Sailing on my new Sailworks 9.0 NX2 today from 12:30 till 4pm. Fantastic planing fun the whole time. I had to come in 3 times as my fingers stopped working. The first thaw was pretty painful but after that it got better! I moved the footstraps back and out but had a hard time bearing off, the board kept wanting to round up...?? Tried moving the mast foot forward and back but didn't seem to help. I tried easing off the downhaul a bit and that seems to help a bit. The more wind the better it got though. Any suggestions..?? I finally got tired of muscling the board and the rig so much so I moved the footstaps back into the middle positions. After looking at the wind today it was 14-18 knots most of the time and pretty steady considering it was Northerly on my 180 litre Go board, 9.0 sail and 54cm fin. I'm 220 lbs so it could have been a bit windier but probably good that it wasn't for my first time on the 9.0 sail. It's feels huge after using my 6.9 quite a big difference. I got 2 waterstarts in but it was very difficult to get the sail flying with the size and the cams. I ended up uphauling a couple of times as I couldn't stand the water temp anymore. There were some kiters that were farther north up at the Native reserve I think.

So it was a terrific 3 hours of sailing....if only it could have been a bit warmer. If anyone is thinking of going out in these type of conditions again and just cruising around let me know as I think I will really enjoy the cruising thing with another sailor to race/chat/learn with. I hope you all had a safe and happy NEW YEARS celebration.

ps. The cold water was a good remedy for the hangover!! Not quite as much wind as last Jan. 1st but for me it was puuuurfect!

Hi Bobson!

Glad to hear the 9.0 is working for you! I have a few suggestions that may help address the tendency to go upwind and the difficulty of bearing off the wind.

Set-up and Stance:

The boom should be around chin height or slightly higher. In overpowered wind you can drop the boom down slightly. This helps with leverage and allows you to get your weight into the harness and rig.
The mast track should be back as far as possible (this is the critical point where the board starts to feel like it will want to tail walk in the puffs). When you feel the board's nose starting to lift too much at speed or in the gusts, move the track forward a centimetre at a time until it settles down. This is your sweet spot for your 9.0. The board should feel very free and light in this position. Try marking the position on your track when you find it.
Try to keep your downhaul setting near max unless you are in marginal conditions (though the downhaul should be let off only slightly - keep that leech floppy!). Too little downhaul will plant the nose (and rocker) into the water and will limit your top end.
Straps should be as far back and outboard as possible in a comfortable breadth for you stance.
When getting onto a plane,or slogging just short of a plane, your back foot's arch will be on the center line a few centimetres ahead of the rear strap. The front foot will have only the toes on the centerline and your stance should be slightly wider than shoulder width or so. The back foot is weighted more as you transition to planing while the front foot slips into the front strap (don't weight the front foot much - you'll head upwind). As you go for the rear strap your weight should be supported by the rig through the harness. This gets weight through the mast foot, keeps the board flat and efficient, and keeps the board from going upwind. Once on the plane, extend your body outward with straight arms and legs. Square your shoulders to the rig. You should feel the rail on your arches and you keep the board flat by pressing through the ball of your foot and toes. This position allows you to "drive" the board rather than passively standing on it, especially going upwind.

Upwind stance: drop the forward shoulder slightly, slightly twist the rear foot in the strap so that the the toes are facing more to the tail and the heel is pointing more to the front. Weight your body more toward the nose through the harness. Keep your body extended (no stinkbugging!). Look upwind slightly higher than your course.
Downwind: From your upwind stance, squat slightly deeper into the harness, come more upright over the board, weight slightly back, and push with the toes aggressively and consistently until you have reached your desired course. In high wind formula, going from a high angle upwind to a deep angle off the wind is one of the most sphincter puckering feelings in windsurfing! Be aggressive! Use those 220 pounds to show that Go board who's boss!
Use an adjustable outhaul if you don't have one. They are invaluable for big sails; even just for cruising. Upwind and overpowered wind setting: flatter. Deep angle off the wind or more power: fuller setting.


Try sticking withyour straps in the outboard and aft positions. Once you get used to this position you'll notice huge performance gains in speed and efficiency (ie. the board will fly more on the fin as opposed to sitting in the water). Partly because of the outboard strap positions on "Go" or formula boards, there is the tendency for newer riders to weight the windward rail too much when getting onto a plane. There is also a tendency to stand too far forward on the board which also encourages the board to weather.

As far as water starting goes, a 9.0 will fly surprisingly well even with all of those cams. Try to expose as much mast at right angles to the wind as you can while aggressively swimming upwind at the same time. As the leading edge clears, extend the mast arm over your head, and reach uder the sail and pop the cams the right way. Try to push on the batten belly rather than the monofilm to avoid tearing a panel. You may also try clearing the sail as described (with the cams underrotated) and quickly move both hands to the boom. Give sail a quick pump to rotate the cams and it should be ready to waterstart.

Hopefully something in what I've posted helps!
Unfortunately I no longer have Formula gear (just wave/freestyle and slalom stuff) otherwise I'd be tempted to join you! I'm sure you'll see more Formula guys out in the warmer months however.

Sounds like tomorrow should have some balmy North winds for us! Too bad Windskippy won't be able to share.

Ride On!

Hey Chris, thanx for all the great info. I haven't been able to get out for the last 2 weeks because it was either too cold/no wind/sick but will be going out this weekend as much as I can(if the wind show up ).

I will try your tips and suggestions and I'll let you know how it goes.
Thanks again, I really appreciate you posts!