Sport Today

I have the same problem and have since done two things
1. I shortened my harness lines by about 2 inches
2. I changed the distance between the lines to 6-8 inches from 10 inches
because I suspect I was oversheeting the sail and depowering the rig.

I'm still curious what other steps to take because I still feel like I'm
still not upright as much as I should be.
btw the boom is at neck level, my outhaul is at +/-0 and my leach is loose to
the second and sometimes third batten on my aerotech ultimate shalom
Tom Whittemore xantos310,fanatic rat,

I have shortened min about 3 times now, the latest being this
past weekend.  They are now ALMOST midway to my elbow.  I feel
like I am going to kiss the mast occasionally but it sure helps
keep me from picking up weeds with my behind.

--
Glenn Woodell - Windsurfing the lower Chesapeake Bay, Hatteras,
and anywhere else my surfmobile or my credit cards lead me.
"If you're not scared, you're not trying hard enough"

I recently moved from a Bic Rumba to Vivace 282 with some more modern
sails.  The problem I have now is not waterstarting or planing but
keeping my bum out of the water when at max speed!
At lower planing speeds my stance is fairly upright but as I accelerate
and push against the fin my body swings outboard and keeps catching in
the chop.  (And some people pay money for salt water***s'!!)

My lines are roughly elbow to***in lenght.
Should I keep shortening them or is it my stance that needs to change?

Regards
Jon

I just keep cutting mine shorter and shorter, and the shorter they get the
better I like them. Mine now hang about 9-10" when hooked in, so there is
very little swing. I PUT them in the hook, rather than having to time some
long swing and trying to catch them on the fly.
Get a pair thatg uses rope and tubing you can cheaply experiment with and
see if you don't like them short.
Of course, I can't use them standing completely upright, but I don't sail
standing completely upright.
Mike

Yeah me too, I've also tuned them to be further back on the wishbone.
It helps sheeting in.

Micky

I also have shortened my lines significantly.  I am still learning proper
harness technique.  My problem is I don't seem to be able to hang my
weight on the boom efficiently with short lines though it is easier to
balance the sail. The tail of the board drags in the water when I am
standing very far forward and fairly powered.

125lbs: Mistral One Design: 8.0, 6.6, 5.7, 5.0

Suggestions would be appreciated!

K. Gwaltney
Mach 10 and Windy Too.

NCSU Windsurfing Club        NCSU WEATHER (includes Hatteras)
Raleigh, N.C.                   http://meawx1.nrrc.ncsu.edu/

If your lines are positioned properly fore and aft your sail
should be balanced anyway and you should have equal pressure each
arm.

--
Glenn Woodell - Windsurfing the lower Chesapeake Bay, Hatteras,
and anywhere else my surfmobile or my credit cards lead me.
"If you're not scared, you're not trying hard enough"

|> I recently moved from a Bic Rumba to Vivace 282 with some more modern
|> sails.  The problem I have now is not waterstarting or planing but
|> keeping my bum out of the water when at max speed!
|> At lower planing speeds my stance is fairly upright but as I accelerate
|> and push against the fin my body swings outboard and keeps catching in
|> the chop.  (And some people pay money for salt water***s'!!)
|>
|> My lines are roughly elbow to***in lenght.
|> Should I keep shortening them or is it my stance that needs to change?

Well, maybe shortening the lines a bit might help, but I don't think the
line length is the problem.
I figure, now you are*** in your harness with your knees bent. Try
stretching your legs and turn your hip forward, so you are facing in the
direction in which you move. This will also make your sail stand upright
more (in lateral direction), giving you some extra speed (but keep the gap
closed, of course).

With my current harness line setting, I can do some bum-waterskiing if I want to
when I bent my knees. (This can be fun - especially when you're getting
too hot in your suit on a sunny day.)
But when I stand upright in my normal stance, I never touch the water with my
hindquaters.

  Volker

1) Change your stance. You want to keep the lines long enough to keep
   the sail nearly vertical (less than 30 degrees windward).
2) Shorten lines a bit but not as radical as some of the suggestions.

Just my $0.02.

grant

--
Grant Grundler                           Open Systems Software Division

Sounds good. Usually I see people not sheeting in enough though.

