Thomas Traversa, known for his super high stalled forward loops! Image credit PWA/JC.

When I did my first forward loop I was 11 years old and windsurfing in Brandon Bay, Ireland. It was pretty light with waist to shoulder high waves coming through the bay providing some nice head on ramps. I was pumping onto the plane and just chucking myself into them when all of a sudden one just clicked, it felt so easy, all my kit went really light and just came round so smoothly and gently. It was the best feeling I have ever had and I have not been able to stop doing them since, the forward got me hooked on windsurfing all over again.

Aleksy Gayda – BWA Amateur Champion 2011

I started forwards with a lot of determination, perhaps too much as I went through some serious back slaps and lung abuse. After a few pointers from Jem (Hall) I started trying wymaroos, getting the rig across my body and my backhand all the way down the boom, which soon had me landing my first flat water spin loops, even on my weak tack. Through watching movies I then picked up how far off the wind I needed to go for big clean forwards, which is especially difficult in onshore conditions. I also found there was a balance between trying to be on the right kit (where you don’t feel too overpowered) and just having a ‘go for it’ attitude.

The best craic is going for forwards with a bunch of mates, where you can all push each other, keep an eye out and have a lot of fun. I still remember landing my first clean loop and sailing away; it was a sweet feeling and left me smiling for days.

Will Barrett - BWA amateur competitor

I started trying loops in Margarita off about waist high waves, I landed on my back a lot and it was so bruised, but I was super hyped! The next day I tried again with a life jacket, but then I popped my eardrum as I forgot to look back…oops! I decided a little self preservation was in order, so I stopped trying for a while. After trying again in the UK, it was in Brazil that I finally landed one; I was so happy! For a relatively simple move it took me a while, but I think it was because I kept closing my eyes so I couldn’t spot my landing and open out the sail so I always got stuck in the same place. I then went to Pozo to learn on the other tack, trying them on a 3.4 in really onshore conditions improved my spin loop technique, and I began landing them on port too.

Sarah Bibby – BWA 2011 Ladies Champion

With forward loops there was no real breakthrough point that I can remember as every attempt is different and you can hardly expect to come out fully planing on your first go (keep wishing)! So here are just a few key points that almost certainly helped me get to a point where I actually enjoy them; weird I know! NEVER (ever!) let go; if you hold on you are way less likely to land in a heap on your kit. Only let go if you really, really have to.

Do practice in light winds; practice catapulting yourself over the front (without your feet in the straps – obviously) over and over again until you are landing on your back or in the waterstart position before you try in strong winds.

Learn with someone; if you’re competing for that all-important win, then your brain doesn’t mind doing stupid things! Good luck and if you can get someone to video your attempts it will provide you with endless amounts of entertainment!

George Shillito – BWA competitor and man in the know at the Polkerris Beach Co.

My first forward loop was during my first season at Club Vass, I landed my 3rd one! I remember I was on an old Neil Pryde Soul 5.8, sailing towards the beach on port tack and I bore right off the wind and jumped off the back of a piece of chop, nose dived and looked behind me over my back shoulder, waterstarted up and hey presto!

Andy Bubble Chambers - Freestyle and wave competitor and windsurfing coach

My very first forward attempt was pretty pathetic. My best mate from school and I sailed into the middle of Brogborough Lake, did a tiny chop hop and flopped onto our sails. I don’t think it really counts to be honest! My first proper rotation however I still remember clearly. I had been trying a few more forward attempts in lighter winds but without much luck, never getting enough rotation and generally crashing face first into the water. The next properly windy day on the lake, I was flying around full power on a 4.0. When I tried my first forward this day, everything happened so much quicker. Instead of crashing into the water like normal, I did the full rotation and slapped down on my back. I can’t even remember if I sailed away or not, but I can still picture the exact spot on the lake and still have the image in my head of the rotation. It was so fast, but at the same time I can remember it all in super slow motion, with the sky, water and land, all flying by. It was such an amazing feeling.

John Skye – PWA competitor and British windsurfing legend

The full issue of the Spring Summer 2012 Boards Annual is still available for purchase here. 

Have you mastered the carve gybe yet?

My first carve gybe was around the rescue platform in Dahab, in the winter of 2006 while my brother captured the whole thing on video! I think I had been having problems with the step and the rig flip, doing them together instead of one after the other, therefore dropping off the plane and being totally unstable when trying to flip the sail. Counting out loud between the step and flip really helped with this, and made me hold onto the rig for longer before I flipped it. When I sailed out of the first gybe I was overcome with amazement, plus a little relief!

Amy Chambers – Windsurfing instructor, personal trainer and former top Diva for Club Vass.

