Hi Windsurfing community,
I have a quick general question regarding board volume.
I am currentily learning on an old Minstral Equip and a F2 funboard. I have a mate who is going to hook me up with an old Zolt shortboard once my skills improve to a point where i might be able to manage a shorter board.
My quick question is: Im looking at either purchasing ( after convincing my wife ) either a Starboard Carve or a JP Xcite Ride. I Sail in sydney so im sure you all aware of Sydney wide averages etc..
Im just curious of any experiences that you may have with either of these boards.
My main concern is Im 6'2 and weigh 90kgs. I am aiming for a board which volume is just above my weight Plus the weight of my rig so that its still slightily bouyant ( in case i still need to uphaul ). Whats the point of getting a larger volume board is it simply because its stronger and therefore you can use a larger sail for lighter wind conditions ??
Any advice is greatily appreciated
Best regards
Matt
Matt can only talk re the X-Cite ride boards, although I hear the other brand is as good as the JP's
I have a FWS JP X-Cite 130 lt, great board, and following the exploits from Sydney crew, think this will suit you rather well, for those conditions.
I eventually purchased the latest X-Cite ride 110 as my skills improved, and its performance is great, can handle up to 7.5 meter Freeride sails.
The standard fin with the 130 is a 44cm fin, if possible get the latest G10 material fin and not the older black material fin.
I still use both boards, one for light winds, other for normal sea breeze over here.
My weight is 88-92, depending on summer or winter 
One must have item I found to have, is the latest nose protector from JP (on web site) will save you any nose repairs
Hope this helps
Hi Matt,
I have a Tabou 140 and its an awesome board for Sydney. Its the best board I have ever had. You can have a go of it next time we meet. I think the F2 Xantos would be good for you too. Basically any reasonably modern board around that volume will be good.
G'day,
I fluctuate between 93-97kgs and ride a 131 starboard carve. I use 8.5m V8 sail for 15-20knots and a 6.5 gastra sail 20-30knots and 6.2 north sail for above 30knots. I also have a 103 JP freestyle but I much much prefer my carve even in the big winds, athough it is psycho in high wind+heavy chop. I hear the Jp x-cite is pretty comparable to the carve.
Like you said there is nothing worst than getting stuck when the wind drops so both boards at 130 litres are comfortably uphaulable. You could certainly uphaul 120 litres as well, possibly even lower but I am unable to uphaul my 103. You're not really meant to use a 130 in heavy waves and wind but I find if you're strong it handles well. I am too scared to try to learn to flip on it but I've been able to jump it completely upsidedown.
I highly recommend either. Good luck with your choice.
point of bigger board... (note; all this is generalisation)
bigger board = lower wind board because...
larger planning area, therefore higher lift at lower speeds.
bigger board = wider tail+your weight = more leverage over the bigger fin required to match with a bigger sail therefore less wind need to create x amount of power to get planning.
bigger board also = easier to uphaul as you know but more effort in higher wind+chop to hold down.
Who would have thought muscle was so heavy?
Thanks alot for all your input guys.
I hope the winds in Sydney are treating you ok, I saw about 8 windsurfers ripping over here in NZ afew days back and im missing my old gear , its a shame its so cold in the water cause its been moderiatly windy since i arrived.
All the best
Matt
Hey matt,
I have ridden an 111 ltr carve and a 125 (maybe 130)ltr xcite ride, and i would definately reccomend the JP over the starboard.
I found the carve was much slower that the JP, and did not point nowhere near as well with a similar size fin on both - albeit thought the JP is a littel wider and shorter.
The carve is very comfortable though, so if you not looking for top speed and just want to cruise - it would be great.
Persaonlly though - JP is a lot more fun on the water.
Good luck.
Matt,
I've found myself in a similiar situation.
I weigh around 100kgs and have only just started wind surfing a few months ago, After using the initial 200+ litre hire boards I moved to a JP excite ride 150L FWS (bought second hand at a bargain) which volume wise I found great. But I've since dinged and damaged it through the learning process. I intially thought it would be too big but it turned out to be a great board.
In my limited experience I'd not only be looking for the right volume but more importantly a tough and durable board, because as a beginner you'll bang it up. (repairs can be costly
) As a beginner I've wanted to progress as fast as possible, it hasn't helped being in the repair shop for a week at a time. I've since traded the X-cite ride and gone for a Starboard Go 144. (bought yesterday...will hit bay this wk end...hardest part over...girlfriend's been won over by the colour...)
Below is what I put my issues down to:
Issues:
125-130L can still uphaul but could feel unstable under your feet and may sink a little below water level. But once yr a confident sailor will probably not notice it (may take time
). This is dependant on yr skill level and this will intially depend on how consistently & often you can hit the water.
140-150L easy to uphaul extremely stable and can handle larger sail.
The important thing is you want to consistently enjoy yr sailing. My experience has been that light winds are fine but once the wind picks up technique becomes critical, a STRONG & DURABLE board will allow you to progress quicker and be more confident in trying stuff. There's nothing worse than waiting for the right conditions to come along, then hitting the water and smashing your board up and having to sit on the shore watching everyone else blasting, if this happens to many times, windsurfing becomes wind suffering and it can become all to difficult and you just give up and take up an easier sport.
Solution:
Whatever volume works out right for you, bye a strong, durable board. Its about havin fun and staying on the water.
There is a simple rule of thumb.
Divide your weight by your age.
Times it by the amount of times you have sex each week.
Add 16.
Subtract your best friends girlfriends bust size and times that by 2.
This will give you an accurate board volume you should be using.
I'm 95kg's so not far off your weight.
I've found that I can just uphaul a 116ltr board. Any less and I would have to see saw it like crazy.
Thats with a 7mtr sail.
My first board was a Bombora South Pacific and it was indestructable.
