Sport Today

On Going Upwind
---------------

I'm still having difficulty going upwind. I've tried a couple of different
fins (in the vane hope that my problems are equipment-related) and now
have a pretty long pointer type fin on my slalom board.

When I am not fully powered up and not in the straps, I absolutely cannot
make upwind headway. I invariably return to the beach downwind of my starting
position. It seems to me that others can get upwind in any conditions on
almost any board.

When powered up and in the straps, I do much better. I concentrate on keeping
my board flat, I even put pressure on the leeward rail. I steer upwind
by raking my sail back and sheeting in.

While sheeting in I notice that I lose a lot of power as I go from
a broad reach to a close reach. I suspect my sail handling technique
because others seem to just power upwind with the sail sheeted right in
and the gap firmly closed.  As I try to sheet in, rake back, and close
the gap, I seem to stall the sail and run out of power.

Help!!

On Sails In General
-------------------

My new N-P Wave Slalom (twin CAM) is a nice sail but somewhat longer
in the clew than I expected. I have no problems handling my Northwave
Trilite (5.0) or my N-P 4.7 Wave, both of which have clews in the five
foot range. However, the longer clewed sails seem much harder to handle
because when I start to get overpowered, it feels like the extra clew is
just working against me. AS I sheet in hard, it feels like the clew is
merely creating drag and slowing me down.

On the other hand, I see plenty of others fully sheeted in with slalom
or race sails with great long clews, and having none of these problems.

I have to assume that my technique is all wrong.

I keep my harness lines fairly close together at what seems to be the
center of effort.

HELP!!!!

Jim Munro

Cool sunglasses and a fancy airbrush job..at least I look good on the beach.

It is quite hard to get upwind when you are halfway powered up. With almost
no power, I can point almost as high as course race board. To overcome this
problem, you could try sheeting out. A cambered sail will help a lot.

You may have to lean forward if you don't have quite enough wind. On some
boards, taking the back foot out of the strap will allow you to point higher.

You should experiment with different sailing positions. To go upwind in
less than optimal wind, you have to lean forward.

The problem might also be that you are trying to point too high upwind.

Race and slalom sails are designed to be easy to control in overpowered
conditions. The gap is easy to close and gusts just add to your speed
without throwing you off balance.

Maybe your new Neil Pryde is not correctly rigged? Even so, don't expect
it to allow you to manage as much wind as a slalom sail.

   ____________________________________________________________________________
  / Juri Munkki     /  Helsinki University of Technology   /  Wind  / Project /

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

   (Here is an attempt to answer a technical question non-technically)

   It is my understanding that short boards (boards without daggerboards)
   are really not meant to be used in less-than-planing conditions...
   I'm sure someone else CAN AND WILL explain the physics of it, but when
   you are not planing, you are little more than a tiny sailboat and
   you need a big daggerboard to do any pointing (Center of effort and all
   that stuff).  So, yes it is an
   equipment problem-but not which fin to use-more like which board to use,
   or perhaps you need a bigger sail so that you can plane.

   Nancy
   p.s.  Last Tuesday, my husband and I went to Mill POND after work.
   It's definitely a pond...when its blowing, it takes 30-45 secs
   to get to the other side (where you can stand)! After an hour,
   I finally had to give up my 3.6 sail to my husband
   cuz I was tired of doing somersaults (I'm 120, and he's 180).  He was
   powered up and sailed until it was too dark to see! Love those
   Nor'easters! Now the question is, should I buy a 3.0 sail for those
   one or two times a year we actually get that kind of wind when its
   warm enough for me to sail?  It could be an excuse also to go to the
   Gorge!

Slogging upwind on a shortboard is something that I must do a lot where I
sail.  It can be done with a little practice and concentration.  Stand as
you would on a longboard with your feet in front of the straps.  Put most
of your weight on your rear foot and keep as much of the leeward rail in
the water as possible (this substitues for the centerboard).  Sheet-in and
twist your hips to windward being careful to keep the mast as vertical as
possible (leaning slightly to leeward is ok).  Now meditate on the word
"UPWIND" and chant "Oooommm"  (just kidding, no flames please).

Concentration is very important as you should be very close to the point
of rounding up.  If this happens, lean the sail toward the nose and
shift some of your weight to your front foot to bear off a little.

Remember to keep the nose in the water, don't point too high,
and don't oversheet, and you will to able to point almost as high as if
you were planing.

The main problem with this technique is that you move very slowly.  If there
are any currents that you are sailing against, you probably will not be able
to make headward.

Bob Poortinga  (6'0", 180 lbs)      It's a hard wind that's gonna blow...

[O'Brien 8'8", Bic Hard Rock 9'3", O'Brien GS Race 12', North & Waddell quiver]

Thanks for the advice. Actually my problem is not so much with slogging. I
can in fact make headway when I am out of the straps and really slogging.
With enough concentration I can slowly go upwind using my dimly
remembered longboard technique.

However, when I am planing, but not yet fully powered up with both feet firmly
in the straps and all my weight on the harness, I may go fairly fast, but I
gradually make downwind headway.

