Footstraps

I need to get some footstraps installed ASAP. What do you all run if any? Where to install them? How far back? How many? two per side or one is enough?


Dont tell me to search, because I DID. The results were crap. I am looking for something a little more up to date. In other words, what would you have to say about them TODAY

Still working on that one myself.

Wouter

A footstrap will keep you attached to the back, where you need to be if you don't want to pitchpole on a stuff. Take a good look at the excellent Spitfire video where the 3 boats are showing off under that bridge in 20+ winds. You will see them repeatedly stuff the bows and save it, becuase they stayed at the back of the boat. The couple of times the do pitch pole is when their feet slip out of the straps and the crew slides forward.

I have had this happen to me several times on the Inter 20. The only times I ever pitchpolled were when the crew's foot slipped out of the strap and they flew forward, around the bow, over you go. As long as you can stay at the back of the boat you can usually save it. Without a foot hold back there, you are going to do the Peter Pan.

When I sailed Matt's Blade with him driving, I was out on the wire trimming the spinnaker, we would occaisionally stuff the low bow. I had me toes stuffed into the space between his back side and the rear beam, still I nearly lost my grip and almost flew. But we were able to save it, the bow popped right back up and on we went. The feeling of security back there when you are firmly anchored to the boat will allow you to push the boat harder, and save it more often, than without straps.

I have heard some say, "You don't need them, just bear off more and go deeper, you are trying to go to the C mark anyway, so go deeper, sit on the tramp, don't even go out on the wire downwind." Well, that might work most of the time, in medium wind, but when it gets wild and you need to be out there to hold the hull down, of if you have to reach up for a B mark, or to go around traffic, it's nice to have something to anchor your foot into.

Attached picture of footstrap on my Stealth. Just one each side, as far back as I can get them. I use a couple of windsurfing straps - relatively cheap and comfortable, screwed into nylon cavity wall fixings that are epoxied in.
They're about due for replacing though

Post deleted by Mary

John, in your photo your straps are WAY back. Would you put them that far back if you were solo? On my non-spin solo boat I never trap this far back. If I added a spin would I be this far back? With crew, weight and power are so different that solo settings MUST be different. Is that why some people have two sets of footstraps?

Before you drill holes, put your rudders on, and be sure that when turning the rudders the tiller arms will clear the footstraps.

The reason most Inter 20's have two sets of footstraps is one for skipper, one for crew. Remember these guys do a lot of distance racing and if the wind is right, they often end up double trapped for a very long reach, in the ocean, where you will stuff the bows into some big waves. If you are only going to race triangles, (or windward/leewards) inshore, you can probably get away with only one set for the crew, but when you are solo it's for the skipper of course.

David,
I don't need toestraps if I'm forward of the rear beam, and yes I do use these straps when solo (but only off the wind). When fully powered up with the kite in a blow, I'm trapezing as far back as I can possibly get, and the boat is planing downwind....

If we're two up, then my crew is just forward of the rear beam and I'm level with it (aft foot in the toestrap).

The farther back you get them, the better off you will be. When you need these straps will be at times when you prefer to be very far aft. Just don't get your foot where it will interfere with the tiller.

I am going to try to verbally explain how I did mine, then I'll see if I can find a picture. But first I must say that a lot of people have used windsurfing straps and love them. Many of them are even adjustable for size.

I used a length of 2" tubular webbing (found in a mountain climbing store). I fastened it on the corner of the deck to gunwhale and this allows my foot to be on either the gunwhale, corner, or even deck if I wish. I doubled the end over on each end and fastened it with nut and bolt, one through deck, one through gunwhale on each end.

I provided backing in the form of a 1" carbon tube, split lengthwise. The convex side of the half circular piece is against the corner of the gunwhale to deck interface. I used ny-lock stainless steel nuts and had to use needle nose pliers to hold them because my carbon tube would not allow the clearance needed for a socket wrench. So aluminum flat metal may be better, would allow use of a wrench. Stay away from 90º angle metal because the sharp corner would interfere with the radius of the corner joint. Also, the bolts need to be staggered so that they do not align vertically or else the two bolts will collide.

I sized the straps and determined the mounting points by forming them over my boot which I had stuffed with a rag to resemble my foot size.

These straps are so strong that I can lift the boat with them.

