Wind sup's

jingebritsen · Joined: 21 Aug 2002 Posts: 3371

i've been filibustering for one for years. unfortunately, i'm a lone voice in a humble venue. the industry as a whole, either keeps pandering to the surf crowd or making more stuff for side off perfection. the rest of the world needs planing long boards with upwind power for onshore days.

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the AHD SeaLion windSUPs. Is that due to oversight, unfamiliarity, or tried and proven unsuitability? They look great on paper and video, and a friend on the Great Lakes loves his quiver of them in light and crappy conditions. They are designed from the ground up to be a highly maneuverable light air (0-15 kts) surf board, windSUP, and also an excellent SUP for flat water or especially surf.

Check out
http://www.ahd-boards.com/models/sealion-classic/en ,
https://tinyurl.com/n2rplxq , and the many videos found by Googling AHD Sealion video.

jamieinnyc · Joined: 26 Apr 2010 Posts: 108

The Sealion is the best looking board I have ever seen. I had one for 2 summers - Sealion XL. It turned heads like you wouldn't believe. And it came with great reviews and was highly recommended. But I sold mine. It is a dedicated wave board, and in wind, for side-off. For the waves and wind I've got, was a poor performer - I wanted to love it, but didn't. I'm not knocking the board - just saying it's not an all-arounder. Still no windsup in my experience and for my conditions (east coast summer) beats the original Mistral Pacifico. Planes early, paddles fast, catches the smallest waves - but when on a wave without a sail, you've got to work pretty hard and not make mistakes (windsurf rocker).

Of course, you've got to check out James Douglas's post on his step-tail conversion...

dllee · Joined: 03 Jul 2009 Posts: 5329 Location: East Bay

Will report back next week, when we try it...
G/F, Zirtaeb, actually bought a JP SUPWave, the 8'10" 126 liter model. It SUP's quite well, has some initial tippyness, but very stable after that. We plan to hit Stinson/Bolinas/Drakes/Limantour with it next week...

jingebritsen · Joined: 21 Aug 2002 Posts: 3371

i used the sea lion a few times. it is a very specialist board. needs side to side off and under powered. also needs a medium to slushy break. in breezy to windy, onshore and fast breaking, it's a hairball. if one has access to ideal light wind side off, it sure is fun. if one has a fast breaking wave, one can stay way out on the shoulder.

we've got lots of specialist stuff available. we need boards and sails that work in a wide variety of app's.

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935

I'm glad to find two more people who have tried the SeaLion. It is still my leading contender for the board I'm seeking in the thread on Seeking a Light Air Gorge Board. My ACL surgeon and PT don't want me near footstraps or strong/gusty winds until this Fall, but are amenable to a strapless WS board, light winds, and SUPing months ... a whole season ... earlier.

Combining those features into one board that also turns on a dime whether it's powered by sail/gravity/paddle, planes extremely early with the slightest bit of downhill slope (we can get kneehigh, sometimes thigh-high, swell @ 15 mph ... much bigger if the wind was stronger earlier), offers extra lateral stability for my impaired balance when not planing, slogs as steady as a Lazy Boy, SUPs and windsurfs on anything from wet glass to shoulder high waves (Google AHD SeaLion videos), provides 15 square feet of carpeted real estate on which one can wander around seeking the sweet spot for each of those objectives, isn't 16 freaking feet long as I'm advised to buy around here (HTH does one pivot jibe ... hell, transport) a 16 foot anything?), and isn't going to torque (read: finish off) my knee like even a simple unreleased fall would in straps... all those things in one package sound too good to ignore even if it excels only at early planing and pivoting, aka giggles.

You're the third expert light air (and otherwise) surfers/WSer to (correctly) point out that the SL is designed for side-sideoff ocean waves, especially if there's mush to deal with. However, a serious year-round Great Lakes (when he's not in the Gorge or at Hatteras) WSer friend bought a quiver of various SeaLions for his family for crappy days and finds them hands down his most-used board. Mush, pieces of chop, flat water, a little swell, breeze or no breeze, gusts or no gusts, hot sun or not too many ice floes and he's on the water with a paddle or a small sail laughing like two kids and planing very often in next to nothing even at 200#.

Fairy tale? I hope not, as I'm really tempted. I'm HOPING that you experienced light air surf sailors are just too jaded by having access to what this board is really optimized for to recognize its potential in a suboptimal application. It happens; a Baja dude really discouraged me from buying his Quatro wave board for Gorge use, saying it wouldn't work there. Glad no one told the board or the river that, as it is a fantastic Gorge board.

Is there any chance this thing, with some imagination and perseverance, can add some big grins to a 5-18 mph onshore day on a river for a guy who gets bored real fast in straight lines, needs to exercise yet pamper one knee or lose the whole season, and has no toys for winds under 20 mph?

Got a better idea? I have access to a cherry Kona One for peanuts, but it sounds even less exiting and less versatile.

swchandler · Joined: 08 Nov 1993 Posts: 10588

Talk is cheap. It's time to pull the cord. After some time on the water, let us know how the AHD Sea Lion worked out for you on the river. Who knows, after your knee is solid again, you might want to take the Sea Lion out with a paddle in some river rapids and find some real "turn and burn" excitement.

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935

rangerider · Joined: 19 Jul 2009 Posts: 206

I like my Exocet windSup 11'8". I purchased it mostly due to positive reviews on this forum. It planes nicely and I have planed with kids and a dog on the nose (but that is hard work). It sails easily (relaxing). It doesn't plane very early and it is passably speedy. The centerboard is not ideal - I used house wrapping (tyvek type) tape to seal the front of the gasket - looks bad but stays where you put it and easy to trim. I think SUP is boring but my wife likes it. I tried teaching the kids on it but I have an old mistral longboard that seems to work better for them. Since purchasing the WindSup I picked up an Ultrasonic which to me is much more fun as long as I can plane which is done in less wind. In higher wind I can use my JP xcite ride. If I had to do it over again I probably would have picked up a kona one, carb one, or old race board instead. The windSup does lots of things well but the only time I enjoy it is when I'm tired and just need an easy sail, otherwise I just wish I was on something else. My $0.02