sails

Question
Hello, I'm interested in buying another sail. I have a Hifly 152 lt. maxx that I use as my only board. Around
next spring I plan to pick up a slalom board to use for
stronger wind cond. At this time can I go ahead and use
a slalom sail with the Hifly. Can boards and types of
sails be mismatched?
The Hifly is about 9 years old and still has 34 slalom
printed on the original stock fin. Is this fin ok to
keep using, or is there anything newer available that
will work better in 12-15 mph winds? Also when do I have to worry about an older board taken in
water. No problems yet, but does this happen because of exterior damage or do the boards just start
to weaken and break down over time? My weight is 160lbs.
Thanks in advance for your help.

Answer
Hey Mike,

If you are just recreational sailing, you can use just about any type of sail. The only time you would need specific sails is if you are sailing a specific style of sailing, ie; Racing (slalom & race sails), freestyle (freeride/freestyle sails), wave (wave sails).

For your board, just about any race, slalom, or freeride sail will work just fine. There is just a bit of handling and power differences between these sails.

As for your fin, it will work but depending upon the size sail you will be buying, it could be too small or too large. Check out this site for some good info on fin to sail ratios. http://www.windance.com/info_source/assistant/gear_selector/fins/fin_selector.as...

Older boards don't really take on water unless there has been some damage to the outer shell that hasn't been repaired. The shells will last a long time provided there is no damage.
One of my favorite boards to sail is a 1991 Mistral Screamer. It is still just as fast as the day I bought it and still weighs the same 19 lbs as it did new. It is mainly a matter of taking good care to not drop or ding your board when carrying it around.

Inspect your board for small dings from rocks or debris in the water. If there is any sign of cracking, fix it before you go out again. Another place for damage is if the boom or mast has banged the nose of the board it can cause surface cracking. Ding Stick is available through various places. Just Google ding stick and you will find it if you need to do any minor repairs. It is compatible to almost any board.

Hope this helps.
Keep on sailing,
Windlover