Tandem Windsurfing

I've never done it, but according to those that have it's an absolute hoot... Google starboard gemini

The Tandem record is now 38 knots, and i bet that was scary.

Sailing Tandem on a windsurfer is just two guys one behind the other, two rigs, one board, there have been various derivatives, tandem long boards, tandem sinkers, and more recently tandem wide style.

All great fun everyone that tries it loves it, yet it's never caught on, why? Storage problems, lifting it on and off the car, co-ordination issues, it's always the other guys fault you fall in.

I've had some great times back in the day, raced round Hayling Island one time in a force 6, with my mate trying to call water at the first mark sending us into a catastrophic failure.. (It was a gybe).

I took one across the channel back in 79, so probably still hold the record for sailing cross the channel on a tandem, since no-one else has ever since been stupid enough to try it. I remember wearing a crash helmet back then, something you probably need on a tandem.

There was a post recently from the current Editor of Windsurf mag recounting the fact they were Tandem sailing at Weymouth speed week during the storm of 87, I'll see if I can find a link, it sounded like a hoot.

So yes, if ever you get a chance give it a go, it's a bit uncomfortable because if the front guy sheets in hard enough to hook in then it bears away and the reverse is true if the back guy sheets in too hard, kind of like sailing a boat without a rudder which I guess most of you know all about.

I've done it once, on a borrowed ancient board that weighed a ton.

It was a giggle but the logistics of moving the board around meant we never bothered again.

Minorca sailing had one in the 80's - brilliant fun.  Definitely worked better with a smaller sail on the front, and the slot effect was very obvious on the sheeting angle of the rear sail.