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daBeastMan
Posts:23
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| 14/09/2007 11:57 AM |
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I plan on buying my first board (beginner) and need some advice on which one to buy, as there seems to be such a huge selection and each manufacturer boasts that their beginner boards are the best:
AHD Zen 230L
Starboard RIO 215L
JP Funster 205L
NAISH Kailua 230L
RRP EasyRide 220L
F2 Discovery 225L
Mistral Malibu 220L
Fanatic Viper 200L
One factor will also be whether the boards are available in South
Africa or whether I can order the board through someone or a
windsurfing shop in South Africa. If there is a good beginner board that I have not listed above, please let me know.
I also have no idea which mast and sail would be the ideal first purchase for a beginner, so any advice on that would be appreciated.
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Tsunami Sports
Posts:54
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| 14/09/2007 12:33 PM |
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Hey Beast Man,
You're going to get every importer replying to your mail 
You're up in JHB, right?
Drop me a private mail & I'll give you my opinion on what package you should be looking for (regardless of brand).
AHD Zen is available though if you want to tick that box on your list. |
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daBeastMan
Posts:23
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| 14/09/2007 1:36 PM |
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Thx E-mail sent. Any advice from the other importers and experienced windsurfers are also welcome. You can also e-mail me at lvanheerden(at)saol(dot)com. 
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WAggles
Posts:317
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| 14/09/2007 4:11 PM |
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| yeah right shaun!!! |
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Lanky
Posts:7
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| 15/09/2007 6:15 AM |
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Not to bag on anyone but in my opinion after teaching windsurfing for 2 years is that I have seen so many people come through the school who buy a learner board for $2000nz so like $9000SA and then sell it 3 months later to get a better faster more fun board. I did not windsurf growing up in SA but found the sport here in NZ (GO Boks though), when I started I bought one of those old bic calipso boards with a crappy old triangle sail 5.4 I think for about $800SA and used that to practice what I learned at the windsurf school. From there I went strait to a 125lt short board. I think this is a much better plan for any beginner providing you have a school near by that you can go to for lessons on a regular basis until you can use a harness and maby starting the straps. I would then buy the following:
120-150lt board depending on your weight and local conditions
4.4 and 5.0 modern shape sails (NP Combats, Naish Sessions, Ezzy, etc)
You can then build from there without the need to replace a board you just bought after 4 months sailing and getting to a level were a start or Zen get very tedious and boring.
I hope I have not said to much but only being young and not rich I feel that it is just not worth the money getting a board like that just to learn.
P.S. This whole paragraph is based on the fact that you have a quality and not excessively expensive school near by. |
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Naish
Posts:201
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| 15/09/2007 9:39 AM |
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Was in Waggy's shop yesterday and he showed my the new Starboard range. They seem to really have a great range of entry level boards and I believe a few are on their way in.
If you can get a Kailua you wouldn't go wrong, but I am out of stock.
Rob
PS - saw some interesting photos of items in Thailand too ;-)
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daBeastMan
Posts:23
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| 15/09/2007 10:03 AM |
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Unfortunately, as far as I know, there are no windsurfing schools in Gauteng.
I'll mostly be windsurfing at Bronkies and the Vaal (not a lot of wind) and am a fairly big oke, so I need a board with a large volume. I am looking for a good board that can take me all the way from beginner through intermediate level, and I heard that the Starboard Rio is quite good for that.
I've got a budget of more or less R10'000 for the board and rig. Waggy, do you have any suggestions? |
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Naish
Posts:201
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| 15/09/2007 12:36 PM |
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I am sure Jules can point you in the right direction, send him a message from this Forum.
R |
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daBeastMan
Posts:23
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| 16/09/2007 10:53 AM |
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Just want to thank Jules and the other guys at Bronkies again for teaching me the ropes on Saturday, I am definitely hooked
I decided to take up Jules (and Lanky's) advice and keep practising on the board at TCC until I'm ready to move on to a smaller board.
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Lanky
Posts:7
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| 17/09/2007 7:07 AM |
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| Good to see that you are hooked on a great sport. Lucky for you you have lots of good conditions near by not like me who is stuck at home waiting for the wind to start blowing after almost 2 weeks of 5knts |
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