boom to boom is the best because it allows you to pull down on the boom while entering the gybe to keep the rail of the board engaged and allows you to pull down on the boom while exiting the gybe to help transfer power through the board and keep you planing.

boom to boom also encourages you to keep the mast away from your body during the transition which is a good thing.

Macro,
Boom to boom - resist grabbing the mast although I know a lot of competent windsurfers who grab the mast still.

(my 2 cents from 2011 thread)
Front straight arm tends to keep your sail and you more upright (and forward) which in turn retains some of the power right into the turn. Leaning back is of course a no no. Three things to remember - commit, commit, commit. On the subject of rig flip I sail in really rough conditions and sometimes it is easier to plane out of the gybe clew first and once you have your feet in a good position to deal with the messed up conditions then flip the rig. If you watch pro slalom races you will see them flipping very late indeed. Of course those guys are pros. In flatter conditions I tend to flip the rig much earlier (board 90degrees to wind /exactly downwind) which gives me good power out of the turn.

PS - I used to gybe with an underhand grip (leading hand) but there was a thread here years ago espousing the benefits of an overhand position. Took me a while to change but an overhand position is the only way to go.

and again in 2012
Start bearing away to build some decent speed. Bend your knees and commit and that means really commit to the turn. Overhand grip if not already and straighten front arm (pushing sail forward and upright) whilst sheeting in back hand as you initiate turn.
As you pass through downwind direction release back hand (even give the sail a little push depending on how strong the wind is) Resist moving all over the board with your feet and don't lean back as this stalls the board very quickly - in fact if you remember to lean forward towards the mast track this keeps the sail nicely powered and keeps the board trimmed nicely.

Also try and find some swell to help you around as plowing into the back of a wave tends to throw everything into disarray.
.
Here are some links from previous threads (enjoy the reading);

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Fix-my-gybes/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/best-ever-tip-for-gybing/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/in-search-of-the-planing-gybe/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Carve-Gybing-2/?page=1
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Tips-for-gybing-when-over-powered/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Another-Gybing-Instructional-Vid/

Boom to boom and strap to strap for a fast alpha on flat water.

Here is a light wind one:

-SvoL6G1IA

sausage said..
Macro,
Boom to boom - resist grabbing the mast although I know a lot of competent windsurfers who grab the mast still.

(my 2 cents from 2011 thread)
Front straight arm tends to keep your sail and you more upright (and forward) which in turn retains some of the power right into the turn. Leaning back is of course a no no. Three things to remember - commit, commit, commit. On the subject of rig flip I sail in really rough conditions and sometimes it is easier to plane out of the gybe clew first and once you have your feet in a good position to deal with the messed up conditions then flip the rig. If you watch pro slalom races you will see them flipping very late indeed. Of course those guys are pros. In flatter conditions I tend to flip the rig much earlier (board 90degrees to wind /exactly downwind) which gives me good power out of the turn.

PS - I used to gybe with an underhand grip (leading hand) but there was a thread here years ago espousing the benefits of an overhand position. Took me a while to change but an overhand position is the only way to go.

and again in 2012
Start bearing away to build some decent speed. Bend your knees and commit and that means really commit to the turn. Overhand grip if not already and straighten front arm (pushing sail forward and upright) whilst sheeting in back hand as you initiate turn.
As you pass through downwind direction release back hand (even give the sail a little push depending on how strong the wind is) Resist moving all over the board with your feet and don't lean back as this stalls the board very quickly - in fact if you remember to lean forward towards the mast track this keeps the sail nicely powered and keeps the board trimmed nicely.

Also try and find some swell to help you around as plowing into the back of a wave tends to throw everything into disarray.
.
Here are some links from previous threads (enjoy the reading);

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Fix-my-gybes/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/best-ever-tip-for-gybing/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/in-search-of-the-planing-gybe/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Carve-Gybing-2/?page=1
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Tips-for-gybing-when-over-powered/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Another-Gybing-Instructional-Vid/

Please, don't take it personal, just discussing gype mechanics

bearing off to build up board speed is part of the journey towards awesome gypes, but its not the finished product

Bearing off, kills sail power potential, ultimately all board speed should be driven from the sail, more cross wind, too 10 -20 degrees off wind makes for the gype with most potiential

In my experience, the beginner gyping usually is too concerned with the carve in, over carving, hanging onto sail too long, and then flipping way to late

Again, bearing off will help with this as it kills sail, but in terms of great gypes, you need better sail control, then just to kill the sail, you should be getting pulled hard in, and hard out, and with the whole bear off to build board speed, you miss that opportunity

Grapping the mast suggests your not balanced, and not in the right position to transfer the potiential sail power to the board, infact by grapping the mast, your killing the intial pull from the sail

If your having to push the sail, wish is part of it in the beginning, you've stuffed it, created drag, you can still plain out no worries, but it wasn't perfect

The gype is a great part of sailing as it feels like it can continue to be broken down into more and more subtle skills as time goes on

Initial it can just be broken down into three parts, carve, flip, exit

Most people spent too long focusing on the carve, just gently come in, allow yourself time for the flip, and exit

HA, good luck Macro and co.

