Noob Questions - Hiking Strap and Downwind

C

code08

New Member
So this is my first summer sailing lasers and I'm still figuring things out. Right now I'm just borrowing a friends boat once in a while to sail on which means I'm generally out sailing by myself (he uses it on race night so I never get to race) and have nobody to compare my sailing against. Because of this I have two questions which probably are simple but I can't figure them out.

How tight do I make the hiking strap? I know for downwind one is suppose to make it uber tight so that they can hook their leg under it and move with the boat but for upwind I can't figure it out. As it isn't my boat the hiking strap is set for the way the other guy likes it which seems way to loose for me. Is it fine that I crank it as tight as it will go and then never loosen it? Is this really just kind of a what ever is comfortable setting?

How am I suppose to sail downwind? Right now I let the sail out to about 80 degrees, cleat it, then sail so that the sail stays mostly full (maybe 150 off the wind). Other than trying to keep the boat from rolling back and forth it seems like I'm not doing much on the downwind legs. I've also tried sailing by the lee but I haven't really noticed an improvement so I'm probably doing that wrong as well.
 
Yeah I'm kinda in the same boat as you (haha). I just got my Laser a couple weeks ago and I'm also still trying to figure things out. My hiking strap was really loose too whenever I got my boat, but I had a lot of trouble hiking with it like this so I just tightened it some. I can't really give you much advice except for just to experiment with the hiking strap and find out what is most comfortable and works best for you. That's what I did anyway : )
 
You want your hiking strap as tight as possible but as loose as necessery. :)
I think it is a very individual thing. Too tight and you will begin to wear a groove into the back of your calfs aswell as blocking the blood to your feet (difficult to tack with numb feet), too loose and I find it difficult to get back in the boat quickly from fully hiked out and there is less 'connection' with the boat for body torquing (how ever that is quite an advanced sailing technique) etc...
If it is comfortable and works for you (i.e you can feel your feet and you can get back in the boat) then its set just right. The 'Goldie Locks' position
 
This is why all the top guys have adjustable straps so they can make them tight for downwind then loosen them off as required.

Cheers,

Paul
 
I like mine somewhat loose on the upwind legs so I can be able to get my body farther out of the boat... But on downwind legs I like it tighter so I have more boat feel... You can find different systems were you are able to adjust on the run... Rooster has a great system on YouTube
 
you want an adjustable strap http://laserxd.com/laser-sailboat-adjustable-hiking-strap.php

upwind you need to adjust it to the conditions, on a reach you want the strap tight

downwind it doesn't really matter that much for me, I sit up by the daggerboard unless there are planning conditions

downwind use your weight to steer, leeward heel to head up and windward heel to head down, typically the boom will be 90 degrees in medium conditions, more than 90 in light wind to hold the boom up, and less than 90 in heavy air to spill excess power and gain control
 
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