Does anyone know who brings these into Australia? Keen to get one for the the winter, I'll import if I must but would rather get it local.
Cheers.
What are you talking about Dr J, It looks super easy......I'm sure it will end in tears but any way.
Windsurfnsnow in Sydney just had the rep in with a whole bunch of boards that were demoed. The boys said they were great fun and its on again soon.
Maybe contact them for the importer details????
Schmick looking stuff but pretty exxy!!!!
mate of mine years ago stuck a sail on a skateboard. he ended up meeting a nurse to marry, after all I think he was in Royal Brissy for about 6 months. Wonder if he ever got rid of that limp??
Man now you're making me scared.
I just sorted out something along the lines of this:
and am all 
in anticipation...
So private health insurance is the go?
that is just absolutely evil looking. Private health insurance, helmet, body armour and a mouthguard. Yep that should do it. Of course the other option is to buy a good wetty and tough out winter.
I built something similar many years ago.
It worked OK. It did not go as well on the beach as I'd hoped. What seems like hard sand is not so hard under wheel.
The hardest thing is finding an open area with a bit of wind.
BItumen offers the least rolling resistance, but tends to be long and narrow and populated with weird metal boxes on wheels that think they own it.
I did see some netball courts that looked promising last year.
in anticipation...
spoke to my mate today he tells me that the limp has improved to a point where he can stand up for extended periods. Still think buying a good wetty would be a better option.
get a mountain board
a few of us got it from www.skateboardexpress.com for light/no wind days.
drill a hole in the nose and you have an awesome landboard.
This is French dude-- too cool
I bought a 2011 Turfdog Freestyle board directly from Turfdog. It arrived the other week. I still have not had chance to get out and try it. I'll tried it on grass first then maybe down at Sandy Point.
Don't compare Turfdogs to mountain boards.
There is no comparison.. One steers like a skateboard, the other steers like a turfdog.. The turfdog steering action means u can replicate all the motions of sliding freestyle. It's in a league on its own.
Its all about the dolly wheels on the front.
I know there are people who can do flakas on mountain boards, they practice. But the skills learnt doing that do not translate to a windsurfer.. I can do flakas and funnels on a turfdog, its not hard because I can do them on a windsurfer, the same skills work for both.
Not that I'm trying to plug them, last ones I saw fell apart, but that was 2008 and I believe they are run by a different bloke now.. So I shouldn't comment on quality. I have one I built in the shed, worked fine, got boring and then it fell apart..
Below the fold is a neat Turfdog video by our latest UK windsurf import Al Bentley.. Note, it's nothing like a mountain board..http://video.mpora.com/watch/Xvz4AoGKQ/
in anticipation...
Local surf/skate shop, plus a couple of U-bolts from Bunnings and some 12mm solid bar.
Dodgy as heck, will probably put me in hospital but I had the urge to get building and that was what appeared to get me rolling with a minimum of fuss...
As barny said there is a big difference between a mountain board and turf dog, all depends on what you are looking to learn/practice. If it is just gybes/vulcans then a mountain board is probably ok but anything more you want the turf dog which brings the whole element of mast foot pressure into the game... and we all know thats what windsurfing is all about
regarding making your own, its definitly possible, but to end up with a product that compares to the turfdog you will probably end up spending almost the same. especially if you import from the uk with strong AU$$. This is mostly due to the front castor wheels which are proper air inflated tyres (not available in bunnings..). If you use them on tarmac (the best surface) then you can get away with solid tyres I would think
Also they aren't all that dangerous. if you are learning then start on grass, then move to the tarmac haha. the advantage of tarmac is that you need almost no wind to get going, and once you start moving at speed it all feels a lot more realistic. unlike grass where you will always be struggling to move forward.
Another mistake people make is using a 6m sail, its best to use a 4m or similar as it makes little difference at such low wind speeds. In my video I am using 3.7m. Also you want an old mast/boom as it rapes them. And sail if you dont have access to spares...
If there are a few people interested let me know I can talk to Mike Archer/Turf dog and we can bring some in....
Al
So how much wind/sail do you need on grass. Say on a football oval, nice and flat but a little rough?
