Warning : four beers in.
Board : Mistral One Design.
Wind : 5 kts increasing to 20kts.
First thing I noticed is how long the thing is , its long . It has 3.72 written on it , I think this relates to 3.72 times the length of a normal board. I'm sure the front of the board is in a different time zone than the back !
First stepping on was not bad with the c/board half down and sped off in what seemed like very little wind, ( very impressed ).
Five to ten k ts and the thing was slipping along like it was on bearings. Nothing would keep up with this in light winds.
Distance passed very quickly so I thought id turn back.
Yeah turning , that's not a word I would use with this . Its kind of more like waiting for the earth to spin under yourself . I thought I was being aggressive but I needed a cut lunch and 500m space to do it in . This may be an area that I need to improve in.
Then the wind got stronger 10 to 15kts. 8.2 V8 . Lots of fun , this thing is effortlessly quick. I don't know if it was planing or not , its not on or off the plane its just one smooth strange thing.
Beer 5. ( writing this , not sailing )
At this stage I thought I might play with some adjustments when it dawned on me the people that race these must be super human .
Adjusting outhaul , adjusting mast track , adjusting centreboard and choosing one of the fifty five foot strap options , which none suited me , ( need more straps ) is a skill . I could definitely use a couple more limbs ( extra arms growing out of my knees would be good ).
15 to 20 kts gusty and getting rough. I need more skill and time on this board . With the C/ board still half down and the track still in the middle and no straps where they should be I was loosing control . The deck grip was giving up and I was thinking of my small board which in this wind would be faster ,, more comfortable , controllable and with the added bonus of being able to turn.
So that's what I did.
Summery : Raceboards are strange and a lot of fun , its going to be my under 13 kt weapon , no one will catch me not even those Formula things , but those Formula things turn on a dime compared.
PS : some skill may change these initial views . However I'm hooked and love it , that's your fault olskool.

great first impression,imax1 ,to make the board turn sink the tail a bit and carve the board outwards,ie put weight on the out side rail , you can spin them on a dime,be ready to move forward once it is around ,use your sail a.lot to help the turn and balance.don,t worry about more straps just improve the deck

they are fast too. They will get up to 30knts if thats your thing. Mast track back and the boom a little higher so that you can reach the rear straps with the boom higher than your knees. This also is a must for when you get the mast track all fwd and the center board all down, standing in the side straps slicing upwind with the board rolled over a bit. More magic.

.be

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BSN101 said..
they are fast too. They will get up to 30knts if thats your thing. Mast track back and the boom a little higher so that you can reach the rear straps with the boom higher than your knees. This also is a must for when you get the mast track all fwd and the center board all down, standing in the side straps slicing upwind with the board rolled over a bit. More magic.

what rig would you use and wind or was that on flat water,i got mine up to 24 knts with a ezzy lion 9.5 but it was pretty rough . olsckool has had his to 27knts at golden beach with a 8.5 on the flat water.love to know how they do it in bay conditions and swell.what height are you talking for the boom.

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Having the centreboard half up and the track in the middle is an unusual combination. Upwind, put the track all the way forward or perhaps a few cm back and leave the CB down until it's blowing so hard the board wants to turn over unless you rake the board back 25 degrees or so.

When planing fast downwind, centreboard up all the way and track back all the way. In marginal planing if you are heavy (75kg+) leave the mast forward until you are planing comfortably and perhaps have the CB down a bit, but when going fast pull the track back and never have the centreboard down with the track back.

The straps are in the right position of the setup is right. Tacking is slow; ensure the rig is back to far that the foot is scraping on the board, and pull the back hand on as you go through the wind. You can also cross the board before it's head to wind and rake the rig forward to bear away.

Wait to you push it hard on a reach and spin it out, 3.72mtrs sliding sideways at speed is a really odd sensation.



I watched an ex RSX sailor duck gybe a MIstral Raceboard in 25 knots using a 9.5mtr sail and plane out of the gybe. Pretty damn cool

There's also that video of Robby Naish forward looping one on youtube somewhere.

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cammd said..
Wait to you push it hard on a reach and spin it out, 3.72mtrs sliding sideways at speed is a really odd sensation.

try it with out the rear fin. lots of fun.lost my fin half way to the strand ,put the mast track all the way forward and dropped the center board about 30 degrees and sailed back on the plane ,felt like a loose short board.

your next move ??

