Getting into windsurfing again

[jgerke]

I started windsurfing a few years ago and got to the point I could do some water starts. I need some advice on gear. I would like to get a fairly high volume stable board that could handle a sail range from about a 5.0 - 7.0. Does such a board exist? The boards I have seen in the 140 - 150ish volume range start at about a 6.0 sail. If I can water start should I get something with a little less volume? I still need a stable floaty board. I looked into the possibility of kiteboarding and even took a lesson while on vacation but the kites seem like a real pain cause you need so much room and need help launching and landing the kite. I almost took out some people on the beach with the trainer kite.

[Craig Goudie]

Greetings and welcome to the forum.

It sort of depends on what you weigh, but, in Utah a 140-150 ltr board is premium for most of the conditions we
experience(more 6-8M sails).

If you have a solid water start then you'll eventually be wanting 2 boards at least.

Any semi modern 140 ltr board (maybe even 120 ltrs) would carry 5-7M sails, but Starboard makes a board called the Carve
in the 140 ltr range, that is pretty swiss army knife. The Western States Starboard rep lives here in Salt Lake, and is "president" of the windsurfing part of the UWA (Josh Shirley). You could PM him here, and he'll likely respond.

If you weigh 190lbs or better, can waterstart, use footstraps, and harness, then a modern 140 ltr board with 2
different fin sizes should get you the 5.0 to 9.0 range.

If you're less than 190, say 170ish, then a 120 ltr modern board should get you that same range.

I must warn you, eventually you'll be wanting something more in the 90 ltr range for 5.0 on down, but again this depends on
your level of proficiency.

I weigh 180 lbs, and for sailing here in Utah, I have a 150 ltr Angulo Sumo, which is good for 6-10M sails, then I have
an RRD Twin Tip 115 ltr board which I ride from 5.5 to 6.5, and then I have a 75 ltr custom board which I ride from 5.5
down to 3.7. In Hood River, I have a 100 ltr board I ride with a 6.7. From 5.7 to 3.7 I ride an 2015 Open Ocean 80 ltr board,
and from solid 4.7 down to 3.2 I have a 70 ltr custom Hi-Tech. I am a pretty proficient windsurfer with better than 30
years experience.

Describe your abilities, physique, current gear, and price range you want to spend for new gear, a little more, and I can
narrow this down somewhat for you.

-Craig

p.s. the used board market can be a great value

I started windsurfing a few years ago and got to the point I could do some water starts. I need some advice on gear. I would like to get a fairly high volume stable board that could handle a sail range from about a 5.0 - 7.0. Does such a board exist? The boards I have seen in the 140 - 150ish volume range start at about a 6.0 sail. If I can water start should I get something with a little less volume? I still need a stable floaty board. I looked into the possibility of kiteboarding and even took a lesson while on vacation but the kites seem like a real pain cause you need so much room and need help launching and landing the kite. I almost took out some people on the beach with the trainer kite.

[jgerke]

Thanks for the reply Craig. I weigh 165 pounds. I can water start fairly well. I can also use a harness but can't get in the footsteps yet. I was working on getting in the footsteps when I stopped windsurfing a few years back. I may struggle with my water starts at first since it has been a few years. My budget will probably be around 2000-2500 to start with. I am 48 years old so hopefully I will have enough good years left to make good progress.

[Craig Goudie]

48 is young by most windsurfer standards, and you'll have plenty of good years left.

Here is a start,

From:
http://naishmaui.com/specials
• 2009 Free Wide 120, 130 $799
• 2010 Global Free Ride 130 $899
(I never met a Naish board I didn’t like (well, maybe 1))

From:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=12445
• 2014 Starboard Atom IQ 120L - $1599

(Josh has had some pretty good deals in the past, but these may be gone.
Ask him what he might do for a Utah Bro, because a carve 131 might be just the ticket,
he might even be able to get you onto a ride before you buy to see if you like it)

From:
http://www.inlandsea.com/p-1399-2014-fanatic-gecko.aspx

• 2014 Fanatic Gecko HRS 135 $1399

From:
http://www.windance.com/Exocet-Cross-Si ... SWB4381114
• Exocet '14 Cross Silver 114 $1439

So, my .02 is that you want what’s called in 2015 vernacular a Free Move board.
Somewhere between 115 and 140 ltrs. Closer to the smaller end if you plan to spend more time in higher wind (say Grantsville reservoir for example), and closer to the larger end (Deer Creek for example) if you plan to spend time in lighter wind. Since you’re just starting to use footstraps, I’d recommend a board with possible positions for the straps more inboard, than on the rails.
If your $2000-2500 price range is just for a board, you can grab almost anything out there, but the lighter constructions do break easier, so if you’re prone to being flung, with the resultant nose strike, go with the less expensive (heavier) constructions.
If that price range is for an entire set of gear, then I’d recommend looking for used gear, because a high carbon content mast and boom on a 7.5M sail is going to easily eat up $2500 dollars by itself. Not to worry, because racerheads turn their gear over yearly, and there’s lots of cheap rigs with little use out on the market. If you wait until Autumn, everything will be about 30% cheaper also.
For 90% of Utah sailing, at your weight, you could make a 7.5 and a 5.5 sail work, but it’ll be a struggle at both ends of each sails range (8.0, 6.5, 5.5 would be premium). I like Sailworks Retros in large sizes down to 5.5, but sails are very personal,
and used Retros are hard to come by.
Good Luck,
Maybe I’ll see you on the water sometime.