The carve gybe had always been the ‘elusive’ move I had wanted to learn from about the age of 11. I remember spending years engaging the inside rail, getting the board to carve a little bit and then flailing the rig, limbs and board in an effort to come out dry, thinking this was a carve gybe. This changed when I got a few helpful hints down in Coverack, Cornwall. The big thing that made the move ‘click’ for me was vision. It’s really easy to say “yes I’m looking through the turn”, but it was only when I fully exaggerated the vision, looking right past the end of the boom that my foot-change and rig flip became so much smoother. It felt amazing, and still one of the biggest buzzes I have ever got from windsurfing.

Jo Wright – Slalom, freestyle and wave competitor, sponsored by Tushingham, Starboard and Sam Ross Windsurfing.

My first carve gybe happened when I was sailing at ‘Speedy’ in Dahab a week ago. I was on my 4.7 Ice and my 99 litre Chilli. It was the first windy day since I arrived in Dahab the week before and even though it was a bit off and on, it felt good to be powered up when I hit the gusts. I hadn’t been trying carve gybes that long and it was something I wanted to crack quickly too open the door to more carving manoeuvres. My main issue when learning was keeping my weight forward allowing the board to stay flat through the turn, instead of almost sinking halfway round due to my weight being to far back. Unfortunately my first one wasn’t caught on camera, but I was sailing with friends who witnessed the historic moment. Like many manoeuvres in windsurfing, it can take a lot more work to get them completely consistent, and I’m still working on getting my carve gybes to this standard. But that first feeling you get from bearing away into a carving turn, and the feeling when you finally get your first carve gybe drives me forward to continue learning.

Edd Seater – Recent windsurf addict, working and improving in Dahab, Egypt.

I had happily entered myself into the first youth ‘freewave’ camp at Christchurch with the rest of Team AirBorn when it suddenly dawned on me one of the prerequisites for the camp was to be able to carve gybe! “CR*P!” there I was studying a Jem Hall article on how to Vulcan and it hadn’t even occurred to me that I had to be able to carve gybe! The next few days quickly turned into a case of do or die as the last thing I wanted was to be booted out of the camp (in front of the lads) for not being any good! It was a super warm summers day down at Daymer bay (on the Doom bar side) and the outgoing tide meant the bay was waist deep and flat producing ideal carve gybing conditions. My dad was stood in the water taking pictures of my brother and I windsurfing, whilst at the same time doubling up as a very handy gybe mark. Convenient as it sounds it soon became annoying as with every failed attempt I went round him he would shout, “faster, get low and lean further forward!” For about an hour I thought my dad was a bossy, know it all, loser, who simply didn’t understand! Unexpectedly though it all suddenly clicked when, to prove a point, I threw myself as far forward as I could whilst going as fast as possible and in doing so, fully expected to crash and give my dad the ‘idiot’ look that kids do so well. However in attempting to over exaggerate, I adopted the correct stance and burned through a perfect carve gybe to come out planing! I had made it, my dad was a total LEGEND and what’s more I wouldn’t be kicked off the camp; AMAZING!

George Shillito – BWA competitor and man in the know at the Polkerris Beach Co.

I’ve got to be honest and say I don’t remember my first gybe, but I do remember my first planing one. I used to watch Peter Hart’s “Towards the Limit” video all the time and there is a section in that which breaks down two of Bjorn’s slalom gybes. One where he is overpowered, needs to dump the power and therefore lays it down, and one where he keeps the rig forward and uses all the power to drive the board through the turn. This second one was the key for me and when I tried to emulate it, suddenly I held my speed all the way through the turn and came out fully planing. It probably looked nothing like Bjorn’s version, but in my head it was exactly the same!

John Skye – PWA competitor and British windsurfing legend.

The full issue of the Spring Summer 2012 Boards Annual is still available for purchase here. 

Navi GT31s

With UK speedsailors regularly lighting up the UK’s favourite strips and the incredible growth of GPS speedsailing globally, there’s never been a better time to find out just how fast you really can go. Pete Davis, with maybe a little help from our very own editor, shows you how to get your GPS unit singing…

You lot just don’t realise how lucky you are. Back in the day, getting the opportunity to just have a go at speedsailing was a nightmare. Before any would-be world record breakers could begin to thread their needles down a speed strip, they had to justify their place in a competition by entering pre-qualifying events. And if there was no wind or you didn’t know the right people, you didn’t get in. Period. Even the legendary Whitey had to pre-qualify for Weymouth in 1985, which he had to do on a longboard and with an average speed of 4 knots over 500m just to get a shot in the main event. (He recalls that painfully slow run being recorded for posterity, but cameraman Mark Minter got so bored by the halfway stage that he turned the camera upside-down!)