Nice work Imax1!!! Great article. Yep RBs are a whole different thing. Wear booties when sailing. Soooo much better to grip the deck. You can confidently move n balance the rig wherever needed. I found the footstrap positions on my IMCO to be fine. Im 6'2" 108kg :(xmas). Ive been experimenting with fins on my Speed F1 for light wind planing. 50cm jp supersport n 9.5lion. In about 7-10 kts i get planing cleanly. Its quite stiff to turn. But all im looking for is early planing n as much speed as possible.I can actually get planing BEFORE the local windfoilers can lift onto the foil. I can comfortably sail this rig thru to about 18-20kts. But it is physical n requires a lot of grunt.
Welcome to the world of RACEBOARDS Imax1. You will now get some REAL time on water. Endless posibilities...From just fangin around to full exploration sailing n competitions. While everyone is whingeing on the beach. You will be out there. TOW is where its at.
Wooohooo!!!

Love the writeup..

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sboardcrazy said..
Love the writeup..

ditto. I think he must have studied at the Fangman school of literature...

Around ten years ago I had a quick ride on a Bic raceboard on Narrabeen Lake in a very light breeze. It was quite an amazing experience. The board cut through the water with minimal resistance. A lot of fun to ride in light wind. I think I just tacked it as it was easier than gybing.

Thanks for sharing your raceboard experience IMax. They sure are a lot of fun.

Raceboard's have awesome range and versatility, I got to sail everyday over the Xmas break thanks to my F2 Lightning, but didn't get the shortboard wet once due to the mostly NE 10-15 kn winds.

Was staying at Burrum Heads and enjoyed some nice cruising around Hervey Bay fully powered up in the back straps, much more fun than sitting on the beach hoping for a gust to get my Freeride board going. A foil might have been an option, but it would also have limited range and versatility in variable conditions and couldn't sail over the shallow sand banks.

Was sailing my raceboard in Moreton Bay a couple of days ago in 15kn, there were some soft patches in the wind, but the raceboard planed through the holes while guys on large freeride and slalom boards with 7-8m sails were out of the straps not planning.

My thirteen year old son an I went for a cruise on Sunday.

Me on a Phantom 377 with a 9.5
my son on an F2 Lightning with a Severne RB 8.5

He was pretty chuffed with managing the 8.5mtr sail , 5km's across, one long port tack upwind railing the board the whole way and one long starboard broach reach the whole way back. 10 -12 knots and the Raceboard's were powered nicely.

Hard to beat spending a Sunday afternoon cruising around Moreton Bay on windsurfers with one of your kids

Great story Imax.

They do turn nicely when you practice lots- but practice on water which isn't too choppy.

The IMCO is a great all-round board and my "go to" board.

Clarence

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cammd said..
My thirteen year old son an I went for a cruise on Sunday.

Me on a Phantom 377 with a 9.5
my son on an F2 Lightning with a Severne RB 8.5

He was pretty chuffed with managing the 8.5mtr sail , 5km's across, one long port tack upwind railing the board the whole way and one long starboard broach reach the whole way back. 10 -12 knots and the Raceboard's were powered nicely.

Hard to beat spending a Sunday afternoon cruising around Moreton Bay on windsurfers with one of your kids

Raceboards are unbeatable fun in 10 to 12 kts

John340, BINGO!!! If you want time on water RB cant be beaten.

Nice report. Your Mistral can be jibed just about as quickly as any shortboard, but you have to adjust your technique. Here's the non-planing longboard jibe:
First, you'll have to take a big step to the tail of the board, or maybe two. Second, make big movements with the rig. The board is big, too! Third, figure out how to use the rail to properly turn the board. Non-planing, the centerboard should be all the way down. You then put weight on the opposite edge compared to a planing jibe to turn the board. Think of the centerboard sticking out like the paddle in a kayak when you turn. Put all three things together, and a longboard can be turned 180 degrees in a second.

One good exercise, in three parts:
1. Go dead downwind. Hop as far to the back of the board as you can and sink the tail. Your feet are next to each other, toes pointing out, heels almost touching. Try to get the nose of the board a meter out of the water. Pull the sail back to you, bending your elbows, to sink the tail more. Push it back to the nose of the board to stabilize. Really good guys end up with their knees under water.

2. Go dead downwind, hop back again (but not as far). Put your weight on the toes of one foot to turn the board, then on the other to turn it back. Make a few s-turns, seeing how far you can push it.

3. Start as in 2 (downwind, back on the board). Lean the sail far to the left to turn the board, then far to the right to turn the other way. Your hands have to move a lot on the boom so that he sail can go far towards the water.

