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Hi, very new to the windsurfing scene, have only been sailing for a year and still have a long way to go. My question is though, ive been sailing with other blokes with freeride / race orientated sails and I am using a wave sail.
Is the sail position different whilst planing between these two sail types? Freeride / race sales are raked right back where wave sales tend to be more upright planers?
Have a look at the pics to see what I mean.
Only just starting to get planing 
The "New School" advocates keeping the sail forward, weight on the board, footstraps loose. The "Old School" is opposite in all respects. It is easy to tell them apart on the water: the newschoolers always get buzzed by the oldschoolers.
More a case of stance. On a slalom / freeride board you load up the fin with lateral foot pressure, and a lot more back foot pressure. The leads to (or enables, depending on how you look at it) the rig being raked back.
On a waveboard, that same pressure against the fin lasts about 0.01 sec before the fin slides downwind and you're stuffed. It is all front foot on a waveboard.
Thus looking at pics you will see the sail raked less on a wavesail - but that is mostly because it is on a wave board. On a slalom board with a wavesail you would see much more rearward rake possible.
Don't worry about the rake - that does not get you planing or make you faster if you are barely planing, rather the sail being raked back is a consequence of being fast and being in the straps with correct stance
I know what D1 is saying but his advice is about comparing freeride/slalom sailors with other freeride/slalom sailors in what stance they adopt. I think the O.P is comparing very different gear or abilities
Yes, QMD*
just wanted to add that wave sails have a higher cutout so you'll shouldn't aim to "close the gap" as you would do with a slalom sail. It still pays to rake it back though, if you are on a freeride or slalom board...
*(Quod Markus Demonstrandum)
First photo is going slightly off the wind other one is going upwind, sails are allway more upright going up wind, wavesailors are almost always trying to sail upwind to the top of the peak..
Footstrap position is also a major factor.. slalom board right back, waveboard heaps foward..
And you shouldn't be forcing your sail into either position, the sails, when setup up correctly find their own balance point and the trick is to find it
Wave sails clew is cut up high so you can do tricks easily without catching the water or your body.
Race sails are looking to reduce drag and increase lift. Google 'end plate effect' or tip vortices.
In my words I try to explain like this.
The windward side of the sail is high pressure the leeward side is low pressure. In nature high pressure is always trying to find the easiest way to get to the low pressure and balance out.
The wind will twist around the top and bottom of your sail creating drag. If you close the gap between the water and the sail the wind cannot do this as easily at the foot of the sail and if you have a upper loose leach the wind will have better laminar flow at the top. A bit like winglets on aeroplanes save fuel.
So race sails have lower clews or bigger foot area so it's easier to get the sail on the deck of the board and go for speed.
Phil I disagree. How long can you actually plane in the straps with no harness? Not long 
Learn harness first so you start getting used to it, then when the wind is strong enough that you start to plane, inch back towards the straps over a few sessions.
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^^^^^^^Phil. For that board, put the mast in the middle of the track. I usually moved it forward to gain control when overpowered, or back in the ocean to give her a more lievly feel lifting the nose a bit more -0 but for you stay around the middle.
The straps are in the correct position being inboard and mid "ship". Once you get the hang of the harness and straps in this position, and if you want to go faster we will move the straps outboard (and a hole or two back), but this is sometime away yet, use them as they are.
You were planning really fast last weekend, out of the straps, in the harness and leaning back towards the tail to handle the sail. Ideally when in the straps you should be leaning out over the rail to counterweight the sail (rather than back) and eventually you will learn to shift your weight slightly forward to trim the board - but focus on out instead of back. Leaning back in the straps with poor trim will will sink the tail, kill the plane and then turn you up into the wind. Is that what was happening when you tried the straps?
now, you were planning fast last weekend with over half the board in the water, you aint seen nuthin yet, once you are in the straps and leaning out the board will be 2/3 out of the water and you will be planning on the fastest part of the rocker (tail) and then your eyeballs will be embedded on your forebrain and then the gps bug hits - your next toy it will be (yoda voice)
perhaps more wind today mate. Unfortunately I cant get out of work today - hope you get a run - practise what I have said padawan
Just to reawaken this topic, been reading alot articles on www.guycribb.com and am finding them really good. One key point he saids is:
"Tip the rig further forwards thereby improving early planing and increasing
Downforce, increasing control and upwind ability"
and
'CLOSE THE SLOT - TRUE OR FALSE?'
Closing the slot (raking the sail back to close the gap between the bottom
of your sail and the board) is an expression born in the eighties. And
that's where it should have stayed. Unfortunately it still lingers and
wrecks loads of windsurfers' techniques! Do not ever consciously 'close
the slot', it just kills the power and reduces Downforce. That's not to say
never close the slot, just never consciously do it. If you're over powered
on free ride or race kit, sometimes it happens naturally as you crouch
down lower for control. But on freestyle or wave kit, never let it close!
So I agree with jsnfok, never force it back let the rig find its sweet spot.
full article is here: www.guycribb.com/userfiles/documents/The%20Truth%20About%20Harness%20Lines.pdf
I set my harness lines roughly using his method yesterday and noticed an improvement!
Phil,
I started planing in the harness but out of the straps, i think the main factor that helped me to get in the straps was finding balance by moving the harness lines further back. there are tips from Guy Cribb on how to find the best position. Cheers