Combine all that palaver with organising events using an extremely expensive and temperamental video timing setup off the beach, and it’s a miracle that speedsailing ever got off the ground.

Thankfully, those days are well behind us, and speedsailing is now accessible to all. Much of this is, of course, down to technology – with modern GPS devices and online rankings it is now so easy to try speedsailing and see just how fast you really can go. It’s not all about being the fastest in the world or having dedicated speed kit, either. You can compare yourself against your mates on freeride kit at your local spot just for the bragging rights. Sure beats the hell out of just sailing up and down over the same stretch of water.

The recommended unit to have is the Navi / Genie GT31 with a 2GB SD card, which can store loads of data so nothing gets lost. Setting the unit up can be a bit daunting at first, but once it’s sorted you just strap it on your arm and go sailing.

Click here to read the BOARDS 267 GPS Set-Up article in full…

Jem's gu-screw

In this instalment of his comprehensive series examining every aspect of wavesailing, Jem Hall continues the all-out assault on your frontside frolics and gets you all gu-ey. Photos: Dave White

Even with the winter chill and all that rubber, you’re still ready and willing to add some more weapons to your waveriding armoury. So let’s get you all revved for the gu-screw. This move opens the door to rotational stunts around the lip of the wave, and is the one to be cracked on your path towards the elusive wave 360. (The ‘gu’ bit comes from the resurgent Mark Angulo, now with added fame on the Windsurfing Movie II.)

It’s quite a versatile move, as it can be performed in most wind directions, and, because you’re landing the move behind the wave your timing isn’t as important or critical. The wave 360, on the other hand, is performed on the wave-face or even just above it, and you actually land back on the face. It’s an altogether toothier animal to tame.

As with many wave moves, the gu-screw presents the challenge of getting up vertical while still going fast, so working on this move will also improve your general riding. Time is of the essence though…

Einstein once said that “The only reason for time is so that everything doesn’t happen at once.” He’d have made a good wavesailor. As is the case in so many moves, time is a key ingredient, and in the gu-screw your bottom turn is a lot further in front of the wave to give you sufficient time to get enough space to turn and get back up the wave vertically and continue the rotation.

This is a fun move and requires timing, speed, a vertical attack and then some aerial scissoring and rig steering skills similar to the actions in the forward, so it will even improve your forwards too. Even more of a bonus!

You can do a lot of the movements in light winds while practising those wymaroos that you’re no doubt doing to facilitate both learning and improving your forwards. (The wymaroo got its name from American ’90s ripper Chris Wyman, who in terms of moves was way ahead of his time.) You can even have a shot at it when planing as you do half a carve gybe into a forward loop spin, and hey presto you’re a freestyling machine.

You’ll see sailors performing the advanced version of the gu-screw in both cross-onshore and cross-shore conditions, so the opportunities are endless. As all good wavesailors are comfortable with being uncomfortable, I have no doubt that you’re itching to ‘have some’ of this move.

Poor Whitey was kept waiting quite a while during these shots as I worked on getting it better, and he missed the best sequence as he nodded off. [You’d nod off after 9 hours too. Whitey.] Still, writing these articles means that I’ve got to step up too and get comfy with some new moves, so here we go…

Who? Riders who want to step it up and work towards the wave 360. Yup, your only limits are the ones you place on yourself.

Where? On fairly steep, clean waves, or on sections that aren’t too critical and threatening. As you get more into them you choose the more powerful parts of the wave.

When? As for all moves do it when you’re fresh in your first hour of sailing after getting a couple of waves under your belt to warm up. Have a session on it of 30 minutes and no more, and do one or two on every wave! This really worked for me.

Why? It feels great and will get you improving in other areas of your wavesailing while you conquer it.

What? A vert attack up the wave as you jump switch clew-first and spin the kit round in the air. Not as hard as it sounds!

How? Let’s go to that now…

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 269 article in full…

Jem goes lip-sliding away...

In this instalment of his comprehensive series examining every aspect of wavesailing, Jem Hall adds a bit of slide to your frontside top turn.

Different strokes

Now, as you all know I’m not much of a salesman and don’t promote buying new products all that much, but I’ll give it a go here. The new-school multi-finned boards with their wide noses, relatively narrow tails and loose slashy turning abilities really assist you in not only releasing the tail but also controlling this slide, as with fins in proximity to the rails you have the grip needed to bring it all back on track. These boards also allow you to initiate tight turns off the back foot and take advantage of this in smaller waves and some of the not so pristine onshore conditions we have here in the UK, while of course fully firing in ripping cross to cross-off winds as well. Best get shopping then!

I will revert to my trusted formula for this move:

Who? Riders who are controlling dynamic top turns and want to spice it up a bit.

