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Light-wind lake sailing - Ulrasonic 147 or Formula?
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rangerider



Joined: 19 Jul 2009
Posts: 206

PostPosted: Tue May 21, 2013 7:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks guys for the input. I am definitely hoping to get some gybing practice with the windsup. For some reason I just can't get planing gybes with the x-cite ride although I'm close. I was thinking the stable platform of the windSup would help me with my balance and footwork realizing that the handling will nonetheless be a little different.
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Sailboarder



Joined: 10 Apr 2011
Posts: 656

PostPosted: Tue May 21, 2013 7:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wind consistency has a big role to play with board selection too.

I mostly sail a Kona One in a lake environment. The wind around here is not strong and quite variable. In lower wind days, I normally spend time off-the-plane, then on, the over... I like an ajustable outhaul to even things a bit. In these conditions, a longboard is probably the best solution.

Last summer, there was only one day I missed having a light wind specific short board. On that day, the wind was quite stable, but too low to get me planing. I was gliding around fine, enjoying the scenery. Included in the scenery, a guy ripping along on his board, planing full time...

I'd love to get such a board but one day per summer in my case is not enough to justify the expense.
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DanWeiss



Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Posts: 2296
Location: Connecticut, USA

PostPosted: Tue May 21, 2013 9:13 am    Post subject: Re: Light-wind lake sailing - Ulrasonic 147 or Formula? Reply with quote

rangerider wrote:
I am looking to maximize my planing time as well as time on the water. I have my windSup for overall use, to teach and to get out there as much as possible. I'm thinking of adding a board to try to maximize performance on marginal wind days. The board will be paired with my Ezzy Lion 9.5M sail initially although I might go for an 11-12M race sail if I enjoy the board. I am not planning on racing. I'm not sure what would be more fun - I like the idea of the Ultrasonic as easier to reach and gybe, alternatively I was thinking about a Formula Experience board and like the idea of the upwind/downwind performance for getting around the lake.

What would you choose?


The Ultrasonic will prove far more fun and much easier to sail fully powered compared to the FE boards that are noticeably heavy -especially compared to that fly-weight Ultrasonic.

The Ultra won't pound it as high upwind or as low downwind, but it will be closer than you might imaging and feel more loose and less locked-in. I tested the Ultrasonic a few years ago at the final Windsurfing Mag test and sailed it from underpowered to wildly overpowered, meaning 8.5 Maui Sails Titan to 5.0 wave sail. The Ultrasonic feels like a racing slalom board that is a bit on the steroid side. It is fast -really fast; the fastest light wind board at that test except for the 112 liter Angulo Magnum which is a pure PWA slalom machine and not exactly a light wind design.

Unless your boards receive beach and parking lot abuse, get the Ultrasonic over a FE board.

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rangerider



Joined: 19 Jul 2009
Posts: 206

PostPosted: Tue May 21, 2013 1:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sailboarder - thank you, you are right about wind consistency. Something I have never seen or experienced while windsurfing in Minnesota. We got it near Lake Michigan where I sailed as a kid but never here. There are times when I am on/off the plane with my JP145 and having a blast when planing - I am hoping with a wider board it would be going between overpowered in gusts but staying planing in lulls - there were many days last year where I lusted after a light-wind board. I bought the windSup for the versatility but I really would like to try the US - in my case the only way to try it is to buy it. But it sounds like a good board.

Thanks for the input Dan. The speed is why I'm into windsurfing so the US is very appealing. I'm going to need another garage.
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jingebritsen



Joined: 21 Aug 2002
Posts: 3371

PostPosted: Wed May 22, 2013 5:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

one of the interesting by products of the windSUP planing jibe is that it applies directly to formula and the US. wail on the tail with heavy back foot pressure and mast foot pressure. flip the sail way early, don't allow the power to diminish for long. with all these high surface area boards that help get early planing, once the power is off, the planing surface becomes drag. gotta get the board onto its new direction quickly, not gradually. the key is MFP and early sail flip. benda the knees helps tons too.
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rangerider



Joined: 19 Jul 2009
Posts: 206

PostPosted: Sun Jun 23, 2013 4:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A follow-up on this post. I found a used Ultrasonic 2011 model at Wind-NC in Hatteras. It had a nose repair which was done at Fox - reportedly the damage happened in shipping. As far as I can tell the quality of the repair is excellent and Andy trusted the quality of the board so I purchased it. Andy was very helpful over the phone and boxed up the board and shipped it the day after I placed the order - even threw in a board bag! Definitely calling them in the future. I ordered a 57cm select s1 race from windsurfdeal.com and sailed it for the first time today. To be honest it was exactly what I expected - fast to plane and very fast once planing - I was as fast as anyone at the lake today. Slow when slogging and zero fun when slogging. Foot straps were really easy to get into and I have them set in the outermost position. Hard for me to gybe, even non-planing gybes were a bit tough but I got them toward the end of the session. Pretty comfortable at speed. The only surprise was when I needed to head downwind to my launch I was able to plane downwind back to the beach, never done that before. Should be a fun summer.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Sun Jun 23, 2013 4:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's always fun to read success stories like that. Thanks for the grin.

Mike \m/
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