What Size Windsurf Sail Should I Use?

Choosing the right windsurfing sail size is crucial for optimal performance and enjoyment on the water. It should match your body and windsurfing style, considering factors like wind strength, elasticity, strength, and durability. A stretch-resistant and lightweight sail will perform better and require fewer repairs. The windsurfing calculator can help estimate the appropriate sail, board, and fin size for beginners or those using an all-purpose board.

The most common sizes for small sails are 3.5 to 4.7 m², medium sails 5.0 to 6.0 m², and large sails 6.3 to 7.5 m². Before buying equipment, check local weather conditions, as wind, sea, and water conditions will vary from region to region. Beginners typically use sails up to 4.5 m² in relatively light winds, with a good sail size for them being around 5.5-6.5 meters.

Main sail sizes range between 5.0-8.5sqm, with lighter models being preferred. Most people have 3 or 4 sails, while professionals need more. The windsurf sail size you select will directly impact ease of use, available power, wind range, and comfort.

For kids, the biggest sail size is around 7.3 meters, which would be suitable for a 100-120 litre Freeride board. A 3-5 m² sail is great for this skill level because it is not too powerful and overbearing, making it versatile. Larger sails are recommended for heavier windsurfers or those with heavier body weight.

To determine the right sail size for wind strength and body weight, get a sail between 2 and 7 meters squared, depending on your size and the wind speed you are likely to sail in most often.

Is 15 knots OK for sailing?

The general rule is that 10–20 is ideal. Up to 25 knots is good for heavy offshore boats. Mine is a heavy 76-foot yawl. I have been out in 35–40 knot winds.

Why does no one windsurf anymore?

L. Jon Wertheim – Where have All the Windsurfers Gone – 2001Where did windsurfing go wrong?

Much of the blame can be assigned to those who marketed the sport after its initial surge in popularity. Instead of promoting windsurfing as physically challenging, environmentally sound and accessible to practitioners at all levels, “wind snobs” played up the extreme element. Television coverage and product brochures featured acrobats negotiating mast-high swells in Maui and freestyle daredevils executing midair sorcery in 30-knot winds. …. It made for a macho image, but it scared off some beginners and frustrated even skilled boarders.Manufacturers didn’t help matters. While they didn’t cease production of beginner-level boards, companies, in an effort to appease the daredevil contingent, put far greater emphasis on sleeker, more aero- and hydro-dynamic boards that were prohibitively expensive. More recently, the sport’s popularity has been scuttled by kitesurfing, a fast-growing windsurfing cognate that offers a considerable element of thrill but with a near-vertical learning curve–at about half the cost. /37.

Fred Hasson – How the Internet Killed Windsurfing – 2017.

… how did the internetkill windsurfing? By taking the money out of it. First, the money went out ofsmall shops, lost to the online retailers. But the shops’ customers were theclients of the online sellers, and when the shops stopped generating customers,the online sellers gradually lost their sales. Little by little, windsurfing ….. went away. /38.

What Litre windsurf board do I need?

Choosing a new or used windsurf board is an exciting time. It can be easy to get carried away and let your heart rule your head. Before looking at buying a new or used windsurf board make sure you have decided what you are looking for.The factors to consider are your experience, the type of conditions you will be windsurfing in and your weight, yes your weight is a really important factor.The single most important factor when choosing a windsurf board is the size of the board. The primary measure for the size of a windsurf board is the volume, this is what provides the buoyancy. A higher volume creates a more stable board. The less volume in the board the less stable the board is. Don’t rush to be on the smallest board. Volume is your friend. Buying too small a board is the most common mistake in equipment selection many windsurfers make.How much volume do I need?1 litre of volume in a windsurfing board supports 1 kilo of weight. To figure out how much volume you need in your windsurf board you also need to add up your weight, the boards weight and a small addition for wetsuit and harness.An 85 kilo windsurfer in wetsuit, on a windsurf board weighing 15 kilos will need 100 litres of volume just to stay afloat. To that you need to add a “reserve buoyancy” which is what creates the stability in the board. A beginner will want pretty much double the figure. So in this case they will want a board with 200 litres of volume.

In many cases I would recommend NOT buying a beginner board but instead join a windsurfing club or hire a board. This way you will be sure you love windsurfing and with modern windsurfing equipment and some windsurfing lessons you will progress really quickly on to an intermediate board.Reserve volume is not just important for beginners, it is critical for all abilities of windsurfer. As you progress to higher performance boards, which tend to be smaller, this is the time when it is very easy to make a mistake and buy a board that is too small. Windsurfers progress quicker and have more fun on a board that helps them rather than hinder them. 95% of the time having a bit too much volume is way better than not having enough.There is no hard and fast rule to how much reserve buoyancy you need, but anything less than 20 litres is reserved for advanced windurfers. If you cannot water start, having less than 50 litres reserve buoyancy aid could start to hinder your progress. The best advice is try some boards out and see how you get on. Your local windsurf club or school should be able to rent you a suitable board, or try a friends.You can always sail a board with too much volume, you cannot always sail one with too little so be sensible about your ability.Used windsurf equipment for sale.