Where? On fairly steep clean waves or on sections that aren’t too critical and threatening. You can also do it off some white water sections too.

When? As for all moves do it when you’re fresh in your first hour of sailing after getting a couple of waves under your belt to warm up. Have a session on it of 30 minutes and no more, and do one or two on every wave!

Why? The ability to control different types of turns at the lip of the wave is paramount to adding fluidity and style to your riding.

What? A controlled spin-out at the top of the wave as you perform a top turn, which is then pulled back on track.

How? Let’s go to that now…

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 268 article in full…

Jem gets laid back

In this instalment of his comprehensive series examining every aspect of wavesailing, Jem Hall helps you to get more laid back with your jumping. Photos: Dave White

Now that you’re all embracing the hands-free moments of joy in your top-turns, I thought I’d go back to some good old jumping this month.

As you will all no doubt agree, windsurfing is a path strewn with unique moments, and these are the freeze frames that we remember best in the future and enjoy most at the time. With this in mind, and with one eye on learning to push loop, I aim to inspire you to once again find comfort in discomfort as I ask you to commit to learning the layback jump.

This move was introduced to me by my good old mate and ex-testing colleague, Ian Leonard, who loved to look right back and check out the view on the beach as he was mid vertical jump. You can also witness the rubbery prowess of pro riders as they arch into some amazing back loops. (Alex Mussolini is a particularly deft exponent of the art.)

The layback jump is a move which, like so many moves, has no real function except that it feels both weird and great. It does however equip you with yet more in-flight control, and also gives you a head-start and view on where your vision goes in a push loop… Which you are all, of course, gagging to learn!

I will revert to my trusted formula for this move:

Who? This move is for sailors wanting to increase their fun quotient, enjoy a unique view and be ready for call of duty in push loop club.

Where? Off small to medium ramps with good space between them, and relatively steep in nature so you get more time to see what’s happening back there.

When? As for all moves, do it when you’re fresh – i.e. in your first hour of sailing after getting a couple of runs through the break under your belt to warm up. Have a session on it of 30 minutes and no more, and do one on every run!

Why? This is another stunt in your arsenal, and it’s a trigger move that will boost your confidence, in-flight technique, orientation, and ready you for push loops.

What? It’s a vertical jump in which you look straight back behind you as you’re going up so you can check out the beach action

How? Just jump, look behind you, and then land. Simples!

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 267 article in full…

Jem goes one-handed up top

Jem Hall fully engages in his frontside series once again as he invites you to rejoice in the joyous freedom of one-handed top turns. Photos: Dave White

I’m just back from another great trip to Punta San Carlos (PSC), Baja, and as with all my coaching weeks I’ve learnt a great deal from my crew and my tutoring of them. The group comprised a mix of more experienced wavesailors wanting to step up their game and relative novices who were keen to join Waveriding Club – although we all know that doesn’t exist, right?

What was amazing was that if I set them targets and they actually did them well then they moved their sailing forward. One of the targets was to get out there and do some one-handed top turns so that their hands were surfing the boom as much as they surfed the waves. Those that did a lot (more than 10) made more progress, and most importantly achieved that crucial feeling of being comfortable with being uncomfortable. In fact my main man Clive ‘El Toro’ Boden did so many that he was almost nonchalant about them, where at first he was somewhat tentative. As always the standards you set and the targets you aim to achieve will strongly affect how much you improve.

I have to say it – I love one-handed moves. I feel more free and they force me to counterbalance with more finesse while giving increased feedback from the board and rig. Over this series I have set you many challenges, so how about stepping up and doing this one?

One-handed moves get you to really counterbalance the pull of the rig using your body, and force you to consider the position of your head, hips and hands. This is crucial to developing some style in your wavesailing, and particularly in your riding. When I get people sailing one-handed their stance transforms. If I get them going one-handed front-to-sail they truly understand sail control, and if you do tail-grab jumps… Well, you know what that does for you.

I will revert to my trusty formula for this move:

Who? This move is for people who are happy making frontside bottom and top turns in cross-off to cross-on. You don’t have to be ripping to do it.

What? As you’re going up for your top turn it’s a dropping of the front hand as you drive through the wave to redirect.

Where? Off small to medium and relatively green waves – i.e. not too steep or critical and on an open face, and perhaps as a cut-back to the steeper section of the wave.

Why? This is another trigger move that will boost your confidence, technique, hand positioning and style.

When? As for all moves do it when you’re fresh in your first hour of sailing after getting a couple of rides under your belt to warm up. Have a session of 30 minutes on it and no more – and do one on every waveride!

How? Just let that front hand drop and feel the joy.

