I have recently bought myself a sail rig consisting of a Gaastra Poison 5.4 wave sail, etc, to sail my SUP.
I have been out 4 or 5 times and and reasonably competent with the SUP, which is a 9'6", 153lt JP Surf. BTW, no windsurfing experience prior to this. Only surfing and sailing.
I have found the sup very slow in the water and would love to have a board that would plane easily and be buoyant enough for my level of sailing. Don't want it sinking when uphauling. Although not super good at it, I can beach start, but never tried water starting yet.
I have been looking for old longer boards mostly with the dagger board. Don't know what to look for particularly but I have been mainly looking for volume, would think I want at least the same as my sup but preferably more. But most boards I see have much less volume than my sup.
If you can offer some suggestions as to Make and Models that would fit the bill or offer some advice on dimensions and volume, or anything else relevant would be awesome, thanks.
Cheers,
Ken.
I have included a pic of my rig.
Hi Ken
Planing .....faster.......
Yes the joys of windsurfing
Your weight would help narrow the suggested options.
Having given ken a little start on my training board I can attest to his balance and early competency
Ken there some different goals in your question
An older longboard with dagger will get you out and gliding in lighter winds
I think there is a bic longboard on gumtree up your way.
Planning .. Faster is going to need probably a short board say (if I recall your size) around 150- 200 liters and unless you learn in strong winds you will probably soon need a bigger sail.
Can I recommend you put aside the 29-30 November and come and do the windwanders training weekend at Cootharaba
You will then have a much better idea of type of board and gear that will suit your needs
I'll be there with short boards and longboards. You will be able to make a much more informed choice with some coaching and sailinghttp://www.windwanderers.org.au/Home/TabId/120/ArtMID/669/ArticleID/59/WindWanderers-Windsurfing-Clinc.aspx
.....WindWanderers Windsurfing Clinc
Author: Peter De Laet/Saturday, 27 September 2014/Categories: Windsurf Academy
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Event date: 29/11/2014 - 30/11/2014 Export event
As part of our Windsurf development program I?m proud to announce the first WindWanderers Windsurfing Clinic of the season at Elanda point, Lake Cootharaba, Queensland.
To improve your Windsurfing at all levels, beginner, intermediate and advanced sailors. Peter Nitschke and myself will be with you on the water for two full days. Starting Saturday morning at 8.30 am and finish Sunday afternoon at 4pm depending on the wind.
This is a calendar and payed event. Members pay $130, non members pay $150.
Bring your own gear and learn to trim it to the max. Beginners can use our beginner boards and I'll guaranty you'll be sailing at the end of the first day and feel at home on your board after day two.
Full program to follow so keep an eye on our website and Facebook page.
.....................
Cheers Jeff
Ps. Upon reflection... In my heart I probably think you should be asking what board etc after more than 4 or 5 goes on your sup.
Patrik Freeride 145lt. Big, stable, floaty, fastish, forgiving, enjoyable and you can learn a lot of the basics on it. I went for a sail on mine the other week after not giving it a hitout for a while. It only took one gust to realise how easy it is to sail.
Save yourself the time and speed up your learning with a proper, wide learner board, if you want to progress quickly.
I think those long narrow keeled boards have their attraction in bringing back the good old days memories and are probably pleasant calming ride, but if your aim is to get good quicker, a wide modern learner board will mean more time on the water improving.
Anything 145 ltrs plus and wide will sort you out. Check out the Starboard Go range, anything comparable to that.
Save yourself the time and speed up your learning with a proper, wide learner board, if you want to progress quickly.
I think those long narrow keeled boards have their attraction in bringing back the good old days memories and are probably pleasant calming ride, but if your aim is to get good quicker, a wide modern learner board will mean more time on the water improving.
Anything 145 ltrs plus and wide will sort you out. Check out the Starboard Go range, anything comparable to that.
Thanks, I checked them out on line, a starby go does look like the go! Pardon the pun, ha ha. Or a JP funster.
I can't remember seeing any round for sale though, plenty of low volume performance boards though.
Maybe - it's an advanced board that would take you a long way. You always have your sup as backup
A late model starboard go of similar size has provision for adding a dagger fin which is very usefull for getting back up wind in your early days
Budget for a bigger sail to get planing as your experience develops
Cheers Jeff
as jervin says - your weight is an important factor
winds are obviously important
and location - waves, currents, etc
if you sail in very light winds - older longboards can be a BLAST
under 20 kph i still use a Mistral Equipe I and a Fanatic Ultra CAT - both about 220 liters
like the Viper you tried
however, they are narrower and glide really WELL
at 220 pounds/100 kilos my first shortboard was a 160 liter 268 cm x 79 cm wide
this was and is a great floater !! started with a 7-oh sail and once confident, purchased an 8.5
not planing until using the 8.5, butt was ready for it
as a "learner" length and width are your friends
newer boards are tending to be shorter - however wide is coming back - YEAH
longer fins like 48 cm work great with 8.5 and get you home
there is an F2 Xantos for sale - says it may have some nose dings, cannot see it in photos
take your weight and add 60 to the kilos for your first shortboard
start with the smaller sail until you feel comfortable
see if you cannot continue to beg, borrow, loan , rent until you have a GOOD idea of what works for you
heard JP Funster is a NO GO - X-Cite Ride - YES
have no info on the GO
if you were in Montreal you could try my longboard, shortboard and i have some snow n ice sleds too
recently let a "kid" on an original Windsurfer try my Mistral Equipe with HotSailsMaui SuperFreak 8.5
he had NO trouble getting going and LOVED it !!!
he was lighter and managed in 20 to 40 kph winds - good on him !!!
NEVER GIVE UP = just keep at it
that's what we LOVE about windsurfing !!!
should you get a Viper ... or similar board ...
once you have played around a bit , consider longer/bigger fin and larger sail
a Viper with an 8.5 and 48 cm fin will plane for me at 100 kilos ...
KONA is always an option - not so popular here, but catching on in Florida, Europe
Thanks a lot for all the good advice fellas. I should add that I am 86 kg.
Also looking at a Starby Go there are two types available, one with a drop down dagger board and the other with only a second fin box.
Which would be better for me?
I have pretty much narrowed it down to:
[1] Starboard Go windsurfer, 177 lt, 271 x 85.5. http://www.star-board-windsurfing.com/2015/products/boards/go-atom-windsurfer
[2] Jp Explorer, M 165 lt, 275 x 75. jp-australia.com/2015/products/boards/explorer/
[3] Starboard Rio, S 187 lt, 276 x 78. www.star-board-windsurfing.com/2015/products/boards/rio
in that order: all these have drop down daggerboards, so if I would be better without that option I would then have to change option 2 & 3.
Option 1 is available without the daggerboard.
Cheers,
Ken.
If you can sail a 153lit SUP, I wouldn't get anything bigger than that. I'd maybe even try something a little smaller - say around 135 to 145lit free ride board. It will have a rocker more condusive to planning. I'd also invest in a couple of second hand sails, around 6m and 7m. Depending on how much you weigh, the 7 will get you planning in 15kts on a 135lit board
This one is worth looking at:
www.seabreeze.com.au/Classifieds/Windsurfing-Boards/~tm-jf/2011-JP-Australia-Xcite-Ride-Fws-252-cm-146-litres.aspx?search=eLRMcKwwdw70nRiCXmnrypUu5SLExF606EH9an3v1nE=
is that NOT a lot of $$$ for a three(3) year old board??
KennyK -- if you are stuck on the GO - the 141 has a 46 cm fin
YES, it will plane
s/b perfect for you