Can someone run me through how different line lengths affect sailing ability/technique.
Thanks
Daneli, there has been lots of threads on harness lines on the forum, some from yourself !!
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=36079&SearchTerms=harness
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34886&SearchTerms=harness
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=32939&SearchTerms=harness
www.guycribb.com/userfiles/documents/The%20Truth%20About%20Harness%20Lines.pdf
It can be quite personal, I tend to use longer lines now, 28 " with a seat harness, longer lines give you more time to react if something goes wrong 
I tried the guy crib thing and persisted for a few months but I thought it was cr4p didn't suit my style of sailing.
Boards March Issue
i kinda forgot line lengths but longer for choppy windy conditions and shorter for upwind lighter winds and slalom type runs..there is however a harness line a friend of mine has but i forgot to ask where he bought and what brand-it looks like a figure 8 for shorter lines use the top part and longer the bottom part...cheers
If you go too long then you will encounter the dreaded "Bum slap followed by salt water enema".
How do I know?
I'm back on 26 inch now, 28 was just too long...
i have looked at harness lines as simply, shorter lines for strait runs/river runs, alowing to you to just sit back into the harness, and long lines for freestyle/wavesailing keeping your stance more upright, the boom higher, and your wieght more centerd over the board.
but what i have really been getting into is playing with the width between them. i used to have them around 15 to 20cm's apart, now i look back and think i was crazy. now i am using them not even the width of 20c piece apart and it makes it so you have much more controll over the sails power, plus long harness lines are the key, no less than 26" if there was a 27" on the market it would be perfect, but 28" is also great.
KeepSailing
Jordan
Thanks for the info. I have seen the Guy Cribb sheet befoe but it talks more about line position than length.
Longer lines are easier to hook in but I don't understand how different line lengths effects the distribution of weight and altered stance and it's effect on sailing performance. If I did maybe I can improve a bit. Obviously if I have the same stance and a different line length the sail has to be in a different position. What effect does this have?
I dunno, maybe I am over analysing.
Also found that by using shorter lines, but bringing them in closer (not as close as Jord though) about a fist width, they're easy to hook in & out, also have lowered my boom slightly.
Go too short and you get problems with your elbows. Working with load on a very bent elbow for too long will give you grief with the ligaments, and more particularly with the sleeves they slide through. (been there, done that...)
On the short side, you are closer to the sail, and have less time to react, but also less momentum when you hit the sail.
Too long, and you'll be dragging your butt, and won't be able to get the power down through your legs (they'll be too bent).
Getting really long lines because you're finding it hard to hook in is the wrong reason.. a mate of mine adopted that approach, and had crazily long lines so he could hook in while standing by the mast. He's still un-learning all the bad stuff he learned from that little phase!
It is all relative though (not Poor Reli..) to your build, boom height, harness type, sail size, board style, distance between the lines on the boom, and the type of sailing that you're trying to do.
If you're looking at buying some new lines, consider getting adjustables - that gives you the option of playing around with them to find the length that suits you best.
I use 28 inch lines and never have bum slap issues.
I think if you do this whilst using a waist harness you're probably not using the harness properly.
The idea of long harness lines are not only that they're easier to unhook, but it also allows you to sail more upright and further from the sail so it's easier to do hooked in aerials (and you're naturally in a freestyle popping position), and ultimately the sail is more powerful as it's upright and the luff is more open to the wind.
I got some adjustable straps.
I'm finding around 25"-26" is good when just powered up and smooth conditions.
27-28" is good when consistently powered up, or overpowered but you simply have too much leverage when it is marginal or you find holes in the breeze.
30" my arms are simply not long enough.
My boom is about 3 finger widths past the tail and lines are about a fist apart (ala Cribb).
Of course these lengths will vary depending on how tall you are, high your boom is, mast track position and as discussed conditions - variable length lines are handy.
I won some adjustables in a random draw and find I use the 28" for most of the sailing and when it gets hairy and overpowered I shorten them to 24" or so and it feels more controllable. Not sure of the science but I have a high boom (sometines catches the sail on the boom connectionat the top of the sail when rotating)
Not really sold on the adjustables but its a bit of a novelty.
saw some tuning tips on the NP site from Micah Buzianis.
He states that on 7.8 and above he uses 26" lines and 7.2 down he uses 28" lines.
Obviously this is for racing and slalom.
I find 26" lines totally against each other are fine on wave and slalom gear. For what I call big sails, 7.8 I use 28" lines.
The important part is finding the perfect balance part. Some have their lines way too far forward and are constantly fighting the rig. We tried that Guy Cribb thing and mine were spot on.
He states that if you can sail comfortably with your FRONT hand OFF the boom your lines are not back enough. If you can sail fine with your BACK hand OFF the boom for long distances then your lines are pretty much sweet.
Ive had mates jump on my gear who only use 22" lines and immediately love the way it feels.
Try it, it worked for me.
I'm with 555, short lines will root your elbows, also been there & done that. Went back to long lines again and all is sweet now.
Yep 555 and Fbob are onto it
My elbows got screwed because of short lines.
After a strong blow and a long session my elbows were rooted
I can't imagine how anyone can be comfortable with less than 24" lines. I have always used adjutable until my last boom broke and I got some fixed 26". I have them about 5cm apart and they still feel a little short on a 6.0 with a seat harness. Back in the days of small powerful sails with a narrow wind range I used much longer lines and had them almost as wide as my grip on the boom. I could easily sail no handed in chop!
24" is easy.......if your waist harness turns into a chest harness as mine does regularly!
I used to be a short line guy - i used to use 18" only !!!!
then Ant Baker lent me his rig one day with really long lines - completely stuffed my shoulder. what i didn't realise is that Ant has really long arms !!.
Then after years of procrastination and "plateauing" with my skill level, i finally tried the Cribb formula and it really works. I use 26" for 7.5 and 8.5m (closer to boom, more upright in lighter winds).
I use 28" for 6.5 and 5.5m. i'm 6 feet tall and with a waist harness, this works incredibly well (the waist harness was a big step forward as well). i have also found that on honking days at say safety Bay on a 6.5/5.5 in really choppy seas, i could even go to 30" - further away from the boom, more flex and control.
at the end of the day, make the effort and experiment - it will be worth it. don't gin around like i did for years without trying what i keep reading about wondering if it might be better.
the Cribb sheet worked really well for harness line positioning as well.
The actual position on the boom to place the lines and the distance apart that the lines are set. I'm into relaxed sailing out the back saving my energy for a long session and the wave not twitchy feeling, feel the tiniest gust sailing and when I'm on a wave(the best bit) I don't use the lines because I'm unhooked.
I'm using 28" the last 6 months and get the occasional touch up
I just don't know why we can't use metric measurements.
