Im learning!

Alright, had a good Saturday of wind to get out and do some learning this weekend kinda comfortable with the harness now, (never realized that if you sheet out when trying to get out of the harness the lines just fall away. ) man that is allot easier than the tippy toe tip that I was trying before.

couple of questions though

boom height, is there anything to it? I set the boom lower than my shoulders, cause the harness lines aren't very long, and that was the only way I could get in. should it be higher or lower? does this do anything for me?

foot straps and direction... when the wind is strong enough to get back into the straps, I move back but, the further back on the board I get the more the front end swings around. I rode most of the day out of the straps, cause as I get further back the board front end would tip up a bit, and then the nose would swing from 11 to about 1 o'clock. I am about 185lbs the board is 180 liters I had a 6.6 sail and the wind was prob 13 -15 miles/hr. I would plane well in the gusts and then just ride 'quickly' in the lulls. I would have both my feet behind the mast, but if I move back further the board would swing around. I could compensate with the sail a bit to maintain direction, but something didn't quite seems right. Is the wind not strong enough? (the 6.6 is my biggest sail) my fin not big enough? (it is an old abox football fin) no idea on size, but its not that big. ??? suggestions?

My equip is pretty old (mid to late 80's) There was a guy out there with a brand new board short and fat 170 liters and a 6.7 sail, I was able to consistently travel faster than him though. he he.

Hi, A higher boom will make the sail easier to handle as the centre of effort (the pull of the sail) will be nearer your hands. If it is lower the centre of effort is further away from your hands making it harder to hold the sail up, think of it as a kind of lever. In light wind conditions, if you set the boom higher you get pulled up onto your toes, this allows the board to plane earlier. On the subject of harness lines: I used to have mine fairly long. I could get more hand and forearm in the gap between the lines and the boom. This felt comfortable and I could easily hook in and out. However I went to Antigua last week and used some equipment there. They had shorter harness lines. At first it felt very strange and I wasn't really comfortable with it. However after sailing it for a week I had got used to it. On returning I realised how long my lines were and shortened them right up. It certainly feels much better. I can't describe what it is. Just stick at it with the shorter lines and you get used to them fairly quickly. Perhaps shorten them a bit at a time. Also if you have long lines, its very hard to put pressure down through the mast and this becomes important in the next part of your question.

When you move back down the board you remove pressure from the nose, combined with the fact that you have also raked the rig back you are effectivly steering upwind. To compensate for this you need to swing forward (towards the nose of the board) to apply mastfoot pressure. This will cause the nose of the board to bear away, stopping you from heading upwind and losing power/speed.

I'm not sure about your sail size, I'm 65kg, so about 140lbs (i think, I'm too young to have ever used pounds!). I was out today in about 20mph winds on a 6m. I could get planing fairly easily, but did have problems if the wind dropped a bit.

Tom

i'm in a similar situation as you dave, sailing ~15 mph wind and learning how to get comfortable in the harness and straps. last time out I spent most of the day in the straps (a first for me). here are some of my observations, for what they're worth:

- don't even go for the straps if you're not fully planning. they hinder rather then help until you really get moving. if fact, when it's a little bit scary not being in the straps (i.e. - you're losing your footing and/or about to get launched forward), then it's time to strap in. magically enough, at that point you're rear foot is pretty much right on the strap anyway, so it's just a matter of getting in. the front takes a bit more work, but i figured it out after several tries (read: crashes).

- i found a wide stance while getting into the straps prevents the board from going upwind. once in the straps and really cruising, i didn't really notice the upwind pointing problem so much.

- a 6.6 sail with 13-15 mph winds seems under-powered to me. i was using an 8.2 sail on a170 liter board with minimum 15 mph wind and it felt perfect (i'm ~175 lbs).

i'm going to try sheeting out next time I'm getting out of the harness, that still gives me a lot of trouble with frequent crashes onto the sail followed by a me cursing and yelling. i hate the tippy toe dance - thanks for the tip.

steve.

You have to be going fast enough so the sail and the fin support your weight and the board can flatten out, otherwise the weight you put on the windward rail will always turn you up wind. The secrets to getting back there are (1) enough wind and sail to plane, (2) getting your weight into the harness and off the board, (3) moving back stealthily after you have enough speed to help the board resist heeling to weather.

It is an art form.

CI

You didn't have enough wind/sail/fin to get planing and in the foot straps. Under the conditions you described, just stay forward of the foot straps and enjoy the ride. When the wind does pick up, try to sneak your feet back toward the foot straps without disturbing the board or the sail. When your feet are back to the straps and you are still planing comfortably, then worry about getting into the foot straps.

Try to set your boom height at about chest level and the harness lines about elbow to wristwatch length. Adjust both to taste from here.