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If smaller is better why do I have so much fun on a WindSUP?
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brynkaufman2



Joined: 10 Sep 2002
Posts: 383
Location: Kailua Oahu

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 2:19 pm    Post subject: If smaller is better why do I have so much fun on a WindSUP? Reply with quote

I purchased the BIC 10'6" WindSUP 185l. This is a big board. I am having a blast, even in wind as light as 7mph I can have a lot of fun riding waves. I also have fun with a 6.5 Ezzy sail with winds gusting to just under 20mph. It rides waves, it planes, it goes through the chop, it is easy, it is fun!

Now I want something like the BIC with a little more performance, meaning it has foot straps and planes easier and faster.

I don't want a small board where if the wind drops under 12mph I don't have any fun. I want a board that I can easily catch swells, even if it is not planing.

I was considering some of the 160l boards such as the Starboard GO and the Starboard Atom IQ. A salesman I spoke to said at my weight I should not buy a 160l, I should be on a 110l. That sounds like another board where if the wind is not blowing I can't have fun.

I thought the 160l board would get me planing easier, perhaps have more tracking to it in light winds, so I can still catch some swells like I my WindSUP.

I was considering the Exocet WindSUP, but I heard about issues with the dagger board, so I am thinking as I don't really want a dagger board, it would be nice to get a board without one, so I don't have issues with water coming through it.

Is it true, I can't have fun with a 160l board like the GO or the Atom IQ? If big boards are so bad in choppy water, why does my BIC feel good in the chop even without foot straps? If bigger boards catch waves and swells easier, what is wrong with that? I like riding waves!

Unfortunately the board I really want does not exist. I want a 170l+ WindSUP with foot straps and no dagger board, and it does not exist as far as I know. So I am really struggling to buy something I will be happy with.
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swchandler



Joined: 08 Nov 1993
Posts: 10588

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 2:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Check the used market for an older Exocet line of windsurfing-focused long boards, with the duck tail, no daggerboard and footstraps. The biggest model was an 11'8", and I believe they also had a 10'6". Later, lighter upscale carbon versions of the standard shapes were released. John I. was a very strong advocate of these boards in the surf.

One wonders why Exocet abandoned these models. I would guess that their narrower non-SUP genes were overwhelmed by surf oriented SUPs, or by those with a daggerboard, as seen in the current windsurfing SUPs.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 2:44 pm    Post subject: Re: If smaller is better why do I have so much fun on a WindSUP? Reply with quote

brynkaufman2 wrote:
A salesman I spoke to said at my weight I should not buy a 160l, I should be on a 110l.

That salesman isn't listening to you. He's simply assuming one or both of two things:
1. You're like everyone else and want speed and adrenaline and maneuverability and all the usual stuff that goes with smaller boards.

2. You don't know what you're missing (a LOT) by sticking to big boards.

Why not own one of each ... a big SUP for light breezes and something closer to 100-110 L for whitecap conditions? There's a reason hundreds of thousands of us like smaller boards even if we get to use them only a few days a year.
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brynkaufman2



Joined: 10 Sep 2002
Posts: 383
Location: Kailua Oahu

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 3:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I should have mentioned I have a 130l Naish Icon Freeride. That was actually my only board since I bought it a long time ago, can't remember how many years ago. The BIC is a new purchase last year, and that opened my eyes to the fun on WindSUPs.

The 130l is a high energy board with the right wind and the right day. My wind minimum on that board was around 13mph to 14mph average with a Ezzy 7.5 sail. Those days were on and off too, if it dropped I was off, if it came up a bit I was on.

I also did not catch swells with it, I was either on and going faster than the swells, or off and going slow.