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 266 article in full…

Jem's frontside aerial

Fully rested after a month off, Jem Hall is straight back into his frontside series as he gets you having it on some frontside aerials.

Now that you’re hungry for some real progression in your riding and your all-out attack on the lip you’re about to launch into one of the best moves there is: the aerial. The feeling you get when you connect with a good section and boost an air off it as you fly in front of the wave and look back towards the beach is amazing. I should know, as between you and me I’m going to let you into a little secret… I’ve only been doing some half decent ones in the last couple of years. There – I’ve said it. But now I’ve ’fessed up and come out of the closet I’m on a motivational mission to inspire you to do some aerials – and there’s no better way to get the positive vibes across than when yours truly is fully fired up and working super-hard on something himself.

On my 2009 Baja trip I just fully went for it, and after an hour a day getting worked on this and many moves I got my aerials moving forward and in front of the wave. Added inspiration also came from my clients’ unbridled passion and commitment to the cause…

The move is dependent on:

• Wave selection

• Speed down-the-line

• Timing

• Jumping competency (on both tacks)

Your timing when hitting the section will improve as you work on getting more vertical in your ventures up and at the lip. As you get more wave time you’ll enhance your psychic powers to predict when a wave will break. The timing of your run-up to hit a section, accept its energy, jump and project you and your kit to land in front of the wave will become much more refined. This is, after all, essentially what an aerial is. Of course, there will be times when instead of you hitting the lip it’s the lip hitting you, but this is all part of the fun. If you don’t go, you just won’t know.

The best conditions are definitely in cross or cross-off winds, and you want to make it easy at first by keeping your line high and along the wave where the energy is. So it’s a bit of a speed run along the wave and then a direction change to jump off the section you’ve been eyeing up.

The more vertical you go in your bottom turn the harder you make it for yourself as your timing has to be spot on, so take our suggested line for your aerial to make your connection and land back in front of the wave. As you progress, because you believe you will, you can go more vertical when your timing and aerials get better.

The key tips for this move are speed and timing. If you go faster the board is better able to release from the wave, and you can be more aggressive and hit the section a bit later. Then with good timing you can use all of the energy the wave has to offer you. This move is great fun and scary enough to get that focus we all need and want. Enjoy!

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 265 article in full…

Jem shows off his backside

Jem Hall continues to give you a break from his fully frontside series as he gets you working on your backside waveriding. Photos by Dave White

As we move into summer and find ourselves out in smaller waves and perhaps onshore conditions we should now be looking to show our backsides with pride.

Backside is not often practiced. People who sail in waves as opposed to wavesailors often ignore these enticing lumps on the way in as they boy-race their way through the break, and advanced sailors just want to go frontside, dude! But backside done well is great fun. You can make it rad and it can lead you into your frontside turns in cross-shore winds, as the wave forms up while you’re stalling for this to happen. It will also enable you to work sections of the wave before you go frontside in cross-on – but more on that later.

The jumps you’re now doing will help with backside aerials and jumps – backside airs on the way in mean you get good at jumping both ways. Getting proficient and eventually vertical backside leads to some great turns and will improve your frontside as your timing, aggression and technique will be constantly improving. You can’t but be impressed by some of the backside antics our illustrious pros get up to in sloppy conditions like Pozo or Sylt – and of course in quality waves like the left at Lanes, which you see in a lot of vids.

It’s all in the name. When you’re waveriding backside you have your back to the wave and you are indeed using your arse and hips to help you change direction. As you are backside you’ll be going upwind and there will thus be less power in the sail, and as such it’s a good initiation into easy riding. You are more able to suck it and see as you develop your gentle turns into more vertical and aggressive riding.

The rules…

The basic ground rules follow the guidelines for all your fundamental windsurfing skills. Basically it’s all about the head and hands!

The head Where your head goes your body will follow. Exaggerating this movement of the head is often the easiest way to improve your riding and all-round sailing.

The hands While waveriding your back hand should really be working up and down the boom. The front hand should also not be too far forward on the boom.

At first I suggest not going for top or bottom turns, but just practice staying on the wave while unhooked, which will help you when you get into your top turns.

Aim to make little turns on your heels and toes, heels towards the bottom of the wave and toes towards the middle or top of the wave. You can also do this in rolling swell to get a feel for it.

Turn your head to look upwind for your heelside turn, and then look downwind to come back down the wave and get your speed back up.

