HOW TO FALL LIGHT(ER)

I would say that with doing the right thing (blogposts part 1, 2 and 3) you can reduce your catapults to only a few a year. But shit happens and you could compare it with skiing downhill or skateboarding; if you never fall, you have not pushed it to the limits. And that’s what speedsurfing is about, go all the way to the limit and a bit beyond.

There are a few different way of falling in speedsurfing. As long as you fall backwards or slide, it is not a big problem, but when you are hooked in and you could not fight the drag forward, the rotation is unstoppable. In this moment you have to react in fractions of a second. Because you are low down with a seat harness and a high boom postition its is very hard to get unhooked during the fall, but it is possible. A bit bit easier to hook out just when the catapult started. That’s possible if you don’t fight against it very hard in the start of the rotation. You have to pull yourself up and forward. When you are in the rotation, bend in your head. By doing this it will save your neck and also make you in better control of the rotation. Prepare to land flat out with your body in the sail. The rotation is like doing a front loop but without the board on your feet. This also minimizes the risk of land hard on the mast or damage the sail. I also try to relax just before the back hit the sail.