Hi

I'm looking at a local second hand board. Its an older JP X-Cite Freeride 130L, but I'm unsure if its too small or too big a jump for me.

I have been on two windsurf courses (around 15 hours in total). I'm confident sailing and steering. Tacking and gybing are not very smooth, but getting there. I can stay upwind ok without the daggerboard and have done my first few beach starts. All this has been on 200+ liter beginner boards though.
I weigh 85-90 kg.

The board for sale has some reps and scratches and its not super cheap, but resonably priced.
Not many other beginner/intermediate boards for sale locally and they are in high demand.

I consider myself a fairly quick learner and don't mind a challenge, but I suspect this will be too big a jump.
What do you think?

Thanks

If you can uphaul without problems you'll be OK.
Quick learner in the schoolwork sense doesn't apply to this sport. If it did, I'd be best on beach. It's more about balance and balancing forces

I agree. Do it. Just stick to flat water and under 10kn for a bit so the uphauling is easy (no side chop hitting u)

^ +1
Also consider width, you said it's an older model which might be narrower. I reckon you want minimum 70cm wide.

Select to expand quote

Stretchy said..
^ +1
Also consider width, you said it's an older model which might be narrower. I reckon you want minimum 70cm wide.

Its 72 cm wide

The other thing to remember is to sail with an onshore - ish breeze. If you aren't planing and in the straps it's hard to get upwind and you might end up a long way from where you want to be if you're being blown away from the beach.
Just out of interest, where are you? I'd assume that USA/Europe are at the tail end of their season and it's cool weather in the Southern Hemisphere countries

Select to expand quote

Mr Milk said..
The other thing to remember is to sail with an onshore - ish breeze. If you aren't planing and in the straps it's hard to get upwind and you might end up a long way from where you want to be if you're being blown away from the beach.
Just out of interest, where are you? I'd assume that USA/Europe are at the tail end of their season and it's cool weather in the Southern Hemisphere countries

I'm in Denmark

Ignore the above advice then. Vikings can sail anywhere, any time of year. You found Greenland after all

Select to expand quote

Heilbuth said..

Stretchy said..
^ +1
Also consider width, you said it's an older model which might be narrower. I reckon you want minimum 70cm wide.

Its 72 cm wide

That should be ok

I would avoid that board, it is an advanced board (solid intermediate and up), get one that is at least 80 cm wide and more of an advanced beginner to intermediate board like a Magic Ride.

Of course, if they will let you try it out, then give it a try, and you may see/feel how difficult it will be to progress on.

see if the place you are getting your lessons at has a similar board to try, or ask them what they think about the X-cite.

Select to expand quote

Heilbuth said..
I consider myself a fairly quick learner and don't mind a challenge

Go for it. The jump may seem too big at first, but 130 l is still big enough, if you're willing to perhaps deal with a few hours of frustration. There's a saying that a board grows by about 5 liters for every hour you spend on it in light wind. It's somewhat true (although, of course, it's you who gets used to the smaller board). I'm about your weight, and have done lightwind freestyle on a 110 l board. After a couple of hours with lots of crashes, the board did indeed start to feel big enough.

One big change with the smaller board will be that you have to be more careful where you put your feet and your weight, both side-to-side and front-to-back. But if you stay too long on a huge board, you can start developing bad habits.

Select to expand quote

But if you stay too long on a huge board, you can start developing bad habits.

Bad Habits??? Sailing a big board let's you develop plenty of valuable skills.
Can you sail it upwind, downwind wherever you want? If you're feeling confident n comfy on the big rig then 130litre isn't too big a jump for your weight. I'm 110kg n started out on 90s 250litre raceboard then jumped straight down to 90s 125litre without too much hassle. Newer wider design board make it easier again. Go for it!

Go for it, the following URL is a comparison test on 2014 130lt freeride boards. The board you are looking at might be a bit older but the test is still valid for you.

www.windsurf.co.uk/130l-freeride-board-test/

The following is a quote from the test

"WHO ARE THEY FOR?
Perhaps you're new to shortboarding? Working on getting in the straps and harness and attempting those first few gybes? "

They sound just right for you.

