Hi,
Really cool you are doing this forum and give awesome feedback thanks
I have a twin twip twinzer freestyle board RRD 2011 88l. I find that when underpowered just enough wind to get planning i find it really hard to pop the board into Vulcans. I have noticed that moving the mastfoot forward seems to help with this a bit (landing a few but with no slide) but to try and slide round into a spock seems almost impossible. In higher winds or when well powered up its fine and i can get a good slide in my vulcans.
I was wondering wheather you had any advice on mastfoot trim for different conditions and doing freestyle when underpowered.

My current freestyle level is can: gecko and landing vulcans with 30-40% sucess on port tack . and i feel like i am really close to landing spocks any tips on these appreciated too (if powered up).

Thanks and Your book really helped me learn both these tricks ! esp. the litle bits about what are common mistakes! with the ticks in green and crosses in red :D:D

Hi,

thanks - doing my best...

I must say i have no experience with twinser freestyle boards at all... i heard they are sticking to the water more than single fin boards, especially the RRD seems to be more sticky, which would explain why you feel that you have difficulties to pop in underpowered conditions.

Anyway, for the mast foot, i think its a bit different from board to board... the important thing is that you never move the mastfoot more than 0,5-1cm for testing... it makes a big difference where it is positioned!

My experience is, that modern freestyle boards normally have one position for the mastfoot where it is best for freestyle tricks. there, the board rotates best and you have the best pop somehow... I found many times this position is a bit behind the center, but this is somehow totally up to the shapers of the board and where they put the mast track.

Moving it more forward maybe just helps you to pop better cause you can plane better. I am not sure cause i don't know that board exactly, but it might need the mastfoot to be a bit further forward to be more flat on the water. So you can plane easier and quicker. If you put the mast foot too far back, the board will turn better for carves and also in the air when doing air jibes, but you might have difficulties to get planing, cause the board's not so flat on the water. Also landing can be more difficult like this.

All in all, you are doing well if you can feel the difference - many people ignore the feeling of board and sail when learning moves and think they wouldn't feel it anyway. The thing is that you feel it indirectly,... as you discovered - it makes you sometimes land a move or not...

The Vulcan - if you don't slide backwards at all, well, it seems the board might be too small for you, you are not pushing against it at all after landing, or the wind might be super light - its just normal that you won't slide that much when the wind is very light...

I haven't seen your vulcans, but let somebody film you and check when you grab to the other side of the boom - if you are landing and at the same time have your new mast hand on the boom already, its fine... if you are landing and have your new mast hand somewhere stretched out upwind to balance and then grab the boom or mast, you'll need to improve your grab technique... this is the biggest problem people have with vulcans... grab around to the new side of the boom right after take off, in the air!!

For spocks just go faster and go downwind a bit more. Don't jump too high and try to land in a flat area on the water... when sliding backwards, extend your back leg and push the sail upwind with the mast hand - keep the sail hand relaxed, don't extend it fully and don't twist your body, keep the line of back foot and mast arm strong...

You are doing great!! you should slowly start trying flakas...
Willy Skipper too,...

great you like the book! Get the DVD too if you go to the next moves, there you'll see and learn quicker how a move should feel and look...

Let us know what are your conclusions on vulcan and spock and the mast foot position...

all the best
Rossi

Hey,
Thanks for the response!
Do you think it would be worth trading in my RRD twin for another freestyle board? would a different board make it easier? It's so confusing some people say RRD freestyle boards are really good others say they are rubbish?

Went out the other day in about 30 knots was on 4.2 well powered up. Made vulcans consistent but was struggling to get the last 180 slide when going for spocks...Unless i initiated the pop on a gust when i was really powered up making controlling a back winded sail really hard and I was just getting slammed back by the sail!! I put the mast track pretty much in the middle as it was quite choppy due to the high winds. I find freestyle in chop like this hard as it's hard to get good control of the board but I guess this is normal? Especially when going for slidey moves?

I think having the mastfoot relatively far forward helps engage the nose of the board when going for a vulcan and helps get a good slide. but as I have the mastfoot quite far forward and my fins right at the back of the box (to help get good speed) this might be making it quite hard for me to spin the extra 180 . On the other hand it might just be I need a bit more practice! however I have been trying to land a spock for 2 months now!! Arghh

I'll get my brother to film me next time i go down and see if i can spot what I am doing wrong!!

I wouldn't say RRD boards are rubbish - depends on what moves you intend to do also and how your personal preference is. You can do anything also on RRD boards,...

