So Here's the story....

Northern BC Guy...re-located to Vancouver island...(Mid)...and am dedicated to learning the art and love of windsurfing...just don't know jack...

5-11" Tall...Weigh 165lbs...pretty strong...and have a mind like an ox...don't mind falling a dozen times to stand once...quick learner...mid amount of bucks$$$$....what do I buy...should I take lessons...and how do I fast track...if possible...and if not what do I practice first? + where do I sail?


Merry x-mas.....and Cheers for the new year.

Hope you can help me.

welcome to paradise

we all don't know jack but some pretend better than others, this site is invaluable to learn how to pretend better; you can contact people by "private messaging" them via the PM icon at the bottom

Gear- buy a used epoxy or plastic board vintage 1998 or younger one that's light, about 120+ liters (I got one you can use) or borrow/rent one huge learner board like a GO or START Board (wider, floatier boards are easier to learn on but you outgrow them quickly), a non-cambered (plastic thingies that give sails a wingshape without any wind in it, bitch to rig and heavy, tough to learn with) set of sails no older than mid 90's (should cost around $50-200 for newer ones each), a new boom (do yourself that favor) and a 30+ % carbon mast to fit the sails (tons around) with an extension (got one and a mast you can borrow for free or buy), a new(er) 5-4-3 wetsuit or drysuit ($300-600) and booties (save yer toes for later, 3-5mm but they need to be almost too tight when dry cuz they fill with water and stretch), helmet (hockey, skate, multipurpose waterproof like a protec or something), kayak PFD if you plan to hit the ocean esp., don't sail alone

harness later once you get things figured together with better gear, smaller board etc.

call Rob Gentleman for lessons (on this site private message W247) or wait til later spring, summer and learn at Nitinat Lake (just past Cowichan Lake via logging road, see directions to island sailing spots on this site), lots of advice there

Fast track: watch how-to videos, go to beaches and watch on windy days, learn in winter winds the hard way and freeze yer balls off cuz you'll be in the water most of the time, not a good thing Lake sailing is MUCH easier to learn, just the same plan on falling 500 times to stand once...

Good luck!

I appreciate the advice... and will research the info you gave me for equip.

I would really like to start this winter...even if I gotta freeze.

I am off the Island for a few days ..untill Jan 8th...but as soon as i get "home" I would like to start practicing.

There are a few boards on craigslist...in vancouver...as follows

Hy Fly short Board 8ft

F2 Bullit 10'5"

200lt start board (like you mentioned...out grow quick...and too big for my size?)

Any worth looking at...first 2 with 3 sails $400

Last one in Vic I think...couple hundi?

just browsed cause I didn't know what I was looking at...thanks for the help

Cheers

5 steps:

1. Get a GO board. 140 - 200 L.
2. Get a used 5.0 - 6.0 sail.
3. Go to Nitinat as much as possible starting in June (assuming it still exists)
4. Have someone who knows what they are doing show you the ropes - rigging, up-hauling, beach starting, turning. If you can find videos that's good too.
5. Have fun - every minute you spend windsurfing is one of the greatest minutes of your life.

If you are insisting on starting in the winter, should be OK if you chose your weather, this site is invaluable for that; if you can, rent a Start for the first few times, more time out of the water should translate to less cold/frustration at the beginning. I'd stay away from anything too small (and 8 ft sounds very small - boards normally rated by volume in litres/width cm now). If you buy a Start, it would probably be easy to sell again, but you might be really bored by then if you are keen, which it sounds like you are.

More used gear on http://www.coastalbc.com/ads/windsurf.htm
Some good possibilities there , the Xantos 133 at the top might be a good board for your light weight once you get past the initial wobbles. Stay away from really small and Formula (wide but very technical and delicate, not suitable for beginners). Free Formula might be OK, they are a beefed-up, tuned down a little version of the Formula. I don't see a lot from the last couple of months there that would be good for you. Probably some of the older stuff is still for sale.

I'm just about to order an Exocet Kona (see their web site discussion group) - they are pricey, but might be ideal for an eager beginner. Soft foam deck (padding helps when learning!), longboard with dagger so it will go upwind easily, but it planes and people have sailed them faster than I have ever managed on a shortboard (using GPS). They have a 'duck tail' that shortens the waterline from the back as well as from the front when planing, making them handle more like a shortboard. I think about $1600 though. They are too new for any used to be around.

