Basic Freestyle: Fast-Tack, Heli-Tack, and More

Agenda

Setup:

• Duration: 1.5 to 2 hours
  
• Clinic leaders: Need 2 members to volunteer
  
• Demo gear: 2 or 3 rigged sails on land by the picnic table
• Knowledge: If possible, people should look at the videos on the club website prior to the clinic.  All levels, welcome.
• Wind: 5-15 knots. If 20+ knots then for L2 & L3 members. Focus on high-wind helitack, carving fast tack, duck gybe, slam-gybe
  

1. Introductions (by the picnic tables) - 5 min

• Your name and what you want to learn in basic freestyle
• Clinic leader(s), explain why basic freestyle is a great way to help you improve your windsurfing
• Clinic leader(s) can work together with a large group, or split into smaller groups depending on size & need.

2. On-Land demo and simulation - 30 min

• First round - 15 min
  
• • Clinic leader(s) - 10 min - demo one or more: 360 sail-flip, tack, fast tack, clew-first, backwind, helitack, upwind 360, duck tack, etc.
  • Now it's your turn. In a group, people rotate/round-robin to try some basic freestyle moves.
  • Everyone observes
• Second round - 15 min
  
• • Clinic leaders(s), feedback on key points and more demo
  • Everyone, try some more & observe

3. On water - 45 min

• Demo - 15 min
  
• • Anyone want to give it a try first on water?
  • Clinic leader(s), demo a bunch of moves
• Practice on your own - 30 min
  
• • Stay close to shore so others can observe and so you can swap gear quickly without losing time.
  • You're doing basic freestyle, so you should be tacking and gybing a lot, without sailing too far.

4. Re-convene and debrief- 15-min
   • Share/show - what did you learn? Questions?
   • Other resources: see the notes on the website, Locarno Windsurfing Facebook Messenger, "Windsurfing Wednesdays".
   • Other announcements - club trips, more clinics, etc.

Some basic freestyle moves

This list focuses more on tacks than on gybes for now.

• Basics
  
• SR - Basic windsurfing tack on a big floaty board*.
• Dexterity and muscle memory. Flip the sail 360 degrees using two hands, or one-handed, on-land or on-water

• Fast Tack
  • GW
  • JH
  • TWS

• Heli-Tack (back-winded)
  • TWS - Shows sailing clew-first, and sailing back-winded
  • GW
  • SR
  • TWS
• Upwind-360 (back-winded)
  • GW
  • TWS

• Duck Tack (begin standing in "switch-stance")
  • GW

• Carve Tack (lots of speed, planing)

• • SR - Completing your tack quickly, in high-wind, while planing.
  • SR - Sailing in high wind, carving into helitack

* What are those abbreviations - JH, GH, SR, and TWS?

The tutorials shown above are from the following YouTube channels.  Highly recommended.

• Jem Hall (JH)
• Getwindsurfing with Phil Richards & Danielle Lucas (GW)
• Sam Ross (SR)
• Tenerife Windsurf Solution (TWS)