5.2 AEROTECH AIR X
 F2 Maui Project Style L, $350
In Consignment
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WindSense Windsurfing
Atlanta's Windsurf Shop
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WINDSURFING TIPS
These are NOT tips on Jibing, Jumping, or Looping, but are just odds & ends. They are not anything special, just stuff that has helped me over the years. Also, I don’t claim credit for them, as we know, all windsurfers love to give advice, good or bad.
Don't forget the Universal Distress signal is to wave both arms overhead. And let's look out for each other.
When sailing is a new area with sailors you don't know, leave emergency phone numbers on the dash of your car where they can be read from the outside.
Rigging in Hot Weather, get wet first to keep cool, opposite of De-rigging is cold weather.
Cold Weather Sailing: A cooler of hot water stays warm for awhile and helps thaw out your hands and feet on those super cold days. When de-rigging, get out of your wet suit ASAP to stop the wind chill effect.
To unstick a stuck 2 piece mast, use clamp on booms as giant wrenches for extra leverage, dont clamp too close to the joint on the top piece. If more leverage/power is needed, add more booms and more people.
When sawing off a cracked mast, use a (cheap plastic) miter box for a straight cut, the connection between top & bottom pieces needs to be flush.
Use the “Tear by Hand” clear plastic packing tape to tape the top and bottom pieces of 2-piece mast together. This keeps them together when rigging. If they separate much at all, there’s a chance it will crack the top piece when you apply downhaul. This also makes de-rigging easier (sometimes) and can help keep sand out of the mast which can result in a 2 piece mast becoming a 1 piece mast.
If the mast separates while rigging, it will some times crack the bottom of the top piece. If the crack is small, you can saw off the bottom of the top piece a little bit above the crack and still use the mast. Instead of a 460, you have a 457, so set you extension accordingly.
When DownHauling, push with your leg instead of pulling with your arms or back. Your leg is stronger, and if your downhaul line happens to break, the sail shoots away from you instead of you smashing the back of your head.
DownHaul line usually breaks where the cleat bites into it over and over. Watch for signs of wear and replace regularly. Another option is to take the line out and flip it over to keep from having the cleat bite into the line at the same place. Then do it again and but shorten it a few inches. But replacing is recommended, as line is so cheap it is almost free.
When you break a boom while sailing, depending on your tack, you can sometimes flip it over and use the unbroken side to sail back in.
If you need to carry a boom to someone who has broken their boom, clamp the extra boom to your mast either above or below your boom.
Spray furniture polish (Lemon Pledge) on your mast and it will slide into the mast sleeve easier, and keeps mast looking new, if that matters. Also recommended is tent water repellent, which may last longer.
To close the gap at the front end of a Powerbox Weed Fin, place a shim at the rear bottom of the part of the fin that goes inside the board. This works kind of like a seesaw.
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