Now put the three parts together: far back, rail pressure, big sail movements. Have fun!

Thanks boardsurfr , look forward to some calm water testing.

Second outing.
Freshwater 5 to 20 kts gusty , swirly but flat water.
Thought I'd go small 6;2 V8 to get a feel for things.
Centre board down and halfway along mast track.
Getting much better at jibing the thing , I found I could switch feet much earlier than on a short board. Taking my time and loosing ground was not a problem because it goes so well up wind even with a short run.
I find myself running up and down the board a lot in the gusts . You can't just point it quickly downwind in a lull like on a small board.
Now this is something nobody told me about..... I could see a big gust coming , so as the wind was getting stronger and stronger I was moving back and over the edge as the board was nicely slightly lifting windward , all good and fun even though the boom was around my belly button.
Then all of a sudden the board flipped on its side presumably planing on its centre board for about 100 m .
I was scared !
Using all my nine lives I managed to save it . It could have been ugly. The thing is I had to keep the power on , I'd estimate I was railriding at 20 kts and backing off at this stage was a bad option.
Anyway , I now have a spincter muscle that could crack walnuts .
After that I flipped the centre board up and the track back which felt nicer in the gusts but not in the lulls.
I understand that I have to adjust on the go but it was very patchy gusty and there was no way I could keep up.
So I ended up with mast one third from back and cb half down , which seemed a good compromise in these gusts.
Still waiting for a nice even 10 kts to get a feel .

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Imax1 said..
Second outing.
Freshwater 5 to 20 kts gusty , swirly but flat water.
Thought I'd go small 6;2 V8 to get a feel for things.
Centre board down and halfway along mast track.
Getting much better at jibing the thing , I found I could switch feet much earlier than on a short board. Taking my time and loosing ground was not a problem because it goes so well up wind even with a short run.
I find myself running up and down the board a lot in the gusts . You can't just point it quickly downwind in a lull like on a small board.
Now this is something nobody told me about..... I could see a big gust coming , so as the wind was getting stronger and stronger I was moving back and over the edge as the board was nicely slightly lifting windward , all good and fun even though the boom was around my belly button.
Then all of a sudden the board flipped on its side presumably planing on its centre board for about 100 m .
I was scared !
Using all my nine lives I managed to save it . It could have been ugly. The thing is I had to keep the power on , I'd estimate I was railriding at 20 kts and backing off at this stage was a bad option.
Anyway , I now have a spincter muscle that could crack walnuts .
After that I flipped the centre board up and the track back which felt nicer in the gusts but not in the lulls.
I understand that I have to adjust on the go but it was very patchy gusty and there was no way I could keep up.
So I ended up with mast one third from back and cb half down , which seemed a good compromise in these gusts.
Still waiting for a nice even 10 kts to get a feel .

just about impossible to leave the board set up one way for all conditions, get use to using different centerboard positions for different winds and adjusting mast track, that why they made them adjust on the go . i like your mast adapter you made it looks good .time on the water and it will make sense

Hey Imax1! Great work.The railing certainly gives the ankles a workout. Its funny how Depowerering isnt the thing to do. Ive had some big hispeed railing moments. Whole lot ends up upside down all strapped in. Think ive escaped a few by tilting the rig forward?? Sheeting out reduces Mfp so board flies even higher!! Bad!!!
As Grich says use centreboard at varying levels. Reaching. Sometimes in light n gusty wind or strong current i will have centreboard down only a small amount to help get board planing closer to the wind. Once its up n running cb can be retracted if theres enough wind to sustain planing. Mastrack wise i dont really alter mine from middle of track. Seems a good general sailing position. But forward for upwind to increase railing n pointing. Back for reaching n downwind action. As for all the footwork, Welcome to the world of floating dancefloors!!

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grich62 said..

BSN101 said..
they are fast too. They will get up to 30knts if thats your thing. Mast track back and the boom a little higher so that you can reach the rear straps with the boom higher than your knees. This also is a must for when you get the mast track all fwd and the center board all down, standing in the side straps slicing upwind with the board rolled over a bit. More magic.

what rig would you use and wind or was that on flat water,i got mine up to 24 knts with a ezzy lion 9.5 but it was pretty rough . olsckool has had his to 27knts at golden beach with a 8.5 on the flat water.love to know how they do it in bay conditions and swell.what height are you talking for the boom.

It wasn't me. Mike in Perth most likely on Severne RB9.5. I thing it was on the river so conditions would have been ok, i guess .

