After competing in a race out at lake samsonvale against some very good racers last weekend, i recieved the following advice, not enough downhaul, however that was about the extent of the advice. Now i know the purpose of the downhaul, pocket position, the greater the wind speed the more it pushes the pocket in the sail aft hence the need for more downhaul to keep the pocket in the right position. However, that knowledge aside im still finding it a little difficult to know just how much downhaul i need, so i went out and bought a pair of ronstan indicator strips that i see so many people using, my question is, exactly how do i position them, is it a rough placement, or is it a precise thing, so many centimetres above the goose neck etc. Also, i know that setting the downhaul isnt an exact science with a certain number on the strip to a certain windspeed, that its all about looking at the sail and setting it for what the sail looks like and the winds you expect to encounter on the water, and that every sail is different, but, just to get a general idea, roughly what setting on the downhaul scale should i be setting it for different wind speeds, and if possible are there any tips any one can provide about visually checking the sail for correct downhaul, i.e. how do u set and check you downhaul settings.
Cheers.
Michael
Last edited by MCGriffith; 11/21/08 01:33 AM.