GARY

I use Windsurfer ones on My inter 17.

The ones at the back are for when it's really windy



Image hosted by www.tyresmoke.net

Okay,

I want a pair of those F16 logo for my sterns as well. Seems like they are the standard identifier on the F16's now with many F16 sailors using them. So I'll go with the pack.

Where do I get them and how much are they.

Wouter

Wouter,

Jake very kindly emailed me the logo in .tif format and I just took it to a local vinyl sign shop. 4 logos cost me £15 (about 22Euros)

All these footstraps look a lot like just that, footstraps. I tought the idea was to use them as toestraps, just as on windsurfers. I for sure would not want to do a pitchpole with my foot/ankle firmly in one of those. Isn't this how Glenn Ashby broke his ankle some weeks ago?

Can't speak for F16 but suspect it would be the same as F18. The short answer is "YES". Most of the guys down here run the strap actually further back, as close to the transom as possible. The strap pictured is where my front foot goes.

The need to trap that far back on a non spi boat is really only limited to windy reaches.

Tiger Mike

It is possible but i usually only have my toes in there max - just enough to hook onto. GA over balanced when looking backwards and fell between the hulls when they were sailing back to shore and did manage to get his foot stuck in the strap. General advise is to keep the strap relatively loose so that you can hold it taught in the forward position but so it is still loose enough so your foot automatically slides out when things go really pear shaped.

Tiger Mike

In lieu of footstraps, what are people's opinions of Tornado_Alive's chicken line set up? Line hooks to the trapeze buckle from the rear beam...maybe you cannot get back far enough??? Thoughts?

http://www.catsailor.com/bb_files/68415-Chicken%20Line.JPG

No holes in the boat and the bunge takes the slack out of the line when not in use.....

Use a F16 resource. Robi has them, but shipping may be a bad move. Robi needs a EU based office, too.

On my boat that is not far back enough.

I don't need footstraps on upwind work or normal reaches. Just when handling the spi solo or when reaching in big wind (either setup). In these cases I need to be to the rear of the rearbeam or straddling it.

Wouter

I have two windsurfer-type straps on each side for the 5.7. They are set up pretty far back as well and are meant to be used 1 per crew member. There is also a chicken line run through the rear beam and attached to the stern to keep you from going forward if you stuff it.

I trialled (sp???) a version a few months back. The concept worked great but I need to spend some time to develop a system that retracts properly on my boat. I have seen bundy drive thru some massive nose dives on both his T and F18 only for the bows to pop up and explode forward.

I spoke to GA about it late last year and he says it's the only thing stopping him flying forward but did say that he has come back with bruised hips on occasion.

Tiger Mike

I used a very similar setup chicken line on my Prindle 19 for major long distance racing in Mexico and California. It worked much better than foot straps because the center of your mass is near the hook which is prevented from moving forward in a stuff. The foot straps do nothing for your center of mass; you have to rely on your legs and feet to absorb the massive forward momentum.

It's a weird feeling during a stuff with a chicken line because it feels like your whole body is being held in place with a seatbelt but you do get the forward energy transfer as extra weight on your front leg and foot.

Foot straps are better for triangle racing because there is no time to use a chinken line.

Long distance racing is where a chicken line is far superior to foot straps because you can still move your feet around. I have been on one tack for up to 3 hours on the wire and you need to change your foot position periodically, fixed in foot straps would be murder.

I my own case I'm looking at footstraps to keep me on board when sailing under spinnaker. When trapezing under spinnaker singlehandedly in anything above 10 knots, the boat can turn so quickly that when baring down in a gust that sometimes I'm flying in mid air or waterskying 2 ft away from the hull.

Your first reaction is to pull on the spi sheet to pull you back in, but that is not really what you want to do. If the spi stalls completely then you'll pull the boat over towards you preventing you ever to get back on board.

I've done several races without chickenlines and footstraps and it can be done. But I still want to have a more secure foothold on the gunwhale when singlehanding under spi.

Wouter

Yes correct... I use windsurfer straps like Scooby. These straps are as far back as possible and are only used by me (skipper) on a fresh bear away at the top mark. The strap will keep you there for most part, however on a big decelloration, you physically cannot keep your foot there and you slip out. It does not have the same effect though if you fall behind the boat though...... Just ask Gashby

Anyway my crew always uses the chicken line in the fresh stuff and to this day, on both the T and F18, we have burried it BIG TIME and never cartwheeled when locked into the strap. Boat slows and you just drive right through it just as TigerMike described.

