Windsurfing Magazine

luke
2009-12-11 12:49:16 | 2716 views | 1 Comments

Bored with the bump-and-jump? Take our crash course in down-the-line wave-sailing basics.

Set Up Your Ride

Catch your wave where the swells are building but not breaking. Look over your shoulder to select the swell you want. Don’t sail out ahead of the wave; go only as fast as the wave is moving. Use the power of the forming wave to help you pinch upwind. Dig in your heelside rail and head up the line — you can head much higher than normal. This allows you to stall and wait for the wave to make sure you are positioning yourself in the best possible spot. Continue looking down the line (around the mast or through the sail) at the forming wave. As you see it take shape, plan your ride. Don’t drop in too early and outrun the best part. Look for the wave getting steeper with the hint of white spray blowing off the top, then sheet in and power up the sail to accelerate down the wave face.

Pick Your Spot, Pick Your Gear

Down-the-line wave sailing is easiest to learn with side-shore to side-off winds and ground swell. While this may occur near your home spot, consider taking a trip to a place like Maui, Jericoacoara, Brazil, or Punta San Carlos, Mexico, where these conditions happen consistently. Contrary to other disciplines in windsurfing, the goal when picking wave gear isn’t necessarily being comfortably powered at all times, but rather just when you’re on the wave. Sometimes we find ourselves in light winds and big waves. If you opt to take a rig that would let you plane on the way out, the added wind the wave generates, plus the acceleration from the drop-in, can make the rig difficult to control once on the wave. Instead, opt for a smaller board and sail, so you can be comfortably powered when on the wave. You’ll slog on the way out, but you’ll have more control on the wave, and thus more fun wave sailing. Good technique can help your light-wind slog. Position your feet in an open stance on the centerline of the board with the inside of your front foot pushing against the base of the mast. Keep the rig in a forward and open position. Put most of your weight in your front hand and front foot, which helps you maintain an even balance of weight over the middle of the board — between the mast track and front foot, where there is the most volume.

Pop Over A Wave

Minimal board speed can pop you over most waves. As you approach, keep a wide stance on the centerline with your front foot open. Point the nose at the wave. Right before the wave hits, weight your back foot, raising the nose, while simultaneously sheeting in, initiating the climb. Throw your body weight and the rig forward to maintain power. Get low and hang off your front hand. If there’s no chance of making it over, chicken jibe in front of the wave. With a small board, switch your feet before initiating your jibe. Put your weight into the boom to switch your feet without disrupting the board, then flip the sail. If the wave hits you while you’re clew first, surf the white water to gain speed and balance. Flip the sail and sail away, harm free!

Bottom Turn

It is crucial to maintain your speed through your bottom turn or you will be left out in front of the breaking wave with no ability to get up to the lip. Slide both hands farther back on the boom to help you drive the mast forward, and oversheet the sail to dump the power. Keep your body weight forward over your front foot and dig the full rail of the board into the water. Remember, your turn comes from carving with the curved rocker line of the board, not from weighting the back foot and pivoting the board.

Top Turn

How vertically you head back up the wave is dependent on how fast you are going and how aggressive you want to be. As you approach the lip, straighten up your rig, dig in your heelside rail, rotate your head and shoulders in the direction of your turn and slide your hands toward the mast to snap the sail open again to power up. Shifting your weight forward or back here can create a cool tail slide or throw buckets of spray.

Set Up An Aerial

An off-the-lip aerial starts with a great bottom turn that returns you to the peak with speed. As you head back up the face, aim for the steepest part of the wave — the area where it is just starting to break. As you hit the lip, shift weight to your heels and expose the bottom of the board to the white water so the power of the wave projects you up into the air, instead of rolling over you and putting you through the rinse cycle. Rotate your body to face back down the wave and sheet out to power up the sail and prolong your flight.

Land An Aerial

Position your body weight over the board. Often sailors will extend their back leg during an aerial, but if you land in this position, your body weight will be over the rail, which can cause spinout. Tuck in your back leg as you’re about to land, bringing the fin directly under your body, reducing the potential for spinout. As you land, roll your weight forward onto your front foot and into the boom through your front hand to smoothly transfer your speed into your next bottom turn.

Take One On The Head

Sometimes you might have to duck under a few waves. Put yourself between the wave and your gear for safety. Point the tip of the rig into the wave and use your body weight to sink the rig. Get a solid grab on the mast, then duck underwater. The initial tug won’t be too bad if the rig is underwater. Don’t be tricked! The board is floating on the surface, and the wave will grab that, so keep a tight grip and expect the stronger tug. Kick against it, and pop up on the other side with your rig in hand.

Tags: wave sailing

This entry was posted on Friday, December 11th, 2009 at 12:41 pm and is filed under Advanced, How-to. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.