Too high. Shoulder height or slightly lower for new sails. in the 1980's
we sailed with the boom and about eye-level. Newer sails don't get raked
back nearly as much and thus a lower boom works better for me.

Outhaul and downhaul are unique to each sail/mast combination.
Whatever works.

grant
--
Grant Grundler                           Open Systems Software Division

Two suggestions.

One, make sure when you are going fast and in your stance that your back &
body is relatively straight. Knees should be bent to absorb shock and toes
pointed. Maybe a straight body position with a higher angulation will help
which will straighten up the mast (good)

Second, is watch where you are sailing and steer off or up from wave
crests. This sounds obvious and you can't alter your course for every wave
but focusing on where you are sailing and not how you are sailing will
help you to avoid hip checks.

From the book according to Brad Duffy - bring your mast track all the way
back and drop your booms as low as possible in the slot. Sheet in when a
gust hits and drive off with your front leg. Harness lines should be long
enough so that when you un-hook at full speed your hips and ***stay in
the same position. The main point he stresses, however, is to sheet in
when over powered and drive off with the front leg.......
Dizsail

Stance.

Volker is right.  Stand up.  Consider raising your boom.  Twisting your
hips forward will also help.

Look at some video of the professionals.

Really short harness lines are a pain in the ass, and a compensation for
a squatty stance.

|> I recently moved from a Bic Rumba to Vivace 282 with some more modern
|> sails.  The problem I have now is not waterstarting or planing but
|> keeping my bum out of the water when at max speed!
|> At lower planing speeds my stance is fairly upright but as I accelerate
|> and push against the fin my body swings outboard and keeps catching in
|> the chop.  (And some people pay money for salt water***s'!!)

If your bunz are forever dragging on the water, it sounds like:
your lines are too long (for your harness/body),
or your booms may be too low,
or your mast is too far back,
or your body position needs work.

The best way to fix your problem is to have a good sailor follow you
and tell you what you are doing.  Otherwise here are some other tips
you might have overlooked...

Boom too low
------------
Symptoms: Bunz drag on the water.  Your body looks like a question mark;
bent over at the waist and bent knees.  Can't get enough weight off your
arms and onto the harness line.  Spin outs.

Cure: Raise the booms 1.5" (4cm).  Try to sail with your shoulders back,
no bend at the waist (***in) and arms nearly straight.  Try it!

Mast too far back
-----------------
Symptoms: Too much weight on back foot; compensated by bending your
knees and moving your hips forward towards the board's nose.  This can
create a stance that is awkward, low, and drags you bum in the water.
The power of the sail pulls you mostly across the board and you don't
feel it pulling you forward at all.  (Plus: You can't get upwind.  The
nose of the board rides too high above the water.  Spin outs.  Etc.)

Cure: Move the mast base forward 1.5".  This should put more weight
on your front foot make the sail feel like it's pulling a bit more forward.
(Note: you may need to raise the slightly booms after moving the mast forward.)
If this feels good, try sailing off the wind and practice your body stance.

Body Stance
-----------
This is what feels right for me:  Front leg slightly bent, back leg
bent more, and I'm*** back towards that tail slightly.  My feel
are rolling the board so it's flat on the water (for speed or
climbing).  My ***is pulled in and my shoulders are back.  Most of
the sail's pull is on the harness line, my arms are nearly straigt and I'm
using my shoulder muscles to tune the sail. (Less tiring than using the
smaller arm muscles.)  If I'm going slighly offwind, I'll really feel
like I'm being pulled right into the front strap.   I can feel the sail
pulling forward as well as across the board, so I'll shift back slighly.
If I'm going upwind, I'll have a bit more weight on the back foot and
I'll have to shift my hips forward slightly.

Final notes, small changes of 1 to 1.5" make a big change in how you gear
will sail.  Buying a black pen and a silver pen to mark how you assembled
you gear is a worthy investment.

Enjoy!

Kevin

I used to set up my harness lines from***to elbow, until I went to
Bitez last year when one of the instructor suggested I shortened them
quite considerably.  They are now approximately 1/2 to 2/3 from***to
elbowe and are much more comfortable.

Trevor