lightweight sailor in light wind

[J64TWB]

Hypothetically, I am going to try and sail in 9-13 mph as a 145 lb lightweight, in theory, what type of sail and board would be best to get planing in light winds on flat water?

My current biggest sail is 7.5 Retro (460 mast) and 130 (72cm) freeride. My guess is it starts planing around 13 mph.

Would a boost up to 9.0 Retro with 490 mast, paired with a wider board be enough? I would be willing to try something like a 9.0 with an easy uphaul, but anything bigger I assume is too much for me.

For argument sake, within the JP line options would be...

Super Sport (freerace) it’s 136 liters, 80cm wide
Super Light Wind it’s 168 liters, 91cm wide
Slalom 132 liter, 82 cm wide
Magic Ride 132 liter, 84cm wide

If the wind is above 13 or 14 mph I will be on 104 Magic Ride.

I know very little about boards and proper sails in light winds as a 145 lb sailor, but I am intrigued by it and would like to learn more. JP’s super light wind board looks quite interesting.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Fred

[dllee]

Sort of a unrewarding quest, lots of money spent, lots of gear accumulated, litte rewards, unless you live in an area without decent winds.
Most agree a full on Formula might be too big, too much drag, to plane up really soon.
Most would agree the need for sails bigger than 10.5 is too big for someone your size to pump effectively.
Light board weight is one huge key.
Do you have consistently deep water for the 60 cm fins?
Much easier to drive 50 miles to more wind, if it's within that distance.
You would have to pinpoint your location and reasons for this exercise in possibly futility.

[cgoudie1]

With a 9.5 retro, and an Angulo Sumo 155 and a 50 cm fin, I can get my
180 lbs planning in 10MPH winds.

You should try your 130 and see if it'll carry a 9.0. My guess is a 50 cm fin
ought to be enough for some one as light as you. I warn you though,
I sail with a guy who is 145 lbs, and he used to have big gear, but now his
max sail size is 7.5.

-Craig

[isobars]

Light-air freestyle.
Winter sailing.
LONG vacations to windier spots.
PWC/wakeboard/.
More flexible work hours.
More driving, as Lee suggests.
SUP touring or racing.
Many other sports.
iWindsurf.
Permanent relocation.

No matter how big you go, there will always be deeper lulls. I just drew the line based on the biggest crap and lowest temps I enjoy sailing and just fugheddabout sailing beyond those limits. KISS.

[gvogelsang]

Back when I weighed around 185, I used a Neil Pryde V8 8.5 and the first Starboard Formula board (270 x 84) to plane in what I considered next to nothing - around 12 mph.

I am 215 now and I still use that set-up as my light wind rig. And, I still enjoy it when others are sitting out "light" winds.

The Pryde V8 has a very deep draft, which I think really helps on the low end. For that reason, I would think that a couple of camber inducers would be helpful on your biggest sail. One of my sails is a Lion 7.5. IF the Pryde blew out, I would probably replace it with a Lion 8.5.

I have also had fun on that old Formula board with a Zephyr 7.5.

I don't know that you really gain a lot once you have a board width of 85cm, but someone who has a JP Super Light Wind or a Starboard Ultra Sonic can correct me if I am wrong.

If your local sailing spot has a lot of 11 - 13 days, I believe that a light wind rig is a great idea. Once I get planing and back in the straps, I'm having a great time going a lot faster than the wind speed.

[U2U2U2]

the comparison to others weights and what they use is kinda useless.


You dont say if you have another larger board than the Magic Ride 104L ?

There is not a answer to this, IMO, even spending gobs of money.
The Magic Ride 132L coupled with maybe a 8.0m, the 7.5m you have may be just as good or better, other board than mentioned may plane sooner, but the wind speed you are looking at 9--13 to plane is overly optimistic.


What I have found in search for this :: is diminished returns, at some point a larger sail will become too much to handle in lower wind. My own experience was a 8.5m was no better than a 7.5m, or so marginally so that it was insignificant.
Somewhere a sailors weight with a GIVEN board and sail size is the ultimate combo, changes in one of those in the same wind strength is not likely to have much effect.
My weight is 155
What is the significance of being able to pump on the plane, but the wind is not strong enough to stay there.

whats been said by others here is find something else to do, maybe Wind-SUP or fish

[adywind]

It looks like most intermediates sailing in less then ideal conditions take the "big sails and boards" path /espetially big sails/ while searching for more power and earlier planing threshold . I just came back from it myself /136 JP SS (sold) and 9.0 Sw Retro (for sale) -I'm 165 Lbs.
At some point later most of us realize how unrewarding this quest is and armed now with more experience and better technique we start shedding meters2 and liters until we get to the equipment that's most suitable for our respective conditions-meaning we are down to the sizes that give us the most fun for the least amount of work. Looking at the equipment of the people in my area -Chicago a mix of flat water small lakes and big chop /rolling swell Lake Michigan-I recognize the same pattern: intermediates -huge boards and sails; advanced-a middle sized boards and sails/110/120L and 7.5/8.0 / for flat water and smaller ~90L FSWs and few smaller sails for the Big Lake and experts-100L FSW/wave and 1 or 2 smaller wave boards with different fin configurations and sails rarely bigger then 6.2.
If I were you I would skip the big kit phase. At your weight the 104 Magic Ride and a 6.5/7.0 sail is the biggest youll ever need, but if you insist a 118 Magic Ride and a 7.5 sail will give you close to max early planing threshold which will improve with gaining experience . Beyond that a long board /WindSUP would be your best option for non planing cruising and those don't need bigger then 8.0 sails usually.

[coachg]

Fred,
Your easiest fix would be a bigger fin.

Next step up would be wider board. Your 130 liter, 72 cm wide board sounds a little old. A newer, lighter & wider board would plane up much earlier as LEED pointed out. At your weight I’d look at the next slalom size down then the 132 liter you have listed if you really have to trade in you 130 liter freeride.

Your last fix would be a larger sail, but at 145 I don’t see you gaining much with a larger sail. The problem with larger sails is holding them up in major lulls; it can be a major pain with their weight. In 9-13 mph winds there will be plenty of lulls. I have a 10.0 meter sail but never use it in winds under 15 mph as it becomes too much work holding it up in the lulls. 9-13 for most people is light wind freestyle with an occasional pump to plane or long board cruising. Heck, they won’t even run a formula race in under 14 mph winds.

Coachg

[beaglebuddy]

Longboard.

[d0uglass]

9.0 Retro on 490 mast paired with an 80+ cm wide board will be a very powerful early planing combination for you. 7.5 to 9.0 is a good spacing. The wider the board, the easier it will be to handle and get the most out of the 9.0, so don't be afraid to go quite wide.