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sharkbiscuit said...

Bondalucci said...

Shark biscuit, IMHO I reckon for 68 kilo's a 148 ltr board is pretty big.

Ok.

Thanks for your advice all :). The common theme is getting the weigth off my front foot.
I'll definately give it a go when i'm down at the beach next.

hi biscuit.... it's hard to tell without watching you sail, but i don't think getting the weight off your front foot is the problem

i think you may be trying to get into the back straps to much. having a really bent back leg with your bum hanging over the back of the board is a sign of this.

i asked that question because it is a sure sign of stance problems. especially when it gets very windy. it is also a sign that the board is way to wide for you in the said wind strength. it happens to formula sailors when they are well powered.

what you need to do is forget about the rear strap for the time being. focus on getting into the front strap and when you feel comfortable you can start to go for the rear strap. plus don't forget. you are leaning out and not back.......

going for the straps too early in your learning curve can be "bad" for technique. you should only be putting your feet in the straps when your feet are postioned beside the straps.

sail along for a while with only your front foot in. you will be going half speed but you can work on leaning out and stance outcomes. (moving the front strap inboard is a must at this time of your learning) once you get your stance sorted my money is that when you look down you will notice your rear foot just in front of the back strap. once this is the case. place your back foot into the strap also and watch your speed double.

Thanks Gestalt. I'll give it a crack :). I'm sailing next weekend (back at work -- too
difficult to get to the beach during the week). I'll let you know how I go :)

Ja

they are like the most outward foot straps i have ever seen looks more like a speed board. i would not be able to sail that as well.

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windwarning said...

they are like the most outward foot straps i have ever seen looks more like a speed board. i would not be able to sail that as well.

Hi WW. Yeah, thats was one of my doubts. The front straps are outward, and the back strap
is inward. Not sure if this would work. I read on here a few weeks ago that people put their
straps inward for control (the sea), so that's why I put my back strap in the middle (there are
screw holes for this possy).. but I wasn't sure if this was practical (you would think so, as
as BIC have provided the screw holes). However, another member PM'ed me and said that
these positions are ok and it's just a matter of knack. My board is a freeride.

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sharkbiscuit said...

windwarning said...

they are like the most outward foot straps i have ever seen looks more like a speed board. i would not be able to sail that as well.

Hi WW. Yeah, thats was one of my doubts. The front straps are outward, and the back strap
is inward. Not sure if this would work. I read on here a few weeks ago that people put their
straps inward for control (the sea), so that's why I put my back strap in the middle (there are
screw holes for this possy).. but I wasn't sure if this was practical (you would think so, as
as BIC have provided the screw holes). However, another member PM'ed me and said that
these positions are ok and it's just a matter of knack. My board is a freeride.

How long have you had the board for? because it does not seem to be designed right. You should have some screw holes to put your front foot strap more inward. But going by your pic i cant see any. I had the same problem with my jp excite then i moved my back one in the middle and my front ones as far in as possible. I have about 3 different positions on my front foot straps i can put them in. I can set mine so far inwards that it looks like a big wave board. It feels so nice to sail now with the straps inward and a single foot strap at the back. If it was me I would take it to ya local windsurf shop or board builder and see if they can mount some foot staps more inward for you.

Bic techno's (the 150l ones) have always supplied extra holes for a centre rear strap, some times these are covered by the deck pad but nevertheless they are there.

The main purpose for the centre rear footstrap is for first learnes of footstraps/harness and is only meant to be a learning position, its not really an inboard/out board set up option for that board.

The user will never get the best out of his board and progress until the rear strap is set to the proper outboard position and then it will all start to feel much more balanced.

want balance just get longer harness lines and a seat harness. with the single foot strap and front straps inward it will be sweat as

Hey I learned on the same board (older version) and I still have it .

Do as the other guys before me suggested: 1) hook in (to be able to unweight the front foot), 2) front foot in and then back foot in last.

Also as a beginner I found it easier to get into the front strap only after the board was fully planing (unfortunately the Techno has only outward footrap positions at the front). Sometimes I used to put my front in too early when the board was only half-planing resulting in the immediatly going upwind etc.

If you go into the front strap early make sure you put all the weight onto the toes in order to avoid pushing the rail down.

And don't waterstart with feet in the straps. On smaller boards this may be ok, but on this size of board it's bad technique IMHO. I have actually seen somebody doing it and it looks very awkward.

