SB jumps

To complete his Make Your Move series Simon Bornhoft looks at some inspiring training methods to start, improve and master your jumping skills. Photos: Karen Bornhoft / WindWise

Getting ‘air’ is far more achievable than gybing – what’s more, it feels great. So what are you waiting for? If you can blast comfortably on a sub-115L board you’re at a level to ‘pop’ that board off reservoir chop or a cresting wave. It’s been 18 months since we last covered the aspects of jumping in our Body Mechanics series, so I thought that with the spring breezes approaching we could work together to make this move a reality for you in 2011.

If you’re a fearless former motocross rider then simply sail flat out, lean back, and push on the back foot for take-off. If you have some sense of self-preservation, muscles rather than elastic bands, or limited time on the water, it’s imperative to build an understanding of what’s actually involved and look at ways to get the body to do what you want it to do. So, as ever, this is how you actually learn it, rather than just ‘how to do it’. A head full of tips is not as powerful as muscle memory achieved through easy skills training exercises, which enable you to apply the right skill at the right time.

WindWise Principles

To enable the board to ‘jump’ we momentarily reverse all the core windsurfing principles we usually rave about!

Vision: Look down at the trough of whatever size ramp is in front of you.

Trim: For take-off destroy this key principle by weighting the tail and un-weighting the mastbase.

Opposition: We heavily flex that front arm and pull the rig back TOWARDS the body!

Power: For take-off the rig is, momentarily, sheeted out to reduce mastbase pressure.

Stance: How often do you hear “stand upright and push down on the back foot”?

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