Below is a better pic of our chicken line set up.



Now below is how we use it (see pic below also). When fresh, it is not important to get weight out rather than get it back. If you are both sitting on the tramp, then you can not get that far back......My crew will put his back foot on the rudder geoungen (spelling??). His front foot as far back as possible whilst keeping ballance. Now the angle he is trapping is roughly at 45 degrees. Clip the chicken line on and its length should be adjusted so whilst you are at this angle, you lean back pulling the line taught, forcing you feet down into the platform. Now to balance, hold the end of the kite sheet under load with your rear hand. If you loose balance forward, a little pressure on this will hold you there. Now with your front hand hold the other end of the sheet (note offcourse both ends are tied in the middle). If you start to fall backwards, pull back on this end and it will steady you.

Now if you nosedive your front foot will likely slip a bit and you will remain locked in and trapping. Worst case, you will pivot over your front foot and hip slam the side ( note GAshby's comments re hip bruises)..... Not as painful as it sounds and can be a LOT worse.



If you are doubtfull, just give it a go and see. I have converted MANY people who were dead against chicken lines for so called safety reasons..... There is nothing to worry about but plenty if you do not use one.

Hope this helps.

We still use the chicken line on downwinds where there is less than 5 minutes between gybes and find it does not take that long to hook up.

I am now in moderate breeze, hooking in myself on the first gybe as I am already out there. Just clamp the main between your hand and tiller and use your other hand to reach down, grap the hook and hook up. Also tend to do it on the last gybe leg comming into the bottom mark.

However when it is 'blowing the numbers off the sail' I'll let the crew go out

Well, should be easy enough to give it a try, inexpensive too. I think I have some of the components already in my spare parts case.

Yep, this one is on my to-do list for this season.

Wouter

Robi,

Any good sailboard shop will have footstraps. My son has some pretty impressive footstraps on his formula sailboard (fully adjustable with 3 layers of material/padding and velcro securing). They are light weight and very durable.

SWEET!

That third image is one scary picture! LOOL

Seems like if the straps are behind the rear beam you could get into problem with the rudders- would be dangerous if you couldn't bear off the wind in a puff with the spin up. I can just see it- puff with the crew in the straps behind the rear beam and me trying to turn down but can't because his feet are in the way. I suppose this isn't that big of a problem or people wouldn't do it. I guess there is enough clearance between the rudder arm and the deck.

UNLESS, the straps are on the side and not the top. My 6.0 had straps when I bought it- and I replaced them with nicer ones but they are more mounted on the top than the sides.

Hi Robi !

I've attached a pic. of my set up on the taipan F16. I don't think you can trivialize the consequences of having a foot slip thru the loop leaving you captive at the ankle (water is a dandy lubricant and the bones in your foot can be compressed into a surprisingly small cylinder - so no sailboard straps for me). My loop is safely large so that I can step into it , slide it past the deck to transom transition and gain stability with the ball of my aft most foot on the transom.When i've buried the lee hull, I just use the top of my foot to keep from flying forward. Wiring downhill is definitely faster (VMG and linear V) in the Taipan from wind velocities that allow uphill wiring.This said, I stopped wiring downhill last season after a really hard crash and collision with the third batten (!) that knocked the bolt rope out of my mast track(can you say Tre'buchet ?).I later noticed Doc sails really deep by flattening both sails (solo obviously) and sliding onto the tramp (sometimes midtramp {don't screw this up!}) when footing and fully hiked out when coming up into the wind.This technique requires alot of smooth movement and i'm not good at it.Additionally, I don't think this is as fast as wiring to "C" mark, but he always seems to be wild, and he doesn't capsize much...

I've resolved to wire downhill again in regattas because Doc and I are doing an event in the SF Bay in June that'll be very public and very windy (www.sanfranciscospeed.com). Wire flights required for decent speeds compared to the boards...

PK

My straps are on the top edge of the hull right next to the gunnell. Have *never* had a problem hitting feet while steering. (How far to you shove the tiller on a gust???). On my boats at least it is a non issue.

