Lightwind kit for experienced lightweight sailor

[igorbio]

Need general advice on board/rig for lightwind location for lightweight sailor.

35 y.o. / 186cm height / 75kg

Pretty experienced probably even advanced:
gybing is pretty good (the exit is not always perfect, fall rarely), LOVE being overpowered and high speed sailing, good at jumping and trying to master some waveriding.

I had a some kind of Mistral Freeride 130-140l as a local kit which we shared with my father, it was quite narrow by modern standards. Used it with 8m2 camless freerace sail mostly. Then everything was destroyed during the fire… I dropped the idea of local WSing and focused more on trips to windy locations.

But now I’d like to resurrect the idea of local sailing, one of the reason is the progress in equipment and I want to shift a little from my mountain biking which is quite brutal on my not so young body.

But I don’t have the experience with those new boards as mostly use freestyle/wave equipment during trips.

The last trip I sailed RRD Firemove 120-130l, I likes how it starts planning easily, how it carves through gybes, and was really surprised how such a huge board could cope with chop and even some strong winds. But at the same time it seems to lack character. Doesn’t feel superfast and the ride is really relaxed.

I have also tried a couple modern slalom boards (not with race rigs though), one was Patrick, don’t even remember which size were they. But I was surprised how good they gybed and managed chop and felt really stable and fast. That is why I am leaning towards a slalom board at the moment.

Mostly the conditions will be 10-15knots on flat water. The wind is not stable so gusts and lulls are present.

I am torn between 3 types of boards: wide 75-85cm slalom boards, freerace or superlightwind options.

Sail size I am after are 8-9m as a main one and 7-7.5 as a secondary. Not looking for relaxed sailing, more into workout. Considering my previous experience I am not keen to use rigs bigger then 9m2 (NorthSails 8m2 I had was terribly heavy and bulky – even compared to competitors of its time), 10m2 max but I can’t even imagine how to handle this huge thing =)

It is going to be the only kit so it would be good it would handle super rare strong winds. It would be good if the board have potential to sail up to 20knots so I could take it local trips at sea.

1. Does a pretty light guy actually need SLW board? Won’t I be able to plane as early on a wide SL board?
2. Does the wind range drastically differs for say SLW/Futura board and a wide slalom board?
3. Is it a big pain in the ass to navigate SL boards non-planning? As they are designed to sail overpowered mostly.
4. Considering I am not a racer should I look into Freerace board? Any real benefits (easier gybing is not)?

Personally I am inclined to SL board of 80-85cm width with fully cammed big race sail and a smaller freerace one. But my thoughts on this are strictly theoretical… so it’s a minefield.

As for masts and boom I am going full carbon as I plan to have this kit in a long run and to make big rig as lighter as possible.

Which board type to choose?

Which rig would you recommend for each type of board?

[gvogelsang]

The two boards that come to mind are the Tabou Rocket Wide and the Futura.

You have sailed the Firemove, but it lacks character. The Rocket Wide handles the same conditions, but some have said that it has an extra gear because of the tail cut outs.

The Futura is closer to an all out slalom board, but it won't beat you up as much.

There is a poster on the Board forum who raves about his Rocket Wides; he has two, a 108 for his 6 and 6.7, and a 128 for his large sails.

I have been sailing the new Rocket 125 with an 8.0 and 6.5 Cheetah; but I weigh 95 kg and I am over 60 years old, so my experience is not relative. I also have a Firemove 122.

[dllee]

Key is lightweight of the board and your pumping ability, which adds about 3 mph to your early planing with good pumping.
Any of the modern wide LIGHT boards can do it, the Freerace the fastest, the Freewides the best jibing and more all around, the Freeride the strongest and most durable.
We have MagicRide 118 in Pro Edition, which planes up the same as Futura 111 in standard edition, which planes the same as JPSuperSport109 in Pro Edition, which planes up about the same as Tabou Speedster 100 in Pro Edition.
Notice, the smallest board planes up the same as the bigger (with 7.4 sized sails), because it's LIGHTER IN WEIGHT, so pumping has a bigger effect.
Our Fanatic Shark 145 doesn't come close to planing nearly as early.
But, the two Formula's do plane up a bit sooner and easier.

[konajoe]

[Sailboarder]

I also like my Kona for these conditions, but the OP might not.

As far as rig goes, it makes sense to have a carbon boom and fitting masts. A race sail might not fit the OP goals however. They are not the most powerful, but they are stable in higher winds.

Freeride sails are more powerfull. I like my 9.5 Ezzy Lion, a 2-cam sail. It's stable in good wind. However, I'm heavy and use that sail in more wind than the OP would. In his case, a camless sail (with a big belly) might be the wisest choice. My Kona 9.0 could be a choice, a Sailworks Retro or an Ezzy Legacy?

[cgoudie1]

Greetings Igor,

I am 84Kgs and 191cms, so not that far off your size.
I'd like to suggest a non-cambered sail for your consideration.

I ride a Sailworks Retro in a 9.5 in conditions as you describe, and in
10-15knots, that will get and keep me planning full time. This is a
non-cambered freeride sail, but is fast, slippery, and extremely pumpable.
I think Retros are just a s fast as full on race sails, unless you need to pull
extreme wind angles.

With this sail and a 155 ltr Angulo Sumo Freeride board, I can really rip in your
conditions. That board hasn't been in the Angulo line for 10 years, but just
about anything 75-85 cms wide should get you going, and a 9.0 Retro
would pull well in your conditions with you on it. You'll want at least
50 cms of fin also.

Lighter boards are better boards in the big sizes if you want early planning.

.02

-Craig

[joethewindsufa]

http://www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/Review/Falcon-Lightwind/

Cluffy is a lighter sailor and loves his JPSLW90
feels the new 2017 SLW is even better
however, he would consider an iSonic of about 85 cm wide
you might want to chat with him on seabreeze and see what he thinks ...

[coachg]

10 to 15 knts at your weight is pretty easy for formula or Kona, but it sounds like you are trying to decide between a freerace or slalom. Freerace will generally be heavier so slower to plane but easier to jibe.

An 85 cm wide slalom board at your weight won't need a 9.0 to get going in 10-15 knts, 8.0 will be plenty. I also don't think you would want a full blown race sail for 10-15 knts as race sails sail better when really lit. Weight, cam rotation & handling will all be a factor with a full blown race sail in light winds. A freerace or even camless slalom sail should be fine.

80-85 wide board would be a handful at 20 knts at your weight, especially trying to hold it down in a jibe unless the water is very flat.
You don't have to be racing to benefit from the early planing ability of a slalom board.

Coachg

[jingebritsen]

2013 larger RS boards would suit. 6.0 or 5.5 if in stock. fast and comfortable.

http://progressivesports.com/exocet-2013-rs

same with S-Cross. 138 rocks, accelerates and turns well.

http://progressivesports.com/exocet-s-cross-carbon-pro

rapid fire 10.0 or freespeed 9.0. designed and tested in florida, where the wind is light

http://progressivesports.com/rapid-fire

[konajoe]

What you want to avoid is joining the thousands and thousands of windsurfers who have given up the sport because they have the wrong equipment for their local conditions. Schlogging on smaller boards is terrible. Getting skunked sucks. You have to be realistic. This is a big decision.

The posters recommending slalom boards for your conditions are likely very talented sailors. The folks on big slalom boards in my area won't go out in anything less than a solid 13. If it's up and down, they're off the water in a heartbeat.

A modern longboard gets you so much, and gives up so little. They have a bigger wind range with 1 sail, they can get you out to a wind line, you can take a friend, take a cooler, etc. etc.