Windsurfer LT vid Lightwind fun-sailing, BIG sail :)

11m Sail, Aerotech 4 cam Race
190lb/86kg Sailor
7-10 knot Wind
Windsurfer LT Race = 12'/366cm long - 29"/74cm wide - 229L vol - 15.5 kg

July 2021 Lake Washington in Seattle WA. At Sail Sand Point sailing center.
Thanks to windsurf bud Alan, for his time & expertise to produce this video! And to Ian for the drone skills!

I'm Greg (sailing) and here's my LONG review, video, and Race test of the new Windsurfer LT. It's mostly for longboard windsurf nerds & those shopping for a Windsurfer LT :)
The W LT comes in 2 models: 'Race' or 'Club Freestyle'. The only difference is the DaggerBoard. I'm sailing the 'race' model - it has a big, stiff DB for stable uphauling, tacking & GREAT upwind sailing angles (like a raceboard). The 'club freestyle' costs less. And it has a little smaller & more basic DB than the race model. It works great for lighter sailors & the DB doesn't extend above the deck when retracted (the 'race' DB does). You can't however, use the 'club' model in One Design races.
The Windsurfer LT (LT = light = lighter than the original Windsurfer in the 70's-80's) is a modern all-round windsurf board that does everything a practical longboard should do. The hull has a smooth flat-ish bottom shape: great for lightwind glide, easy balancing & high wind planing. Most people also get the Windsurfer LT sail rig. It has the One Design 5.7m sail (in lots of colors) with the mast, boom & base. The LT sail is small but powerful: a modern build, old school design, that's easy to rig & fun to use!

There's lots of world-wide interest in the W LT race kit. One reason is that 'Windsurfer LT One Design races' are being promoted in many places! There are small local race groups & big national competitions but ALL participants use the same Windsurfer LT race kit & 5.7m sail. The gear works in most all wind conditions & the racing is very exciting when it's windy! The W LT is also great for freestyle! The easy-to-use board & lightweight sail are perfect to learn old school tricks & new tricks as well. This vid is from the 2019 Windsurfer LT Italian Champs & shows both Freestyle & One Design Course Racing.

I started windsurfing regularly in 1981 and since 1987 have been teaching lessons & doing club-type racing. When sailing locally, I like to use BIG sails with enough power to support my weight in our typical light winds. It's FUN to sit back, relax in the harness & cruise around exploring: and a big sail gets the most speed from our light wind. It's great being on the water, enjoying the scenery, fresh air & exercise! Uphauling a BIG sail is not fun, haha, but I've practiced for years in these conditions & worked my way up to big sails gradually. (So, I only uphaul 1 or 2x each session:) Large sails also provide power to blast through ALL the chaotic summertime boat wakes!
With our typical 4-9 knot wind (& my 190lb) I rarely use the 5.7m LT sail unless I'm teaching or doing freestyle.

The LT is really versatile. You can sail it in most typical wind conditions, teach novices on it, do longboard freestyle & race it. You can explore marinas, round islands & travel long distances. It also works to take a little kid or a dog for a sailing ride :) It's easy to use & modern. A novice could start with it & keep it forever, using it with no hassle whenever you want a fun trip around the bay! The W LT works well with 3-12m size sails, & any type of sail: cam/no cam. It has a Powerbox finbox so you can try-out different fin types! Besides racing it in One Design events, you can use it in Open Class races & use any sail or fin you want! The deck-pad is nice & grippy, negating the need for footstraps 99% of the time. (But I wish they'd add nonskid to the bow & rails.) This versatile new board also makes a good SUP for those days with 0 wind.

Race test: I compared my Windsurfer LT (229L) & my 1994 Mistral Equipe XR (258L) in this year's May/June weekly windsurf Open Class race series. (The Equipe is a top-line raceboard with decades of winning results.) We raced 8 consecutive weeks in 3-13 knot wind. I'm no expert but always in the mix of top guys at our local races. Most use raceboards & 9-12m sails, but breezier days also had lighter guys on windfoils. I used my 11m race sail for all 20+ races this year, but the first 6 weeks sailed my Equipe & the last 2 weeks the LT. The results surprised me! There was no 'drop' when I changed from the Equipe to the LT.
Wow - Same beach, same 25 sailors, I used the same sail on both boards, same up/downwind course, same wind & water conditions - and my results were identical with the LT as the Equipe, over an 8 week span! 2nd place overall.
That's GREAT performance from an easy sailing longboard, that's also a good buy! A pro, who's racing these boards in high wind might get different results. But for me racing locally, they were equal.
Conclusion - The W LT is a great board for new or experienced sailors who want to windsurf any day of the week!