A colleague just walked past and said 'I see it's windy today I suppose you'll be leaving early to go sailboarding'

To which I replied "yes"

But then I thought, I'm not a sailboarder I'm a windsurfer.

Windsurfing damn it!
I'm a Windsurfer who is going Windsurfing, I called as he walked away.

But am I?
What's the difference?
When does sailboarding become windsurfing?
Can I only windsurf in the surf?
Is sailboarding done by begginers on longboards and windsurfing performed on shortboards?
If I can't jibe can I still be a windsurfer?

I've been critical in the past of kiteboarders calling them themselves kitesurfers when they're not surfing. Should I say sorry?

Not that I care what its called ... but wasn't there some dispute back in the dark ages about "windsurfer" being a brand, so you weren't allowed to use it as a generic term, hence the reference to sailboarding, sailboarder etc.

it's much the same as rollerblade vs in line skate.

windsurfer is a brand, sailboard is the name of the sport, however most just call it windsurfing after the most well known brand of the early days (same as rollerbladeing)

Geez I even remember people saying they are going to hoover the carpet

Yeah, it was sailboarding (or even "boardsailing") when "windsurfer" was a brand, but I think everyone's over that so it's just windsurfing now isn't it?

Hell, in Europe "surfing" is something you do down a mountain on a nasty steel-edged thing with your feet in bindings!

Wind + Surf = Windsurf

It's simple if theres no surf your sailboarding.

evlPanda said...

stribo said...

Wind + Surf = Windsurf

It's simple if theres no surf your sailboarding.

Mmm, your logic is close.

If Wind + Surf = WindSurf

Then

Wind = Wind
No Wind = Sail
Surf = Surf
No Surf = Board

Therefore
Wind + no Surf = WindBoarding (and that just sounds stupid)
No Wind + no Surf = SailBoarding

Therefore SailBoards do exist but you can't actually go SailBoarding, nobody has ever SailBoarded... except, I've just noticed in lulls.

...So if I hit a lull, on flatwater, my WindBoard turns into a SailBoard???

And what about chop? How big until it is surf? How big does surf have to be to not be chop? Am I ever riding a ChoppingBoard? "Hey, come ChopBoarding this weekend!"

(When does a Boogie-Board turn into a BodyBoard?)

LOL! That's hillarious!!!!

evlPanda said...

stribo said...

Wind + Surf = Windsurf

It's simple if theres no surf your sailboarding.

Mmm, your logic is close.

If Wind + Surf = WindSurf

Then

Wind = Wind
No Wind = Sail
Surf = Surf
No Surf = Board

Therefore
Wind + no Surf = WindBoarding (and that just sounds stupid)
No Wind + no Surf = SailBoarding

Therefore SailBoards do exist but you can't actually go SailBoarding, nobody has ever SailBoarded... except, I've just noticed in lulls.

...So if I hit a lull, on flatwater, my WindBoard turns into a SailBoard???

And what about chop? How big until it is surf? How big does surf have to be to not be chop? Am I ever riding a ChoppingBoard? "Hey, come ChopBoarding this weekend!"

(Bonus points: When does a Boogie-Board turn into a BodyBoard?)

Correct.

stribo said...

Mobydisc said...

stribo said...

Wind + Surf = Windsurf

It's simple if theres no surf your sailboarding.

So according to that logic when you sail a Windsurfer One Design is sailing on flat water its actually sailboarding?

No. As mentioned above, the term sailboarding was used when Windsurfer International protected its patent and brandname and everyone else was too scared to use the term windsurfer or windsurfing incase they received a nasty letter from a solicitor.

You would be sailboarding on a "windsurfer one design"

So who's going to Dutchies this arvo for some chop boarding?

I'm going sailing this afternoon with porkchop, I though chop boarding was something he did

If you go wave sailing with no wind are you surf-boarding?

This topic is very interesting but I'll have to pick it up tomorrow as now I'm going out for a Wally.

aus301 said...

it's much the same as rollerblade vs in line skate.

windsurfer is a brand, sailboard is the name of the sport, however most just call it windsurfing after the most well known brand of the early days (same as rollerbladeing)

Geez I even remember people saying they are going to hoover the carpet

From the US Patent and Trademark Office database-

Mark WINDSURFER
Goods and Services (EXPIRED) : SURFBOARDS. FIRST USE: 19690815. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19690815
Serial Number 72433306
Filing Date August 21, 1972
Registration Number 0962616
Registration Date July 3, 1973
Owner (REGISTRANT) WINDSURFING INTERNATIONAL, INC. CORPORATION CALIFORNIA 1808 STANFORD AVE. SANTA MONICA, CALIF.
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD

