RS800 Video Library

Originally posted by mozzy Yeah, it's super annoying. Especially on start lines and they're very prone to breaking if a leeward boat sits it's racks on them.  Quite a few boats in the fleet are unused to them and sail in late at the start tight to leeward, forgetting that when you head up to keep clear not only will your transom need room to swing toward them, but also the extension will too on top of that.  On the other hand, it means there's no main-sheet in the middle which is one less thing to get snagged on in tacks and gybes. Plus it means you're much less restricted in where your weight is in manoeuvres . For instance the crew doesn't have to go forward between main and kicker and can keep their weight a little further back in hoists and drops, with more space for their arms flailing. Plus it's easier for the helm to keep their weight forward in light wind tacks.

When I was researching systems for another of my diversions, a single hander kite boat, I came across a joystick affair that was used for i think a sailability craft, I'm sure it was from RS, but it was a central mounted vertical stick connected obviously to the tiller via a pulley system, I thought then it would be a great modification to do away with long tiller extensions at the back of the boat, two shorter systems could work or even a foot operated device which was what I was looking for.

Originally posted by Sam.Spoons The beauty of a wiggle extension is it's simplicity. Using a pully system will introduce slack and be more things to go wrong.

I bet someone with a crank handle told the guy who introduced an electric starter motor something like that.

Not put up a video in a while, mostly because I haven't been out.

That's very eagle eyed of you and I agree.

 The logistics is getting your back foot out of the loop. If you step with the front foot first then it 'locks' your back foot in to the loop. So when the crew's not got a foot in a loop they can do a big step with the front foot no issue.

But it is a change Guy has also made, he's now stepping with his front foot to the flat inside of the deck, as you noted in the gybes with white kite up. In the first clip he goes back foot out the loop and in to the boat, which then forces him to make a little hop. Now when it's breezier and he's in the footloop he comes out of his loop with both feet still on the rack before making that big step though with the front foot.  

Edited by mozzy - 19 Jun 19 at 2:30pm