Is windsurfing losing popularity?

Nowadays, windsurfing is thriving at a few places around the world: San Francisco, the Gorge, Tarifa in Spain, the Canary Islands. But in the US, there are virtually no sailing hotspots in the countless beach towns where the sport once thrived. In Hatteras, the shops that specialize in kiting and Stand Up Paddleboarding (the current beach craze) have a small section of sailboards and sails for the few hold-out aficionados. Foil-boarding is the next sport coming up on the horizon for those of us interested in cool new ways to play in the ocean. People move on, as they should.

So how did the internet kill windsurfing? By taking the money out of it. First, the money went out of small shops, lost to the online retailers. But the shops’ customers were the clients of the online sellers, and when the shops stopped generating customers, the online sellers gradually lost their sales. Little by little, windsurfing in America went away. Sailors moved on to kiteboarding, SUPing, and now foilboarding. Retailers sell what they can sell, and there are many more online SUP (stand up paddle) retailers online right now than windsurf retailers. And even they are fighting a battle of attrition, as the market is flooded with junky, non-performance gear aimed at the recreational weekender market rather than the dedicated waterman/woman.

People used to say, “I don’t get it about windsurfing. You just go back and forth all day.” And we would answer, “You don’t get it because you don’t do it.” Windsurfing was pure fun, every minute, like surfing or skiing or snowboarding or mountain biking. It happened at a certain time in a certain atmosphere, beginning with the earliest prototypes in the mid-70s and peaking two decades later in the mid 90s. It ran its course and was, perhaps, the first victim internet marketing.

Why are smaller windsurf board’s better in high wind?

“Boards with a shorter flat section and more tail and nose rocker are more orientated towards higher wind control and tighter turns. So, if you’re looking for smaller Freewave, less top speed, more control and venturing into waves, but you still want assistance getting planing.

Concaves help increase lift and allow the board to release, most modern boards have concave.

Knowledge is key and it will help you avoid making poor kit decisions. For instance, take two intermediate sailors of exactly the same level, learning to gybe on the sea. One is a ‘lightweight’ 70kg sailor and the other is of more superior stature at say 85-90kg, both are considering a 100-115L board.

The lighter weight sailor is very likely to get onto a 100-115L board in lighter wind than the heavier sailor weight. So the lighter weight sailor is probably be going to use their 100-115L board with 5.5-7m rigs in say 14-22 Knots. Therefore, the water state is likely to be relatively flat, so the lightweight would best go for something with a fairly flat tail rocker profile, slightly harder rails and decent width to get him up and planing fast.

Can you windsurf in 10 knots?

Wind Speed: Planing in winds under 10 knots is considered challenging, especially for heavier windsurfers. It often requires specific equipment like wider boards and large sails over 7 square meters. On average, a windsurfer can get planning in the 10-16-knot wind speed range. With lighter equipment, meaning a short board and small sail, the wind speed requirement for planing goes up;; Equipment: The volume of the board is a significant factor. For example, a windsurfer weighing around 200 pounds (90 kilograms) might need a wider and longer board to plane in about 12 to 18 knots of wind, than a lighter rider​​. In theory, the larger the sail, the faster you could go, meaning you’ll start planing with less wind power than those on smaller sails. Being able to use the harness is also critical. If you cannot hook in and out, you’ll need to practice the technique before trying to plane;; Technique: The technique, including board trim and mast track position, greatly influences early planing. Full-body pumping the sail, for instance, can help get the board planing more quickly​​​​. A good stance changes everything, so finding the optimal balance between foot and leg pressure is paramount, as well as in-and-out foot strap management;; Experience: As a general rule of thumb, planing typically starts at wind speeds of around 14 knots or higher. However, this can vary based on individual circumstances like weight, experience, and equipment. For some, planing might be possible in 10-12 knots of wind with the right conditions and technique​​​​;; Other Factors: Besides equipment and technique, local environmental factors, such as the typical wind patterns (stable or gusty) and water conditions (choppy or glassy), also play a role in determining the minimum wind speed for planing​​;;

So, although there’s no strict formula, equation, or one-size-fits-all answer for knowing exactly the minimum wind power needed to get planing, you know that with intermediate experience, average-sized equipment, and average weight, you can start flying above the water in 12 knots of wind.

In other words, planning in windsurfing becomes a reality in the 3-4 categories of the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.

Is 50 too old to start windsurfing?

Lots of people come to windsurfing later on in life so is it a problem?. Simple answer is NO – age has no bearing on taking up windsurfing and shouldn’t stop you from giving it a go.