Fins to the back sounds good - but maybe try experimenting... usually there is a sweet spot for fins and for the mast track...
The fins should be set, so you have good speed and at the same time can push it away if you want to - that is the best setting for sliding and spinning... that's my experience with single fin freestyle boards at least...
the mast track the same... there's a position of the mast track where there ist the right balance for both, the first and second part of a 360 degree rotation... (this is my approach on this).
You are on a good way, you describe the feelings you have with a certain setting,... people usually don't care so much about this... once you have your board set up perfectly, its for sure working very well and i guess better than any "better, faster, or newer" freestyle shape...

Being powered or overpowered on 4.2 man... very difficult to land spocks and vulcans for anyone... especially if you're in choppy conditions... choppy makes spocks and vulcans way more difficult... there you should aim for flakas... usually flaka is a very safe move, even if it is choppy... you never need to let go the boom and can still do it when you are well powered... just go downwind enough at the beginning...

A video definitely helps... try uploading it here if you like... or better just send some screenshots, i think it will be a lot easier to tell what you need to focus on more...

all the best
Rossi

Hi,

Spocks are driving me crazy !!! I have been trying to land them for about 4 months now!! I got my brother to film me a couple of weeks ago sorry it was really foggy on a 5.3 sail 88l board. Wondering if you could give me any tips where i am going wrong .. went out the other day on a 4.7 choppy tho but managed to get the clew through the wind for the first time!! but i lost my balance at the same time :/

Started preferring the mast foot back a bit more now esp in chop helps keep the speed although in light winds i prefer forward a bit of center i feel it helps engage the nose of the board.

All the Best
Oli

Hi Oli,

Great stuff - a bit foggy hahaha....

See at 0:45 - you can see in the slowmotion that you grab around too late... the sail is leaning to the back while it should stay upright...

When you land, you should already have your (new) front hand on the new side of the boom and push the sail into the wind. What i see here is also, that you twist your body when pushing the sail against the wind - try keeping the line between your (new) mast hand and the back foot strong - don't just push the sail against the wind and twist your body...

You have a very good body position - see 0:49 - that's pretty much perfect - you just slow down your sliding and your spinning by letting the sail drop too much to the back (and therefore have to pull it back up)...

Awesome progress i would say!!
You have all the movements in your head - they are automatized as far as i can see --> the only thing you need to do now is, focus on your hand movement. Next time you go try, focus on grabbing the other side of the boom directly and right away after jumping!! When you land, you need to be on the other side of the sail and have the new mast hand right there on the boom already!!

good luck!
Rossi

Hey,

Thanks so much for top advice!!!!!
Do you have any spaces left on the clinics you are running over the summer? I was thinking of going on one... either the one in Greece or the one in eygpt?

There could be still space in Sigri/Lesvos - we have quite a lot of people already, but i think you could also come if you want... but we need to know really soon... its peak season there in August...

Egypt clinic was not really booked, it is happening right now with another Trickademy instructor. I am aiming for another Egypt clinic maybe in September or October as the spot at the surfmotion center in Soma Bay is just amazing...

I will add 2 small clinics at Lake Garda soon - they be 29-30 June and 1 July, as well as 24-26 August.

Send us a video once you get your first proper spocks!! If you concentrate, i am pretty sure you can do it next time you are ont he water!!!

Hi it sounds like the Egypt one in sept/oct is the one for me to go for so i would be up for that or maybe the Garda one then. I'll probably give the Lesvos trip a miss then as you are doing other clinics later on in the year do people go with their families on these trips or are they like intense course people go to by themselves or with a mate who windsurfs too. ?

Will send a video when landed Spock hopefully land one next time although not much wind at the moment

I can't guarantee the Egypt clinic yet,... but the Garda clinic in August will happen for sure.

There's all types of people coming - some with families, some couples where with some, even both of them participate, some guys together with their mates...
Nothing in those clinis is a must - everybody's on vacation, so we try to remove any "musts"

I will post the Garda clinics soon on the Trickademy website... Egypt is still in planning...

Hi,
I landed my first Spock yesterday!! Thanks for the tips!! Changing my hands quicker i think was the key. Just a quick question on the Garda trip in august, my cousins happen to be going on holiday during the same time you are running your clinic (not to windsurf) but if i stayed with them and bought my own kit how much would it cost to do the lessons.. for the week... i guess flakas would be what i would want to be learning...
Thanks Oli

Hi Oli,

AWESOME!!! Great you got your first Spock!!! Glad it helped!

Garda - the clinic i will do there is not a full week, just a 3 day "weekend clinic"... If you bring your own gear, the price's 150 Euros, if you'd want to rent (Naish gear), the price for the clinic is 120 Euros... We would be based at Conca d Oro in Torbole...

Once you are more comfortable with your Spocks, go for the 540 and onehanded Spock right away, they're just small variations

Hope to see you soon!
Rossi