Forward Loop Journey - How I accomplished my Quest :) !

[manuel]

Enjoy !!!

[perevod13]

What was the hardest part and was it hard on the body (knees, arms, hands, etc.)?

[manuel]

EDIT, Response was too long so I split it:

SHORT ANSWER:
Hardest part: trying them? (even at various stages)
Body parts stress list: back, neck, front foot, rear knee and rear ankle

LONG ANSWER:
It sure was (hard) and still is! Before trying them, I could windsurf all day long it felt like. Since starting them, 1.5 hrs seems to be the limit. Energy drain from front loops is crazy! Well at least for me

At first, I was sore everywhere, could hardly move like mentioned in the vid. This is because my body wasn't used to be tossed around in this manner. The more I did it, the more my body learned to fall that way. Then, I could try more. Sometimes a bad fall happened and I had to wait to get back into them. It takes time to digest and process what we learn through various attempts.

First tries lead to neck and back pain. Arms not so much that I remember or even shoulders, maybe ribs and hands from getting ripped from the boom.

Then, it was my front foot, because I sheeted in too early so I would "land" on the nose of the board and get some stress on the front foot (helps to have straps really loose).

After that, getting close to landing them, it was my rear knee (it's missing a few ligaments). I wasn't stayed tucked enough.

Now, I get some occasional backslaps. The reason is the body touches the water before the board. So it's best to try everything to get the sail back up and rotate sufficiently so that there's forward momentum remaining.

When I lay a bit to the side (windward) the rotation is slowed down (especially in a lull) and more horizontal. Sometimes the board lands sideways as opposed to come around from above and it can tweak things a little bit along with a backslap!

That said, only 4-5 good tries are needed each time. Possibly 2-3 (they do need to be good though). However despite the physical pain and drain, it can be hard to help ourselves to try more. We are so driven to try them once we start.

Even now, when the conditions aren't super ideal for forwards, I still go for them. Even tired, sick, etc. It's generally not a good idea because they are best done when head and body are fresh. It's an active move requiring full batteries.

I have even more respect now for front loopers. It's hardcore from the outside but also from the inside!

For me, when young it's possible to rotate somehow on a wave with ideal conditions. But to learn later, over disorganized flatter waters and not-so-reliable winds, it takes dedication, commitment and a decent tolerance to both mental and physical torture!

I think it's all part of it though, it's a journey, it's about self-discovery, something like that! So, I definitely recommend it!

[rexi]

Congrats again manuel, nice job and great work sticking to it until mission was accomplished nice summary video!