I'm editing this after seeing MTM's post. A Go would also be ideal, lots around, they hold their prices and generally don't last long before selling. They are a bit smaller than a Start, so more fun later. They won't be as much fun when not planing as a Kona, probably don't turn as fast either. They are also fully-padded decks.

don't like to hate on windsurfing or anything like that but if you havnt done either sports i would get straight into kiting

windsurfing is a VERY cool sport, requires lots of coordination, practice, and patience. takes years to get good. the guys that can rip are probably more impressive than kiters around the area....

however, kiteboarding is a fantastic sport as well. easy to learn, very rewarding, lots of little things to keep you interested, BIG airs and tricks, gear is very compact compared to windsurfing (easy to travel with), requires less wind, faster to set up and get on the water, and on and on

just though i should let my voice be heard, before i took up kiting i was an avid windsurfer for 6 or 7 years.......i wont touch the stuff now.

Shush Colin, he asked about OUR side, go away and be quiet before he reads your post . Redbeard, all Colin says is true (although windsurfers can get out in more flukey/shifty winds than kiters), but there is a BIG danger factor that really isn't there in windsurfing. Kiting can be dangerous to both the kiter and bystanders. Windsurfing just feels dangerous, but isn't really. And with the Kona, you could be out cruising when the kites are still ashore, and be planing by the time they launch. However, their performance is unbeatable around 15 knots. If you do go that way, lessons are IMPERATIVE, not just a good idea.

Oh, and the "Faster to set up"? I fumble around a lot so some of the kites may be faster, but some guys can rig faster than a kiter can inflate the kite and unroll the lines, and double check every little detail. And windsurfing means never having to unknot 80 m of a 5-line system that has rolled around in the shorebreak for a few seconds! thats not fast.

Windsurfing is an amazing learning curve; every step IS hard to learn, but immensely satisfying once you get the bit you are working on, and its fun learning. Modern gear is really very easy to learn on compared to the beginnings of the sport, and the time it takes to get proficient is way shorter than it used to be.

Ok, here is my two bits.

Windsurfing, only done it a few times, hard as hell, major learning curve, but man once those guys get planing they rip! Agree with MF4, harder learning curve but reward on knowing you stuck with it must be real cool.
My take on gear is that there is alot of it, bulky as hell, need major car or truck space to cart it around and can only do it on water. As for saftey, I have seen nasty accidents on both sides of the fence, and know of two deaths for windsurfers at Nitinaht. Both sports have their risks.

As for kiting, quicker learning curve but more potential for harm at first. Definately not a sport to fudge it at, you will end up hurt or hurting another as well as trashing your gear. In my opinion, far more opportunity to diversify with kiting than windsurfing, can do it on land or water. Gear packs down small. As for cost, I don't think either is cheap really, so I give that topic a whatever.

Which ever you chose, hope you have a ball and don't be a stranger on the beach, that is what I love about these sports, the people are for the most part friendly and happy to see you out there havin fun!

Have fun...& listen to those inner voices they ARE trying to tell you something. Best learning/shopping @ Nitinat in the summer.

Hey boys, the dude said ".. dedicated to learning the art and love of windsurfing". The deliberation of which is better is distracting. Both are wonderful water sports with speed and thrills.

I'd be cautious about trying to learn at this time of year. The wind is gusty and unpredictable and if you get stuck bobbing around in the water for a half hour it's very chilly.

Redbeard Racing wrote: I would really like to start this winter...even if I gotta freeze.

There are a few boards on craigslist...in vancouver...as follows
Hy Fly short Board 8ft
F2 Bullit 10'5"
200lt start board

Okay, but keep in mind you may also die, not just get cold...don't sail alone and not in more than maybe 15-20 knots. Go for flat water, lake or lagoon (not Pipers), baysailing with people around. Cow Bay, Horne Lake, Nanoose Bay, Cameron Lake

For most part forget Craig's List or buysell as only once in a while they have something, use Coastalbc.com, this site's buysell, Windance.com classifieds, windsurfingclassifieds.com,

8ft waaaay too small, forget anything over 10feet long as it's likely ancient, waterlogged, has poor stability or all of those, the 200 Start would work well for you and good resale but huge, heavy although probably the best board to learn on due to its barndoor stability. Even a learner board should be relatively light (the start is not but has its upside) Make sure you get chinook downhaul gear and mast base as most folks have this stuff.

Sails that YOU need are a dime a dozen, try to get something late 90's about a square meter apart, a ~4.5 & ~5.5 are probably good choices. Most have old gear to lend you, I got a 4.7 you can have. Again, find out at the beach. Buy from people you know or will see again, someone from a beach near you.

Probably the very best places to learn windsurfing during the Vancouver Island winter would be Maui, Baja, or the Caribbean (Bonaire, Aruba, or Marguerita)

Actually, this really is true - you would have excellent instruction, the perfect boards/rigs for your progression and the conditions of the hour, and reliable wind. No danger of freezing. Great way to spend 10 days or so if you could manage.

Until you learn to read the wind and predict its changes, it can be hazardous - both increasing and decreasing wind, not to mention if it shifts from blowing onshore to offshore.

Where about you from northern boy?

www.iwindsurf.com /classified for tons of gear.