Preventive protection of windsurf equipment

In the case of a broken mast, a damaged sail or any other unpleasant affliction, we often blame it on an unknown third party, since the fracture occurred "completely unexpected." The question is how do we fundamentally manage the equipment at all steps - from the garage, beach and water. As we see sometimes, some people are a bit clumsy then it comes to storing, transporting and assembling / disassembling the equipment. We will try to present as accurately and easily as possible those critical points that we often pay too little attention to, which results in equipment failure and, ultimately, the end of our windsurfing session.

For those who windsurf only during the summer holidays, the equipment is often folded in the most remote corner of the garage so that it does not interfere with your daily chores. For those who sail all year long, you probably have the easiest possible access to the equipment. Wherever your equipment is located, it is important that it is positioned in such a way as to avoid deformation by loading other heavier items on the equipment. Given that these are larger pieces of equipment, we recommend that you use wall or ceiling racks, where you can put your boards, masts, sails and booms. Always store boards in board bags and masts in mast bags, to prevent unnecessary micro-damage from storing and stacking one another's equipment. A board bag or a mast bag is way less expensive than repairment costs for the unnecessary damage that may result from improper storage of equipment.

We often notice that, for transport, many people firmly fix a board on roof rack with rack straps. Nothing wrong with the previous sentence, since there is no other option for transport on the roof. We recommend to use a protective foam that is mounted on the roof racks to prevent unnecessary deformation of the board. If you also have a board bag for your board, use it both when storing and transporting the board! Some people often put a sail on the board and tie it on the roof racks with rack straps. On the spot where straps cross the sail it is strongly folded, crushed, and may also crack and tear. For this reason, it is recommended that the sails (together with masts and booms) are packed into transport bags for equipment. These bags can be tied from the underside to the roof rack so that the contents of the bag are not excessively compressed and remain intact. It is also very important that you correctly attach the equipment to the roof. The equipment must be fixed in such a way that it will not move even in the case of sharp turns and sudden and strong braking. For rack straps, it is important to install them so that the metal part of the buckle does not lean against the board (if is not stored in the bag), otherwise it can damage it.


                                                       

Although we have already successfully brought the equipment to the spot and started rigging the sail, setting the footstraps and mounting the fin, this doesn’t mean that equipment can’t damage anymore. When we put the equipment out of the protective bags and it is even more vulnerable to damage. It often results from depositing it on a hard surface. Did you know that most masts are damaged at this stage? Particularly sensitive are masts, which have higher amounts of carbon. Throwing a mast on the ground or just putting it too roughly on a rock can cause a micro crack. When the mast on the sail curves, these cracks increase further. When you put the rig into a water or when you catch the first serious gust of wind, the mast breaks. It is equally important that when tensing down-haul and (especially) when you ease off the down-haul to not do this jerkily and evenly loosen the downhaul rope. If you have sails with cambers, it is even more important not to rush here.

When you got out of the water and leave the board and rig on the beach, make sure that you place it in such position that it does not endanger the safety of others and does not obstruct the other visitors. Always make sure that you place rig with mast facing the wind and all the equipment is positioned in such a way that it gives as little resistance to the wind as possible. In addition, don’t leave the equipment in too closer proximity of the water so that a sudden wave can’t reach and move it. The biggest enemy of sails is the sun's rays (UV radiation), which weaken the monofilm. For this reason, it is advisable to move the sail from the beach after the session is over, put it in the shade (of course, not at the expense of leaving the family with children on the sun) or cover it with silver foil.

When you are sailing on the water, especially in strong winds and over-power conditions, it is difficult to take a proper care of the equipment. In the event of fall and sudden loss of the control over the equipment, first you need to ensure the safety of yourself and other accomplices on the water. Catapult is one of the most common things that happen to us on the water. When we reach this stage when the is no solution, the only thing we can do is to push the sail away from us and away from the wind. This prevents (or at least tries to prevent) the sail from hitting the front end of the board and breaking it or damaging us.

If the sail is fully rigged for several days (usually durring summer vacation), it is advisable to slightly loosen the sail by the mast overnight to avoid mast deformation. When we get home from the windsurf trip it is a perpetual dilemma either to wash the sail with fresh water or not. If you plan to store the sail for a long time, we recommend that you wash it with fresh water to wash away the salt. If the salt dries, fragments of salt are left on the sail, rubbing the sail and wearing it. If you do this, it is important to dry the sail properly, as otherwise mold will start to build on it - which may not happen to you if you leave sail salty. Fresh water washing is also recommended for other equipment.

There is still a general fear that when you pick up a board from the plane, you will find it in two pieces. Of course, this can also happen, but it's not nearly as often as some might try to portray. When deciding to bring your board and other surfing equipment with you on an airplane, we recommend that you use thicker protective board bags to further protect the board that is most vulnerable to damage. If you don't have the right bag, you can of course use a regular boardbag or two for extra protection. Some windsurfers also resort to wrapping the board in a towel, a thick sweater, neoprene - in short, everything they take with them and can protect the board. If you store other equipment in addition to the board in the same board bag, make sure that all is folded correctly so that the equipment doesn’t get damaged by another piece of your equipment. However, the windsurf equipment is quite large, heavy, and difficult to load on and off the aircraft, so it can be damaged despite careful handling.