hi decrep,
i think the main reason slalom racers do the step is because they are usually being covered by someone coming into the marker, so they need to exit clew first to keep the power on. plus it lets them change course half way through the gybe for overtaking because their feet have switched. advantage with step gybe for learners is that they are easier to balance.
whenever i try gybes like snides photo i stall. i keep flipping the rig too late. 
i reckon freesailing in chop sailquik is on the money. pulling down through the boom keeps the board on the water.
just noticed this topic..
i.m.o look for the flattest water available to initiate the gybe on, nothing flatters a gybe like flat water...the real test is initiating and maintaining speed through a gybe in chop! and i dont think i have seen anyone do it as well as slow boat..he would be the best to comment on this.
he gave me some tips a couple of weeks ago for gybing in chop and the 1 thing that really stuck out was his comment about maintaing mast foot pressure via pulling down on the front hand through the turn as much as possible.
for us light guys it can be hard to gybe in chop because you cant get enough weight on the rail as you bare off and try to set the leeward rail its easy to start bouncing over the chop which then leads to problems.
leaning forward in the turn,pulling down on the front hand (which should be fingers over the boom) even sliding the mast step forward a little will help keep the board carving through the chop.
as i said gybing in flat water is very easy as you dont have the chop pushing you about and off balance, gybing in chop fast is what sorts the men out from the boys and unfortunately i am still a boy at that
here is link to a flat water gybe.www.seabreeze.com.au/gallery/gallery.asp?imageid=8822
Select to expand quote[
Bloody Beautiful!!!
Great photo merge sequence!!!
cheers sailquick,i just whipped it up for this thread
i think from memory it registerded a 20kn alpha.
i have previously posted a pic of slowboat sinking the rail in a peli gybe that looked like a water skier but i cant seem to find it.....
we've seen the beautiful.
now the ugly. this is me demonstrating one of my badder moments on what not to do,
i like to call it "The good, The bad and The ugly"
anyone for another pie?
Ta for inspiration, Sailquik. Can see now how unnecessary dragging the sail back and throwing it forward can be. Maybe needed if a carve can't be properly executed or when overpowered? After all, sail position is only for balance when it has gone light..
Select to expand quote Is there a secret to the effortless gybe? [/unquote]
Utube as a training aid!
Here is THE SECRET (sorry to shout but this is of considerable consequence)
Not only should one make the sail go light, one should make the BOARD go light at the moment that it thinks it might do it's bog down act.
Snow sliders unweight their board to change edges. Either UP unweighting or DOWN unweighting will work, but the longest lightness results from an "up" merging into a "down". Sailquik's "up" comes from the flattening of the board, and the "down" comes from dropping into the "power out" position.
The board looks like it will never stop planing because there is nobody on it!
Just did a Google Earth search.
Cremorne Is on that piece of land between Sydney Harbour and Middle Harbour - water in walking distance north, east and south.
Afterthought - I have often wondered if you are allowed to windsurf in the Harbour?
The boat traffic looks worse than the Broadwater.
susie will you join my windsurfinf harem, na joking my little red head would kill me any back to subject cremorne is just out hobart tas
A first step in lightening the board would be at least to avoid weighting the board at a critical moment.
Inadvertent weighting of the board will occur at the END of sinking to absorb the power on the new course. So one must KEEP sinking while the sail takes the load.
This concept may not be so obvious to anybody who has not used the Swiss "push-pull" extremecarving snowboard technique where turns past 180 degrees counteract the speed from edge running.
For instance, an unweighting of 30 kilograms over one second (during which an adept has rotated the sail) is possible, but weight will increase at the moments of push off and landing.
Which is all no doubt very techy..
Let's see what you guys think of this one
