Provided you can sail everyday, what is the ideal duration of a windsurfing holiday?

Before everyone chimes in "as long as possible!"

Last year I spent 23 days in Vassiliki as a beginner and was completely stuffed after 2 weeks. I had to give it a rest for 2 Saturdays, otherwise I would have dropped dead. And I was reasonably fit when I came there (swimming 1 km per day, gym almost everyday 6 months prior). OK, for the first 2 weeks I was out on the water almost all day (light wind in the morning on a high volume board, crazy gusty wind in the afternoon). I dropped the morning sessions in the final week. Vass was very gusty (thermal wind). My only accomplishment was waterstarts.

This year I will go to the Cocos Islands. The only question is the trip duration. I can waterstart, plane briefly (but only with the front foot in the strap), use the harness a bit. Still in the catapult stage, though mercifully the mast now usually misses the nose of my board. My options are 2, 3 and 4 weeks. I want to make as much progress as possible without killing myself (especially forearms and hands). It seems like the wind is somewhat weaker there, but more consistent. I also weigh less this year. 67 kg down from 76 kg, so planing is only limited by skill. It's flat and shallow way out, so waterstarting should be easier. The water is warmer. On the downside, I'm a year older (37).

What do you guys reckon? The basic expectation is to plane reliably in the straps and harness. The dream is carve gybes.

The big issue is how often you fall in and how difficult it is to get going again, for me anyway. I can sail for quite a few hours if I'm not falling in much. However if falling in all the time, I get worn out and tired fairly quickly. Also the water state is a big factor too. If the water is really choppy then it takes it out of me a lot quicker than flat water.

So if the water at the CoCos Islands is flat and it has a sandy bottom that you can stand on, I would aim to stay there as long as possible. These sorts of areas make windsurfing as easy as it can be so you make good progress or have a lot of fun.

30 +/- 5 years

If you can get lessons while your over there it will help.

What's the best time to go to Cocos?

The simple answer is as long as possible

The major issue is how your body and in particular your hands hold up to constant sailing.

For those in the west who sail consistently maybe not such a problem, but if like me your stuck at work/ family commitments and your usual sailing window is narrow you hands aren't conditioned to gripping a boom for 4-5 hrs per day

The head will always say one more run the hands say enough

Ben 555 said...
The simple answer is as long as possible

The major issue is how your body and in particular your hands hold up to constant sailing.

For those in the west who sail consistently maybe not such a problem, but if like me your stuck at work/ family commitments and your usual sailing window is narrow you hands aren't conditioned to gripping a boom for 4-5 hrs per day

The head will always say one more run the hands say enough

gloves..

sboardcrazy said...

Ben 555 said...
The simple answer is as long as possible

The major issue is how your body and in particular your hands hold up to constant sailing.

For those in the west who sail consistently maybe not such a problem, but if like me your stuck at work/ family commitments and your usual sailing window is narrow you hands aren't conditioned to gripping a boom for 4-5 hrs per day

The head will always say one more run the hands say enough

gloves..

Have worn them since day one. Full finger length as well, since I've seen people get ugly bilsters on their fingers when wearing short-finger ones. No blisters at all ever. The problem is forearms and hand pain. My forearms are long and thin, that could be the problem. I actually woke up from the pain in Vass. Voltaren did nothing. Neither did Panadol.

I think that I also have an overly tight grip. Learning to use the harness is the key, IMO. OTOH, I got a lesson in Melbourne, and the instructor did not wear a harness. He said he hardly ever does, only if it's blowing like mad. But he is a Formula racer. Said that whenever you hook in, people fly past you.

FormulaNova said...

Does Cocos have any other problems? When I came back from 3 weeks in Fiji I had infections in my skin from something that took weeks or months to fix. I used tea tree oil on someone's suggestion which seemed to make it better.

Tiny bits of coral get into your feet sometimes but seem to work their way out eventually.
Some people have had some spiny things in their feet as well but generally if you stick to the clear areas you won't have a problem.

Kiters are a pest though, mostly the locals

MrCranky said...

sboardcrazy said...

Ben 555 said...
The simple answer is as long as possible

The major issue is how your body and in particular your hands hold up to constant sailing.

For those in the west who sail consistently maybe not such a problem, but if like me your stuck at work/ family commitments and your usual sailing window is narrow you hands aren't conditioned to gripping a boom for 4-5 hrs per day

The head will always say one more run the hands say enough

gloves..

Have worn them since day one. Full finger length as well, since I've seen people get ugly bilsters on their fingers when wearing short-finger ones. No blisters at all ever. The problem is forearms and hand pain. My forearms are long and thin, that could be the problem. I actually woke up from the pain in Vass. Voltaren did nothing. Neither did Panadol.

I think that I also have an overly tight grip. Learning to use the harness is the key, IMO. OTOH, I got a lesson in Melbourne, and the instructor did not wear a harness. He said he hardly ever does, only if it's blowing like mad. But he is a Formula racer. Said that whenever you hook in, people fly past you.

The forearms get much better when you learn to use the harness properly. Unfortunately by then you might do some damage and/or wear yourself out prematurely. No matter whether your forearms are long and thin or short and built like stumps, they will wear out if you don't use the harness properly.

A Formula racer that doesn't use a harness? Sure, maybe if you are in between doing something, but its crazy not to use the harness when you can. I don't know how he goes holding down anything other than a small sail when its windy enough to plane. I wouldn't take his advice if he hardly ever uses a harness.

He would be easy to spot on the water, he would look like Popeye. Hopefully at the front of the fleet, otherwise he should use his harness more.

MrCranky said...

FormulaNova said...

The forearms get much better when you learn to use the harness properly. Unfortunately by then you might do some damage and/or wear yourself out prematurely. No matter whether your forearms are long and thin or short and built like stumps, they will wear out if you don't use the harness properly.

A Formula racer that doesn't use a harness? Sure, maybe if you are in between doing something, but its crazy not to use the harness when you can. I don't know how he goes holding down anything other than a small sail when its windy enough to plane. I wouldn't take his advice if he hardly ever uses a harness.

He would be easy to spot on the water, he would look like Popeye. Hopefully at the front of the fleet, otherwise he should use his harness more.

He gave me a planing lesson. It was sub-15 knots. He pumped like a gorilla and got going. I could not. Normal-size guy, not pop-eye by any means. Anyway, to me the sport is impossible without a harness.

Ahh, that's different. When its not enough wind to plane from a start, but enough to plane once going, you don't need to use the harness until you are planing steadily. You can pump onto the plane and then hook in once you are moving steadily. Sure, you could avoid the harness, but you really can't make the most of the wind unless you do.

Don't worry about the pumping bit. in my experience it is technique as much as strength, and like most people, pumping on one side is easier than the other.