Bonaire Lac Bay. Sailworks Retro 5.5, iSonic 90, MFC KP-RC 360. Wind: 16 G 20 ENE
Gusty day but had some success doing broad reaches in the section of the bay where the chop turned into swells so I could sneak across the face of the swells. I'm enjoying the combo of the race fin and non-cambered sail. Getting enough speed for me (at present) while making water starting, if I blow a jibe, a piece of cake compared to the NP race sails. Fortunately, only blew two jibes today.
A couple of days ago had a discussion on sailing stance. A friend took some pictures of me today so thought I would post them to elicit comments (be gentle :) ) - Thanks.
Barton, If you would like plenty of feedback on stance I suggest posting these pics in the speedsailing forum on Seabreeze http://www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/Gps/
I am no expert but I think your stance looks good other than your front toes being curled up. It looks like you are over finned. The board is railing up and you are having to curl up your toes on the front foot to keep the rail down.You want to be able to point the toes for good speed. Also the sail is not rotating properly - more downhaul perhaps, or a good pump after the gybe?
Roo commented:
Get away from your rig, drop your boom and lengthen your harness lines to unweight the board and let it fly. As you are on the lighter side you have less leverage standing up over the board.
I commented:
Anita, thanks for the feedback.
First, on the sail - interesting observation because I downhaul the sail until it is loose at the 'little red gear cog' on the second major panel from the top. This is how Bruce Peterson recommends downhauling the sail in his Sailworks Retro rigging video. I was in the middle range of the boom length guidelines. It could also be that when the pictures were taken I was close to being underpowered - should have been on the 6.5 at least. I also noticed that there was almost no twist-off at the top of the sail. A sure sign that the sail isn't powered up.
Regarding the windward rail being up, that is intentional and came from a discussion on the seabreeze forum regarding going fast. That effect was a combination of pointing with the back toes and pulling up with the front foot. The goal was to get the board more airborne for less board wetted surface. I specifically asked Taty Frans about sailing with the front toes up and he said that is how it should be done - of course I may be completely misunderstanding what he was telling me.
Roo, good observations. Guys here kept telliing raise the boom so I raised it as high as it made sense. I can easily lower it to the middle of the boom cut-out on the sail (where I used to have it) - or maybe lower. I think I recall Taty suggesting it should be about top-of-the-shoulder high. That willl also effectively lengthen the harness lines (I don't have adjustable lines and access to gear is amazingly difficult here). Thanks for the suggestions!
There is forecast to be decent winds tomorrow - so guess I know what I'll be working on :) . Thanks Anita and Roo.
Windxtasy commented:
that batten below the boom looks like it is still on the wrong side of the mast - hence the creases in the luff pocket. It may be that you are underpowered, but a good pump after the gybe should flick it across if you have enough downhaul. That batten position makes a big difference to performance, as you will feel if it suddenly flicks over while you are sailing. Lots more power.
True about lifting the windward rail especially for getting planing in light wind and for upwind performance - especially with delta fins, if that is what you are trying to do it is working, but be careful not to lift the windward rail too much. I find front toes hooked up is good for working upwind, but for good downwind speed you want to have the front toes pointing.
Roo would know better than me. I am no elite sailor.
I think Roo's comments on lowering the boom are based on those front toes being hooked up.
Roo commented:
I always sail with my front toes lifting up. It allows you to trim the board front to back to get it riding on the fin, you are essentially lifting the front of the board up. Lowering the boom lets you get out away from the board to unweight it and let it fly, becomes a balancing act between control and disaster...once you master it the speed increases. Here's the result, back on the fin riding the foil.
Boro commented:
Looking good there Barton! There are many different styles and people go fast with boom high or low, mast track forward or all the way back, toes curled or straight, you name it. It is more about finding a perfect balance and comfort zone for your style. That being said there are few obvious things that could be pointed out:
1. For speed, the sail should be more upright. This would put more downpressure on the board and keep it under control when fully powered up. Longer harness lines is the answer. Look at Roo's sail angle and his arms. Almost straight.
2. Sail could use slightly more downhaul and less outhaul for deep downwind speed runs. This would give it more power, more vertical lift and more control at the same time (less likely to get catapulted).
3. Railing up the board is good in general, but for deep downwind fully powered up speed runs, I would try to keep it flat or just very slightly railed up. Last thing you need is the board railing up and flying out at really high speed. This is why speed sailors set up their boards with smaller fins compered to purely slalom setup.
Hope this helps
Roo commented:
Taty is about your size and here he is getting away from the rig with his toes curled up.
I commented:
Wow - Thank you for all the great help!
Anita, I understand what you are describing and typically always pop the sail after a jibe because if I'm underpowered I'll be pumping to get back on a plane. I zoomed in on the original pictures to a magnification not possible on this forum and the battens are on the correct side of the mast, it is just that the luff sleeve isn't loaded up because I am underpowered. Thanks for the heads up - a good thing for me to look at to decide if I need to re-rig.
Roo's picture shows what I have seen the really fast sailors doing here - except they are typically using a waist harness and are therefore even farther from the rig. I'll try to get in a possition to notice their mast angle. My impression is that they have the sail raked over even more, to the point where the sail is acting as a partial wing (but I could be wrong). I'll also ask Taty as I remember him saying to pull the sail over more...
Boro, thanks for the comment that there are many different styles - I just need to find the one that I am comfortable with. There is one Dutch guy here (amateur) that is very fast but his sailing stance is very different from what we are discussing. He wants me to have at least 50% of my body weight on the front foot. Taty knows him and he just shook his head when I mention his stance :). I'll keep working towards what Roo and Boro suggest.
Thanks again!
Boro commented:
Pulling the sail over works great for me in lighter wind to get more lift and force the board into foiling mode, but once fully powered up, going deep at full speed, having the sail upright gives me more control and translates into more speed.
There is also nothing wrong with 50/50 weight ratio, as long as that makes the board trim perfect. It is very helpful to see what other guys are doing and try it out. Watch the videos of PWA slalom races and also speed competitions. There is more than one way to skin the sheep... Try all kinds of things and pick what works for you. Using GPS will help you get there faster, theories are hypothetical, numbers don't lie.
I commented:
Boris, excellent coaching!! So many options, so many variables, so much learning/experimenting. This activity should keep me busy for many years :). Thank you for removing the 'only one correct way' feeling I was developing. Now to make time to do all the experimenting....
Roo, thanks for the picture of Taty - exactly the perspective I was looking for.