And don't use two back straps until your comfortable getting in front+back stap using the centre back strap. Outer back straps are more difficult to get in.

Hope this helps.

Hi Guys. Well for the past 6 weeks, I have slowly progressed to the foot straps. Today I managed to go into both foot straps. I can also do it in the common order: front strap, harness, rear strap (however, the rear strap is still in the middle position -- the outer ones will come in time). Thanks for your tips :)

Ja

WOOHOOO!!!!

Well done sharky, now the sky's the limit!

and catapults, here we come

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sharkbiscuit said...

Hi Guys. Well for the past 6 weeks, I have slowly progressed to the foot straps. Today I managed to go into both foot straps. I can also do it in the common order: front strap, harness, rear strap (however, the rear strap is still in the middle position -- the outer ones will come in time). Thanks for your tips :)

Ja

Can feel your stoke,s'all good fun regardless of how many get offs and over the handle bars you get.

i don't bother useing footstraps. I just get a nail gun and bail my foot to the deck of the board.

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Haircut said...

and catapults, here we come

How much of that do you reckon is technique vs having the correct gear/gear setup correctly, which is a skill in itself?

For catapult free sailing I'd recommend:
+ Downhaul > Front foot > Back foot > Harness.

Then move to:
Harness > Front foot > Back foot.

... but then you'll miss out on the thrill of a completely overpowered, high speed, knockout-punch, still hooked in and twisted while underwater catapult.

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Fall off boy said...

i don't bother useing footstraps. I just get a nail gun and bail my foot to the deck of the board.

Closely followed by learning to waterstart switch-stance

Thanks guys. Well, next is the Gybe and Carve gybe.. and then it's on to thinking about getting a board better suited to surf. Welcome to Autumn :)

Ja

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evlPanda said...


Then move to:
Harness > Front foot > Back foot.

This is the sequence I use Panda, but I've been told I should be putting my back foot in first?!? I've tried, but it's too awkward. Also, I've changed front hand grip to palm up (makes a huge difference! albeit foreign to start with), and underarm grab on gybes (this one's doubled my percentage of actual 'dry' gybes).

Keep at it sharkbiscuit, progress = fun times!

Here's a link to Guy Cribbs technique page, there's a section on footstraps that might help, plenty of other good stuff too

www.guycribb.com/windsurfing_technique_holiday_DVD_0076v01.htm

So I read Cribbie with Robby Swift article (good stuff) but there and a few things to mention-

Cribbie says your harness hook should start a few inches below your belly button to get lines pointing properly downwards and he spends a lot of time dragging his harness down. Seat harness seems pretty obvious solution?

Back strap on the mid line is so wave sailors can stay in the straps and carve the board both ways with heel or toe. I see beginners planing at half speed because they think this has goota be the right setup. Remembering that formula sailors call the middle strap the "chicken strap" , more control but less speed.

PS Beer gut does seem to locate waist harness about right...

im still a newbie 12months sailling im going harness, back foot, start planning then front foot. reading this thread it seems im doing this wrong any idears is my setup wrong. i still do alot of cartweels if i dont get back foot in.

I reckon back strap first, then front as you start planing. I used to do front foot in first until a mate picked it up. Since I started backfoot in, I have a lot less catapults, early in the run as you are far more locked in.

Its amazing how much more speed you can get out of a board with the straps in the furthest outboard position. Though I have had a few "moments" when my heel has done a "Fred Flintstone foot brakes" on me at speed in chop.

If overpowered, going for the back strap might not be a problem. However, in light / marginal conditions, going for the back strap is going to place pressure on the tail of the board as you got for the front strap. This in turn is going sink the tail and make planing difficult.

I always go front foot first, but I can't remember how I learnt.

Hope you don't get confused by all this advice. Try one thing at a time, visualize what you are going to do, and when you stuff up, stop and run thru it in your mind, to figure out what went wrong.

sharky said
Note: I was reading one of Guy Gribbs articles (I can't remember which one it was),
but I remember him writing about where the force directions are in the straps.
He said the back foot should be pushing down, and the front foot should be
pulling up.

I read more than sail. I think he was telling how to point a few degrees more when going upwind. Wave sailing (up and down the waveface without moving out of the straps) is supposed to need lots of front foot pressure to keep the rail engaged. Back foot to tilt the board. But that is pretty advanced stuff. To get enough speed to gybe without a wave to help back foot should definitely be in the outboard position.