Sport Today

by **nick** » Sat, 18 Mar 1995 04:22:16

I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying to
make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my savings
at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and spent
the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there who
sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give me
some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out on a
fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.

Thanks in advance...

Nick

by **AERODESI** » Sat, 18 Mar 1995 21:57:28

To learn to water start:

1. Wait til the wind blows (at least 6.5 conditions)

2. Find a protected spot with good wind, elbow deep water, and no waves.

3. Work at waterstarts using all the advice that has appeared here and in
magazines on board/sail/foot/hand positioning and technique. There is no
substitute for experience and time on the water.

4. Once you can start reliably in shallow water, move to deep water. You
will find it very helpful to wear a PFD. You will also find that the
biggest job is getting the board and sail properly positioned. Placing
the boom on the tail of the board can be helpful if the wind is not
particularly strong and if your board is long enough.

5. Practice until you get it right! There is nothing difficult about
waterstarting. My ***aged son taught himself a reliable waterstart using
the above method. It took him about 45 minutes.

by **Stephen Niglosc** » Sat, 18 Mar 1995 18:09:12

Quote:

>Subject: RI/Mass: need instruction in water-starting
>Date: 16 Mar 1995 19:22:16 GMT
>I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying to
>make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my savings
>at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and spent
>the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
>waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there who
>sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give me
>some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out on a
>fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.
>Thanks in advance...
>Nick

This isn't exactly what you're looking for but I'd say take a professional
lesson. You could end up with some bad instruction leaving you frustrated and
unsuccesful.

Also try to sail down at Fog Land Point, RI. There's an area there which is
great for beginners - shallow enough to do chest deep beach/water starts which
is great for learning. Check it out if you haven't already and good luck.

Stephen Nigloschy

by **Steve Van Ka** » Sun, 19 Mar 1995 02:45:42

: I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying to
: make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my savings
: at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and spent
: the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
: waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there who
: sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give me
: some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out on a
: fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.

: Thanks in advance...

: Nick

Sorry I can't be there in person, but I can give you one concept that may
help you to learn to waterstart. THINK OF THE TABLE CLOTH TRICK... Ever
see a magician snap a table cloth from under the table without tipping
over the dishes? When you water start try popping yourself on your board
quickly. Your body is the table cloth and the sail represents the
dishes. Also just like the magician keeps the table cloth low, you must
slide your body close to the board... Keep your ***close to the board
as you pop yourself up so that your center of gravity is low as if you
were trying to LIMBO under your booms. I hope that helps...

Surfsteve

by **WindZo** » Mon, 20 Mar 1995 00:27:51

Nick, the here are some ideas that helped me do my first waterstart.

1) Extend your arms straight over your head when you are ready. This will
guarantee you catch the most wind.

2) Lean in when extending your arms. This will keep you over the board.

3) Pull the board under you (sink it) with your back foot just as you
attempt to get up. You will then be on top of the board

4) Visualize yourself doing all this in one motion.

Nick do not give up this will come and you will wonder what all the
difficulty was. :-)

Best of luck

Steve of WindZone
WINDZONE 1-800-WINDXONE, 1-800-946-3966, 609-298-4340 Fax, "YOUR ULTIMATE
MAILORDER WINDSURFING SOURCE", Visa/MC/AMEX accepted! Call us today for
your Free catalog.

by **Kevin Cla** » Tue, 21 Mar 1995 22:50:06

: I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying
to

Quote:

>: make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my
savings
>: at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and
spent
>: the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
>: waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there
who
>: sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give
me
>: some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out
on a
>: fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.

>: Thanks in advance...

One thing I've noticed a lot of people do when they're first learning to
waterstart is to put both feet on the board instead of just one. If you
keep one foot/leg in the water, you will keep the board from sliding
through the water sideways, which takes the power out of the sail that's
trying to lift you out of the water. Also, to echo a previous reply,
don't think the sail is going to lift you out of the water. Try
"throwing" the sail and yourself up on the board in one motion.

by **Steve Van Ka** » Wed, 22 Mar 1995 01:15:44

: : I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying
: to
: >: make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my
: savings
: >: at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and
: spent
: >: the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
: >: waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there
: who
: >: sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give
: me
: >: some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out
: on a
: >: fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.
: >
: >: Thanks in advance...
: >

: One thing I've noticed a lot of people do when they're first learning to
: waterstart is to put both feet on the board instead of just one. If you
: keep one foot/leg in the water, you will keep the board from sliding
: through the water sideways, which takes the power out of the sail that's
: trying to lift you out of the water. Also, to echo a previous reply,
: don't think the sail is going to lift you out of the water. Try
: "throwing" the sail and yourself up on the board in one motion.