These will be your first backside bottom and top turns…

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 263 article in full…

Jem jumps

Jem Hall gives you a break from his fully frontside series to get you focusing on, believing in and enjoying the freedom of flight as he covers the basic jump. Photos by Dave White

As spring moves into summer l hope you’re all managing to get some sailing in – and, it goes without saying, doing so with passion. How are the tips working out? Are you working harder in light winds to get your fundamentals firing? What are the key tips that are helping you to be a better sailor? Have you considered getting equipment that will help you to improve faster? Are you thinking about travelling to get some much needed consistent conditions? Are you praying for some low pressure systems to ease your pain and put all these tips into practice? And finally, are you the pilot and not the passenger?

If indeed you are looking to move your sailing up, forwards and enjoy it more, then this article is for you as we’re now going to look at the basic jump. As you’re now looking to make changes to your sailing you will already have identified that you need to work on your mental preparation, tuning, gear selection, and, of course, application of technique.

If you’re not yet jumping then there’s no better way to take you out of your comfort zone then to get you airborne, and for those already getting it up regularly it’s time to do so more efficiently and with more height. There’s a great view to be had up there, and the higher you are the longer you get to enjoy it.

Many of you wannabe wavesailors may already be jumping a little when you flop off a wave or meaty bit of chop, but I’m now imploring you to put much more in, for what you reap is what you sow – and the more you sow the higher you go. Jumping higher and with more efficiency will give you more time and smooth your path to learn more radical jumps in the future. In some conditions making decent jumps is the difference between getting out the back and taking a beating – or a ‘learning experience’ as us coaches like to call it.

Jumping is one of the best parts of windsurfing; nailing your first jumps and getting fully confident in the air are memorable indeed. Chop-hops and wave jumps can be done before you’ve gained proficiency in many other moves (such as gybes and tacks), as once you have good speed in the straps on smaller boards you’re fully ready for some aerial action. Many lighter or younger sailors nail some sweet jumps but aren’t yet strong enough for some of the more powerful moves like carve gybes and hard-hitting waveriding.

Tuning

First up, your tuning is very important so be sure to check out my Jem’s Gems section. Your board selection should be 111L and downwards, and freestyle-wave, freestyle or a waveboard, as their rockerlines are more eager to take off.

Analyse this… and that

To get properly airborne a bit of a ramp is handy, so you’ll need to analyse the water for some juicy lumps and bumps. Just as wind awareness and really seeing gusts and lulls helps your stance and board speed, so too does seeking out the most suitable ramps. These observations are the first part of your journey into airtime action.

Fasten seatbelts and prepare for take-off

Your take-off will be slightly into the wind and with board’s tail in the trough, which brings the nose up and feeds air under the board. However, speed is your friend here so your sailing line shouldn’t be upwind for too long. More speed means more height and the more you put into taking off the more you get out. The board will not jump for you, so you have to be the pilot not the passenger and give the kit the technique that is required to get it airborne.

The biggest tip to get you off the water is that your stance should be quite different pre-jump to ensure that the kit’s in the right position for taking-off. This is the most major change you’ll make in jumping well, so forget about being outboard and motoring – think more about getting over the board and be ready to ‘ollie’ as you would in other boardsports. Read on for the nitty gritty…

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 262 article in full…

Jem getting vertical, dude!

Continuing his fully frontside focus, Jem Hall gets you twisting and shouting as you attack the lip and go vertical.

Now that you’re getting to grips with the top turn you’ll be wanting to get more power back from the wave and use its energy to redirect you more forcefully. To do this you’ll have to get more vertical to present the maximum amount of board to the wave. To go more vertical you’ll need more speed in your bottom turn, and your timing needs to be spot-on to hit the right sections at the right time.

If you need an example of vertical then you’ll find it in the shape of a certain Mr J Polakow, who redefined wavesailing in the ’90s and inspired many of our modern masters of the art. While we now see the likes of goitas, wave 360s and aerials being pulled off on the waves there’s still no better feeling than attacking a lip by going vertical right up into the maw of the beast, smacking it hard on the lip, pausing for breath and making it out the other side. You will work on this part of your wavesailing for a lifetime.

As I’ve said before your bottom turn will be a measure of how well your riding can progress. Your top turn will gain in prowess and performance, but the work you do in the middle of the turn as you open the sail, carve hard and project back up the lip will have you tuning your kit, changing boards, seeking coaching and putting in a large amount of work to get vertical. It’s an amazing journey, and you’ll experience success and failure in equal measure, but from here forwards your mantra will be “attack the lip” or just simply “smack it!”

Basic skills

So far I’ve emphasised the exact placement of your hands on the boom and really moving both head and hands as you ride. I’ve done this to get you more vertical easier and faster, as you’re already doing the basics well.

As you go vert you’ll be calling big-time on the ability to open the sail and shift those hips to the inside of the turn, just as in a step gybe. In fact if you can do a gybe and come out switch-stance in both straps while clew-first and keep speed, then you’ll really keep your velocity when going vertical and make a breakthrough in your riding. I think I’ve said before that how you gybe is how you waveride, so please let’s keep up the quality in this department.

