Windsurfing
Windsurfing is a surface water sport using a windsurf board generally between two and four meters long, and powered by the effect of the wind on a sail.
There has for long been a debate between how to call windsurfing, and it used to be commonly named sailboarding or board sailing, just to become windsurfing in the 90s. However, despite the term of Windsurfing being used nowadays, participants are still called sailors and not surfers.
Windusufing is more or less mixing together the laid-back culture of surf sports and the more rules-based environment of sailing.
Windsurfer can perform jumps, inverted loops, spinning maneuvers and other freestyle moves that can not be matched by any other sailboat. However, these kinds of moves can only be performed on the Sea or Ocean, or at least a surface where you have reasonable waves and wind conditions. That is not the case of French Lakes, but you can still enjoy windsurfing in a more relaxed way, which is what most of the beginers and regulars are looking for when thinking about windsurfing.
Windsurfing Competitions
In Windsurfing competitions, there are the following disciplines:
- Olympic Windsurfing Class
- Formula Windurfing Class
- Windsufring Slalom
- Super X
- Windsurfing Speed Racing
- Windsurfing Freestyle
- Wavesailing
Freestyle and Wave are judged competitions, the sailor with the best technique and diversity wins. Olympic Boardsailing, Formula windsurfing, Slalom and Super X are races where many sailors compete on a course, and Speed Racing is a race where sailors compete on a straight 500 m course in turns.
Windsurfing on French Lakes
Obviously, the experts will not enjoy lake windsurfing as much as windsurfing on the sea, but for all the other ones, this will be such a great opportunity to learn and to enjoy your time.
Thanks to the size of a Lake on average, which means relatively small, you will have to turn more often, and therefore be more likely to fall, which is the best way to learn. Moreover, with nautical centres everywhere around the lakes, and generally never really far from where you are, the practice of that activity is highly accessible to everyone.
Overall, it is totally possible to have a very enjoyable windsurfing session on many French Lakes. Actually, there are around 250 spots where you can surf in France.