That's right! One thing that I can add is when you "throw" or snap
yourself up on the board, kick the foot that's in the water as hard as
you can... One good hard kick at that crucial moment can make the
difference between a water start and being Shark bait for another minuite
longer... Good luck to anyone learning to waterstart... here's hoping
that you too, will soon be using that uphoul rope as a tie down for your
trunk!

Steve.

by **H.T.M. ter Be** » Wed, 22 Mar 1995 12:19:40

Quote:

>: : I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying
>: to
>: >: make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my
>: savings
>: >: at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and
>: spent
>: >: the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
>: >: waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there
>: who
>: >: sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give
>: me
>: >: some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out
>: on a
>: >: fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.
>: >
>: >: Thanks in advance...
>: >
>: One thing I've noticed a lot of people do when they're first learning to
>: waterstart is to put both feet on the board instead of just one. If you
>: keep one foot/leg in the water, you will keep the board from sliding
>: through the water sideways, which takes the power out of the sail that's
>: trying to lift you out of the water. Also, to echo a previous reply,
>: don't think the sail is going to lift you out of the water. Try
>: "throwing" the sail and yourself up on the board in one motion.
>That's right! One thing that I can add is when you "throw" or snap
>yourself up on the board, kick the foot that's in the water as hard as
>you can... One good hard kick at that crucial moment can make the
>difference between a water start and being Shark bait for another minuite
>longer... Good luck to anyone learning to waterstart... here's hoping
>that you too, will soon be using that uphoul rope as a tie down for your
>trunk!

>Steve.

This throwing and snapping on the board might be a good advice, but
still this is the endpoint of the waterstart. I think you should first
be able to quickly put your sail and board in the proper position for
the wind, so wind from left or right, then pull your mast over the
tail of the board, so the boom is on the tail of the board, and then
let the wind come under the mast, and you pull with one movement the
mast above your head, immediately let the sail catch wind, and put
your leg on the board, it does not matter which leg. When the wind is
strong enough, it will pull you out of the water. Don't start
practicing waterstart with not enough wind. That is a waste of time
amd power.

Huub ter Beek

by **Steve Van Ka** » Thu, 23 Mar 1995 02:17:12

: >yourself up on the board, kick the foot that's in the water as hard as
: >you can... One good hard kick at that crucial moment can make the
: >difference between a water start and being Shark bait for another minuite
: >longer... Good luck to anyone learning to waterstart... here's hoping
: >that you too, will soon be using that uphoul rope as a tie down for your
: >trunk!
: >
: >Steve.

: This throwing and snapping on the board might be a good advice, but
: still this is the endpoint of the waterstart. I think you should first
: be able to quickly put your sail and board in the proper position for
: the wind, so wind from left or right, then pull your mast over the
: tail of the board, so the boom is on the tail of the board, and then
: let the wind come under the mast, and you pull with one movement the
: mast above your head, immediately let the sail catch wind, and put
: your leg on the board, it does not matter which leg. When the wind is
: strong enough, it will pull you out of the water. Don't start
: practicing waterstart with not enough wind. That is a waste of time
: amd power.

: Huub ter Beek

I disagree. If you're going to learn to waterstart, you have to learn to
do it in all conditions, especially light wind. I didn't even think
abouthow I did them till I started reading all theese posts about it, but
I remeber back when I was learning, I expected to be pulled right out of
the water. The trouble is, when a person is learning either there is not
enough wind to water start, or when there is, there is so much that it
pulls them up and clear over the other side. My point is, there is
almost never ideal conditions for waterstarting. If someone had said to
me "look Steve, that wind aint strong enough to pull you out of the
water, so you have to help it out by doing anything you can" I think I
would have learned to water start a lot earlier...