Mark WINDSURFER and logo
Goods and Services (CANCELLED) : Sailboats Having a Free Sail System. FIRST USE: 19690815. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19690815
Serial Number 73145428
Filing Date October 20, 1977
Registration Number 1195641
Registration Date May 18, 1982
Owner (REGISTRANT) WINDSURFING INTERNATIONAL, INC. CORPORATION CALIFORNIA 1955 WEST 190TH STREET TORRANCE CALIFORNIA 90291
Attorney of Record NILSSON, ROBBINS, DALGARN, BERLINER ETAL
Prior Registrations 0909519;0962616;0997974
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD
Cancellation Date February 22, 2003


Word Mark WINDSURFER
Goods and Services SAILBOATS COMPRISING A SURFBOARDTYPE HULL AND A SAIL. FIRST USE: 19690815. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19690815
Serial Number 73008013
Filing Date December 3, 1973
Registration Number 0997974
Registration Date November 12, 1974
Owner (REGISTRANT) WINDSURFING INTERNATIONAL, INC. CORPORATION CALIFORNIA 621 STONE CANYON ROAD LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA 90077
Attorney of Record BILLY A. Prior Registrations 0909519;0962616
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Renewal 1ST RENEWAL 19950731
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD

WINDSURFER was the trademark coined and registered by Windsurfing International. At the time undar US law, their registrations wouldn't have stopped people from using the mark as a generic description to describe the sport, but they could have stopped other traders from using the word WINDSURFER in relation to their products. (For those who are interested (probably no-one) there has since been a change in US law so trademark owners can prevent "dilution" of their registered marks by generic misuse by others. There are no similar anti-dilution laws in Australia.)

However, over many years of misuse by the public and inadequate remedial action by Windsurfing International, the mark has fallen into generic use. The trademark registrations have also died.

None of this answers what the "correct" name for the sport is, just as long as it ain't called "kiting"

And it's interesting to see how Windsurfing International described their goods as "surfboards" and "sailboats having a free sail system".

I think it also is a location thing. WA historically has lots of good wave sailors (Scotty etc) the term "windsurf" fitted the image in the mind of most when referring to the sport as practiced in WA.
Having seen sailors glide around lakes in Switzerland and the UK in ~2-5 knots on longish boards the terms sailboard and boardsailing seemed more appropriate though ironically the Euros used the term "le Surf" which just seemed weird to an Aussie... where was the surf?

But with Kiteboarding winning out (over Kitesurfing) I can see a return to the term Sailboarding to differentiate the 2 in the mind of the general community. "Do you Kiteboard or Sailboard?" etc

The gps thing will also encourage this shift as it is associated with "sail speed records" not "windspeed records" or windsurf speed records.

Sailboard has been the generic term for the equipment and boardsailing is the sports official name under the olympic committeee.

If you delve deeper into the trademark thing or were part of the battle back in the 80's you will see that the imortant part of the patent was the universal joint which at the time on windsurfer brand was the mechanical type! Some smart people came up with using a rubber engine mount as a Uni to break the patent and the rest is history

Sailboard is more descriptive.

Windsurfer... are you talking about the sailor or the board? It could be either.

Sailboard = the board

Sailboarder = the rider of the sailboard.

Just stirring here... I'm off to go windsurfing (on the flattest water I can find).

pweedas said...

I think that if 'sitting on your fat ass jabbing at a keyboard with your fingers, with your eyes fixed in a blank stare at the monitor' can be called "Surfing the net!" (groan. I cringe every time I hear it ) then flogging across the water at 20 knots hanging from a mast and boom by a bit of rope, has every right to be called "windsurfing".

But if they reassess 'sitting on your fat ass jabbing at a keyboard with your fingers, with your eyes fixed in a blank stare at the monitor' and rename it ''sitting on your fat ass jabbing at a keyboard with your fingers, with your eyes fixed in a blank stare at the monitor",..... then I will say I go sailboarding!

funny, thats what I call it when I catch my staff at it

its definately NOT called that when I'm doing it, which is about 98% of my time at work

How about "waterboarding", which the US Congress looks set to ban everywhere, not just Maui!!!

evlPanda said...

(Bonus points: When does a Boogie-Board turn into a BodyBoard?)

When the boogie-board rider feels embarrassed about using a children's toy, they call it a bodyboard in a desperate attempt to get some credibility.