i was in cabarete last week, and winds were kind of light, so> i spent a few days sailing a starboard formula 117 with a 9.0,> (vela had it in wood construction, and i _really_ liked it -> probably my favorite of any formula board i have sailed).>

i was pumping like a maniac while exiting a jibe, and i'm not> sure exactly what happened - either i went for the footstrap> too agressively, or my foot slipped on the board. whichever> happened, my little toe hit the front strap hard, resulting in> really intense pain - i had to stop sailing.>

so, of course the next day was a nice 5.0 day. i tried, but it> hurt too much. basically, any kind of compression (like a foot-> strap) was too painful. after one jibe, i missed the strap by> just a cm or so, stubbed it, and was screaming in pain. so i quit.>

the funny thing was that a guy i met, had just the day before> been explaining to me that i should wear booties on vacation> because of the risk of a foot injury ruining my trip. "no way",> i said. oh well.>

as it turned out there wasn't much wind anyway, so i didn't miss> much. i did manage to do a fair bit of training in a laser (they> can be rented from the bic center), which - since i race a laser -> was pretty much fun, and not nearly as hard on my little toe as> windsurfing.>

i got home on sunday, and had it x-rayed yesterday. it's pretty> well broken. i'm kind of surprised that i did so much damage just> by hiting a footstrap with the toe.>

i guess it should be okay by the time the season starts here in> connecticut.>

jeff

I also think a lot of this might have to do with what kind of footstrap> you are using. I think some footstraps are easier to exit than others.>

3) My feet stay in the straps better with booties>

4) Less injuries to feet when sailing = more sailing time and a better> windsurfing vacation experience. ­

Sorry Jeff:>

Windsurfing injuries that limit your sailing suck, especially while on> vacation. Toes tend to heal well, so you will be as good as new soon. I> don't know what to think about the bootie/strap tension debate. I find> I have much better feel without the booties, and my feet enter and> release easier without them. I wear booties when I visit different> locales, so I don't slice my feet on the bottom and prematurely end my> sailing time. As you guys know, I snapped my ankle almost exactly a> year ago in Hatteras, slamming into a sandbar during a gybe. It> happened fast, straps were set loose for my clumsy bootied feet, and> there was no way for my foot to release. The board would not flip over> because of the fin being stuck in the sandbar. I have relived it over> and over in my mind. It happened so fast, and I am not quite sure> exactly if the booties had a significant role in keeping my foot from> releasing. I now set my straps wider and tighter, instead of just> looser (I have big feet). I try to sail barefoot, but I will likely> sail with booties again, especially when I think the bottom is> questionable. I like deep water now!>

I hope you heal fast. Let us know how long it takes to recover. I think> the worst part was not knowing when I could get back on the board, and> how long it would take to heal. I sailed on my ankle at 6 weeks, but it> took 9 months to get back to 90% strength.>

Take Matt Prichard's advice...get out your credit card and call Brian> at Side-Off and catch up on your videos....>

Mark>

Lucky et al. Never understood the problems with foot straps. They should > be tight enough to keep you securely attached to the board, but not so tight > as to prevent your foot from inserting enough and thus make the board > uncontrollable. Footstraps should be loose enough to allow your feet to > gain leverage over the board, but not so loose as to allow your foot to > loose contact with the deck.>

Adjusting footstraps is fast and easy. Do it once per season, or twice when > booties become necessary. Or more if you like to tweak.>

I've never been prevented from exiting the straps that are too tight. Tight > straps prevent getting my foot in deep enough to get caught in the first > place. Straps that are so loose as to grab my ankle are far to loose anyway > to use effectively. The board will flop all over the place.>

Boots tend to make it more difficult too get my foot in as the sole offers a > lot more grip than the skin on the sole of my foot, so I find adjusting > strap tension for boots to be slightly more exacting.>

Never been hurt by straps, but I don't do much freestyle.>

-Dan> "Lucky" <ktrubin@mtu.edu> wrote in message > news:1111582410.387­917.91820@f14g2000cw­b.googlegroups.com..­.>

In article <1111586641.240599.­192530@l41g2000cwc.g­ooglegroups.com>,>su­rfer <surfer@mail2go.com­> wrote:>

I agree that you get less foot injuries when sailing with booties, but>that's SMALL injuries. If your foot doesn't come out when it should,>you might break your foot (as I did) or your ankle, and miss the whole>season. I think I'd rather have a few small injuries than one big one.>

I'd be interested in hearing more opinions on this issue.

Jeff,> I damaged my toe on Thanksgiving day getting ready at 3 am to fly to> Florida to windsurf and visit my father. I ran into a table in the> dark. I too did not think much of it.Well today after wearing a hard> sole shoe for months and lots of x-rays it is still not windsurfable.> They are saying it is the tendon that is messed up. Well, I am headed> to Hatteras in four weeks and can totally relate to your pain. I am> thinking no shoe as they hurt!> Rox. I also wonder about what Ben is saying.>

Paul Braunbehrens wrote:>> Maybe we need straps that release when a certain amount of force is>> applied... i.e. before a bone breaks. Shouldn't be too hard to>> manufacture.>>

Something like this did exist once upon a time and there was quite a> bit of commentary about it on this newsgroup. I tried one but found it> very uncomfortable, but maybe I didn't have it mounted correctly.> Before I had a chance to follow up, the guy was bought out by one of> the big companies, who promptly dropped them.> But I think the injuries mentioned here are caused by accidentally> kicking the strap. Nothing but careful, controlled sailing prevent> that. You can stub your toe on a perfectly flat surface.>