at a fork in the road

[windhorny]

"around here?" what you forget about alameda already? :)

[adamrod]

the advantage of a skim is that it doesn't have fins so it's considerably faster than other boards. Also, since you generally aren't trying to get big-air, being underpowered isn't as much of an annoyance. it's also flatter so it goes upwind better. finally, you can sit down on the skimboard and ride it like a sled which is REALLY FUN. did that on a downwinder from the second island at sherman, i could almost stay up wind by leaning, and hand brake turns were pretty killer.

personally? i have a surfboard, a skimboard, and a wide twintip . . .all for lightwind days. that way i can switch off and not get bored.

i've even put bindings on the wide twintip which is kinda fun too.

[dakine1]

yojimbo,
I have a cabal SX51 with deck pads in excellent condition. 250.00 if you are interested

[mbzporvida]

How much for the "SEXY MAN" holding the board?

[king kong]

I've got a Cabal without pads for $125. Ping me if you're interested.

[dakine1]

Priceless!!!

[yojimbo]

Thanks everyone for your input. I have to mull over this information, so many choices. I have not heard anyone talk about course boards as a light wind alternative.

[kitedavis]

I recently picked up a used demo board - Skywalker 135x47.5. With a 14m Vegas 06 I was able to easily stay upwind on Sunday of Labor Day weekend, when the wind was dying at Sherman. I rode until almost noon, when the wind was probably averaging about 13-15 mph. The wide, flat bottom of the board really helps to ride out the lulls, but the board is still short enough to throw around.

[elli]

20m kite? Do they even make them anymore?

The benefit of kite size diminishes fast. When you get a board like others said it’s the shape first size second. You need a fast shape. This normally means very little rocker, straighter outline and sharp rails, and in a directional it is also the fin configuration.

Don’t make the mistake of getting some big old board based on size alone. A big board with a slow shape will not give you much other than take the fun out of your session.

[windhorny]

Elli thats a great point.