Nice one!

I believe this is the day of the new board

Dezza said...

great news! Hope you get it out again in the coming southerly

If it comes on Friday am maybe.. suposed to be kayaking Fri pm /Sat..

although you said you stacked it next, that gybing picture actually looks pretty good. i can tell from the wake you've carved nicely, and the nose is only just starting to lift before the flip, so you've kept up speed.

elbows down (keeps the nose down), rear hand back (pulls you over the centreline + more rig control), heel up (weight on the inside rail) = good form.

suspect you just need to flip a touch earlier now and you'll rocket out! giddey-up!

You're getting well kitted up now, Sue.

If it comes on Friday am maybe.. suposed to be kayaking Fri pm /Sat..

Have to work on the priorities....when it's windy, go windsurfing [}:)]

Mark _australia said...

The gybe looks a bit too heavy on the back foot.But you must be happy with the new (correct) mast - the sail set looks spot on

Yep what a difference the right gear makes! Smaller depowering sail - I could have had more downhaul that day but I was too lazy and had a headache from sailing the day before to come & whinch it on.
re back foot - In best Pauline Hanson voice..'please explain..??"
I've been thinking I often stuff up on the exit with the rig too far forward to grab or too powerfulOne reason is I don't switch my feet halfway on the small board & end up exiting with each foot in a front strap which generally works but it isnt the most powerful position to be in to control the power if I can grab the rig . What could cause the problem..is it
1 - rig flip too late
2- not throwing the rig back over my shoulder so its in the right spot to grab
3- not being low enough & far enough forward & rig tipped into the turn
4 - all of the above..

That's a good size for you as it has enough float to slog around if the wind drops - although the short length makes that a bit more tricky. Sail range is supposed to be 4.2 to 5.7m so as you develop the skill at getting it going, you should find you get to use it more than you expect.

A review by a sponsored rider.
http://www.boardseekermag.com/equipment_reviews/sailor/tabou_pocketwave78_05.htm

sboardcrazy said...
re back foot - In best Pauline Hanson voice..'please explain..??"

I often stuff up on the exit with the rig too far forward to grab or too powerful. Is it:
1 - rig flip too late
2- not throwing the rig back over my shoulder so its in the right spot to grab
3- not being low enough & far enough forward & rig tipped into the turn
4 - all of the above..

So you seem to be leaning back in the photo, which weights the tail and slows you up. lean into the arc of the turn - you'll always have more weight on your rear foot (to carve the board), but don't lean back...your hips should be forward of your rear foot and it'll help you cut through chop and keep up speed. win-win huh?

for the flip get down low to anticipate the power of the rig, moreso in heavier weather. flipping early gives you more power because of the broader reach, so you need to be ready for it.

as soon as it flips, make sure the mast is on the inside of the turn - windward of the centreline. in your photo it's creeping out - which is okay at the start of the flip. if you're really banked the mast has to swing more upright on the flip so the clew doesn't drag in the water.

but if you try to catch it there, you have little leverage over the sail...you'll have to bend forward to reach the boom, losing your ability to carve and control the rig's power! best case: ugly exit, worst case: splash.

but with your weight and the mast on the inside of the turn, and being down low you are in a strong position to harness the power for good...e.g. your blazing exit to the raucous applause of the beach crowd.

sboardcrazy said...
Nothing like screaming along over chop at warp speed ( prob not with me but it feels like it! ) and thinking crap..now somehow I've got to get my foot out of the rear strap to start the gybe and let myself get pulled forward by the rig...

yep - it's counter-intuitive. we naturally want to lean back from the sail to stop getting pulled over the handlebars. but here's the thing...rear hand back plus oversheeting de-powers the sail...the power is all gone! windsurfing teaches us to rely on the rig for balance, but here you steer the board around by foot pressure, mostly on your inside rail. and the de-powered sail magically loads up the mast foot without pulling at all! you can push down on the rig to keep the nose down (extra easy if you're leaning forward), but in a screaming gybe, you'll actually rake it behind you a touch and have a nice clear view un-obscured by the sail because your front arm is extended.

here's someone getting it right... (admittedly this smug b@stard is in azure calm waters, but the technique is the same, just bend ze knees deeper in rough water)




your torso twists naturally when you initiate the flip, keeping your shoulders parallel to the sail...which pushes the mast to the outside of the turn. i let go of my back hand, hold a split second as the sail flips, then pull the mast back towards the inside with the front hand to get it into possy for catching...the quicker in and lower I am, the more aggressive i need to do it. by the time the sail's all the way around, i want it sitting forward and tilted to windward - that's where i'll find the power to plane out...

i really improved my flip practicing sailing clew first. in lighter winds, follow the rig as you flip it, without letting go of the back hand, just do your foot change - you'll rotate and voila! you're clew first...congrats! sail around a bit, this is fun! the way you oppose the sail is to lean back from it, but to flip it, you'll need to get low (not rely on the rig for balance) and let go of your back hand, then pull the mast across your body as it flips and grab the other side. it'll improve your rig flipping no end, and give you a funky light wind gybe.