I do think that the first lesson of waterstarting should begin on dry
land, with the instructor holding a boom and helping the person to learn
the mechanics of leverage and how much of a difference keeping a low
center of gravity makes. At least it would have helped me to learn a lot
sooner.

by **Mark T. Anders** » Wed, 22 Mar 1995 18:50:09

Quote:

>I have sailed a 45 lb Bic *tanker* board for some years and am trying to
>make the transition to a short daggerboard-less board. I spent my savings
>at the end of last summer on a Bic Presto, a 5.5, harness, etc and spent
>the last week before school started floundering around, trying to do
>waterstarts. To make a long story short, is there anyone out there who
>sails within an hour or so of Providence who would be willing to give me
>some instruction, or even just tips, on waterstarts and starting out on a
>fun-board? Any info emailed would be greatly appreciated, too.

If there are dangerous sea critters in the water, and it's waterstart or die,
you'll be amazed how quickly you can get up and moving. I have never
waterstarted so quickly in light wind as the time I crashed a couple of feet
from a huge mass of jellyfish. I imagine sharks would work even better.

On a more serious note (not that the above is untrue), the day I first learned
to waterstart, this tip got me going: While grovelling in the water with the
sail above your head, look over the nose of the board and watch where it's
pointing. Keep it pointing the proper direction, off the wind a bit. I had
been staring at the sail, and the board was swinging around into the wrong
position. Looking forward solved the problem, and like magic I was
waterstarting.

Mark

PGP fingerprint: C2 88 F8 0B 08 9F 65 15 AB 3F 6B 50 06 04 89 D9

by **ellen fall** » Thu, 23 Mar 1995 03:18:33

Regarding waterstarts, let me emphatically second the statement that trying
to learn to waterstart without enough wind and/or with too small a sail is
is a waste of time and effort. I wasted the equivalent of 2 years trying to
accomplish that, and then learned it in 45 minutes in the right conditions.

Regarding Rhode Island and learning, I do recommend Ninigret Pond, at the State
Wildlife Refuge (and beach) area off Route 1 in Charlestown/Quonnochontaug.
It is a salt water barrier beach lagoon that is ankle to chest deep for a large
area, with some deeper areas (you only find those when you don't want to go in
over your head on real cold days 8-)). There are many regular windsurfers
there, who are usually happy to help out. Some of them are more knowledgeable
than others. Parking is free up until late May and after mid Sept, but if you
are a RI resident, it isn't that bad even when they charge and the spot is
worth it for learning. May to Sept one has to get there before 9 on Sat and
Sunday in order to get into the parking lot (it is small), but there is other
parking nearby.
Late April and May is usually a good time for enough wind with tolerable water
temperatures, altho cold water encourages you to improve fast.
Good luck,
Ellen

by **Arnaud Le Ho** » Sun, 26 Mar 1995 01:37:10

writes:

Quote:

> I do think that the first lesson of waterstarting should begin on dry
> land, with the instructor holding a boom and helping the person to learn
> the mechanics of leverage and how much of a difference keeping a low
> center of gravity makes. At least it would have helped me to learn a lot
> sooner.

Trying on land first maybe a good idea but indeed the most important is
certainly to understand how you must deal with your center of gravity.

First keep in mind that the sail won't pull you out aside days with strong wind
(but then it maybe not a very good day to learn). You've got to get out mainly
by your self considering your boom only as some handle to help.

This said to get out you need two different things:

1. to get the sail as vertical as possible so when you pull on your boom your
weight mostly goes to the mast against the board and not the sail against the
wind. To get the sail vertical, a very important point is to get close to the
board while lifting your sail. Your bot must almost get in contact to the
board. Moreover the more vertical is your sail the more wind it gets.

2. to stand up on the foot you've put on the board. Althought that may sound
obvious I've seen too many beginners just waitting for the sail to lift them.
Again the point is that you must get to the vertical of your board as soon as
possible, because then again your weight goes to the board and not to the sail.
This can be achieved by pulling the board under you with the foot you have on
the board. You may go by some step where you are kind of crouching on your foot
before being able to stand up.

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