Came across this long debate in the latest issue of boards mags are you supinated (under hand grip) or proated (over hand grip).they say if you prefer over it allows you to roll your sholder forward a little further to get more body weight down forcing more pressure on your mast foot good thing! & also reduces body or hand fatigue this of course is your front hand & your back hand over. I personally dont both hands are pronated (0ver) .they also say some of fastest sailors use the over& under practice. Maybe l should too.
Being bored due to enforced off the water my two cents worth.
Saw the same mag. If im going upwind I use front over. As article states seems to be easier to lean forward a bit to get upwind.
Off the wind its definitely front hand under as it seems to give you more strength to hold the rig in powered or over powered situations off the wind.
Also makes it easier to "push" away with front hand to go hard off the wind. With your front hand over its not a natural grip.
Hope this helps.
Over and Under. Better single sighting plane than a side by side, but first preference is a semi auto to reduce fatigue on the old body! 
Select to expand quotesailquik said...
Over and Under. Better single sighting plane than a side by side, but first preference is a semi auto to reduce fatigue on the old body!
Sailing Daffy, not the other sport. Must be age related confusion
Select to expand quoteka43 said...
Being bored due to enforced off the water my two cents worth.
Saw the same mag. If im going upwind I use front over. As article states seems to be easier to lean forward a bit to get upwind.
Off the wind its definitely front hand under as it seems to give you more strength to hold the rig in powered or over powered situations off the wind.
Also makes it easier to "push" away with front hand to go hard off the wind. With your front hand over its not a natural grip.
Hope this helps.
That's interesting - I'm the opposite - front under going upwind and over down.. may have to try that push the sail away tip off the wind.. If we ever get any..
front hand under\rear hand over
However, read a few years ago to use front hand over before you get in the harness, eg getting going, chugging, etc, then when settled in change forearm to under. Makes a lot of difference with forearm and wrist fatigue which = more time on the water.
When gybing front hand goes from under to over as you push the rig into the turn.
I use both hands in white knuckle purple head death grip,, only because of large mast though. Sometimes lay on one hand till it goes numb so it feels like someone else is gripping it........wait....what are you old dudes talken bout.
Select to expand quotestanly said...
front hand under\rear hand over
However, read a few years ago to use front hand over before you get in the harness, eg getting going, chugging, etc, then when settled in change forearm to under. Makes a lot of difference with forearm and wrist fatigue which = more time on the water.
When gybing front hand goes from under to over as you push the rig into the turn.
That's what I do..
Select to expand quotelotofwind said...
I use both hands in white knuckle purple head death grip,, only because of large mast though. Sometimes lay on one hand till it goes numb so it feels like someone else is gripping it........wait....what are you old dudes talken bout.
How old are you?
Select to expand quoteMrCranky said...lotofwind said...
I use both hands in white knuckle purple head death grip,, only because of large mast though. Sometimes lay on one hand till it goes numb so it feels like someone else is gripping it........wait....what are you old dudes talken bout.
How old are you?
As best I can figure from reading his posts, he's about 10 years old.
Front under - I'm 6'2" and set my boom high. As the clew hole (or holes) in the sail is a set height, it determines the angle of the boom in relation to my stance - and over can get awkward.
Also coming from a water skiing background, I found out early that it's easier to hold a handle (boom) with opposed facing hands. The final reason is - hold a rifle...your front hand isn't over it, so the most comfortable position is under.
I do go both over for waterstarting sometimes, and if my arm is getting tired I swap. I also swap to over just before flipping the rig in a gybe though, resulting with my other hand grabbing the other side of the boom underhanded - ready to go again.
On the Cribby DVD when he talks about going as fast as possible entering a jibe to hunch or roll the shoulders forward to commit to the harness more, I found this very helpful and a bit of a revelation. Front hand is over during this, not sure if under would work or matter?
When Cribby exits the jibe his new front hand grabs underhanded and this makes it look really smooth compared to others grabbing overhand.
I'm pretty much all overhanded unless I get tired, but I suck.
only being new to the sport i started with over / over but after getting tennis elbow and a large tear in the tendon if i can get back on the water this summer I'm going to try and have my front hand under to change the muscle groups I'm using to see if that helps me not getting tennis elbow again.