-Craig

p.s. there are a lot of folks with old larger boards in their garages that they would likely sell cheap, maybe post an "I'm looking for a used board in the 115-140 ltr range " either here or in the "Windusrf for Sale" section and see if you pick up any good leads.

Thanks for the reply Craig. I weigh 165 pounds. I can water start fairly well. I can also use a harness but can't get in the footsteps yet. I was working on getting in the footsteps when I stopped windsurfing a few years back. I may struggle with my water starts at first since it has been a few years. My budget will probably be around 2000-2500 to start with. I am 48 years old so hopefully I will have enough good years left to make good progress.

[jgerke]

Thanks again Craig, lots of good info. The $2000-$2500 budget is for an entire setup so I will definitely need to go used.

[Craig Goudie]

You may not have to go used, but it's not a bad way to go. For example:

Those 2009 and 2010 Naish boards are (I think) new or very slightly used $800 (you should check to see if they come with fins, and there'll be a shipping charge on them.
A new 2014 7.5 Retro is $599 right now on the sailworks site http://www.sailworks.com/
A new factory blem 460 mast is about $400 at the Windance Site http://www.windance.com
A new chinook aluminum boom to fit that sail is about $300 at the Windance site.
a mast extesion about $70
$2170 total, if you want to go that way.

In your position, though, I'd look for a complete used quiver of 3 sails maybe 8.0, 6.5, 5,5. if they're
from the last 10 years, that should be less than $1200 worth of stuff, plus a nearly new board in the $800 range
at about 130 ltrs. You could try posting here like I suggested, or there are various other places like
http://www.iwindsurf.com/classifieds.iws

I have an 8.5 year 2000 XT2 sailworks sail that still has a couple of years life left in it I'd sell you for $50,
it's got some packing tape repairs at the top as I recall (haven't had that sail out of the bag in 7 years).
This sail is awfully large to water start.
if you're interested in that PM me, and I'll unroll it and see what it looks like.

Peruse the Windance, Sailworks, and Classified sites, and see if something there doesn't strike your fancy.

-Craig

p.s. I'll be in Hood River over the weekend. If it's not windy, I'll check in with some of the racerheads and see if they've got any big gear they want to dump.

Thanks again Craig, lots of good info. The $2000-$2500 budget is for an entire setup so I will definitely need to go used.

[jgerke]

The 2009 Naish Kailua 140 for $599 looks very promising. The 2012 Naish Rally 5.8 and 7.1 sails for $249 a piece also looked good. I'm thinking I want at least 140 liters, maybe 140-150 somewhere. I'm in the process of trying to sell a mountain bike I never use. I am going to use the money from that for a good chunk of my gear so hopefully I can get it sold fast. If I buy a quiver with 5.5, 6.5 and a 7.5 am I going to need two masts and booms? I remember water starting with a 7.5 a few years ago and I don't think I want to wrestle anything bigger than that in the water. Maybe it was just my crappy old gear though. Let me know if you run across some good deals in the Gorge. Thanks!

[Craig Goudie]

Some manufacturers have specialty sails that run those sizes on a single mast, but you are probably going to have
to get at least 2 masts for that size quiver, probably a 460 and a 430. You'll want to get a mast with the
appropriate bend characteristics for the sails you decide on, as a mismatch is usable, but does not really
exploit the sails full potential. I highly recommend staying with the same manufacturer and line of sail for
a quiver as well.

You can get one boom to cover that range, but you really want a stable big sail, and having the boom fully
extended, does not help rig stability. I can water start my 9.5 if I have to, but 7.5 is about the limit for
size that I want to water start.

Good luck,

-Craig

If I buy a quiver with 5.5, 6.5 and a 7.5 am I going to need two masts and booms? I remember water starting with a 7.5 a few years ago and I don't think I want to wrestle anything bigger than that in the water. Thanks!

[Josh Shirley]

Jeff:

I am always moving through stock - Starboard Boards and Severne Sails.

I do have some Go boards and some Atom IQ Tufskins - which would be a great choice.

The Atom would a faster board than the Go.
The Go is the same shape as the Starboard Carve - but built in the Tufskin construction.

2015 Atom IQ 130 Tufskin - MSRP: $1596
2015 Atom IQ 140 Tufskin - MSRP: $1596
2015 Atom IQ 161 Tufskin - MSRP: $1699
2015 Atom IQ 130 Carbon - MSRP: $2162
2015 Atom IQ 160 Carbon - MSRP: $2162
2015 Go 131 Tufskin - MSRP: $1544
2015 Go 141 Tufskin - MSRP: $1544
2015 Go 151 Tufskin - MSRP: $1596
2015 Go 161 Tufskin - MSRP: $1596
2014 Go 141 Tufskin - MSRP: $1769 - Closeout: $1415.2
2014 Go 151 Tufskin - MSRP: $1724 - Closeout: $1379.2

Also have lots of sails in stock (in Salt Lake)

Closeouts
2011 Gator 7.5m - Used B+ $300
2011 Gator 6.0m - Used A- $300
New Gear
2015 Gator 6.0m - new - $700
2015 Convert 6.0m - new - $450
2015 Turbo 7.0m - used (A-) - $550

I rig up every sail I sale with the customer.
Answer all your questions.
I use all this gear and know it well.

Thanks
Josh
801 910-4469