Let’s smack it

Getting technique photos is problematic – more so with waves – and while looking for THE Jedi sequence for this article I just couldn’t find the shots I needed, so in addition to what you see here I implore you to use my Winner to Wavesailor DVD as your visual reference. Doing this and using the very important skill of visualisation will really help you here. As you read these words I want you to see, hear, feel and taste the wave and take the most relevant key points FOR YOU from this article…

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 261 article in full…

Jem top turns at PSC, Baja

Jem Hall forges ahead with his fully frontside series as he gets you attacking the lip with some tantalising top turns.

Let’s take your amazing wave selection and full-power bottom turns and put them to good use by throwing some spray in your top turns. As you’re starting to get in the bottom turn groove you’ll now be in a position to arrive at the top of the wave with more speed and power, allowing you to get much more aggressive in the top turn. However, the initiation of the top turn begins much sooner than you think.

The top turn calls upon some basic skills that we use in all our windsurfing sessions:

• Look where you want to go – in this case turning back upwind.

• Bring your hands together when sailing upwind to power up the rig. In the top turn this follows through to opening up the sail, thereby powering it up.

Before we get all techy let’s keep it simple. Wavesailing is all about head and hands. Look downwind with your hands apart for your bottom turn, then look upwind with your hands together for your top turn. If you start really focusing on your head and hands in your blasting, sailing upwind, gybes and tacks, well, then you’re evolving as a wavesailor – so get on it!

Tuning

I covered this last month, so no slipping back please. It’s worth taking a look at the March issue to remind you of the key areas to look at – especially as your kit may now be poking its head up for the first sessions of the year.

By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail.

Timing

With all your ocean realignment in wind and watersports you’ll now be benefiting from better timing, and at this stage of your journey will have fully realised that ‘good judgement is based on experience, and experience is the result of poor judgement.’ You must enjoy both the pain and pleasure of getting it wrong and right, and reflect on it to move forward. You will go too late up to the lip and get smacked down (over the falls), or fall off the wave (going over the back), as well as getting your timing spot-on and making that connection so that the bottom of the board is exposed to the powerful surge of the wave, redirecting you with speed and energy.

Location, location, location…

Wavesailing is hugely condition dependent and the good times flow when tide, swell direction and size, wave speed, wind direction and speed all combine to give you some kick-arse action. Cross to cross-off winds give you speed down-the-line, and cross-off especially so, as you have cleaner faces and often longer waves. We benefited from a great swell and the consistent cross-off winds last year in Punta San Carlos (PSC), Baja, and the longer waves gave my crew more opportunities to get into a flow in their turns. So please seek out these conditions to take your riding forward. Cross-off gives you easier, longer turns with plenty of speed, yet it is harder to get more vert. Cross-shore is bumpier and easier for going more vertical and making aerials. Cross-on, our standard in Europe, will be covered later.

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 260 article in full…

Jem cranks a bottom turn

In this instalment of his comprehensive series examining every aspect of wavesailing, Jem Hall continues his fully frontside series as he gets you carving sweetly through your bottom turns…

So, you’re now gaining knowledge of the art of positioning. You know where to be in the wave arena, and you’re able to get speed down-the-line. Now it’s time to use that knowledge.

Frontside riding, which has you facing towards the wave and is also called ‘down-the-line (DTL), is the name of this month’s game. Cross-shore and cross-off winds are the easiest for frontside, so this is what we’ll look at as we examine the basics of frontside waveriding with the gateway to it all, the bottom turn. This is a turn initiated at the bottom of the wave in which the wave’s energy and your speed are used to get you back up the wave so you can kiss the lip with a tasty top turn. This is where you should be salivating about all the spray you’re going to be throwing around.

Many waveriders can have a good top turn, but you’re most respected for your prowess, technique and style at the bottom. As maestro Levi Siver says, “You may spend your whole life improving this”. If you have speed and style in the bottom turn then you can get back up the wave faster and steeper to accept all the energy from the wave in your top turn. You can then smack the wave as opposed to it smacking you.

As some of you may know I go on and on about carve ‘step’ gybes, the reason being that there are many similarities between it and your bottom turn technique. Most importantly the straight front arm and back hand down the boom. Make the back of the boom your new best mate and your gybes, bottom turns and forwards (amongst many moves) will flourish.