Tiger Mike

I guess you are right... not too much movement.. but then again, I have sailed with a spin a total of 2 times

Remember that on a stock high performance windsurfer (if you know what you are doing) you have the capability of going in the 40 MPH range…and the foot straps work just fine when you have them adjusted right…If a windsurfer can crank 35-40 mph on a reach in 30 mph+ wind and 2’-3’ chop…stuff the nose…get thrown over the handle bars…skip 3+ times before coming to rest…and have absolutely no leg/ankle problem….If that’s the case, (and I can tell you it is from personal experience) I say you shouldn’t have any problem on the typical catamaran. It is when you try to get too much of your foot forced in the strap, that is when you break things. Get a good quality adjustable windsurf strap and you can tweak them just perfect…and they will stay at that setting. Go cheap and you will be constantly adjusting them as they loosen up.

Regards,
Bob

Robi,

Is this your handy work ?



Wouter

Robi,
Here's the link to the footstraps I have on the Taipan:
DaKine Footstraps
My chicken line setup is the same as Tornado Alive illustraded.

Hey, how'd you get that picture of my boat? Yes, Robi did it for me.

Footstraps are good for most conditions but in the really big nose dives they are not going to help you that much. Its like grandpa saying he doesn't need to wear a seat belt because he can hold on better! You need some kind of "restraining" device, the chick line is probably not a bad idea. Always make sure your spin sheet or a front foot footstrap stops you from falling in and off the back of the boat, falling like this with one foot jammed in the footstrap is one of the worse possible ways to mess yourself up on a cat.

I archive any picture made of an F16 that is published on the internet. That way I have build a database of several hundred pictures.

Wouter

Hi all,

on Altered I have one footstrap at front of back beam, which I use for 8-12 kt. with spin. Then another one right at back of boat for 12 kts plus. I sometimes use the front strap for front foot when I am using back strap if balance feels right. After all I am a sailboarder also, so am used to the TOES of both feet in straps .

The front strap is sailboard, the back strap is stiff rope with flexible PVC tube, with single bolt through rope it allows it to swivel, bend out of way of tiller. As transom is very narrow on Altered this is essential.

Hopefully yuo can see them in attached post.

Regards Gary.

Gary,
Any close up photos of Altered's straps?

Great posts on footstraps and chicken lines.

On windsurf boards, straps that are loose enough to let more than the toes through are the best way to avoid breaking feet/ankles. Also, many people make them tight enough that you have to "wiggle" your foot in since if the foot goes in too easily at first then all it takes is a few wave slaps for the foot to work it's way in too far. Footstraps also loosen up a fair bit when wet so a good fit when dry may be too big when wet. If only your toes are captive, then even falling off the back (between the hulls) as GA did shouldn't cause you to break a foot or ankle. However, on a windsurf board the feet are planted on the top of the board (with the heel draped slightly over the rail). I (and most people I know) usually trap with the foot bottom/heel over the side of the boat (although I don't yet sail with a spi so I don't trap that far back). So my question is - when you are that far back it looks like you are angled back as much as out and in this position is your foot bottom generally on the deck more than on the side of the hull? The reason I'm asking is that in placing footstraps the question is not just how far back to place them but also how far in on the deck from the side of the hull - if you want to keep your heels on the side of the hull I don't see how you could place the straps very far from the outer side of the deck. Finally, although "toe only" foostrap adjustment may work for windsurfers, I'm still not sure that can be done on catamarans since it might depend on how the hull and deck are shaped on the sterns (unless your feet are always placed flat on the deck back there).

Regarding chicken line setup, just a couple of quick question - what kind of hook do most people use - a mini carabiner (with a gate to keep the trap line captive) or an open hook (I haven't seen these in marine stores, so if so, what kind)? Also, do you hook the dogbone or other equivalent hardware (no miss etc) or something else?

thanks,

Jerry

One more footstrap question:
After reading all these posts it seems that some people use a single footstrap for their front foot and others use a single footstrap for their rear foot - so which is best?

Jerry

Hi Jerry,

my footstraps are on the deck as close to the side as possible. I would always use the strap for my back foot if there is only one, I only put front foot in strap if there are two. I am old sailboarder so toes only is my setup, some how this still works with feet over the side. As you say when you stand back you trap higher, so I think most of the weight is on the ball of the foot, none on the heel over the edge.

Regards Gary.