Ultimate High wind rough water Speeeeed tips.

Ok let face it we all want to go faster, so I want to open this thread for all those super fast guys to give up their best tips for going super fast. What took you from fast to super fast in rough water!!!!

Russ

Big Balls
For me its having confidence in your gear especially the fin.
Thens it just TOW, the more you do it the easier it gets.

Vando

What is the best high wind fin, or what would you get for my Falcon 79.

Cheers Russ

Make sure your harness lines are long enough to enable you to fully extend your arms and get your weight well outboard.

I also like my footstraps positioned back and out on the rail so I'm really powering off the fin.

And what Vando said

i hate stacks in rough water and highwind as a cracked nose and any other piece of equipment is expensive nowadays but never having to sheet out and going full out as much as I can is worth the experience..my setup is always a lower boom and longer than average harness line length for control and a 2cm shorter fin to bleed off excess torque and limit tailwalking

Yep, I agree with comments above and reckon for a 2-second peak in chop: wear a helmet, don't care if you crash (hopefully you won't) and check your GPS after every good run,so you can see how fast it was (only way to push yourself to go quicker next run). Picking the right lines along chop, getting the angle right, going fast to begin with and then 'going for it' when you see a flatter section line up or a good gust by bearing off; and acknowledging that you'll probably then need to go over the back of some chop as you finish your blast (keep the pressure on) before bearing back upwind a bit (still bearing off though, but now only moderately) to finish the run. Also, chose a sail size that feels way too big for general back-n-fourth sailing, as you'll need the extra power when bearing off, get some C3 Venoms (!!) and be confident in your gear.

Does anyone know of any videos of people sailing fast in rough water/savage chop? Or even slalom racing in rough water. Might be good for some tips.

Agree

Good to see there are days when even Bjorn only just manages to crack 30. Or is it just not enough wind?

My fin has a rather pebbly surface texture (sprayed no doubt at the cobra factory) would blocking it down with some 1200 help gain a little speed?

If the budget allows grap a Venom 30, i,m running one in a Sl 52 which has a similar volume and works really well with 6.6 down to 5.0 in chop. Works the best when really powered up and it doesn,t let go. All the limits i,ve hit so far have been all me going oh s@#$$t.

As everyone has said get comfortable with your gear, watch what the water is doing as there is a patten to the madness and find the smooth bits. Chase the swell lines and find the angle that suits your board and thats your starting point for off the wind. Get use to that angle and then go further off the wind from there. Watch the gusts and bear off before they hit, you,ll go faster. Weight jacket may help,but you,ll get tired quick. Heavy sailors tend to go faster when its rough.

Here,s a few of my rough runs

the difference in speed between a heavy and light sailor is for me greater in flatter conditions than extreme choppy conditions. skill is a larger factor in extreme conditions.

have never seen a lightweight match slowboat for speed,but did once see a 75kg match him in extreme/choppy 30 plus knot conditions for speed.

i agree putting max weight on back leg, digging toes/lifting heal to lift windward rail is good technique. not sure about these mashy,soft fins i think they are over-rated. they release too much power as they twist off too much.

in very stong consistent wind i will say use a very small sail,in gusty winds go bigger.

as for using a smaller fin i agree. a 25cm carbon fin with a very narrow chord will be slipperly fast and should stop excessive lift.

a harness with a high hook height should also reduce excessive board lift.

Use an RDM mast in sizes 6m and down and if light weight in all your sail sizes.

First up TR I'm not one of those those super fast guys but will throw in my 2c anyway, also there are some agreed points above and some different opinions so in the end it'll boil down to you and what works and this means do it do it and do it more
I sail 99% rough open ocean which is different to river dam chop etc, I find river dam chop harder. My slalom board is 58 wide, I'm not a lover of wide boards. I find short fins don't work in rough water because I end up plowing through the chop, the same fin I used on the butter smooth water at Burrum and loved was a pain in the ocean on the same rig. My harness lines are 28's but I want to try 30's, I use a seat harness. I don't push off my back leg, I use my front but also bending as needed going over rolling chop swell as needed. I also don't belly my sail out like the speed guys, I find I have more control that way.

Keep your weight on your lines as this drives the board forward, do not sheet out, if it gets too hairy turn upwind and wash some speed off. Have total trust in your board, as Snags said let your board do it's own thing, if it gets ugly but doesn't catch a rail it will always come straight again. Don't look where the board is going, look way ahead and pick your lines. Fins are important, spend the money but get the ones that work in chop, I use Venoms, very happy with them (but have a mate who hates them), I was also very happy with my Falcon F1 before I changed boards and stayed with the Kiwi connection. There is nothing wrong with freeride boards & sails but chuck the fin that comes with them if you want to go fast.

Disclaimer, this is just what works for little old me and is no way universal I remember reading a Lockwood post where he did a 36 off a Perth beach on a speed board, he can no doubt can or has gone faster, now that's a super fast guy

Here's a video from last year, cheers Uncle Bob.

Not wrong Vandoman, as nasty as anywhere, good fun chasing da man