need good riding chop board

[maltz]

Looking for a soft ride thru voodo chop. Getting older and dont like that hard ride. Looking for a rolls royce ride. Something I can ride from 6.0 down to 4.5. or even 3.7. My weight is 200lbs. What do you all love to ride in the rough chop. Thank you

[isobars]

I have oscillopsia since losing one set of gyroscopes to Menieres disease and surgery. When mu head is jostled, my eyes cant track the motion. Heavy, harsh chop = very blurred vision for me. Yet I sail the Gorge WAY powered every time it blows, assisted in some locations by various combinations of these five means of suppressing chop:
1. Plastic. Plastic boards absorb a great deal of the harshness. Plastic boards are also cheaper and tougher, and can even be faster: Tigas plastic 263 B&J board outran WSMags whole test fleet of race boards in heavy chop, and felt like it was on reasonably flat water in the process. You wont feeel the extra weight until you perform aerial tricks, and weight does not affect the height of big jumps.
2. Vee. Vee adds cush at no cost. People used to think it was slow because it added to a boards keelhaul length around the bottom of the hull, and thus to wetted hull area, and thus to drag. Well, it does. Do the math; it adds 0.1%. Whoopee! In the process, it adds huge amounts of CUSH to any hull shape.
3. Narrow. Wide boards slap the water, while narrow slices through it. That Tiga B&J board was also narrow.
4. Deck pads. The thicker, the better.
5. Shock absorption: Chinooks Hydroshok mast base lets the board move more independently of the rig, increasing the boards compliance on rough terrain.

That should help you narrow your search for a great chop board and set up whatever board you select.

I havent kept up with whos making plastic boards these days. My plastic HiFly Spad 260 outperformed my Tiga 257 wave board, but a storm and a rocky shoreline destroyed it. My primary Gorge board is an 8-0 Gorge Animal Bonzer, but its sail range is just 2.6 to 5.5; a 6.0 would bury it. It has a lot of vee this year for an especially soft ride (and silky transitions), but one can still feel voodoo chop more than on a plastic board.

Mike \m/

[davep]

im lighter #165 and bought a naish 84, talked to people renting the naish freeride 86 who highly recommended it. Its the top rated board for 2001 in windsurfing magazine and sail range is 4.5 to 6.0. they say its fast and controllable.

[ulysses]

Ive got to agree with Mike on the Gorge Animal. Ive got a 2001 83 w/bonzer fins and its as smooth as Ive ever ridden! I love it!

[isobars]

Excuuuuuse me! I first rode the polyester (glass) version of the Bonzer 8-0 Tuesday, in some of the harshest chop the Gorge has to offer: the far side at the Hatchery. Me first test a few weeks ago was on the carbon version, and although smoother than it usually is, I could still feel the chop. Tuesday was on the glass version.

I was astounded. I asked several people if the chop felt normal, because it was simply gone Tuesday. They said it was the same old chop, but until I got back on the carbon board I simply couldnt feel it. I bought a 2001 the next morning.

The 2001 8-0 IS smaller than the 00. I dont think it would handle a 5.5 as easily as the 2000 did, but it handled my 5.0 fine, and I cant WAIT until I get overpowered on my 3.0 on it. Maybe the 8-3 would work with the 6.0 you want; Im sure it would work with the 3.7.

Mike \m/

[garypo]

[maltz]

I want to thank everybody that emailed back. Sailors are all of that. Great people!