Hey Sue, looking good! I'm having the same probs as you but you are already way in front of me, I run out of puff in the middle of the gybe coz I'm not leaning forward enough and have too much weight on my back foot. Strange thing is I know what I'm doing wrong but the brain ain't correctin' it!

I've come up with an idea to all the experts. Sorry Sue not meaning to hijack your thread...but it could be useful for us both?

To really allow all the elements required for a carve gybe to be consistent (at speed) would it be a good idea if I practiced a carving 360? Coz I reckon this will force me to commit leaning into the turn with the sail and weight forward. To enable this to happen the sail has to be leaned perpendicular to the board and basically pointing into the centre of the circle in an imaginary pivot point. I'm not going to worry about the outcome of the 360, I could never come out of them correctly in the past anyway, I just want board and sail control/positon to stick in my head.

I'll worry about flipping the rig later.

Oh the other thing, while practicing this should I keep my rear foot in the strap (centre single strap wave style) or out gybe style? I only ask this as I want to practice for bottom turns too.

Any of this a good idea or bad?

nosinkanow said...

if I practiced a carving 360: good idea or bad?

it's all cross-training. learning a 360 will help your carve gybe (and many other parts of your sailing). but i don't think you're really going for a 360 - you're trying to carve as hard and as far till you get backwinded. but that's kewl...it'll still teach you something about your sailing and how to commit to a carve.

busterwa said...

[b]

lean forward more looks like your diggng in the back of the board and slowing it down.

Your front hand needs to be further back in the normal sailing position.

try entering the gybe on a broad reach and focus on keeping both your arms straight.

Mobydisc said...

Did you get out on it today? It was blowing hard in Sydney. I used my Tabou Rocket 105 and could have easily used an 80L board but I don't have one, at least not one made this century

Yep.I had to go early as I was going to crew on a yacht in the pm.Started with the 125 + 5.8m..chop too big & all over the place for the 125 but 100m lulls so no go for the 95..Kicked in a bit 15 - 25kt SSW so 95 + 5m..getting most of my gybes! Not brillant but getting around.I used some of the tips..leaned the rif into the turn ,aggressively pulled it back as I flipped & flipped earlier & it worked! That was if I wasn't really overpowered. I almost got one planing one in the chop but fell off the back.
I'll be buggered if I can get low & forward enough! Even if I bend my knees etc I still seem to end up upright.[}:)] I think I was doing that + entering with a straight front arm better earlier in the season..[}:)]
Anyway pretty happy as it was crappy in that you were in & out of the straps ..not enough wind one minute + too much the next.
Everyone else + the wind came as I left..
Grr I was really tired but I went sailing thinking it would be a nice rest... He had too much sail up . It was protected where we set off .I kept telling him it was 20 -25kts+ out there but it took halfway around the race before he reeefed & admitted he should have earlier.
I've now got a strained ankle & hobbling around on home made crutches. .You don't realise how much you rely on walking/ driving until you can't.. I better be right by next Thursday for the next S..[}:)] My partner went on another boat & he's pulled some muscles in his chest so we're both the walking wounded.. I think we're getting too old for this crewing business..At least if you have your own boat you can put appropriate sails up & get decent winches to make it easier..
Any tips on committing forward for a gybe..? any exercises you can do?

Waiting4wind said...

Now that you have a snappy little board try some fun jibes. Smack it into a piece of swell and spin it around in a tight radius jibe... with plenty of back foot pressure. You'll be surprised how quickly it will change directions and how much beach cred you'll get.

I think I've done a few tight radius ones..I'll try a few but I want to get longer broad reach ones so I plane out.The only one that kept planing yesterday was a larger radius than usual.I find I need to be really careful to oversheet properly as I enter so I don't lose it..
I didnt use the new small board yesterday as when I was out it was too gusty + not quite strong enough.It looked like it would have been ok for it when I was leaving.