Title: Introduction To Windsurfing Word Count: 588 Summary: If you were to mash up skateboarding, surfing, sailing, waterskiing, snowboarding, and wakeboarding into one super sport, you would probably end up with windsurfing. It is an exciting sport enjoyed by thousands across the country. It takes a huge amount of practice and skill in order to get the techniques down, but once you get used to it all you will have a blast. Huge speeds can be reached. Usually amateur windsurfers travel at around 20 to 30 miles per hour, but with profe... Keywords: Extreme sports, Outdoor, outdoors, outdoor adventure, outdoor adventure sports Article Body: If you were to mash up skateboarding, surfing, sailing, waterskiing, snowboarding, and wakeboarding into one super sport, you would probably end up with windsurfing. It is an exciting sport enjoyed by thousands across the country. It takes a huge amount of practice and skill in order to get the techniques down, but once you get used to it all you will have a blast. Huge speeds can be reached. Usually amateur windsurfers travel at around 20 to 30 miles per hour, but with professional equipment, lots of practice, and ideal wind conditions, it is possible to exceed 50 miles per hour. A windsurfing board looks a lot like a mix between a surfboard and a sailboat. A regular sturdy and light surfboard has a strong sail attached to it, with a bar extending from the mast for the surfer to hold on to. To get started, the surfer heads to a lake or other body of water on a windy day. With plenty of room to maneuver in the water, the surfer swims alongside the board, and is eventually pulled along by the wind. When a high enough speed is reached, he mounts the board. If all goes well (which for beginners is a rarity), you will begin to speed along the surface of the water. Like with a sailboat, lots of attention must be paid to the direction of the wind and the positioning of the sails. This is the biggest hurtle for beginners, but it becomes much like a second nature once you have had enough experience. By adjusting body weight and sail direction, surfers can steer their windsurfing board to go wherever they wish. If you have the knowledge required to strategically position the sails, then you can achieve speeds many times greater than if you just hop on and go. If you are trying the sport out for the first time, it is probably a good idea to rent the board rather than buy one. They can be fairly expensive to purchase, and if you decide later that you don’t like the sport much then you won’t be stuck with an expensive piece of equipment. After you have it rented, all you have to do is go out to a lake on a sunny, windy day and practice. The first time you will probably loser your balance almost immediately, or sink back into the water if you didn’t gain enough initial speed. Once you become more skilled at windsurfing, you can enter many different competitions. These range from minor groups getting together locally, or huge national events. The competitions are based on different things. Some might have the windsurfers zigzagging between obstacles in a test of handling skill. There are other competitions that are set up more like races, or require the racers to jump as high as possible. There are many different formats, and they all require very specific skills. Windsurfing is a lot like most extreme sports. It takes a lot of determination and perseverance in order to really get into it, but once you are able to get past that initial barrier you will be very happy with the results. It is a sport that is very popular, and for a good reason. It is hugely enjoyable, and doesn’t require a large investment every time you want to enjoy it – all you need is a lake and a board. So look into your local options today, and see if there are any ways that you can get started with windsurfing.