Just a few questions (as usual)...

Went out today in about 20-25kts on my 6.0, had a blast!

Today was the day I had set aside to get in the footstraps.
Front was no problem, had 1 catapult going for the back strap, the second time i got it. After that it was all sweet .

I get the feeling the harness lines are too long, I'm using adjustables max length. I can only just get my elbow in them and grab the boom. Is this normal to get the feeling they are too long to start with or should I shorten them slightly so they feel better?

Second question, now that I can comfortably blast around the place in the harness and footstraps, is there a natural next step? Speeding up gybes and tacks then moving to carve gybes? I really need to start getting serious about waterstarting, sometimes i can sometimes i cant. It's just hard for me, when I have limited time due to tide to justify mucking around trying to waterstart when I could be blasting around.

I have dasher's ABC's of waterstarting which got me doing them, but this session I must have forgotten most of the techniques because I didnt get one. I think ill have to watch it again.

Last of all is there any special tape I need to get for monofilm repairs, I put two holes in the sail today . Will the normal Mylar sail repair tape suffice, or is there special monofilm tape?

Thanks,
BRAD

NotWal said...

Boom height and line length should be set so that its a bit difficult (too high) to hook in when dredging.

That's right, I can't hook in until almost planing. Maybe they are fine, I'll measure them to be 100% sure. I just set them to max while learning so I could hook in easier.

Next step?... The main thing is to get comfortable at speed. That's just about spending time on the water and rigging properly. While you're doing that you should learn to gybe, tack and waterstart. When you are comfortable at speed you can start going for planing gybes. For waterstarting it pays to spend a little time in the shallows getting the feel of it. You don't have to overdo it though. You'll get plenty (in spades) of practise while learning to gybe.

I can beach start fine its in the deeper stuff where I either can't touch or above waist high. I end up putting too much weight on the tail and sinking it. Like I said in my original post after watching dasher's waterstarting vid I did it perfectly but now I seem to have lost something so ill watch it again and hopefully nail it next time.

Tape for sails?... Yes there is some nifty monofilm tape you can use. (Although it may be mylar. Idk.) You can barely see it and it's pretty durable. However almost any tape will get you out of trouble. If its an old sail then the mono may well be on the way out. UV kills it.

Yeah sails are getting a bit long in the tooth. I knew this when I got them, I'm planning to get new stuff in the near future (after our house is built and have money again ) so all I need is a temporary fix. Might even tape the creases just to get a bit more life out of them.

Thanks for the help,
BRAD

jord070 said...

well no answers. but with your water starts. it will be hard to do on a big wide board, i couldnt do them untill i got onto a smaller and narrower board, but the first day out on my new smaller board, i nailed a few water starts, and within 5 or 6 sessions i was waterstarting quite easily.

I actually never thought of that. Watching them waterstart on the videos just doesn't seem to work the same for me. That might be it. Nevertheless, i'll persevere ill get it soon.

if your lines are too long you will be heading down wind and if they are to short you will be getting catapulted, and will bend up into the wind when you try to deticate your wieght to them, so thats one thing you can be looking about with the length

Yeah, I have trouble keeping it upwind. Always wants to career off downwind. I think ill shorten them a few cm's at a time till I find a happy medium.

braaad said...

Me (64 kg's)
Mistral Super Vision 161L 278cm 69cm board with 42cm freeride fin

20-25kts on my 6.0, had a blast!

I get the feeling the harness lines are too long, I'm using adjustables max length. I can only just get my elbow in them and grab the boom. Is this normal to get the feeling they are too long to start with or should I shorten them slightly so they feel better?

Yeah, I have trouble keeping it upwind. Always wants to career off downwind.

Hey Braaad,

I reckon your fin is a bit on the big side for a 6m sail at your weight on that board. What happens is that the fin generates more lift than you are counteracting with the sail and your weight on the rail. The fin rolls the board a bit, and seeing as you're planing, you find that it all carves off downwind taking you along as an unwitting passenger. Good fun, but not really an 'in control' sort of feeling?

I have a 42cm fin on my 121 litre freeride board, and it is happiest with a 7m sail (I weigh 78kg). I've had the same problem with hairing off downwind on the wrong side of control on a 152 litre board, 46cm fin, and 5.7m sail in about the same wind as you describe.

