Sport Today

Also, here is a question about foot positions on the board
when bringing up the sail in choppy water.
I keep my feet on the centre line of the board - either side
of the mast when pulling the sail up out of the water - this
works OK when the water is fairly calm (BTW I am very new to
this sport, I sail at Balm***Harbour in Sydney).
But on Saturday, I was windier than what I've been used to
and the water was choppier. As I pulled the sail out of the
water the wind would catch the sail and since the board was
wobbling (due to the choppy water) I went straight in. Even
if I managed to get the sail up the same thing would happen
as I started to move off. Eventually (after much cursing) I
would place my feet on either side of the board i.e near the
edges. This helped me balance against the wobble - Is this
the correct foot position for these conditions?
BTW:I was sailing barefoot - keeping grip was tricky - could
this be a major cause of my balance problems.
Rather than using my knees to balance, I began crouching and
had a sore back at the end.
Any advice would be much appreciated.

--
Mahesh Patel.

To spend less time watching TV and more time learning to surf.

And BTW, one of the most frustrating things about learning to windsurf
is the uphauling stage.  Try to get a lesson on waterstarting
as soon as possible - you'll have a lot more fun!  

- Sue

Split toes
----------
I've been using O'Neil split toe booties for several years and I
think they're great.  I found that split toes stay in place while
the old round toe design tends to slide around on my feet and even
start to roll over on my foot.  When I wore my old round toe booties,
I always felt like I was wearing a pair of wet socks.  

I have two pairs I use on a regular basis.  The Baja booties (Tubes
socks?) which are low top booties.  These are really thin and give you
a great feel for the board.   For cold water, I use my 3mm O'Neil high
booties, mainly because I can wear the over the bottom of my wetsuit
and keep water from getting forced up into my wetsuit.

Do Booties Stick?
-----------------
These booties stick like glue for me.  One light wind day I was
debating whether it was worth rigging when a friend walked up and
offered his rig.  Showoff time!  I took off my shoes & socks, handed
my friend my wallet and keys, then took off on his Astro Rock wearing
my street clothes (jeans and shirt).  I slogged out, pumped the sail
onto a plane, and started a jibe.  I flipped the sail, switched my
feel, and pulled in the sail hard.  The last thing I remember was
sliding on my bare feet down the length of the board and flying into
the water.  Moral: Check the non-skid before you sail in your clothes!
Or wear your booties.  Well it was a nice warm day and I entertained
everyone on the beach. 8-)

Uphauling
---------
Uphauling in chop is very difficult.  Bend your knees.  Get the
sail into position.  (Straight down wind, 90 degrees to the board.)
Dip about 18" of the clew in the water for balance and make final
adjustments. When you feel you are ready, uphaul quickly and agressively!
Don't wimp out or you'll go swimming!  I've never liked that "cross-over"
method for grabbing the booms, so I grab the mast with my front hand,
grab the booms with my back hand, then sail off.  When I have some speed,
I my my front hand to the booms.

The real solution is to learn to waterstart when the wind picks up.

- Kevin
:

The right thing to do is learn to water start.

Craig,

8'10" Bailey jump, 9'9" Sailboards Maui
Wt 155#, Ht 6'3", Usually sail on high desert lakes near SLC in Ut
Go short or go home

Split toe is the only way to go.  Here in America we use the great toes to
grip the board on both sides instead of using footstraps.  This won't work
with normal booties.