Windsurfing is a surface water
sport using a windsurf board, also commonly called
a sailboard, usually two to five meters long and
powered by a single sail. The rig is connected to the board by a
free-rotating flexible joint called the Universal Joint (U-Joint).
Unlike a rudder-steered sailboat, a windsurfer
is steered by the tilting and rotating of the mast and sail as well
as tilting and carving the board.
The sport combines aspects of both sailing and
surfing, along with certain athletic aspects shared
with other board sports like skateboarding, snowboarding, waterskiing,
and wakeboarding. Although it might be considered a minimalistic
version of a sailboat, a windsurfer
offers experiences that are outside the scope of any other sailing
craft design. A windsurfer holds the world speed
record for sailing craft (see below); and, windsurfers can perform
jumps, inverted loops, spinning maneuvers, and other "freestyle"
moves that cannot be matched by any sailboat. Windsurfers
were the first to ride the world's largest waves, such as Jaws on
the island of Maui, and, with very few exceptions, it was not until
the advent of tow-in surfing that waves of that
size became accessible to surfers.
Windsurfing includes speed sailing,
slalom, course racing and freestyle as distinct disciplines.
Though windsurfing is possible in winds from near
0 to 50 kts, the ideal conditions for planing are 15-25 kts, with
lighter winds resulting in displacement mode sailing.
Lessons can be taken with a school. With coaching and favorable
conditions, the basic skills of sailing, steering,
and turning can be learned within a few hours. Competence in the
sport and mastery of more advanced maneuvers such as planing, gybing
(turning downwind at speed), tacking (turning upwind), jumping,
and more advanced moves can require lengthy practice.