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BSN101 said..

grich62 said..

BSN101 said..
they are fast too. They will get up to 30knts if thats your thing. Mast track back and the boom a little higher so that you can reach the rear straps with the boom higher than your knees. This also is a must for when you get the mast track all fwd and the center board all down, standing in the side straps slicing upwind with the board rolled over a bit. More magic.

what rig would you use and wind or was that on flat water,i got mine up to 24 knts with a ezzy lion 9.5 but it was pretty rough . olsckool has had his to 27knts at golden beach with a 8.5 on the flat water.love to know how they do it in bay conditions and swell.what height are you talking for the boom.

It wasn't me. Mike in Perth most likely on Severne RB9.5. I thing it was on the river so conditions would have been ok, i guess .

Mike is currently away but he tells me he had a session over Christmas and almost got his top ever speed at 29.5 knots behind Point Walter. I assume he was sailing the Mistral Equipe with RSX 9.5 m2 but we would have to confirm.

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RichardG said..

BSN101 said..

grich62 said..

BSN101 said..
they are fast too. They will get up to 30knts if thats your thing. Mast track back and the boom a little higher so that you can reach the rear straps with the boom higher than your knees. This also is a must for when you get the mast track all fwd and the center board all down, standing in the side straps slicing upwind with the board rolled over a bit. More magic.

what rig would you use and wind or was that on flat water,i got mine up to 24 knts with a ezzy lion 9.5 but it was pretty rough . olsckool has had his to 27knts at golden beach with a 8.5 on the flat water.love to know how they do it in bay conditions and swell.what height are you talking for the boom.

It wasn't me. Mike in Perth most likely on Severne RB9.5. I thing it was on the river so conditions would have been ok, i guess .

Mike is currently away but he tells me he had a session over Christmas and almost got his top ever speed at 29.5 knots behind Point Walter. I assume he was sailing the Mistral Equipe with RSX 9.5 m2 but we would have to confirm.

ask him what wind conditions,its to rough here to get those speeds as the front of the board rides up the back of the next wave

this was taken at lake coothraba in about 16 to18 knts .there was a fair wind chop running on this day

I just looked back on my stats and i got 24knts in April last yr on my Mistral EQ2 NP EVO7 7.8. I remember that it felt so fast. My board had a less than adequate gasket which probably held me back another knot or 2. Lots of fun going fast on the long boards, keep it up fellas.

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Imax1 said..
Then all of a sudden the board flipped on its side presumably planing on its centre board for about 100 m .
I was scared !
Using all my nine lives I managed to save it . It could have been ugly. The thing is I had to keep the power on , I'd estimate I was railriding at 20 kts and backing off at this stage was a bad option.

Now the fun starts! I remember seeing the best light wind freestyler in the world being thrown off when his board railed up during a race. In his defense, he was on a board that he had never sailed before. He also was in the lead.

Long boards are very different from slalom boards - you can actually depower without all hell breaking loose. The 6 feet of board before the mast foot will keep the nose down, even if you reduce mast foot pressure.

Similarly, the centerboard is not all-or-nothing, the in-between positions can also be useful. If the board threatens to throw you off, rake the centerboard back a bit until things become manageable.

In medium wind, you actually want the centerboard to rail up, especially when going upwind and on a beam reach, since planing or semi-planing on the centerboard is faster (and more fun, once you're used to it). You can encourage the board to rail up by carefully placing your feet; if it's light, put on foot on the centerline, and use toe pressure to dig the leeward rail in. When the wind increases, move the feet further out, eventually standing on the rail, with the board at a ~45 degree angle. In gusty conditions, it can help to have one foot close to the centerline, and the other closer to the windward rail, and move your weight from one to the other to compensate for gusts, keeping the board angle more or less constant.

Another trick to get the board to rail up in lighter wind is to push against the knob of the centerboard with the front foot from the side; your lower leg is (almost) lying on board pointing out. It's a technique to go faster when pumping is not allowed, e.g. the Kona One class. You won't see if in regular longboard races since they allow pumping.

Now we have grip and happy knees.

Nice one..although I just wear booties on my MOD which does the trick for grip all over board.

I note you have the red add on part on your mast track button which stops the button being accidentally knocked down. Do you know where to get that part ?

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RichardG said..

I note you have the red add on part on your mast track button which stops the button being accidentally knocked down. Do you know where to get that part ?

I don't know , it came with the board . Is it there to make the button harder to push down ?
Is my board pimped ?