ELEMENTS OF SPEED Pt2
The SlingShot - Breaking 35 Knots

Thanks to multiple Dutch Speed Champion Peter De Wit (NED-161), and PWA Legend and Speed Tour maestro Peter Volwater (NED-24), we continue a new series of valuable guides on how to bust barriers and break PBs. This time we concentrate in the all-important Slingshot to ping you down the course and focus on how to push through the 35-knot barrier. Pics Bogo Trepka unless marked otherwise


THE SLINGSHOT - KICKSTART YOUR RUN
By Peter De Wit

To be competitive in speed sailing this is the manoeuvre to master 100%. Nine times out of ten it’s the fastest way to start a speed-run. To practise this manoeuvre all you need is a fin, board and rig, at a spot with relatively flat water, sailing either nicely powered-up or overpowered.

The Slingshot is Divided into 3 Sections

1. The Load-Up - Crosswind Section

2. The Trigger – Release the Power

3. The Shot - Downwind Rush