I don't see anything wrong with wanting to be on all the time, even on marginal days. Planing and riding some swells, even if it is not as fast as on a small board, is still more fun than not going out on the water on the marginal or light wind days.
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NOVAAN



Joined: 28 Sep 1994
Posts: 1541

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 3:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Lots of ways to have fun with this great sport we pursue. I have been doing this since 1980 and I can't wait for the next day I can get out. I'm pretty much the first one out and the last one in at my local spot. I have great fun messin around in the lite winds before the mad rush. It really helps my high wind skills. To many people sit around complaining about the lack of while they could be out on the water. Your spot sounds like a blast on the right gear. Your attitude is perfect for windsurfing. Enjoy what ever the wind god's give you. We all can't live at the Gorge or Maui. At my age those spots are getting pretty hard on the old bones. I search out more flat water spots these days. You got me thinking about a Bic wind sup for some the lite wind wave days at my beach....
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NOVAAN



Joined: 28 Sep 1994
Posts: 1541

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 3:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I forgot to add my reason for the last reply.
Every one will have a different answer to your board question.
Your size has a lot to do with a good answer, but here is my take.
Give me your Bic and I will trade you for a high wind race board. Just kidding.
Sounds like you have a blast on the Bic, so that's a keeper....I'm 170 Lbs and ride a 2014 Tabou 3s 96 liter Once the wind hits around 20 with a 5.8 Tiger. Read any review on these boards and you'll find nothing but great comments.. You will not find many for sale. Freeride but a bit bias towards waves. They make a 3s in 116. I think that would really fit your needs when its time to get off the Bic...Call Matt at Pritchard windsurfing for his input...
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beaglebuddy



Joined: 10 Feb 2012
Posts: 1120

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 3:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

How about a Kona? Being narrower than the Exocet windsups it will handle higher winds and chop better, probably glides a bit better sub planing and has footstraps. Lower planing threshold however.
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brynkaufman2



Joined: 10 Sep 2002
Posts: 383
Location: Kailua Oahu

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 3:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I want a board I can use in 0mph to 25mph and still have fun. When it is blowing close to 20mph I don't have to be the fastest and most airborne person on the water. If I am planing I am smiling.

The BIC almost meets those needs, it does have me smiling in 0mph to 25mph, but when planing I long to feel my feet in the straps so I can step on the gas just a little bit more.

The 130l when it is really blowing I have to sheet out a bit, if I lock it in I would spend more time in the air than on the water and feel like I am losing control, so sometimes the slower planing board that stays on the water actually feels good to me.

Novaan, speaking of great sport we pursue, I think WindSUPs could help more people understand this. Every time I go out on my WindSUP I see Stand Up Paddlers coming and and I always ask how was it. Many times they say it was OK but too windy. I understand their comment because I too have been out when it was Windy on the BIC with a paddle, and it is challenging. If they would only try throwing a small sail on their SUP and letting the wind work for them instead of against them, they would see that if it is waves they are after, they can catch a lot more with a sail.

I am tempted to start offering to rent a WindSUP with a WindSUP sail at my location. I think a lot of people would love it if they could try it.
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brynkaufman2



Joined: 10 Sep 2002
Posts: 383
Location: Kailua Oahu

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 3:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

beaglebuddy, I looked at the Kona but it has that dagger board again.

Maybe the Kona dagger board is not an issue, not sure, but I have read that a lot of dagger boards start to let water through them, thereby reducing the performance.

I like what you are saying though. Handling higher winds and chop better, wow. Glides nicely when sub-planing, great. Gets on a plane faster than the Exocet WindSUP, awesome. Other than the dagger board, it seems there is nothing not to like with it.

Anyone have any experience with the Kona Step One or Kona One dagger board, either good or bad?
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Mon May 18, 2015 4:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Have you considered the SeaLion windSUP? It's been discussed here a great deal. It has no footstraps, but watch its videos to see how it performs in waves in light air, paddle- or sail-powered. I assume it's just one of dozens of contenders with and without straps. I learned a lot sailing it all last year in winds from 1 to 45 mph while my knee surgery prohibited footstraps.
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