In the first post on how to windsurf I mentioned and insisted on the fact that keeping the front arm straight is an essential element in windsurfing. Keeping this rule in mid will help us in the basic windsurfing position, doing the beachstart, the waterstart, the gybe and many other maneouvres. I would even go as far as to say that this is the golden rule of windsurfing. Let me explain why:
The Golden Rule of Windsurfing
Your front and back arms leading to the boom are the equivalent to the clutch and the accelerator of a car. Naturally the angle of our body with respect to the sail has an impact on this statement but in general it is true.
Back hand = accelerator
This is a no brainer really. We pull the back hand to our body, the sail offers more surface to the wind, we get more power in the sail.
Front arm = clutch
If you hold down the clutch of your car, what happens if you step on the accelerator? Nothing. You can tread on that gas pedal all you want, as long as the clutch is held down you will not move an inch. The same goes for us if we hold the mast hand close to our body. It is basically the equivalent of opening the sail with the difference that we do not have the option of closing it with the back hand. In order for the sail to catch the wind we must offer some surface to it which is not the case if we pull the mast close to our body (depending on our course).
Nice post.. I love wind surfing and I am very glad to learn about this sport. You have shared great information about this sport. I like this because it looks like we are playing with waves and wind with lots of fun and thrill.
Hey! Thank you very much 🙂 Indeed, once we get to take advantage of the wind and waves it becomes an amazing sport.
Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful knowledge. I just started windsurfing and this was truly insightful.
Hey! I am glad it helped you 🙂 Thanks for letting me know. I really appreciate getting the feedback.
Hi Arne, congratulations, I have liked very much yours posts. I would like to know about lift the sail/mast with harness.
Hey Fred. Thanks for the encouragement. I would be happy to elaborate on what you are interested in. What exactly do you mean with lifting the sail with the harness? Doing a waterstart while hooked in?
Ahh that explains a lot …
Great Information. use front hand for speed as well as control
That is correct!
Does this also apply to light wind conditions?
Because then I have a lot of trouble keeping my front arm straight. I have to stand closer to the mast to avoid falling of.