Tuning

By failing to prepare you’re preparing to fail, so you’d best get fully tuned up and ready for some fast turns. Your footstraps should be big so you can get over your toeside rail and carve hard. It’s damn near impossible to carve hard if your straps are tight, so if your straps are like tourniquets then you’re better off getting into S&M instead. The mastfoot should be moved around to find its sweet spot – a good starting point is 135cm from tail. Moving it back loosens the board, forward controls the board. Position your lines relatively far back so you can get your rig forward. Yep, that’s right – lines back will get your hands back, which in turn gets the rig forward (and across you in the middle of the bottom turn and the forward). When you use long lines it’s for easier unhooking; you can get low to improve wind range and you can sail with your front hand back to reap huge rewards.

You can loosen up your FSW by putting in a smaller (22-25cm fin). Overhand is the grip of choice so you can create downforce, just like in front crawl or surfing.

Checklist

Your wave selection is based on experience and judgement, so you must keep reflecting on this throughout. By preparing your equipment you’re ahead of the game, but to be even more ready for performing in the waves we strongly suggest you embrace becoming a waterperson by surfing / SUPing. This allows you to catch waves and practice turning through different body positions, foot-weighting and moving your head and hands – exactly like wavesailing.

Just as we have a Loop Club (check the boards.co.uk forums) we also have a Waveriding Club, and these are the rules:

1. There is no Waveriding Club.

2. Get out the back efficiently, consider your route and technique.

3. Turn around and wait or catch a wave at the bus stop. Right time, right place and all that jazz.

4. Get speed along the wave.

5. Drop down the wave and make shallow bottom and top turns, focusing on head and hand movements.

6. Go more vertical as you bottom turn faster and harder and then turn back up the wave steeper and more aggressively.

7. Smack it, aerial it – just do what you can to send it back out there.

8. Enjoy both your successes and failures.

9. Always smile while swimming back to your kit.

At first you will be making turns along the easier / less steep / greener sections of the wave to groove into the general flow of your frontside turns. As you progress you can position yourself upwind / upwave of a peak (a steeper section) so you can time your bottom turn to meet the lip in your top turn. Yet again, this is all about our very dear friends: judgement and experience.

The absolute key to frontside is that you have to follow its namesake and turn off the front foot like a surfer and push the whole downwind / toeside rail into the water. This will require you to lean forward, pull down on the boom, bend your ankles and extend your front arm. Let’s examine the basic bottom turn technique…

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 259 article in full…

Jem gets on the bus...

Jem Hall continues his fully frontside series as he gets you on the right wave in the right place at the right time – and in the right way. Alright?

A big well done to all of you who got out the back last time. Now you’re out there let’s look at what to do with all these waves coming your way and assist you in catching some sweet rides.

Surf check

First up, your best opportunity to spot a good wave is on your way out, so take advantage of that please. Now that you’re crossing the void and putting away those offshore sailing passes, you’ll be looking to catch the best waves – and using their most useful parts to give you speed, power, and of course some sweet turns. To enjoy the best part of wavesailing (i.e. riding) you’ll need and WANT to have excellent wave selection. This starts with becoming more of a waterperson, so yes, I am imploring you to get out there – shock-horror – on alternative watercraft. Didn’t you know everyone’s going surfing nowadays?

After a good long surf check you’re now in the best position to assess where the waves are forming and see your best route out. You can also observe and ask other riders.

Bus stop

From the beach and while sailing out, look for an area where the swells form up and start to get steeper with a view to breaking. This is called the ‘peak’. If you know where this is you’ll get the best waves and the most rides – and the more surfing you do the better your knowledge of this will be.

This area where all the fun is happening is the ‘bus stop’, because there’s nothing for a while and then three come along at once! And if you want your ticket to ride then you’d better be there and catching the right one to your destination.

You’ll need to wait at the bus stop to catch the right wave, so please have some patience. You may have to sail quite slowly up / across wind to let the wave come to you, and if you really mean business then you’ll prowl in this area until you spot your prey, and only then will you set off. Blasting into the beach with your arms apart and looking at the sail is not what wave catchers do. Waves do not move as fast as you, so keep calm, keep those eyes peeled, and remember you are now in the mindset of a young Jedi wavesailor.

Ahoy

Depending on water depth, tidal height, wave size, direction and speed, this peak will vary from being closer in to a lot further out. Once you’ve gone past the peak you’re ‘out the back’ and therefore in a safer area. This can sometimes be a long way out, and it can be quite eerie out there. The water’s flat, all is quiet … and then boom! Three big monsters are heading your way. So err on the side of caution and ensure that you’re outside the breaking zone when waiting. Slower waves are easy to catch but faster waves mean you’ll have to get motoring. This can catch people out, and as for all areas of wavesailing: good judgement comes from experience and experience is the result of poor judgement.

Click here to read Jem’s Wannabe 258 article in full…