A windsurfing harness is part of the

trapeze A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or flying, an ...

used in the sports of

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

and

kitesurfing Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, or snow surface. It combines aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and wak ...

to connect the rider to the

rig Rig may refer to: Objects and structures * Rig (fishing), an arrangement of items used for fishing * Drilling rig, a structure housing equipment used to drill or extract oil from underground * Rig (stage lighting) * rig, a horse-drawn carriage ...

by a line attached to the

boom Boom may refer to: Objects * Boom (containment), a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill * Boom (navigational barrier), an obstacle used to control or block marine navigation * Boom (sailing), a sailboat part * Boom (windsurfi ...

bar. It consists of a girdle-like contraption that is worn around the body, with a hook for attachment. Hooking-in the harness is done by pulling the sail toward the body and hooking into the

harness lines A harness is a looped restraint or support. Specifically, it may refer to one of the following harness types: * Bondage harness * Child harness A child harness (alternative: ''child tether'', ''walking harness'', British English: ''walking rein ...

on the boom. The harness turns windsurfing into a long lasting activity, taking the weight of the sail off the arms of the windsurfer.

Types of harnesses

There are four basic types of harnesses: *The

waist harness The waist is the part of the abdomen between the rib cage and hips. On people with slim bodies, the waist is the narrowest part of the torso. ''Waistline'' refers to the horizontal line where the waist is narrowest, or to the general appearan ...

: Worn around the waist and lower back, providing back support. *Crossover Harness (e.g. Dakine XT) Fits around the backside but has padding and support for the back as well. *The seat (or slalom) harness: Fits around the backside, with straps that pass between the legs. *The

chest harness The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the crea ...

: Fits over the chest like a vest, providing buoyancy and padding for protection.

History and development

The first truly functional harness was developed by Pat Love and Ken Kleid of Windsurfing Hawaii in

Kailua, Hawaii Kailua () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Honolulu County, Hawaii, United States. It lies in the Koolaupoko District of the island of Oahu on the windward coast at Kailua Bay. It is in the judicial district and the ahupua'a named Ko'ol ...

in about 1974. It consisted of a vest-like nylon jacket to which a hook was attached. The sailor used the hook to attach to lines attached to each of the wishbone booms.Windsurfing harness lines
/ref> When future world champion

Robby Naish Robert Staunton Naish (born April 23, 1963 in La Jolla, San Diego, California) is an American athlete and entrepreneur who has won 24 World Championship Windsurfing titles. He is also considered a pioneer of kiteboarding and stand-up paddleboa ...

began using a harness in Kailua in 1975 when he was twelve years old, he had problems with his chest being painfully squeezed by the force on the hook. Mike Horgan and Larry Stanley developed a spreader bar to balance the load and prevent the harness from squeezing the wearer's chest. The spreader bar is now in almost universal use. The seat harness was developed on Maui when young Ian Boyd experienced the same problems mentioned above as Robbie Naish. The solution, half in jest, was to wear a chest harness upside-down with the hook inverted. Barry Holopeter was an R&D expert for Da Kine, and developed the first working model. This design proved to be very efficient in speed sailing and was used by Fred Haywood in his world speed-record runs. Many companies have developed the harness over the years with major innovations coming from

DaKine Dakine is an American outdoor clothing company specializing in sportswear and sports equipment for adventure sports. Founded in Hawaii, the name comes from the Hawaiian Pidgin phrase "da kine" (derived from "the kind"). Now based in Hood River, ...

and Windsurfing Hawaii.

External links and references

Watertrader magazine
''Looking Cool & Improving Technique'' Online tutorial

Windsurfing Clip Harness Lines
''Moudled and flexible Plastic lines'', Next generation of more reliable windsurf harness lines Windsurfing equipment {{Windsurfing-stub