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This old chestnut. Was mucking around yesterday concentrating on 'Closing the Gap'.
Usually I just sail to whatever feels right, and I'd say that is creating 'Mast Base Pressure'. All the drive feels like it comes from the mast, pulling me forward, with the occasional squeeze.
So while closing the gap yesterday:
- I'm not sure I was actually going any faster, but perhaps I was.
- I didn't feel as comfortable, not as much control.
- My ass hit the water a couple of times.
- And, overall, the rig felt very back-handed. Most of the power was going through my legs to the fin.
Perhaps I didn't have the rig set right? I had maximum downhaul, minimum outhaul and was powered up most of the time, occasionally lit up, occasionally underpowered. Personally I'd say it was a very comfortable and fast setting, except when 'closing the gap'. I was mostly sailing on a reach.
Now I think of it probably the only times I 'close the gap' ...just because, is when fully lit on flat water.
10th edit: I know what I'm trying to say/ask. Should I be really slamming the sail down for every last inch of power, or letting it breath a little (like I usually do)?
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I recalled a similar thread where someone had cited Cribby on this topic. I googled it and found this in an article on early planning. Make of it what you will:
In the very earliest days of windsurfing when we just cruised along slower than the wind, it was important to stop some of the precious air from escaping underneath the sail by raking it right back. In those days boards were so long, narrow and heavy that raking the sail back didn't have much effect on them. However for the past fifteen years, despite what you may see, read or hear elsewhere, 'closing the slot' is like pulling a handbrake on, and completely detrimental to your early planing and general stance, as it kills the power of your sail and can sink the tail of your board.
Check out any shot of a real professional World Tour windsurfer and see if they've 'closed the slot', or if they seem relatively upright. The only times you'll see it 'closed' is with racers whose sails have extra large foot areas (their mast is almost as upright as a wave sailors), or if they're sailing overpowered on a broad reach (which, let's face it, most of the windsurfing public rarely do). Even in this situation, the rig is only raked back because the sailor has sunk so low to control the power, that the rig happens to have raked back. |
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Depends what you mean by 'closing the gap'.. That phrase should be replaced with 'having the sail sheeted in 100%'..
By doing this, many sails that have a large foot will literally 'close the gap' between the board and the sail. But wave sails will never be able to 'close this gap', even if they are sheeted in 100% simply due to the high cut..
I remember being told I wasn't 'closing the gap' when I used to sail Formula, I tried to close it but it was my sheeting angle, not rake that was my main problem..
When I was in the position to teach others, I never used that phrase, because I found it misleading. Any gaps will naturally close with a sail working at the correct angle..
In other words, the sail is most efficient when the gap is closed on the X,Z plane.. As a result of that, it will settle on the X,Y plane..
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I thought this thread was going to be about giving native Australians the same opportunities to go windsurfing as the rest of Australia?
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agree - "closing the gap" was just one of those hype things that resonated with the over analytical crowd.
if anything having area too low and on the deck just gets in the way when gybing
the fact is that when everything is tuned it naturally sits in the right spot and you are at max velocity (assuming good and proper gear design)
this concept is very closely related to "it is what it is"
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evlPanda said...
This old chestnut. Was mucking around yesterday concentrating on 'Closing the Gap'.
Usually I just sail to whatever feels right, and I'd say that is creating 'Mast Base Pressure'. All the drive feels like it comes from the mast, pulling me forward, with the occasional squeeze.
So while closing the gap yesterday:
- I'm not sure I was actually going any faster, but perhaps I was.
- I didn't feel as comfortable, not as much control.
- My ass hit the water a couple of times.
- And, overall, the rig felt very back-handed. Most of the power was going through my legs to the fin.
Perhaps I didn't have the rig set right? I had maximum downhaul, minimum outhaul and was powered up most of the time, occasionally lit up, occasionally underpowered. Personally I'd say it was a very comfortable and fast setting, except when 'closing the gap'. I was mostly sailing on a reach.