The daffy gype is beautiful,

Marco, you should notice, it wasn't an aggressive carve in, and the flip was focused on maintaining awesome board trim, ha, that truly is awesome board trim while also maintaining a redonkulous high level of skill with sail control, you'll also notice he stayed low, bend knees, not being lazy, making for better driving of the board and heaps better balance on the re gather

ha, without being too rude to the King, its an awesome gype, with so many little subtle skills, but.................its not strap to strap

Hey, its a sweet gype, great guy

But I don't think its actually, technically a strap to strap gype,

Strap to strap is more instantaneous between the two front straps, daffy, takes foot out, places on board, re balance, then places back foot in strap

My example of strap to strap would be, daffy takes front foot out of strap, as that foot is placed on board, the other front foot is now put into front strap, just about instantaneous in good examples

I'm sure he can do that perfectly as well

sailquik said..
Boom to boom and strap to strap for a fast alpha on flat water.

Here is a light wind one:

That gybe is a work of art.
When I grow up I want to gybe like Daffy.

Macro - Good Topic!!!
It seems you do what I do re the mast grab, slowing and pointing too much upwind - Gee there are some good pointers above, i just need to practice practice practice like Windxtasy says gybe gybe gybe
Look out Alpha's - Thanks everyone.....

ha, no, its definitely not strap to strap

sorry, I think maybe because he completes exit without releasing initial front foot, in fact his gone well past the exit without changing straps and pulling down hard, it looks like maybe strap to strap, but his feet don't complete that, he simply doesn't put his new front foot in the strap, he pauses, poses, then straps, back first

great gype, definitely not strap to strap, in fact a lovely looking combo version of strap / carve,

the beauty of the gype appears to be more in the trim and flip, as opposed to hard pull forward exit, more great gliding in between entry and exit, resulting in not much loss of speed with the flip,

I agree with Micky, strap to strap is more about preparing for some grunt on the way out, creating it by taking the flip and exit in one hit

the step gybe

Great videos Gestalt, thanks man

AS explained, they look like light wind versions, they flip to late stuffing up a powered exit, we would have flipped and changed straps in one motion

we are concerned with preparation for big pull out of exit, the ones you show have flipped past exit

Strap to strap.......its fairly self explanatory

The difference lies in sailing approach as in free ride to slalom and the difference in board speed and sail power

Ha, my fault , i thought we could discuss gypes from a slalom, speed point of view, but it appears it's quite the emotive subject for some



I'm coming around tis arvo man, i got four deltas to fit, some screws to cut............thanks slicky

OK. Milsy is partly correct. I classify slalom gybes in two ways. 'Strap to strap' and 'Step'. Mine is a modified S2S. There is not another generic description of it. It is in the S2S category, as it NOT a 'Step' Gybe.

Truth be told, my step gybe is not as good so I seldom use it unless using a big sail, overpowered in rough water or when marginally planing (can't plane through). I find that at high speed on flat water, the step gybe has much more tendency to upset the glide and balance of the board as it almost forces you to get your weight very far forward on the board as you step, and then you must drop the rig towards the tail a lot. This results in a rocking of weight from back, to forward, to back again, slowing the glide. In an overpowered situation in rough water, this is not as important as pure control, which is why it is mostly favored by slalom racers.

In the 'pure' strap to strap gybe that Milsy describes, the old front foot goes to the centre of the board between the straps. Your full weight goes onto it as your old back foot is inserted into the new front strap as you sheet in. Then all the load from the sail goes onto your front foot as you put the back foot in. This works well on a wave board or another draggy board with the center of resistance well forward, but on a slippery slalom board the center of resistance is well back towards the fin of you are still planing free. This means that if you try to put the front foot in and transfer all your weight to itas you sheet in, the board will bog down and you won't be able to rake the rig back and keep pressure on the fin to accelerate. So instead, I put the new front foot in the centrer between the straps to drive the board and get the back foot in to maintain that as the board accelerates. Then you can maintain drive as you slip in the front foot.

On a smallish slalom board in flat water at high speed such as in a Alpha situation, most of the best Alphas I have seen are modified 'strap to strap'. This also becasue in a high G turn, you don't have time to do the two stage step then flip, and if you do, you are more likely to upset the board and have a longer pause between power off and power on.

On my 40cm speed board I actually skip the foot on the rail at the start. I start the carve with my foot almost in the opposite front strap and parallel to the rail. As I flip the rig I simply twist my foot a little so it ends up in the other front strap and sail away with both feet more or less in the front straps until I have enough speed to move my new back foot to the center of the board or the back strap. There is very little room for your feet on these boards and they bog down very quickly if you have any weight back so this keeps the weight well forward as the rig flips.

On my wave board I usually do the classic 'strap to strap' that Milsy described.


In any case, you don't want to grab the mast if you possibly avoid it!

Milsy is right,

This is the GPS speed sailing section, and I approach the conversation from that point of view

Gestalts vid, really light wind with free ride boards and mega small under powered sails............it aint gps sailing

the vid the other guy posted.....not one decent gype on the thing

Daffys gype is awesome because its light, and the trim and sail control past the carve through the turn to the flip is really really good, you may notice in Gestalt vid, there not good, rails catching, and just about stopping their going so slow

From a slalom, gps, powered up and turning fast point of view, strap to strap is about preparing for grunt on the way out, not avoiding it,
not, killing the sail to reduce drag, that sounds more like something that isn't powered sailing, sailing clew first, that's all good if its light and sloooow,