Hi all,
I am looking at getting my first harness for windsurfing on a budget. I have read pleanty of articles saying that a waist harness is easier to learn in, is this true?
Also apart from being built stronger is there much difference between a windsurfing harness and a kitesurfing one? Is the spreader bar to different or do they both work fine?
Waist vs Seat can be a long debate but I find the waist more comfortable and versatile. As a learner you will find it easier to hook in and out of a waste harness.
Kite or Wind harnsses will work fine. A harness is like a good pair of shoes, needs to be comfortable and provide good support, and they're all a bit different. The best thing is to try a few on in a shop, they'll have a rope you can hook into so you can try it fully loaded with your weight. Good luck.
It's a personal choice, I myself prefer a seat harness but it is relative to the type of sailing you do, slalom/racing I think a seat is better, freestyle/wave I think a waist is better, however body shape can also play a part.
No matter which one you get make sure it's a quality model as they're more comfy and will last you a lot longer. 
The kite harness has more of a hook on them, (or was it the other way around?) SHQ recommended that I change over the spreader bar when I converted to windsurfing. From memory I think it was about $40.
yea theres a difference; a kite surfing harness provides massive amounts of support, i only use a kite surfing harness, however the trade off is that a kitesurfing harness, well a good one, is a lot heavier then a windsurfing harness
I use a kite harness it works well but it is time I got back to a windsurfing one! If it is your first one a waist harness is the way to go.
