Paddy, Tiga makes a lot of great boards if you're just starting out. They're strong and perform pretty well in a variety of conditions. Which one in particular were you looking at?

Good luck at expecting to keep it for a couple of years, as you get better and the bug bites you......well.....most of us here have been through that

"It's only early...."

I don't reckon you can go wrong too much these days with board shapes.

In the early days of learning, you are still a bit "numb" to what the board is doing so board selection is not overly critical .. To keep having the most fun though, you want to be planing most the time, so as 1 Litre of volume floats about 1 Kg .. I'd suggest something that's 5-10 litres above your weight .. don't know how this figures with your 125L selection..

When buying second hand, pay attention to the weight .. if it's had a hole in it, the extra volume will be negated by the fact it's full of water!

Good luck & have fun.. Laurie

Thanks for all your help guys

Any Ideas on what sort and size of sail to get for the River if you can only afford one Got around $400