Now that you’ve made it to the windward mark, you have reached the final section of the lap/race approaching the final drag to the finish. The downwind leg to the leeward mark is usually a fast-paced, sprint race with high tensions and lots of pressure for the lead boats as it is almost always the final leg to the finish. The speed at which FW boards travel makes tactical decisions more difficult as everything happens at a rapid pace. With the downwind leg only making up 15% of the total race elapsed time, there isn’t as many tactical decisions that need to be made however the few that do  have to be an instant reflex response. This week we continue with the articles on Advanced Tactics by getting you from the windward mark to the leeward mark, looking at a few very important rules as well as some tricks you can have up your sleeve to keep your lead into the leeward mark.

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One of the single most important aspects to your FW setup is what is under your feet; fins. As a result, fins have been somewhat an aspect that people obsess about a little too much. As it stands right now, there are 4 mainstream fin makers in the World who’s fins are actively being used on the FW Pro Circuit (apologies to the smaller, lesser known fin companies who I have left out): Deboichet, Kashy, Select, Hurricane, whereby nearly 70% of those are Deboichet made. Each fin company makes a variety of foils in a number of flex stiffnesses, torsional stiffnesses, rakes and twist, which doesn’t make buying a new fin an easily made decision. Coupled with long queues on fin orders and high price tags, many people end up spending money on fins that aren’t helping them. Understanding some basic theory and terminology used in the fin-world might just help you make an informed decision before you part with your hard earned money. Understanding what the fin does to the trim of your board and what you should be looking for when you test fins against each other, might even be more useful. Here we will attempt to do both …

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One of the most difficult aspects of improving your time around the course is understanding and applying tactics. A plethora of fantastic sailing books have been written on tactics but the simple fact of the matter is you only get so good by reading; real world experience goes a very long way and most likely has a lot to do with why the best windsurfing racers in the World are all in their 30’s. Since handheld personal GPS units have become available and popular it has opened a whole new kettle of fish into how we can learn, train and critique our tactics around the course. In this article I am going to show you how to create GPSAR (GPS Action Replays) of your local fleet’s racing which will let you play back the races in real-time; a perfect way to fine tune your tactics to be ready for the second day of racing.

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We’ve already looked at how to get a great start in FW racing, but what about after the start? The first upwind beat to the windward mark is certainly the most important leg of the race, and with the trend for shorter races on the Pro FW Circuit these days, your position at the first mark can often reflect your position at the finish line. This week will mark the first in a series of articles on Advanced Tactics. In particular, introducing some new concepts (unless you’ve read a few books in your time) such as the “hopeless position”, “safe leeward position” and “close hauled” - or as I like to call it, pinching like a b*tch. Now, to fine tune your skills and get to that windward mark quicker, listen very carefully, or you will break the internet …

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After the Antoine Albeau domination of the 2007 FW Worlds in Brazil, a great post was written by Andreas Macke posing some ideas on how one man could dominate an event so much. One thing to consider is that Antoine is around 100kg whereas 2nd placed Steve Allen was 82kg at the event. Power-to-weight plays a very important role in your speed around the course, so let’s have a look at it more closely and see how you can improve your stance to get the most out of your gear. We will begin with some ideas from the master of theory himself, Frank Bethwaite and then move on to look at the techniques of the top FW sailors.

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The rumours were in fact quite true… Gaastra planned to join the formula board market late in 2007 and delivered to their every word with the release of the Gaastra Vapor 2008/09 FW board. To comply with the ISAF regulations of a minimum production run of 10 boards, Gaastra has already produced the first 10 Vapors and I have been lucky enough to get my hands on one (number 004 to be exact). Enjoy a short review of the board and some background information on its development from my talks with Steve Allen and others involved with the board. Continue reading →