Select to expand quote

John340 said..
Go for it, the following URL is a comparison test on 2014 130lt freeride boards. The board you are looking at might be a bit older but the test is still valid for you.

www.windsurf.co.uk/130l-freeride-board-test/

The following is a quote from the test

"WHO ARE THEY FOR?
Perhaps you're new to shortboarding? Working on getting in the straps and harness and attempting those first few gybes? "

They sound just right for you.

When I was looking for a board to advance from my Bic Nova 180 L, I looked at the X-Cite and Magic Ride (I weight 86 kg), I was told by the very experienced seller to stay away from the X-Cite as it was more technical to use, the Magic Ride 142 L worked out perfectly as a transition board, but definitely took a lot of TOW to get used to a smaller narrower board and I definitely would not of wanted any less volume.

Depends on your spot, a 145 would be nice for a while. It does help erase errors and provide more passive planing for 7.0-8.0 days.

If your spot blows 6.0-7.0 then a 130 would work too.

Select to expand quote

Sandman1221 said..

John340 said..
Go for it, the following URL is a comparison test on 2014 130lt freeride boards. The board you are looking at might be a bit older but the test is still valid for you.

www.windsurf.co.uk/130l-freeride-board-test/

The following is a quote from the test

"WHO ARE THEY FOR?
Perhaps you're new to shortboarding? Working on getting in the straps and harness and attempting those first few gybes? "

They sound just right for you.

When I was looking for a board to advance from my Bic Nova 180 L, I looked at the X-Cite and Magic Ride (I weight 86 kg), I was told by the very experienced seller to stay away from the X-Cite as it was more technical to use, the Magic Ride 142 L worked out perfectly as a transition board, but definitely took a lot of TOW to get used to a smaller narrower board and I definitely would not of wanted any less volume.

The OP said he didn't have a lot of choice. I agree the 130 X-cite ride might be more of a challenge than the 142 Magic Ride, but the X-cite ride is doable, if that's what is available.

I'm 90kg. I went from 155L (first board) to 109L. Really wasn't that difficult.

Select to expand quote

John340 said..

The OP said he didn't have a lot of choice. I agree the 130 X-cite ride might be more of a challenge than the 142 Magic Ride, but the X-cite ride is doable, if that's what is available.

Exactly. If I had the option to buy a new board, or more second hand boards was available, I would probably choose a 140-150L board and a more beginner friendly one.

Situation right now is that if I have to save up for a brand new board, I will probably not get on the water until spring next year. Currently this board is the only second hand one for sale locally (except for some very old or very small boards). I have been watching the second hand market for a while and there has been very few 140L+ boards for sale.

So my question was not if this would be the ideal board, but if I would be able to use it at all.

Thanks for all your answers. I have decided to go for it and have contacted the seller.

I will update if/when I get on the water :)

Select to expand quote

boardsurfr said..

But if you stay too long on a huge board, you can start developing bad habits.

Plenty of people have developed bad habits by getting obsessed with moving to a smaller board, as well.

Anyone can develop bad habits from anything.

Select to expand quote

Chris 249 said..
Plenty of people have developed bad habits by getting obsessed with moving to a smaller board, as well.

Sure, I have seen plenty of people who have developed standing on the beach and complaining about "no wind" as a bad habit, because they considered using anything large uncool.

A smaller, more challenging board will force you to be more precise with your technique, though. For example, two things that don't matter much on larger boards are exact foot placement and front-back balance (waterline steering). I like large boards, and have a few 200l + boards in the garage. But the very experienced windsurf teachers I've learned from in recent years have often made me (and many others) pick smaller boards that were below my comfort level, and that generally resulted in faster learning. Bottom line is that there can be a clear upside to a more challenging board, as long as you're not discouraged easily because it can be harder at the start.

Here's the 130 Excite I had, 2012ish?
At 110kg the 130litre was OK as first modern shaped board. I'm no super athlete.

Select to expand quote

olskool said..
Here's the 130 Excite I had, 2012ish?
At 110kg the 130litre was OK as first modern shaped board. I'm no super athlete.

Looks somewhat like yours. Different graphics though.
From what I can tell from google its from around 2009/10 ish.

Going to pick it up today and forecast says around 10 knts saturday :D

Alright got my first expirence with the board today.

