I am learning to waterstart, so maybe I spend more time kicking in the water than necessary. Today at the end of the session the back of both my tighs started cramping. Has it happened to anyone else and do you know what is the best thing to do or to avoid doing ?
Thanks !

^^ agreed.

But also..... to minimise treading water:

Go out on a day when you are bordering on overpowered so when you fly the sail it wants to rip you up out of the water

- Point nose of board into wind so mast is across the wind
- Lay on your back and frog kick to tow mast upwind and lift at same time - it will fly easily then. The frog kick is important as if you have more than about a 170cm boom the clew end will dig in once the wind lifts the mast end. You are trying to move the rig upwind as you lift the mast.
- Once you have the rig out of the water, and remember we are talking a windy day, you can hang your weight under it with no treading water required. Then just use the power in the rig to steer the nose of the board downwind.

This involves a whole lot less treading water than the "lift mast at the tip and work your way down" technique. It also teaches how to rig steer the board into position when the sail is above your head, which you are going to have to do eventually... especially in choppy water, where the board has moved by the time u have flown the mast tip and worked your way down.

Also, the lazy way.... The wind will blow the board downwind faster than the sail. So if you crash and everything is positioned totally wrong, sit on the board and have a spell. As it floats downwind and the sail stays in the water, the whole thing will rotate around the centre of the board (mastfoot area) and will at some stage be in a bewwdiful waterstart position without you needing to tread water and drag it around.

Thanks for all your tips, but my question was not put clearly enough, it was not about waterstarting, but more specifically about cramps. I go out with a pfd, have an idea of what to do and manage to eventually start. But I think what happened to me could happen to a better sailor in different circumstances like a long day or a marathon or being very far from shore. I wanted to know if it is more or less common and what can be done once you get the cramps.
Cheers

i get em im my thighs i find trying to reach for my toes on what eva leg it is .. work best 4 the pain and helps to get rid quicker .. also swearing and mabey a fist pump will hlp with the pain :)every now and then i get in bicept while jybeing/tacksing then my arms are under load and bend .. only when tired after a long sail

I used get em every time I went sailing or baddle boarding along with heavily blurred vision and headaches. Tried bananas, magnesium tablets, even had a cat scan, but the thing I found worked best was to make sure you had eaten a decent meal at some point during the day before sailing (not immediately before or sometimes you end up eating it twice) and to drink 1-1.5 liters of water on your way to the beach. Literally works every time. If you cant eat for whatever reason, make sure you drink the water. Good luck, cramps are really annoying.

powersloshin said...

Thanks for all your tips, but my question was not put clearly enough, it was not about waterstarting, but more specifically about cramps. I go out with a pfd, have an idea of what to do and manage to eventually start. But I think what happened to me could happen to a better sailor in different circumstances like a long day or a marathon or being very far from shore. I wanted to know if it is more or less common and what can be done once you get the cramps.
Cheers

If thats the case then a little more practice will see you right. I have always used a pfd. I don't think I kick much at all evenwhen positioning the rig.

Magnesium may help, I take it at night time with zinc (before bed) and = no cramps even when i'm at the gym.

This is a good article for mag:

www.mg12.info/articles/cramps.html

Or this website for magnesium rich foods:

whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=75

windlure said...

Magnesium may help, I take it at night time with zinc (before bed) and = no cramps even when i'm at the gym.

This is a good article for mag:

www.mg12.info/articles/cramps.html

Or this website for magnesium rich foods:

whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=75

Thanks both good articles