Best sail for LONGBOARD

[<Al>]

what sail do you think can work better for a LONGBOARD race class, size and model?
Thanks

[<Tim>]

Hi Ai

I have a 7.5 sm Raceboard Prisma sail with 480 mast and boom if you need one.   Sail and mast will sell for $250.  With boom for $350.  

Please e-mail me at : timchia_tehyit@yahoo.com.sg if you are interested.

Previously, I have used it for my longboard.

Timothy

[<Al>]

I'm not asking for a second hand sail (otherwise I could have posted the message in the "Used Gear Mart (Buy/Sell)" section.
My question is related to the new rules in the racing class where is now allowed to use big sails, over the 7.5m old limit.
Back to the question what the best sail and best size?

[<Tim>]

Hi AI

What is your body weight ? What raceboard are you using ? What fin size are you using ?

I feel that to be competitive on a raceboard, the ideal bodyweight would be between 65 to 75kg for 7.5 sm sail and 36 to 40 cm fin size.

You can get more info on the raceboard class at this webiste :  www.raceboard.org.

Hope this helps.

Tim

[sukhdev]

Al,

with long boards apparent wind is not an issue, key thing is lots of low end to overcome the inherent drag &  weight of the board. My suggestion is avoid pure race sails as these days they are made to be ultra efficent, maximising the effects of apparent wind.

Good contenders would be freerace sails which can be rigged with tight leech and less downhaul; possibly Retro or GTX  say. Most of the other brands have such sails too, what you are looking for is :
- much tighter leech than race sails
- deeper draft
- sail that works with adjustable outhaul well

I just had a quick look at the race board class rules. If you are going for unlimited class, then your restriction is mast & extension cannot go more than 630cm. This means you can use up to 12.5. I used to do Raceboard class ages ago (hmm..15 years?) and if I had to do it now at my weight(85kg) I'd go for a 12m or 11m. I'd probably soften the battens by sanding to get a more full entry and play around with mast stiffness to get a reasonably tight leech.

This is what I would choose:
- Sail : 11.5 GTX 2003. Reason - deeper draft than NitroIV (cheaper too!).
- Mast : 550 Powerex. Reason - added stiffness would give a tighter leech for better upwind drive instead of the recommended IMCS34 520.

interesting question..let us know what you end up with.
 
 [ 20. January 2003, 10:00 AM: Message edited by: sukhdev ]

[<Chris>]

Fot longboard racing in light winds, I've seen people take large formula rigs, and make the following changes.
- rig with less downhaul(gives tighter leech)
- more outhaul (to try and smooth the camber rotation, which can be a bitch with less downhaul)
- Stop sheartip sails from twisting by putting a brace at 45 to the batten angle (stops head twist, i hope I've explained this ok)

I always stuck with a 7.5raceboard sail and pumped, so I've not tried this, but I've spoken to sailors who used this. Hope this helps
regards chris

[<Al>]

Does anyone know what were the most used sails in the open class (up to 7.5m) in the last races?

[<Al>]

.. or just a link where I can find the results of the last races of the open category with equipment used.