What is sheeting?
A. ’Sheeting’ comes from the idea in sailing of relaxing or tightening up the sheets (sails), the ropes that pull the sails have come to be called ’sheets’. In windsurfing, it refers to control of the boom angle. If you angle the boom closer to the line of the board, you are ’sheeting in’ as for ‘beating to windward’. If you let the boom out, you are sheeting out, as for a reach. If you are running, your are fully sheeted out, your boom is almost transverse to the board. When hit by a gust, you can sheet out to avoid being overpowered – then sheet back in and direct the force down your legs into the board to take advantage of the gust’s power. When suffering a sudden lull, you can sheet in sharply (then adjust your feet and balance) to avoid falling back into the water.
