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Harness set up
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micheal_can



Joined: 22 Apr 2014
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 2:18 am    Post subject: Harness set up Reply with quote

Newbie here.

So, I have this old board/sails/etc, and an old jacket that has a hook on it for something (a rope of some sort?)

My question is, how do I connect it together and use the harness? What is one even for?

I can get pictures. Ask and I will upload them. Please be descriptive of the thing you want to see, as somethings I am not sure what they are.

Thank you
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techno900



Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4161

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 7:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It sound like you have an early chest harness. My first was like that in 1984 and had a metal plate about 4" square with a hook and was held to the jacket front with webbing. They worked, but in time, everyone found out that having the hook lower, near the waist was much better, so seat and waist harness are now what everyone is using.

Don't use the harness while learning the basics. It will come later when you are comfortable tacking your board without falling and making some of your gybes. The harness hooks on to lines that attach to the boom so that your body weight balances against the force in the sail, taking most of the effort off your arms and hands. Trying to "hook in" while in the beginner/novices stage of learning will cause you to fall, it will just get in the way.

You appear to have some really old stuff - 80's which is more difficult to learn on than the boards and rigs made in the last 10 yrs.

One very important suggestion - lessons, lessons, lessons. It will save time and a huge amount of frustration. I learned from a book in 1984 because there weren't any lessons available, but I persisted and got hooked on the sport.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 9:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Or get into the harness ASAP. I began using one by my 4th or 5th day on the water, and even though I was a strong, serious, open-class dirt bike racer, the harness like you describe extended my sailing time and fun significantly by taking a load off my arms, especially when slogging (sailing but not planing).

If there's one universal truth in windsurfing, it's the necessity -- they are not a luxury -- of professional lessons. Without them, maybe even with them, you are embarking on the toughest, often most rewarding, challenge in your life. Enjoy.

Mike \m/
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micheal_can



Joined: 22 Apr 2014
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 12:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

isobars wrote:
Or get into the harness ASAP. I began using one by my 4th or 5th day on the water, and even though I was a strong, serious, open-class dirt bike racer, the harness like you describe extended my sailing time and fun significantly by taking a load off my arms, especially when slogging (sailing but not planing).

If there's one universal truth in windsurfing, it's the necessity -- they are not a luxury -- of professional lessons. Without them, maybe even with them, you are embarking on the toughest, often most rewarding, challenge in your life. Enjoy.

Mike \m/


So, uhm, how do I use it? The plastic part that has a hook, how do connect it to the boom? How long is the rope supposed to be?

Thank you,

Micheal
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micheal_can



Joined: 22 Apr 2014
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 12:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

techno900 wrote:
It sound like you have an early chest harness. My first was like that in 1984 and had a metal plate about 4" square with a hook and was held to the jacket front with webbing. They worked, but in time, everyone found out that having the hook lower, near the waist was much better, so seat and waist harness are now what everyone is using.

Don't use the harness while learning the basics. It will come later when you are comfortable tacking your board without falling and making some of your gybes. The harness hooks on to lines that attach to the boom so that your body weight balances against the force in the sail, taking most of the effort off your arms and hands. Trying to "hook in" while in the beginner/novices stage of learning will cause you to fall, it will just get in the way.

You appear to have some really old stuff - 80's which is more difficult to learn on than the boards and rigs made in the last 10 yrs.

One very important suggestion - lessons, lessons, lessons. It will save time and a huge amount of frustration. I learned from a book in 1984 because there weren't any lessons available, but I persisted and got hooked on the sport.


It is old. It was free. I think it is in good condition.nothing looks broken.

I would like to get lessons, but I cannot afford it.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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techno900



Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4161

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 1:37 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It will be a huge task to get you going on this forum, too many things to discuss. Your best bet is to look for clubs, shops, other windsurfers in your area and ask questions about the sport. Or go on line and search for windsurfing tips, lessons, who knows, even youtube for beginning windsurfing. You will find lots of info that will get you started.

30 year old gear will likely have a few issues, even if it looks good to you. Show it to some other windsurfers and see what they have to say.

The harness issue is not much of an issue at this point for you. Checking out your rig with a knowledgeable person is first. A new harness would be a good investment, but you don't need it first thing regardless of what Iso says. You will know when you need it and it won't be in the first few days of learning.

Good luck, it's worth the effort if you stick with it, but if you really commit, you will find that you will want more stuff right away. A complete rig, something no more than 10 years old will be a good start. It is not an inexpensive sport unless you are content with cruising on a longboard in 5-15 mph winds forever. Most get board and want more speed and excitement, which means higher tech gear for windier conditions.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 2:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

techno900 wrote:
A new harness would be a good investment, but you don't need it first thing regardless of what Iso says. You will know when you need it and it won't be in the first few days of learning.

"Regardless ..."? I didn't say he needed one; I just said they helped me a great deal very early in the sport. How's a newby going to "know when he needs one", especially when many people advise putting it off for years, to their detriment? In fact, a chest harness might even be advantageous over a seat harness, since a beginner is just trying to rest his arms now and then so he can sail longer and learn more.

Google key words such as online windsurfing tutorials lessons to find free instructions. Used book stores or Amazon may have some of the many instructional books. See if a friend has saved the 1980s and 90s windsurfing magazines; they were full of how-to articles.
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swchandler



Joined: 08 Nov 1993
Posts: 10588

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 2:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"How's a newby going to "know when he needs one""


Probably about the same time as I did once I realized that I couldn't plane around in the straps for as long as I wanted to. It took a few weekends learning to get to that point, but I knew I was ready for harness lines. Was there a learning curve figuring out how to use a harness and lines at that point? It only took a couple runs for me, because I was ready for it.
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micheal_can



Joined: 22 Apr 2014
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 3:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

swchandler wrote:
"How's a newby going to "know when he needs one""


Probably about the same time as I did once I realized that I couldn't plane around in the straps for as long as I wanted to. It took a few weekends learning to get to that point, but I knew I was ready for harness lines. Was there a learning curve figuring out how to use a harness and lines at that point? It only took a couple runs for me, because I was ready for it.


I already had it out without a harness and realize I need to work on my balance. Also, the sail was missing a baton, so I got one.

In a few years/months/weeks, once I am comfortable with this, I may upgrade.

Off to look at youtube.
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DelCarpenter



Joined: 06 Nov 2008
Posts: 499
Location: Cedar Falls, IA

PostPosted: Tue Apr 22, 2014 4:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The following was written before several of the above replies so some of this will look like repetition.

Welcome to windsurfing!

The following are not in any particular order:
1. Find local windsurfers to talk to,
2. look at all the YouTube & Vimeo videos about learning to windsurf,
3. use a stand up paddle to help learning to balance/stand on the board before you start trying to use the sail,
4. Find a copy of US Sailings's "Start Windsurfing Right," or find the Berkeley Sailing Club's "Ten Steps Guide to Windsurfing" on the web, or a copy of Frank Fox's "Zen and the Art of Windsurfing."
6. offer to trade a couple of work hours from you for a local windsurfer's time to give you a lesson.
7. learn enough about sailing a small boat to know how to get from one place to another.

Tell us a lot more about the place and conditions where you will be learning, your sailing knowledge, your other sports abilities (especially things that require balance) & your height & weight.

Describe your windsurfing equipment: name of board & manufacture, length of mast, size of sail, tie-on or clamp-on boom, length of boom & its adjustment range, how the end of the mast is attached to the board.

Save up for professional lessons. Maybe you can teach yourself. I have an extremely determined friend who did. But you can save yourself hours & hours of frustration with professional lessons.
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