it could be your boom is too low and you are not driving through the rig?

yep that's a good height for light winds.

was your back leg bent and front leg straight?

Gestalt said...


was your back leg bent and front leg straight?

Yeah and I was trying to get up on toes as well cos I heard that helps taking the weight off the feet and putting more on the rig. Well at least thats what I was attempting anyway lol.
Maybe I just need more time and practice on the water.

it's hard to tell without watching.

but i think decrepit is on the right track.

maybe you are leaning towards the tail of the board. this gives the impression of raking the sail back but is really just sinking the tail.
It usually results in the sail not being held vertically as well.

as you are planing and you rake the sail back swing your body weight forward. ie. try to look around the front of the mast.

of course always keep your head pointing where you want to go. i was always taught that in light winds, your body weight is not forward enough unless you can almost see around the front of the mast.

Thanks for all that info. Hopefully we will have some wind next weekend so I can try a few things.

Just a quick question about 'rails'. I see lots of descriptions on boards with 'hard' rails etc. Is a soft rail when its is rounded off and a hard rail when it goes to a hard edge? What effect does the different shapes have?

Sorry if the questions are a bit basic but I want to get my head around the technical aspects of how the boards work.

OceanBlue64 said...

Is a soft rail when its is rounded off and a hard rail when it goes to a hard edge? What effect does the different shapes have?

Yep, soft = round, hard = square, especially the bottom edge.

Basically for most purposes you want hard rails at the back for speed.
On trailing edges soft rails create "suck" (negative lift).

Mid to forward rails are better soft for ease of handling, earlier slalom boards had hard rails every where and made them very unforgiving down wind in chop at speed, the forward rail catches the chop in even the smallest spin out, the rail will dig and the board will turn over, sending rider into a catapult. Also gybing is much harder, for a similar reason, the forward rail digs in causing the board to go in a straight line, if you're leaning out, splasho.

mineral1 said...

Gestalt said...

this site has a good article on stance.

www.bluefinz.com/jm/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=34&Itemid=10001

www.bluefinz.com/jm/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=14&Itemid=10001

Thanks for that JB, am just completing second season, and was just at that point of wondering, whats the next step. Have it now

some more light reading then?

carbonsugar.com/

15knots... on a sonic 95... seems just a little light to be comfortably pushing a narrowish board off the wind. Did things become a bit more comfortable in the gusts?

P.C_simpson said...

dude for freeride sailing , your boom should only be shoulder hight at max, any higher and you start to lose control.

If you're overpowered maybe... but that's VERY unlikely in 15 knots.

I'd be looking for a bigger fin and/or sail, or maybe just some more wind for the little board. Mast foot back a bit might help, but it does sound like you're pushing the envelope of sailable conditions on that kit.

Maybe keep a closer eye on the water surface indications of the wind ahead so you can anticipate the lulls a bit better, and either bear off more in advance, or pop out of the straps and move inboard in preparation.

If you suspect that you're a bit heavy on the back foot, you could try shifting the harness lines back a bit - that will unload your back arm and back leg which often helps. (good to prevent spin out too!)

Cool. You need power to sail off the wind, otherwise the board gets a bit skatey and wants to turn up all the time... u can pretty much stand on your toes, sheet out a touch and ride the lull but its just easier to let the board do it's thing and round up a bit.

Easy fix, and geez keep it simple people.