The Cowboy is one of those little tricks you might have seen in an old surfing video but have long since forgotten. What Robby Naish, Jason Polakow and Pete Cabrinha were already pulling off decades ago fell out of the spotlight as other moves took centre stage, but it hasn’t lost any of its appeal. What’s more, you don’t need Hawaiian-sized waves or strong winds to do the Cowboy – half a metre of Baltic Sea swell and 15 knots are more than enough.
Compared to the Board-360, the Cowboy is significantly more difficult. But this manoeuvre is also best practised in lighter winds, when you can no longer glide at full power. Sideshore wind or a slight onshore side-onshore wind is ideal for the Cowboy. A few litres more volume won’t go amiss for this trick – the smaller the board, the harder it is to switch round the mast at the front.
The Cowboy Explained Step by Step
- 1) As you head towards the shore, look for a swell that’s just building up and match your speed to it. Lean back slightly on the wave face; this reduces the pull on the sail and makes the subsequent change of side easier. Move your front foot in front of the mast foot and release your rear hand from the boom to reach over to the new side of the boom.
- 2–4) Now comes the trickiest bit – changing sides with your back to the sail. To do this, step with your rear foot onto the leeward side in front of the mast and quickly shift your weight back again; you’re now surfing facing backwards with your back to the sail. As with any downwind run, the rule is: don’t push too hard on the clew, as this is like a sheet-in manoeuvre, which loads the sail and throws you off the board to leeward like a runaway horse.
- 5–6) You can also control the back pressure in the sail by adjusting your course. If you ride the wave more to windward, the back pressure increases. If you steer your board more on a broad reach, the pressure in the sail decreases.
- 7–9) To be able to shift at the end, you first need to take the pressure off the sail. You can do this by visibly bearing away – you can then use your rear hand to push the clew through the wind; the wind will then take care of the rest of the shift for you.
Perhaps this tutorial will inspire you to try something new the next time the wind dies down – even if the trick is decades old.
The crux of the matter: the change of sides
The change of side is the absolute crux of this manoeuvre; you can practise it on the beach in a light (!) breeze – five knots is more than enough. To do this, point your board on a slightly upwind course. When standing at the back, take particular care to keep the sail open (third picture)
Manuel Vogel
Editor surf