As most people who sail short boards will know, ther is 'planing' and
'REALLY PLANING'. I never really new the difference until I got
firmly in the straps. If you are REALLy PLANING, the fin does all the work.
If you are merely planing, part of the hull helps you go upwind. TA least
that's what it feels like to me.

Jim MUnro

|> (...)
|>
|> As most people who sail short boards will know, ther is 'planing' and
|> 'REALLY PLANING'. I never really new the difference until I got
|> firmly in the straps. If you are REALLy PLANING, the fin does all the work.
|> If you are merely planing, part of the hull helps you go upwind. TA least
|> that's what it feels like to me.
|>
|> Jim MUnro

Maybe what you call ``really planing'' is ``planing,'' and what you
call ``merely planing'' is ``not quite planing''.  I find that there
is a point in which the sailing dynamics change quite drastically,
and before that it is all slogging, fast slogging or slow slogging,
but always slogging.

What I still find a little tricky is getting on a (real) plane with
moderate wind.  I am not very good at pumping: I try but it does
not seem to have any effect at all.  Usually I head downwind and
hope for a gust, and when I feel it coming I lean back and do a
single, long pump.

Just recently I learned to use the straps more effectively.  I used
to consider them just an anti-slip aid.  Then I noticed that if they
are tight enough, pressing down with the ball of my feet keeps the
board much flatter (sideways).  It really makes a difference: it
feels like it takes almost no energy to maintain the plane.  Nice
feeling.

Luigi

Bic E-Rock (8'8", 17lb., 102liters), Windwing Convertible sails.

|>    Nor'easters! Now the question is, should I buy a 3.0 sail for those
|>    one or two times a year we actually get that kind of wind when its

I'd say yes, try to buy a second-hand 3.0/3.2.
I am around 180lbs and used a lot my 3.0 on my wave board, (now with modern
sails, I can handle a 3.5 in these kind of winds now).

--

Pho:(33) 93.65.77.70(.66 Fax), INRIA, B.P.93 - 06902 Sophia Antipolis, FRANCE.

I have learned a couple of things recently:  1) a light, stiff race sail
is enormously easier to pump  2) you have to think of pumping
differently than merely sheeting in and out.  I found that short strokes
pivoting approximately around my harness hook seem to work pretty well.
This has the advantage of letting you hook in first and pump onto
a plane second (in light wind, when a gust comes).

Ken Poulton

Ahh..now we're "down to the short strokes" (interpret this as you will).:-)
I agree with Ken that using a short pumping technique through lulls in light
air works best. I apply a barely perceptible rotating pumping motion with
the booms (clockwise when I'm on a port tack, I believe), and at the same time
apply a subtle lateral kicking motion to the fin. It has to be subtle so as
not to upset the plane.  People are amazed when you pass them and it looks
as if you are both doing the same thing. Oh yeah, It also helps to have a good
tune in your head while you're doing this. After enough frustrating lulls,
you'll find yourself coming up with all kinds of serpentine maneuvers to
maintain a plane.

-Dan

        I think Jim's problems are common.  Sailing this weekend in
        marginal conditions, I had the same problems.  When slogging,
        you can use the rail to get upwind.  In marginal "planing"
        conditions, it's not as easy.  Definitely planing, but barely.
        You just do the best you can.  What I do is lift up with my
        front foot to help level the board.  In those conditions, more
        pressure is on the front foot and keeping the board level is
        more difficult.  I push with my back foot and lift with my
        front foot and keep the sail as far back as possible.  It's
        not terribly comfortable, but you have to get home.  I also
        kind of work the board upwind.  Riding pumps and gusts and
        swells upwind but bearing off a bit before falling off a plane.

        tom.

The other planing technique I use with is to work the swells.
When trying to start planing, this means turning downwind a bit
and pumping while surfing down the face of the swell (however small).

When trying to maintain a marginal plane, I have found that I usually
lose the plane when going up a swell.  This makes sense - you are just
losing speed (kinetic energy) in order to climb the swell (gaining
potential energy).  In this case, I try to steer around the bigger
swells if possible, and bend my knees as I go over the others to keep my
body from going up and down.   Both of these techniques make a real
difference even in one foot swells.

Ken Poulton

After cruising in a little to close to the boa*** and "remodeling" my
pointer (which was a little short anyway :(, I used an Open Ocean "Re-Fin"
to put it back in service.  Well, the notch at the base seems to be
a wonderful spin-out initiator, so I switched to my non-pointer after
struggling a little overpowered with my 5.7.

Then my brain came to the rescue:

        "Plane first, then point,"

it said to me, and it worked!  Of course, I kinda knew that anyway,
but it was the reminder I needed.

When I'm sailing Coyote, I often have problems on the ride back in.
Often I am sailing almost 90 degrees relative to the direction of the swells.
Sure, it's easy to pick up a bit of speed down a swell, but I find it almost
impossible not to end up going downwind under theses circumstances.

Jim Munro