondering if thats the best way and does that apply to a seat harness?

Hadn't thought of that..I use that rule but i use a seat harness..I'll make them a bit longer..On a slightly different tack - how do you know when they are too long?

sboardcrazy said...

kpb said...

i have read that if you measure from the boom round your elbow and back to the boom again you will be able to find out how long your harness lines should be... I was wondering if thats the best way and does that apply to a seat harness?

Hadn't thought of that..I use that rule but i use a seat harness..I'll make them a bit longer..On a slightly different tack - how do you know when they are too long?

There is a length where you can get your hand wrapped round the boom well enough to not tire your arms out. Make the harness lines 1/2" longer and your arms will tire very quickly.
You should also avoid any harness lines which have any stretch in them. I once used an adjustable harness line on a hire board that was slightly elastic and it killed my arms quickly.

Matt Prichard told me most wsurfers use way too short harness line.
Recommended 28-30" lines for most.

i find if the lines are too long i'm constantly unhooking in chop and can be frustrating

Harness line length is an intersting topic. I used 22" for years and at times I even thought they were too long. When I started getting into speed I was told to go longer and progressively I worked to using 28" which feel comfortable now.

A couple of years ago I was swapped gear with another sailor who was using 22"'s and I almost felt glued to the sail, no room to move. I couldnt even fathom how I managed to use the 22" lines.

I'm pretty tall, however I've seen many sailors who are shorter and using longer lines, so I guess your stance compensates. I recommend anyone who is using short lines try some adjustables and to see how far you can go with the length.

FormulaNova said...

Why would someone use the same length lines as another if their arms are longer and they are the same height?

People are different. Maybe most people use lines that are too short, but assuming they should all use the same length is going too far the other way.

in his clinic last january Guy explained that the difference in height at the belly button is smaller than the difference in total height. In addition when reaching to the boom you don't go in a vertical line, but a diagonal, so the difference in height of the hook translates in a minor difference in the distance to the boom. Sorry for being bad at explanations..

Ok so I went with the 30" thanks for the feedback

I've always found larger sails ( 6.6 + now 7.2m ) hard to pull on and very uncomfortable and tiring.
Light bulb moment 1
When I was trying the 7.2m it was set up with the harness lines further back than I usually use ( c 5" further back! ). I found it worked well. The main reason mine were so far forward is that with the big sails I am often sailing in subplaning conditions out of the straps and standing up near the mast. I found I could still do that with the lines further back.
Light bulb moment 2 -

I had the boom at the bottom of the cutout ( I'm 5' 6") so it was about chest to chin height like I usually have it. Someone who knows the sails and better sailor than me pointed out that the centre of effort in the sail was higher than where I had the boom and that would make it harder to pull on etc. We raised the boom to about eye height ( middle of the cutout) and lengthened the lines and it felt heaps better.

The only problem now is that works for the sail at the bottom of its range but to get max downhaul I need to put the ext up a hole which made everything feel yuck again. I cant remember where that made the boom have to be..? So the boom is even higher..???

Bender said...

Windxtasy said...

The right length allows you to sail with your arms completely straight and yet with weight in the harness. The length will vary with wind strength. Longer with light wind, shorter with strong wind. When your behind is hitting the waves they're too long. When your arms are taking too much strain the lines are too long. If your arms are bent they're too short. That's why I like adjustable lines. Easier to change the line length than move the boom.

gee i find longer lines in stronger winds allows more control as you can get further from he rig and shorter in lighter winds allows to get more fin pressure and plane earlier as there is less weight on your feet.

I guess everyone has their own style, so do what works for you - but Bender is a much better sailor than I am so his advice is probably best. I find when it's windy it's also choppy and if I don't shorten my lines my behind keeps hitting the chop.

Here's a video showing Alex Mussolini's stance with a seat harness. Its not easy to find a video where he is hooked in and powered.

Yours. For same reasons.

The harness lines worked a treat now to stop catapulting...

Windxtasy said...

kpb said...

The harness lines worked a treat now to stop catapulting...

Lean back to anticipate the pull from the sail when the power comes on, and never allow the sail to pull you around over the back of the board (not until you get into speed sailing anyway).

Will work on that for sure...Once I hooked in I did feel like the sail was pushing me round...Although I did get it right a few times and was surprised how light the mast felt and even felt like the board poped up and started skimming accross the water...