I'd try something around 30-35cm with a 6m sail. I run a 33cm fin on a 104l board, and that is a bit much for my 5.7, but will work right up to a 7m (provided I don't lean on it too early!) Alternatively, you could opt for a bigger sail with lots of downhaul, and just go faster?!

Long harness lines are good - they let you get a bit more space between you and the rig, and let you straighten out your arms so you're not wrestling in close with really bent elbows. Your margin of error is increased, and you get a bit more time to react. You also get flung around on a longer arc when you catapult which makes it more fun too! If you can get your elbow in the loop, and your hand around the boom, they're probably about right. It used to be that the ideal was elbow in the loop, and wrist on the boom, but current trends seem to be for slightly longer lines.

The length of your lines shouldn't directly cause you to head up or down wind.(think about what happens if you don't hook in at all..) They will affect your stance though, and if you're putting too much weight in the wrong place, then you'll turn for sure!

Have a read of this thread, you might pick up some tips - I was supposed to turn it into an article, but haven't yet.. www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=31010

With the waterstarts - try putting your back foot further forward.. just behind the front straps seems to work well provided you're not being blown off the water. Also, keep the sail sheeted in and forward to pull the nose back off the wind(obviously not too much, or you'll catapult), and pull down through the boom as you get over the board to spread some of your weight further forward through the mastfoot, as that will help to stop the tail sinking.

In light wind, it's not uncommon to see people waterstarting with their foot up close to the mastfoot while holding the mast, and foot of the sail.

Waterstarting is worth investing time in - even at the expense of quality blasting time. Once you have waterstarting cracked, the sport really opens up. It is just as possible to waterstart on a big board as it is on a small sinky one - just get your foot forward, and on the centreline, roll in over the board, and then up under the boom.

What 555 said...all great advice.

You will get as much out of getting your water starts right as almost any other technique you can learn, this will truly open the door to short board sailing, which in turn will make a number of other techniques easier to learn.

I find I use different waterstart techniques depending on wind strength and the amount of power I have at my disposal, but that mostly is in my body position. Lighter wind/less power I have very bent knees and concentrate on getting my weight over the forward centre of the board as quickly as possible with less weight hanging off the boom. Stronger winds/more power, I end up with straighter legs so I can have more weight on the boom and counteracting the power at hand.

It also sounds like the board may be rounding up into the wind before you are out of the water, given the conditions on the day. Which is common when learning waterstarts. This will reduce your power and you most likely end up with all your body weight on the tail, facing into the wind which sinks the tail and it game over. Concentrate on starting the waterstart in a slightly down wind position (careful not to over power the sail here) you will find that as you come up you will swing slightly into the wind which will put you in pretty much the perfect position to get under way.

With you lines, just play with them until they feel right for you. I have been windsurfing for over 20years and still find I constantly adjust and play with my lines depending on conditions, the way the rig feels in my hands and any number of other factors. You will find the right position, just don't be afraid to sacrafice 5 mins on the water to have a play with them, in the end it will be worth it as every session you will be out there longer.

There is a product for fixing monofilm sails which is a clear patch and does work very well, I am sure any windsurfing shop should have some of this. We used to just use stickers to fix holes, rips tears etc and that always worked pretty well. but much the same as usind duct tape etc, these things usually stretch so are only a temporary fix.

Thanks for all the great advice, all taken on board.

555: I was thinking the same thing with the fin. As the board gets past planing speed and really starts to get moving it really gets jumpy and feel out of control. Not so bad now that I can use the footstraps but I do get the feeling its creating too much lift. Getting a smaller fin also has the added benefit i can sail longer either side of the tide .

In lighter winds I find water starting on a smaller board a little easier. The deck is closer to the water and a little weight sinks the tail as you come up and makes it even easier. In stronger winds it doesn't make much difference.

Larger boards are harder to shift around, so can make water starting more tiring.

The thing I found was as soon as you go in, throw the rig and board into roughly the right spot and get going. Don't try to be too precise, as every time will be different. You more you play around though, the harder it seems to get. Just an observation.