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Helping with waterstart/clearing the sail
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shmish



Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 31

PostPosted: Wed Jan 01, 2020 8:31 pm    Post subject: Helping with waterstart/clearing the sail Reply with quote

Yesterday I had some problems clearing my sail for waterstarting. The weird thing is that I don’t ever remember having this particular issue before. Conditions were quite a lot of chop and I was fully powered on a 4.0. What happened a few times was that I fell and my mast tip would point pretty much upwind. It was super hard to swim the board into the wind because of the chop, and because of the angle of the mast, I couldn’t pull it up and into the wind. The clew was also sunk, so it was hard to pull it up, but I think that’s what I eventually did to clear the sail. It was exhausting. Any recall this scenario happening to them and what they do about it? I guess step 1 would be to not wipeout with the mast tip falling directly upwind.

Thanks
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rtz



Joined: 31 Oct 2010
Posts: 296
Location: Oklahoma City

PostPosted: Wed Jan 01, 2020 9:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This video has some tips on clearing the sail:

https://youtu.be/sMTbyOjVTHQ
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Wed Jan 01, 2020 11:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I never swim my sail anywhere, as it's unnecessary work. SEARCH on the phrase "inner tube" or innertube, posted a few times by isobars (posts, not thread titles) -- some at length -- for the details.
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windward1



Joined: 18 Jun 2000
Posts: 1400

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 12:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Do not swim the board. Walk up the sail from the mast tip as shown in rtz's video. Be sure that as you do, you keep the clew out of the water.
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bred2shred



Joined: 02 May 2000
Posts: 989
Location: Jersey Shore

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 5:47 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If the mast falls upwind, you can also jump up onto the board and grab the uphaul line. Knowing that it will be difficult in those conditions to successfully uphaul the sail and stay on the board, just pull the sail up and let it fall to the other side of the board, downwind. Then jump off (assuming you haven’t fallen back in already) and waterstart normally with the sail downwind. This is often easier than trying to swim the board or sail into position.

sm
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techno900



Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4161

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 8:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

bred2shed said:
Quote:
and waterstart normally with the sail downwind.

You have to explain that one.

I wear an impact vest most of the time, for impact, warmth and flotation. Water starting and clearing the mast/sail UPWIND of the board is much easier with the added flotation. A life jacket works even better.
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bred2shred



Joined: 02 May 2000
Posts: 989
Location: Jersey Shore

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 9:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you crash and the sail is in a position that makes clearing difficult because the rig is being driven under by wind and waves or has sunk in an akward position, in certain cases it can be easier to just climb up onto the board and grab the uphaul. Pull the sail up and let it flip to the other side. Then waterstart. Sometimes this is easier than trying to clear the rig from in the water or swimming it around 180 degrees. All depends on the situation. The point is, don’t forget that you have an uphaul and there are times when it makes the most sense to either attempt to uphaul rather than waterstart or to use the uphaul to help get the rig positioned for a waterstart.

sm
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techno900



Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4161

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 10:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

bread2shred said:
Quote:
in certain cases it can be easier to just climb up onto the board and grab the uphaul. Pull the sail up and let it flip to the other side. Then waterstart.


OK, I may have it, but what is missing (and what confused me) is that what you suggest above is when the sail is DOWNWIND of the board and you uphaul it to pull it to the windward side of the board, or possibly repositioning the mast to the stern/back of the board to clear it over the board or your arm holding on the back footstrap.

What shmish said in his original post:
Quote:
What happened a few times was that I fell and my mast tip would point pretty much upwind.

His issue was clearing the mast/sail when it is upwind of the board. Solution being swimming to the tip of the mast, pushing it up to clear it, then working your way down the mast to the boom, one hand on the mast and the other hand fanning the water to keep your body afloat, and the sail out of the water. This is where buoyancy is a big plus - impact vest or life jacket.

All of the above assumes that it's a small board and difficult or impossible to uphaul.
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carl



Joined: 25 Feb 1997
Posts: 2674
Location: SF bay area

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 11:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

bred2shred wrote:
If you crash and the sail is in a position that makes clearing difficult because the rig is being driven under by wind and waves or has sunk in an akward position, in certain cases it can be easier to just climb up onto the board and grab the uphaul. Pull the sail up and let it flip to the other side. Then waterstart. Sometimes this is easier than trying to clear the rig from in the water or swimming it around 180 degrees. All depends on the situation. The point is, don’t forget that you have an uphaul and there are times when it makes the most sense to either attempt to uphaul rather than waterstart or to use the uphaul to help get the rig positioned for a waterstart.

sm

The original poster was talking about " 4.0 conditions with lots of chop."
Most would be on a small board in that much wind. Much easier to lift the sail from the mast tip than to try to uphaul.
Also in high wind there is the real problem of the whole kit getting blown away from you faster than you can swim.
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bred2shred



Joined: 02 May 2000
Posts: 989
Location: Jersey Shore

PostPosted: Thu Jan 02, 2020 11:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

First line of my first post...”If the mast falls upwind”.....

You do not need a high bouyany board to climb up, grab the uphaul, and flip the sail, this can be done on a sinker. You’re not necessarily trying to uphaul and sail away (although it’s great if that happens). You’re just using the leverage of the uphaul and your body weight to clear the sail and let the wind flip the clew downwind rather than swimming to the mast tip to float the rig and then swim it into position. I’ve done this plenty of times, including high wind. Once the sail flips to the other side you drop back in, holding onto the uphaul or boom so you don’t lose the kit.

Not saying you should’t also learn how to clear the mast from the tip. But if the mast gets driven down deep, using the uphaul to bring it up to the surface and into a proper waterstart position can be the easiest method.

sm


Last edited by bred2shred on Thu Jan 02, 2020 2:03 pm; edited 1 time in total
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