Any Surfers/Windsurfers on here?
01 July 2003, 03:04 PM
#33
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P1-I get a few cast offs from professional windsurfers that i know. The boards they use are a bit much for me though at the mo. Getting a full time job and abandoning all thoughts of education based on my obsession with windsurfing
Bound to regret it....nah
Bound to regret it....nah
02 July 2003, 03:45 PM
#38
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Good sport, frustrating though when the conditions aren't right. Mate of mine got trapped under a huge sail in quite heavy seas, the harness line got all wrapped up around his harness and he had to undo all the straps to get out... scary as hell
02 July 2003, 10:10 PM
#39
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Franx - depends on how much of a sinker it is. If you can uphaul your rig then its either not that much of a sinker or your very light. A waterstart is best and then a few pumps to get your speed up quickly. Obviously you can only sail these boards when the wind is strong enough. I used to uphaul on a 255 waveboard but I was 16 at the time and probably weighed about 10 stone as was super skinny after sailing 24*7 in the mediteranean sea(sp?).
Damn this thread brings back some memories. I won the Cyprus All Island Mens 6.0m Course Racing comp in 1993. Didnt like racing to much though as needed big boards and sails in mostly crap conditions (i.e. no wind). Even dropped out of many a race when the wind picked up to get my waveboard out. Was just about managing to land backward loops before I left Cyprus and have never windsurfed since. Done a spot of surfing though as the olds live in Cornwall 5 mins from the beach.
If anyone wants a waveboard then they can have my Bic Alto for £50 if they live near Cornwall and can pic it up. Its a 255cm waveboard. Think its 70/75 litres buoyancy. Has a wave fin, will probably need some new footstraps plus UJ & Deckplate.
Can get my dad to take some pics if anyone is interested.
Simon.
Damn this thread brings back some memories. I won the Cyprus All Island Mens 6.0m Course Racing comp in 1993. Didnt like racing to much though as needed big boards and sails in mostly crap conditions (i.e. no wind). Even dropped out of many a race when the wind picked up to get my waveboard out. Was just about managing to land backward loops before I left Cyprus and have never windsurfed since. Done a spot of surfing though as the olds live in Cornwall 5 mins from the beach.
If anyone wants a waveboard then they can have my Bic Alto for £50 if they live near Cornwall and can pic it up. Its a 255cm waveboard. Think its 70/75 litres buoyancy. Has a wave fin, will probably need some new footstraps plus UJ & Deckplate.
Can get my dad to take some pics if anyone is interested.
Simon.
03 July 2003, 07:58 AM
#40
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Im looking at the price of boards at the mo. BIC look good, cheaper than the Mistral stuff anyway. I would put some piccies up but i can't do the uploadey thing!
08 July 2003, 09:18 AM
#49
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Anyone got any of the manufacturers vids? Got quite a few Gaastra ones and a Robby Nash vid. Jason Polakow (sp?) does loads of forward loops no hands i.e just strapped in with a harness.
Simon.
Simon.
09 July 2003, 12:45 PM
#51
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Started when I was about 12 and did it for 4 years or so until about 17 - was living in Cyprus at the time. Since Ive come back to this country I havent done it once in about 8 years. You need a lot of money and a van to lug all your kit around in.
Simon.
Simon.
09 July 2003, 05:17 PM
#53
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It depends what you end up doing. But I was into waves so you need at least one short board and a selection of sails for all the conditions. Can you imagine getting all the way to the beach with ur 4.5 sail only to find your totally overpowered and should have brought the 3.7? Then you need ur harness, wetsuit, booms, masts, deck protectors, uj's, deckplates etc and spares in case they break. Maybe even a lifejacket if you require one.
That said if you join a nice club then you can hire a rack and leave most of it there. But most clubs are at lakes and not at beaches.
If your careful with your kit and wash your sails after every use with fresh water then they should last. But it only takes one slip of the mind to put a hole through a sail or break your board. Buying new kit these days is not pleasant. £800 for a nice board, £300 for a decent sail, £100 wet suit, £100 mast, £80 boom, £40 harness etc. 2nd is the way to go if on a budget or just starting.
Simon.
That said if you join a nice club then you can hire a rack and leave most of it there. But most clubs are at lakes and not at beaches.
If your careful with your kit and wash your sails after every use with fresh water then they should last. But it only takes one slip of the mind to put a hole through a sail or break your board. Buying new kit these days is not pleasant. £800 for a nice board, £300 for a decent sail, £100 wet suit, £100 mast, £80 boom, £40 harness etc. 2nd is the way to go if on a budget or just starting.
Simon.
09 July 2003, 10:08 PM
#56
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That'd be foot loops - Not big-air
Struggling a bit tho. Got myself a cappello - 289x60x120ltrs. Wobbly, but I think I'm going to be ok. The 4-cam speed sails (6.7, 6.2) might not have been such a good idea - can hardly get the 6.7 off the water
[Edited by sempers - 9/7/2003 10:09:56 PM]
Struggling a bit tho. Got myself a cappello - 289x60x120ltrs. Wobbly, but I think I'm going to be ok. The 4-cam speed sails (6.7, 6.2) might not have been such a good idea - can hardly get the 6.7 off the water
[Edited by sempers - 9/7/2003 10:09:56 PM]
16 July 2003, 06:02 PM
#57
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Anyone done any kite surfing? Just wondering, as really seems to be taking off (...no pun intended!!) around where I work in West Kirby. I'll probably just stick to windsurfing at the moment, as I want to get good at it, but I might have a shot, seeing as it's free...
One other thing - How does board sizing work? I'm wanting to find a board - a fast one, but not a sinker, as my water starts aren't always reliable, so need to be able to uphaul. If I'm 75kg, what might be the smallest board I would get away with? - assuming I wouldn't go much above a 7.5 metre sail (yet!). I've been using one of those fairly wide ones recently (Mambo - can't remember who makes it) and it's going bloody fast, but isn't too manoverable, and is quite heavy. It also needs a bigger fin, as it's tending to spin out fairly often, with the 7.5 on it, & 15 odd knots.
Any ideas?
Ta! C.
One other thing - How does board sizing work? I'm wanting to find a board - a fast one, but not a sinker, as my water starts aren't always reliable, so need to be able to uphaul. If I'm 75kg, what might be the smallest board I would get away with? - assuming I wouldn't go much above a 7.5 metre sail (yet!). I've been using one of those fairly wide ones recently (Mambo - can't remember who makes it) and it's going bloody fast, but isn't too manoverable, and is quite heavy. It also needs a bigger fin, as it's tending to spin out fairly often, with the 7.5 on it, & 15 odd knots.
Any ideas?
Ta! C.
17 July 2003, 03:42 PM
#58
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The board must have enough volume (buoyancy) to support your weight comfortably, even in the very lightest of winds, which instantly removes about 75% of the boards on the market from the equation. Anything below around 140-150L of volume is out of bounds for the first timer, unless they are very light indeed (under 60kg). These boards simply won't have enough buoyancy for sailing in light winds, and you'll find learning an incredible struggle. (Heavier sailors should look for something bigger still. As a very simple rule of thumb, just double your weight in kilos and that's the minimum volume to consider, thus an 80kg sailor should be looking for 160L+ board, etc.)
Not sure if thats the info your after ??
Not sure if thats the info your after ??
17 July 2003, 03:46 PM
#59
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I have been choosing which board im going to get and was torn between freestyle and freeride. Eventually decided on freestyle for stability and option of doing tricks
Some day !
Some day !