Any tips for riding switch?

Summer's on the way and with the water warming up, keen to work on some new skills.

Anyone got tips for riding switch?

Here's what I've been doing: I go into a gybe as usual with an early sail flip, then when I come out of the gybe I don't move my feet and just ride switch for a bit.

The trouble starts when I sheet in to power up - I end up rounding up into the wind, lose height control, and if I don't swap feet quickly I foil out.

Best results so far come from heading deep downwind out of the gybe while switch, but that's not a long?term fix. Eventually I want to be able to hold it across the wind (and ideally upwind).

I'm wondering if it's a back foot placement problem (I ride with front straps only). I put my back foot on the rail to initiate the gybe, leaving it there might be what's causing the rounding up? Would I be better off moving it back to the center of the board?

Foiling out could probably be solved by sheeting in harder and loading up the mast, but that just seems to make the rounding up worse.

I'll keep at it - trial and error usually gets me there - but if anyone's got tips, I'd really appreciate it.

Cheers!

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thedoor said..
Hmm. One tip would be to make sure you can slog in switch, and also try to get onto foil while in switch. Getting on to foil in switch is not easy as you can't pump the sail as easily but it teaches you a bit about your stance and sail positioning.

I think a lot of the success of sailing switch is sail positioning, in particular staying powered up and maintaining some mast foot pressure, which requires that back arm to stay bent.

Riding in switch after gybing is a great way to learning it too

Good idea to try getting going in switch. Do you also stay in both straps when jibing into switch?

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thedoor said..
Hmm. One tip would be to make sure you can slog in switch, and also try to get onto foil while in switch. Getting on to foil in switch is not easy as you can't pump the sail as easily but it teaches you a bit about your stance and sail positioning.

I think a lot of the success of sailing switch is sail positioning, in particular staying powered up and maintaining some mast foot pressure, which requires that back arm to stay bent.

Riding in switch after gybing is a great way to learning it too

Panno, he's got you pointed in the right direction. It's possible to control both ride height and steering with clever use of mast-base pressure. It sounds like you may need to rake the mast slightly to windward and slightly more forward, so the sail load drives the mast base down and downwind. Focus on sending the sail load through the mast base.
Of course, the long board is a great way to build this skill and especially to start learning how to step into switch.
I feel like switch is similar to backwinded, you have so little leverage that you just can't get er done without sailing smart and focusing on fundamentals.
I often sail switch when wave riding it's a useful and fun way gybe out into deeper water for a quick few waves you keep your feet stationary and quickly turn back around on the next big one. For sure it first started to happen me as a natural extension of gybing but not sail flipping. I can't wait to try taking off in switch, what a great idea!