- Skate sailing
Skate sailing is a
sport where people on skates are propelled by asail . Traditionallyice skate s are used, but other kinds, such asroller skate s can also be used.Skate sailing is using a sail and the
wind to propel yourself across any relatively flat, hard surface. Skate sailing can be done in summer onroller blade s, roller skis, cross skates, etc. Winter sailing can be enjoyed on downhill skis, snow blades, ice skates, basically anything that slides. You just need the wind, a sail, and a surface to slide or roll on, and you'll be skate sailing.Skate sailing is not a new sport. Drawings of skaters holding sails in
Europe go back to the 1700s or perhaps 1600s. Skate sailing does not require a lot of expensive equipment or many lessons. It helps to know how to skate or ski and familiarity withsailing is a plus, but this knowledge is not required. Basically, to learn skate sailing, you learn to maneuver the sail so that you travel only as fast as you feel comfortable, and you learn how to stop. After that, it is simply a matter of gaining experience and confidence. Fact|date=June 2008In the US, a California based companyFact|date=June 2008 has been custom building skatesailors for years. Skate sailing as a derivative of windsurfing. By bringing some of the best built parts already available on the market into their designs without re-inventing the wheel so to speak, they have been able to keep a small renegade sport alive for the past 20 years.Fact|date=June 2008 Streetsailing can and will improve your windsurfing on the water. Fact|date=June 2008It is an all season sport and requires a minimum amount of wind and space. A 5mph breeze on hard surfaces will do with an average sail size of 5.0 square meters. A 10mph average is required on hard packed sand with the same sail size. Protective gear is recommended for beginners as well as advanced sailors. Land is definitely harder than water. For more information, go to www.streetsailing.com.
External links
* [http://www.skatesail.com/ Skate Sailing with sail held to leeward]
* [http://www.inquiry.net/outdoor/winter/activities/skate_sails/ How to Skate Sail with sail carried on windward shoulder]
* [http://www.windskate.com/gallery/index.htm Skate Sailing Images. Triangular sail held to leeward.]
* [http://home.swipnet.se/ansar/s.html Skate Sailing in Wings]
* [http://www.skatelog.com/skatesailing/ Skate Sailing Links]
* [http://www.streetsailing.com/ Windsurfing on Land]
* [http://www.sailskating.com/ The first universal folding skate sail]
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