Now I think of it probably the only times I 'close the gap' ...just because, is when fully lit on flat water.
10th edit: I know what I'm trying to say/ask. Should I be really slamming the sail down for every last inch of power, or letting it breath a little (like I usually do)?
for someone who analyses so deeply, you have far too much hair
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i ws under the impression you would go faster buy closing the gap? but then i was told on newer sails that there was no benefit?
i observed alot of speed sailors do it. Im pretty sure it works but correct me if im wrong/
also that phrase is related to placing the bottom of the sail parallel to the board? or the set-up on the universal extention .
closing the gap from what i have been taught by locals refers to runs where the rider closes the gap between the board and sail.
Think youd have to ask a gps sailor about this. And i also think that certain sails e.g wave may not accommodate or benefit from this.
I Think downwind possibly up wind on a certain angle with the correct fin and sail closing the gap is benefit.but hey most of the sailor i have seen doing this are hardcore and way overpowered.. its out of my league to comment.
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evlPanda said...
This old chestnut. Was mucking around yesterday concentrating on 'Closing the Gap'.
Usually I just sail to whatever feels right, and I'd say that is creating 'Mast Base Pressure'. All the drive feels like it comes from the mast, pulling me forward, with the occasional squeeze.
So while closing the gap yesterday:
- I'm not sure I was actually going any faster, but perhaps I was.
- I didn't feel as comfortable, not as much control.
- My ass hit the water a couple of times.
- And, overall, the rig felt very back-handed. Most of the power was going through my legs to the fin.
Perhaps I didn't have the rig set right? I had maximum downhaul, minimum outhaul and was powered up most of the time, occasionally lit up, occasionally underpowered. Personally I'd say it was a very comfortable and fast setting, except when 'closing the gap'. I was mostly sailing on a reach.
Now I think of it probably the only times I 'close the gap' ...just because, is when fully lit on flat water.
10th edit: I know what I'm trying to say/ask. Should I be really slamming the sail down for every last inch of power, or letting it breath a little (like I usually do)?
Interesting.. I wonder if that's what I'm doing wrong.. having started with the old school close the gap thingy..
Is that the same as sheeting angle..i.e - bringing the rig right in over the centreline to go upwind? I know that I point better when I ease the sail off a bit & get the rig a bit more upright/forward especially if a bit underpowered.
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Closing the gap should be more a result of trying to go all out for speed as opposed to doing it to go faster.
sheeting in hard and holding it down will bring the sail back and close the gap.
I find the gap closes easily when I'm going downwind as i'm leaning back a bit more but fully sheeted in.
Moving the rig forward when going upwind is probably more a weight transference thing.
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As seen in the luderitz post - would you consider this closing the gap by anders ? 
Whats really interesting with the sail design tho is how the top is almost perfectly horizontal with the sail raked back.
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For boards designed for maximum speed the lateral force will be mostly provided by the fin. Wavesailors and freestylers might get lift from the rail or the rocker, but they do that only because they use such small fins.
So, when "sailing off the fin", If the force of the sail is not centred over the fin you will either turn upwind or downwind. You are constrained as to where you can rake the sail to by the position of the fin.
If you can't close the gap and you want to close the gap either move the fin back or move the mast foot forward.
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Roar said...
As seen in the luderitz post - would you consider this closing the gap by anders ?
Whats really interesting with the sail design tho is how the top is almost perfectly horizontal with the sail raked back.
Sorry, off topic - but it's amazing how much chop/swell you can get in such a small area of water.
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I have a 212L Bic that I have added a mast track 30+CM ahead of where Bic put one.
More chance of closing the gap now.
Not sure what Bic were thinking of when they put it in the middle of the board instead of 1/3 back from the front. Maybe there it would suit a teenager learning to sail, rope starting꜡
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What model sail were you using? You can't close the gap on a wave or freestyle sail because it will stall and you will feel all weird. Unlike a slalom sail (which you can close on the deck pretty close to the centre line) a wave sail is slower when its sheeted in too close to the centre line.
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