PWA INSIDER TIPS

Crucial Tips: Unlock the wonderful world of backloops

For many aspiring wave sailors - aerial antics can be just as fun as learning to slash the wave to pieces - with this in mind we caught up with some of the top sailors in the world to find out their top tips for landing backloops.

Whilst backloops may be much more technical to land, for many they hold less of a psychological barrier than the forward loop - what with the more controlled and less aggressive rotation. If you can already land vertical jumps in control then you are ready to start your journey on the road to learning to backloop. Carry on reading below to find out the pros top tips:

Boujmaa Guilloul (Starboard / Severne):

“First of all you have to be able perform a normal high jump before you can start trying it. Landing a backloop is not - so be prepared to put in the hours of effort. It takes a while before landing you are able to land them all the time. When it’s really windy, it’s really important to try and get close to your rig - by pushing your chest close to the boom - once you reach the top of the jump bring your gear in front of you toward the landing surface.”

Kenneth Danielsen (F2 / Simmer):

“Grip the boom as wide as you can with your backhand - this will massively help you to not over rotate your backloop.”

Adam Lewis (Patrik / Point-7):

“One of the most important things is to spread your hands along the boom. Hunt out a nice vertical ramp and then when you are at the top of the jump - starting to rotate - slide your backhand as far down the boom as possible i.e. to the clip. As you come around you have to pull right in with your backhand and try to extend into the landing, whilst at the same time tucking up your back leg. For backloops in windier weather or when you want to start going higher try moving your hands closer together. This allows you to get more height, as well as being able to control the power better.” 

One you’ve mastered the backloop you can look at landing variations such as the one-handed backloop:

Phil Horrocks (Tabou / Gaastra):

“Aim for a nice steep ramp with lots of power and speed. Go straight up in the air - staying in the harness - then drop your front hand off. Make sure you drop your arm fair enough away, this way everyone can see it! It’s really important you can your backhand as far back down the boom as you can - towards the clew - keep it pulled it and steer the landing." 

We hope some of those tips help on your quest for cracking the elusive backloop. Good luck.