hi.I've never windsurfed before but am very keen to get into the sport.as i spent all my money in winter snowboarding,i am looking for a second hand board, what board and sail sizes would you recommend for a beginner? i am looking at a 275cm 103 liters, would it be possible to learn on this board? also what is liters? any help would be much appreciated, cheers.

thank you so much for your reply,it was very helpful.i weigh about around 70kg..i am located in Sunbury so i was thinking around st kilda would be my best bet. thanks again.

you could also buy something really old and big for $100 to learn the basics and by mid summer look for sumething smaller and more modern and also save more in the mean time.

As a beginner I can safely say what 555 said is 100% correct. I have learnt on an old ark and it's not a pleasant or easy experience.

They are heavy, slow and ugly.

Nothing like trying to learn waterstarts and having the mast joint pop out everytime you power up the sail. Many times I have seriously considered just letting it float away, or attacking it with an axe.

I can't really complain as it only cost me $70 but the only reason why I came through it all is because I am very patient. I spent about 8 hours before I could even uphaul the sail, then days and days and days before I could move even in the lightest of breezes.

I can't stress this enough don't do it, do exactly what 555 said and get a lesson on modern gear and search around for a modern wide board and newish rig.

hey, I learnt on a windsurfer one design and then bombora tri fin and it only took me 3 years before I could carve gybe and waterstart (early 1980's). Ok, not the best option but if you have zero money?

yeah, admittatley modern stuff is way better and lessons will help enormously. If you are progressing fast you will enjoy it more and stick with it. There are some old but good instruction videos on stableroad.com

amen to what nebbian said imho.

have a look around for a secondhand 2001 or older Bic Techno 120 litre or bigger sized board. they are pretty cheap even when new, plastic coated, fairly wide, light weight considering their build and their size and good for beginner to intermediates. they will get you right up to and through the gybing/tacking stage. I'd imagine you'd find them for about $500 in good condition and $400-ish or less with a few dings/repairs n stuff. they are usually blue on top and white on the bottom. bic made fairly cheaply priced boards and i recon you'd find one very cheap with a bit of hunting around.

they look like this
http://www.bicsportwindsurf.com/products/index.php?sportid=1&catid=43&rangeid=61&year=2000&lang=us

on the other hand, if you can afford to spend a couple of hundred more than your reserve price, the JP funster 140litre or 160litre (for a 70kg bloke) will be ideal. Brand new for around $1100. I've got a 160litre version myself and think it is the bees-knees for learning on

Depending on what you want to do, you may want to consider a big board. For St Kilda a wide board is probably better, but I'm just putting up the other case for people from other areas who may be reading this and to balance the issue.

Sure, there are horror stories of big boards - but they are ones without decent sails and gear. We've taught dozens of people to windsurf on big boards, with a very high rate still in the sport and loving it. We get EVERYONE sailing at least a bit within 2-20 minutes, from grandmothers to 8 year olds. Some of them have done worlds. Some are now instructors. Some run clubs. Some now sail waves. They all love it.

Big boards plane, and plane well - the original Windsurfer can hit 25 knots when sailed right. They are much, much faster than a Go or any shortboard in light winds, and most of the time the winds are light. An original Windsurfer is often faster than the Olympic RSX or any shortboard. They are tough and go upwind very well.

On the other hand, they are tippier, heavier, and are harder to sail in strong winds. They don't jump, they don't gybe as well at high speeds, they don't give you the same high wind blasting sensation. They don't go as fast or as easily in full-on planing conditions.

When we share weekend regattas with modern Formula/Slalom boards, we get to sail twice as many days, they get to go twice as fast at their peak speeds but spend a fair bit of time waiting for wind. Take your pick about which one suits you.

It gets down to factors like how often you'll go for a sail, whether you can go down when it's windy or have more limited options. Where you sail matters too. Around Sydney, the biggest club and hte biggest commercial operation have both given up on Gos because they won't get upwind very well, and they sail in crowded areas.

So look for a Go if you're aiming to get into high wind blasting and that's realistic for you, but it's not the only option. And like others here have said, avoid a skinny old slalom board and stick with something either long or wide.

About the comment "if their sails look like saggy triangles, their boards are over 3m long, have more than 4 footstraps, and a centreboard, find someone else!"

Why? They may like sailing in all conditions, so they like longboards which go better in light winds. They may like racing, where longboards dominate in many places. They may like going upwind in light/moderate winds, where centreboards rule. They may like "saggy triangles" because they're so easy to rig, so tough, and actually out-perform flat sails a lot of the time.

It's interesting that you're telling them to stay away from someone like Jessica Crisp, Olympic Rep and former World Cup champion!

sites.google.com/site/windsurferonedesign/home

I don't agree that a long skinny board is necessarily any more frustrating than sailing a shortboard that slides away to leeward. Elsewhere here someone else talks about the fact that his kids with small rigs can't tack a Go or keep it upwind.....it's pretty frustrating to have to walk the board back upwind.

The only real problem a longboard has for a beginner is that it's tippier side to side. Sure, for some people that's a problem, but for others (light people, those with good balance) it's fine.

I'm fairly sure that it depends where you are. Where I sail now is fairly light a lot of the time, and fluky. You need something that's good in light winds and upwind.

Yeah, soggy triangular sails are normally cruddy - but in many places the long boards with lots of straps and a centreboard normally work better a lot of the time than anything else. We use better small sails and, as I mentioned, have a very high success rate - even ignoring the adults, we have a dozen kids under 15 who have their own gear.