Its indeed a challenge for me. A bit like starting all over and learning balance on the board again.
The wind was probably a bit higher than I would have preferred (around 15 knots), which made the challenge even bigger. Anyway I actually made progress, a small one, but progress. Going from not even being able to find my balance when hauling the sail up, to actually sailing around 20-30 meters.
Didnt stay out very long as my sons had issues with his gear.

As someone mentioned earlier I can clearly see that I need to practice my footwork on a board like this. Also I can see that 10-20 liters more would probably have made things easier, but as I said, I dont mind a challenge and as long as I have had progress I don't complain

In conclusion, a bigger board would have been preferable, but given the circumstances (no other real buying options at the moment) I am very happy with the purchase. Having a hard time on this board definitely beats sitting at home dreaming of being out surfing :)

Cant wait to get out again, hopefully in around 10 knots winds.

Thanks for all your input

10 kt maybe too light. I'd be liking 15+ to learn on the Excite. Practice waterstarting as well as uphauling.

Select to expand quote

olskool said..
10 kt maybe too light. I'd be liking 15+ to learn on the Excite. Practice waterstarting as well as uphauling.

Are there any rules of thumb about wind speed and sails size to practice waterstart?

In any situation I will look like someone suffering,
so, what is the wind speed to be able to do
it and which size of sail?
Thanks!

JP

Smaller boards are designed for higher winds with smaller sails, for me on a JP MagicRide 142 I used a 9.0 in a min. of 13.5 knots to plane consistently and maybe 14-15 do a water start, I weigh 86 kg. So like others said, 15 knots is probably about right as a starting wind speed for the Excite 130 to plane with maybe a 8.0 sail for you, though I took my 9.0 to up to 18 knots max. and then switched over to a 7.2 for 18-24 knots in waves on the MR 142.

Practice on it and keep your eye out for a larger board, it will come around sooner or later. An Indo Board it great for training your balance.

Select to expand quote

Sandman1221 said..
Smaller boards are designed for higher winds with smaller sails, for me on a JP MagicRide 142 I used a 9.0 in a min. of 13.5 knots to plane consistently and maybe 14-15 do a water start, I weigh 86 kg. So like others said, 15 knots is probably about right as a starting wind speed for the Excite 130 to plane with maybe a 8.0 sail for you, though I took my 9.0 to up to 18 knots max. and then switched over to a 7.2 for 18-24 knots in waves on the MR 142.

Practice on it and keep your eye out for a larger board, it will come around sooner or later. An Indo Board it great for training your balance.

Correction, I used to use mph so above I meant to say "on a JP MagicRide 142 (81 cm wide) I used a 9.0 in a min. of 13.5 mph to plane consistently", so 11.7 knots, and 12-13 kts to water start.

Got on the water again today.
Big difference from last time. This time getting the sail hauled up and getting going was a lot easier. Had some good runs at decent speed. Did a few tries at tacking, but no luck. I need to practice my footwork some more.

Still really happy with the board, and have a lot more confidence in myself and this board.

First two times with the board is just like my first two days at the windsurfing course all over again. Kind of the same progression

Cant wait to get on the water again

Tacks get tricky with lower board volume, need to keep your feet as close to mast base as possible when stepping around, otherwise the nose will go under water. But that is an advanced board, so they expected the rider to be gybing, and gybing is a lot more fun than tacking and faster so you keep your stability by staying in motion, as soon as that board stops moving it looses a lot more stability than a bigger board.

Select to expand quote

Sandman1221 said..
Tacks get tricky with lower board volume, need to keep your feet as close to mast base as possible when stepping around, otherwise the nose will go under water. But that is an advanced board, so they expected the rider to be gybing, and gybing is a lot more fun than tacking and faster so you keep your stability by staying in motion, as soon as that board stops moving it looses a lot more stability than a bigger board.

Yep the nose quickly dived when I tried to tack. Was actually thinking I would give gybing a try next time and ignore the tack for a bit

Select to expand quote

Heilbuth said..

Yep the nose quickly dived when I tried to tack. Was actually thinking I would give gybing a try next time and ignore the tack for a bit

There is plenty of volume in the nose of the Ride, but not enough to linger there. The trick I've learnt is not to look at your feet as shuffle across in front of the mast.