Windsurfing is a sport you can do on many levels. What the means is that you choose what type of sailing you’ll do, be it:

Freeride – this includes everything from the most sedate sailing on flat water to planing on smooth water.

Slalom / racing – this is so much fun and gets pretty serious, but there’s also a more social scene which is great fun.

Is windsurfing dying out?

It’s not 100% fair to say that windsurfing died, but from its meteoric rise from obscurity to everybody’s-doing-it popularity across the country, it has now largely gone extinct save for a few favored locations—and even there, kiteboarding is probably eroding windsurfer numbers even further. But hey, Neil Pryde still exists, and Maui and the Columbia River Gorge most certainly still exist, and if I lived in either place and I had a garage, I’d still be a windsurfer, too.

From my own experience, I can tell you what killed the sport for me. First of all, I don’t have a garage. But beyond that, I do think there is a progression to the sport which ultimately leads to heartbreak. You get good very slowly, but eventually you get a taste of what the sport can offer at its higher levels, and then you go to the gorge, or to Hawaii, and you realize it’s pretty much stupid to do it anywhere else.

Okay, not quite true: there are pockets of great wind and water to be found here and there. But the essential point remains: Windsurfing is awesome in the right conditions, and practically a non-sport everywhere else. That fickle wind! How many days did we spend sitting around, waiting for the forecast wind that never showed? Imagine if every time you went to go skiing, you never knew if there would be snow when you got there.

How long do windsurfing sails last?

How long this degradation process takes is influenced sunlight exposure and UV strength. Other factors include the amount of breeze they regularly fly in, flogging, chafe, and other abuse they receive. Ultimately, a better way to think of the structural life of your sails is in terms of hours of use: a reasonably well-treated woven polyester sail that is maintained regularly will last 3500-4000 hours.

A typical weekend cruising sailor who sails his boat two weekends a month, plus two weeks of cruising during a five-month season will accumulate roughly 240 hours per year. Thos sails will last for 16 years! At the other extreme, a person living aboard their boat and cruising the Caribbean extensively will use their sails as many as 12 hours per day, 12 days per month, 12 months a year for an average of 1,728 hours a year. This sailor will need to replace sails every 2.5 years. Do the math for your type of sailing and you’ll get an idea as to how long your sails will last.

Shape Life. The shape life of a sail is more difficult to assess, since sail shape deteriorates gradually with every hour of use. Its affect on performance is much harder to judge than the physical condition of the cloth, but there are some symptoms to look for. Sails that stretch too much become too full, and are unable to retain a critical airfoil shape. This loss can impact your racing performance.

How do I choose a windsurfing sail?

Place of windsurfing and average wind speed there. The stronger the wind, the smaller the sail. On the same spot, the same amateur rider with a wind speed of 3 — 5 m/s can take a sail of about 7 m², and with a wind speed of 10 — 12 m/s he’ll be comfortable on a sail of 4-5 m². If the rider makes a mistake and takes a sail that is too small, then he won’t have enough traction and won’t be able to fully ride.

Weight of windsurfer. The heavier the rider, the larger the sail they can take. For example, with the same wind conditions and skill level for a 50 kg girl, 4 m² sail is suitable, and for 70+ kg man — 5.5 m² sail. Otherwise, the consequences will be the same: if the sail is too large, the rider will lose control and will constantly fly forward from the board, risking injury and breaking the sail. And if too small, he won’t have enough traction to gain the desired speed.

If you can, it is best to have multiple sails for different wind conditions. Optimal number of sails: 2 or 3 — for light, medium and strong winds.

Why are sails no longer used?

Wind has had a hard time competing with cheap heavy fuel oil—the toxic sludge that refineries have no other use for. Wind propulsion has remained a niche part of the sector because shipping companies don’t have to pay the real environmental and societal costs of burning fossil fuels.

Is 7 knots enough to sail?

Ideally, to sail in absolute comfort, you’d head out on a sunny, warm, breezy day. The weather is dry, the wind anywhere between 5 and 15 knots, and there’s no swell or current. As a rule of thumb, this makes for the best sailing conditions, on most boats.

However, the type of vessel you’re on makes a big difference. For example, a heavy older sailboat will deal well with some roll and swell, while she won’t likely be able to make much progress under sail in less than 12-15 knots of wind or so. On the other hand on a modern lightweight yacht, you could probably have a great day out in anything over 5-7 knots. Finally, on a sailing dinghy, a novice should not go out in anything over 8-10 knots.

Other factors are the wind direction and your route. Sailing upwind in over 20 knots can make for a wet and adventurous ride, while going on a broad reach can be comfortable and relaxing even in 25 knots.

Most elements can’t be controlled: swell height, wind speed and direction, currents, and more. You can adjust your course, but you can’t change the weather, which can sometimes improve or deteriorate. So it’s up to you to decide when to head out and when to stay put.