OK gybing... I'm assuming a carve gybe with planing entry, not a groveling or flare gybe:

Sounds like you are (1) dropping off the plane and
(2) flipping rig too late.

Rig flip should commence at pretty much dead downwind, so the sail has almost NO power (you are moving downwind fast at that point) so when you let go with your back hand it is almost a weightless feeling, and as you continue your carve the sail slowly rotates.... your front hand is still on the boom to the last millisecond so the mast can't fall downwind.

If you imagine dropping off the plane at the dead downwind point, of course the sail is ripped downwind, as all of a sudden it has wind in the sail.

Big tip for carve gybes: gybe from a braod reach to a broad reach so you acr okly turning thru 100 - 130 degrees, not 180. They should call it a K gybe and then people would learn it a lot fatser i reckon. The upright part is your course and the "< " part shows what course you take thru your gybe.

Heli tack: I can't do them consistently so feel free to ignore me, but the rig is supposed to go from leaning to windward to flipped and downwind really fast. Heli tacks are always a really fast rig flip and hard to control.

Look for instructional vids and pics on Jem Hall's, Guy Cribb's or Simon Hurrey's sites.

Mark _australia said...
Heli tacks are always a really fast rig flip and hard to control.

Not so much if you turn way downwind before you flip, like on a broad reach. Then you can do it slow, or stay clew first for a while first much more easily.

I don't mean a rig flip during a carve gybe and I haven't found a picture of a flare gybe yet so don't know about that.

I mean after when I'm sailing clew first for a bit. Say I water start clew first - somehow I managed this a few times today - then the hard part should be done, I'm planing, on a reach, clew first. The sail is very twitchy and I'm thinking righto, I've pushed my luck far enough let's flip the rig. But holding the clew to the wind is like holding a tiger by the tail: hard to hang on and things get worse when I let go.

I bet this is going to be real easy when I know how, but at the moment I'm spending a lot of time in the water after my rig gets out of reach on the flip. It's like I need to lean back to allow for the weight when it flips but I daren't lean back in preparation because I'm already nervous with a twitchy clew first rig.

My helitacks got a step closer (I hope!) when I concentrated on moving my front foot first. But same problem as described above where the flipped rig is just too far away to grab without falling in.

174 said...

Slide your front hand right to the front of the boom (up against the clamp) before you flip.

Keep low (knees really bent) so the rig won't pull you over.

New front hand goes under the old one.

Thanks
I can't picture what my hands do but I don't reckon the knees have been bending much.

ItchyBeast said...

Handy advice on how to let go of a windward clew and then catch the rig on opposite side?? Like after exiting a gybe clew first, or in a helitack. The rig is falling away as it spins and when I lean to get it... I mostly go too, or at very best make an unconvincing catch at full stretch.

Three things:

1) Open the sail more, so there's more pull in it. This means you lean back more, and don't get yanked off balance as the sail spins around. When on the water this means sailing more downwind.
2) Move the mast hand right up to the mast just before the flip.
3) Practice this move on land for as long as it takes until you can do it blindfolded.

A good exercise is (on land with a sub-5m sail rigged very flat) to duck gybe the sail, this brings you to clew first, then flip normally. It takes a bit of practice, but will improve your sailing very quickly.

It's not as hard as it looks!!

ItchyBeast said...
[brSay I water start clew first - somehow I managed this a few times today - then the hard part should be done, I'm planing, on a reach, clew first. The sail is very twitchy and I'm thinking righto, I've pushed my luck far enough let's flip the rig. But holding the clew to the wind is like holding a tiger by the tail: hard to hang on and things get worse when I let go.

Keep the board pointing quite broad off the wind and the rig is easier to control and flip from clew first. So don't waterstart clew first then turn upwind, keep pointing off the wind until the rig is flipped. Get your back hand far, far down the boom and don't flip till you have some control.

You don't need the board at all -- just rest the extension on the grass, and flip away! You go from normal sailing, duck flip to clew first, then flip to normal sailing again. I think this move is called a "Sail 360" or something. The wind can come from the same angle the whole time, in fact last Friday I was doing them on the water, just sailing along.

Light wind is best, and a smaller sail is easier. Perfect for when you rock up at the beach and the wind hasn't come in yet.

It's excellent practice, and lots easier to do on land rather than on the water. Once you've got them sorted it will make the water part a lot more possible.