80 COACHING WINDWISE TECHNIQUE
SWITCHED STANCE GYBE
Why? It’s a fabulous way to develop your Vision,
Opposition and understand keeping that Rig@90
degrees to the board mid gybe and when rotating the
sail. It also ONLY works if you look through the turn and
get that Windwise Touch Point of the clew hand pulled
in tight to the head – so talk into that microphone, like
a Warrior gybe! For non-planing or planing gybes, the feet are change
fractionally after the dead downwind stage of the turn. If you
practice changing the feet super early in lighter winds it really
helps to build confidence and the skills base to
counterbalance in stronger winds. It also has the added
benefit of making you understand the importance of holding
the rig still whenever you switch your feet. So here goes…
Vision / Sailing Line: Opposition:
Switch the feet to a very wide stance whilst sailing on a
beam reach and then look through and out of the turn -
chin on shoulder Touch Point. The rig is angled ‘out’ of the turn as the body moves into
the turn = accentuated opposition!
Widen the grip and pull in and down hard on the boom to
bring the clew hand close to the head.
ADDITIONAL RELEVANCE
Switched not only develops your windsurfing skills
base, it also links into Helicopter Tacks, Duck Gybes
and all sorts of other moves.
Push Tack
From a switched position, turn downwind and then drop the mast towards the tail, head near clew
hand (just like a gybe). To ‘oppose’, the body leans forward in a massively accentuated ‘Warrior’, chin
on shoulder and talking into that microphone with the clew hand as the rig swings to the tail.
uk
WIND
SURFING