What do you do with your legs downwind?

C

Chris123

New Member
So, deep reaches, dead downwind, by-the-lee....

I have my aft leg over the hiking strap, with my knee bent, my lower leg pointing back towards me, the sole of my foot planted against the cockpit sidewall right under my butt, and my knee jammed against the opposite cockpit sidewall. My forward leg I just kind of dangle into the cockpit, pushing either against the windward or leeward sidewall as needed.

The whole thing feels kind of loose and sloppy to me -- I am not really solidly connected to the boat; I can't really throw my weight around as crisply as I'd like... when things get squirrelly (impending deathroll, for example) I sort of sit there like a sack of potatoes waiting for it to happen rather than being springy and agile.

Plus, the vanguard coaching site says you should try very hard not to develop the habit of putting a knee down into the cockpit.

Recommendations, anyone?
 
In light to moderate air I do this:

I hook my back leg over the hiking strap and bend my knee so that my foot hits the widnward side wall of the cockpit. I am usually very far forward so my front leg is bent and goes about half of the way up the centerboard on the deck.

As the breeze builds and I no longer need to just heel the boat to windward I will scoot back. As I do this I begin to put my front foot into the cockpit and jam it into the front windward corner of the cockpit.

When I get into big breeze or where I am carving through the waves to surf I sit completely differently. For example, when I am on starboard I take my left foot and jam it into the leward front corner of the cockpit floor. My right foot will go into the windward front corner. While doing this I hold my legs very tight and keep my feet locked into the boat. This allows me to move around in the boat. I am also locked into the boat well enough to throw my body around enough to help steer the boat.
 
bobbyh said:
In light to moderate air I do this:


When I get into big breeze or where I am carving through the waves to surf I sit completely differently. For example, when I am on starboard I take my left foot and jam it into the leward front corner of the cockpit floor. My right foot will go into the windward front corner. While doing this I hold my legs very tight and keep my feet locked into the boat. This allows me to move around in the boat. I am also locked into the boat well enough to throw my body around enough to help steer the boat.
Click to expand...

This sounds good. Your leeward leg is under the hiking strap and your windward one is free of it???
 
That is true in light to moderate breeze. In waves or bigger breeze neither of my legs are under the strap. I sit right on the edge of the cockpit with one foot in each of the front corners of the boat. It almost looks like I am sitting in a chair. The foot that goes to the leeward corner goes above the hiking strap.
 
I think this should solve the problem...well, maby not for those not in peak condition, but still...I have here in front of me an article from Sailing World, May '05 issue. It's an interview with Paige Railey, a laser radial sailor and the winner of the Rolex Miami OCR. She is considered one of the best, if not THE best, radial sailors in the world. And i quote:

"What about being fast downwind?
It takes practice-hours and hours and lots of capsizing. My coach [Fredrik Lassenius] has me almost standing up, in the boat. It also hurts your toes. Stand up and lean in to head up, and jump forward to get on a wave. It's really hard to find a place to get comfortable."

I take that to mean on your toes, all the time. that, of course, sounds incredibly painful, but if you can do it, i'd copy the world champion if it was me.
 
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