I need tips for downwind sailing in races with waves

[konajoe]

I forgot to mention the centerboard. When sailing straight downwind on Kona, the centerboard will act as a stabilizer in light wind, and de-stabilizer in higher winds. So, in the conditions you're asking about, keep it all the way down.

As the speed of the board picks up due to either more wind or because you've caught a nice wave, the Kona will plane up on its centerboard, and it will get unstable. When these conditions exist, try retracting the centerboard half way.

Those slightly windier conditions are tricky. If you keep the centerboard down, you'll be stable in the normal wind and lulls. But when you get a gust, or when you start surfing down a nice wave, the increased speed will make the board lift out of the water on the centerboard, and you'll be unstable. If you retract the centerboard halfway, you'll be less stable in the average conditions, but more stable in puffs and on waves. I'd pick halfway down.

So, in light winds and flat seas going dead downwind, centerboard all the way down. If the wind and/or seas are enough that the board starts to lift up on the centerboard, put the centerboard halfway up.

Don't change the centerboard position back and forth on a downwind leg. People fall messing with the centerboard. Only move it for what is expected to be a long term change in wind or sea state.

[DelCarpenter]

Thanks to all for each reply so far. This past weekend I was in the Dam Jam Windsurfing Event at Saylorville Lake, Polk City IA. I was 8th of 13 in the Kona class with a 4th as my highest finish.

During a practice session on 5-19 another windsurfer told me to keep the daggerboard down going downwind in lighter winds. I practiced that. On Saturday, 5-20 we used a simple triangle course which inadvertently gave me some straight downwind conditions as the less than 10 mph winds switched directions. I saw the 5-20 replies before Saturday and also tried standing closer to the mast base. The combination was successful on Saturday.

(Sunday's winds built enough on during the second race we were sometimes planing from the upwind mark to the reaching mark and then most of the way to the downwind mark with the daggerboards up all the way.)