Apr 5, 2010
Exit Strategy! Your almost there…
Happy Easter everybody. Hope you had a great weekend!
Now that you have successfully transitioned the sail and your feet, the rest is easy- I promise! The one thing that you need to stay focused on here is speed; you need to keep the board moving in order to PLANE out of your jibe.
How do you do this? Well most people I see that are struggling with their jibes mess up in the exit zone. They are so excited that they got through the transition zone, sometimes a little surprised in fact, they straighten the legs the weight goes back and the board hooks up into the wind and they fall off or struggle to keep upright. The easy solution to this problem is to LENGTHEN out the turn. Once you have transitioned, keep your board moving by taking on a longer arc. In other words, keep flowing and don’t be too concerned about turning sharp to go straight back to the beach.
If you have been doing your homework by watching Kevin’s jibe video at the link here (scroll down the page until you see "Slalom jibe for all Windsport readers"):
http://www.pritchardwindsurfing.com/content/blogcategory/14/44/
you can see that he makes his transition relatively early so that he can keep the board moving for his exit! He doesn’t lose much speed at all and flows right through the turn. Note how his weight is forward after his transition, the board doesn’t slow or stop; it actually  accelerates a little when he steps forward with his new front foot! He gives a couple pumps and off he goes- a perfect jibe that didn’t lose much speed at all. Once he is under way, he can then complete the turn and pinch upwind if he needs to!
Doesn’t that look easy? Yes, it is a lot easier said than done but once you get the basics down you will be able to plug the pieces together for a great jibe. I know a lot of people that spend 10 years trying to perfect their jibes- Hopefully some of these tips will help you guys get them dialed in for summer time fun!
Next week we are going to do some troubleshooting- so be sure to send me an email with questions to address your particular jibing problem or problems…
Three-Time World Champion, Matt Pritchard is sponsored by Gaastra Sails, Tabou Boards, Dakine, Kaenon Polarized and Camaro Wetsuits. If you want to learn more and improve your sailing, check out ALOHA WINDSURFING CLINICS on Maui. Matt has teamed up with expert coach and awesome sailor Shawna Cropas and they will be doing monthly all-inclusive clinics that will guarantee results!
Link is here: http://www.pritchardwindsurfing.com/content/view/15/36/
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