getting into windsurfing

tony 2 eyes

i am thinking of getting into windsurfing. i am wondering is it easy to pick up afer a few lessons. how much does it cost to get into and is it a sport that can swallow alot of money, in which i mean changing and upgrading gear and so on. dies the sport have always have strong winds to do or can it be done in modest wind. tell me all you can about it

Sportsmad_Mick

Hi
Windsurfing is very addictive and a great way to spend an afternoon. You can pick up second hand beginner kit from a watersports centre from about €500. Make sure you get a nice big board- if you get something with not enough litre in it, you will spend most of your time in the water and lose faith with the sport very quickly. you should be sailing well enough after 2/3 lessons and after a few months you can upgrade your board if your skills have come along and you feel you are ready for a new challenge. AS a beginner you will only need modest winds, when you get more advanced and want speed etc for jumps then strong winds are preferable. You can always just use a bigger sail on less windy days to get the speed up.

Hope that helps
Mick

c-note

Firstly windsurfing is awesome,

If you get a few lessons you'd be up and away,
I learned the basics on holiday (warm water lots of time etc),
which was the easy way,
The learning curve is initally steep and its easy to get put off, but if you stick with it you'll have the eureka moment when you're body takes over and you dont have to think about what you should be doing.
The WS here community is quite small and so everyone tends to be friendly and helpful so dont be shy about talking to windsurfers off the water and asking for advice about gear/conditions etc etc.

Windsurfing can be done in a good range of windspeeds, light winds are great for learning and practicing tricks (light wind freestyle) and moderate winds are great for improving and cruising around. strong winds are great once you have the harness and footstraps learned. kitesufers can get going on less wind but it becomes more dangerous in strong winds.
Pretty much any day theres a breeze you can head out for a sail.

Moneywise; .
I've bought 1 sail, 1 mast and 1 boom new after 2 and half years.
Currently i have 2 excellent 2nd hand boards, 2 masts, 2 booms, and 5 sails
along with bits and bobs and have spent just under 2k. and that gear should last me for a good few years.
you can pay as much as 2k for the latest fancy boards!
you'll be buying second hand gear for the first while at least!

IGNORE the vintage crap that ppl sell on the likes of dondeal etc
Its outdated arkward and is prob the reason why lots of people left windsurfing! buy crap and you'll buy twice.
you'll want a beginner board and a sail or two. get the lessons first and the instructor will point you in the right direction in terms of board size (very important) and sail size. around €500-1000 will get you nicely set up (you'll be selling on the board within a year or so but keeping the sails!)

Almost All the modern gear (10 years or so?) is all interchangeable i.e. any make of mast boom sail will work together once they are the right size, (eg you'll need the correct length of mast and boom for a particular sail but the way they fit together is all standard)

you'll want a wetsuit aswell! and prob a hood and some booties in winter, if you decide to stick at it you'll soon want a harness when you start going FAST!

Warning, Once you reach this stage you will become desperately addicted,
and are likely to consider spending silly money on gear! you'll be checking the windforecast almost daily and will consider driving the length of the country for a fix. Its an exhillerating ride and everytime i get out in good winds i'm pumped for days!
DO IT!

mbiking123

tony 2 eyes wrote: »

i am thinking of getting into windsurfing. i am wondering is it easy to pick up afer a few lessons. how much does it cost to get into and is it a sport that can swallow alot of money, in which i mean changing and upgrading gear and so on. dies the sport have always have strong winds to do or can it be done in modest wind. tell me all you can about it

You can spend as much as you like, bottomless pit carbon boom etc

However you have been given good info on how to avoid and buy good second hand gear

Are you in Cork? I learnt in Oysterhaven (dont know if they are still there), places in Dublin and Limerick. As pointed out big board small sail. You can get DVD's too which give some good advice

Enjoy