Beach & Windsurfing

[RoB5urf]

Hi, I want to replace our existing car with something that better suits our leisure needs. I keep bouncing between a California Beach and a Kombi van. At the moment I'm leaning towards the Beach but I have some reservations about how I'd store our windsurf kit.

Typically we travel 3-up and, when windsurfing, would like to store at least some of the kit inside - length is the issue here. In a Kombi I would be able to remove (or fold flat) one side of the split rear seat. It seems in a Beach the rear seat is a one-piece 2 or 3 seat bench so its either up or its down.

If I was able to add a single 5th seat, can this be used with the bench seat folded flat so kit could be laid over it? Failing that, how much space is available down the side of a 2 seat set-up?

Excellent forum by the way. I came into this with so many questions and have been able to find answers to most of them right here!

Cheers

 

[Hotel California]

Welcome , good to here you donedy some research on the forum and got wiser out of it
That's what it is all about sharing info....
There are sufers here , who will pop in soon to tell you how they store gear in a Cali .
As you say a Beach got more space inside as the wardrobes and kitchenunit takes up a lot space in the SE / Ocean version.

 

[owen_h]

Hi Rob,
I have a 2 seater bench Beach and have been using it for windsurfing, only 1 or 2 up though. My Beach also has a kitchen pod & storage unit I. The space normally used by a storage box so that space is unavailable for kit storage.
What I do is fold the rear bench flat and put a waterproof cover over the seat and rear multiflex board. The boards then get stacked in the middle of the van with their noses poking between the front seats. Quiver bag & booms go alongside the boards on the offside (without a kitchen pod it could go either side). Masts go underneath as there is a gap on the near side between seat & storage box. Also room for boxes of wetsuits, fins, extensions etc. Not had any problem fitting in 2 boards, 4 sails, 3 masts& 2 booms this way.
My 2 biggest boards are a JP Fsw 84 and Fanatic Skate 112, both around 240cm long I think. They just need to poke the front seat gap. I would not be able to carry a 3rd person with the boards in the van. Only way that might work is to remove the bench seat altogether (2 man job as it's very heavy) and get a single seat. You lose the ability to sleep downstairs in this case.
Any other questions just ask. I'm out of windsurfing for the next 6 months at least, foot got stuck in the strap 2 weeks ago and have torn ligaments and dislocated the bones . Op last week and in non weight bearing plaster for next 8 weeks.


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[Meoncoast]

Hi welcome
I am sure a dealer will be able to help I would go and have a look at a Beach and Kombi side by side

 

[Jonathan Duke]

Hi,

You could order a single seat for the second row, then remove the full width bench seat altogether. This should give you 3x single seats (driver, passenger and single seat in 2nd row) plus loads of internal space for kit.

That's why I choose the Beach, as it's so versatile.

 

[Life's a beach]

Owen_h, ouch! must have been tricky getting back in to the beach, hope you had someone to help you de-rig and get to A&E. Wish you a speedy recovery and are back on the water soon.

Rob, I have a 2 seat bench and find it amazingly versatile. Depending on what boards you sail, there is room to slide a board, masts, sails and boom in on top of the storage box without putting the seat down. I had four of us, 2 wave boards, surf board, 6 sails, masts etc in the van last weekend.

In the winter months I take out the storage pod and rear shelf which gives loads of room for kit. The rest of the year when we are doing more overnight trips the storage box tends to stay in and I have slide pod kitchen unit in the back - windsurfing kit and surf boards either go on the roof or in the van alongside the seat.

We have also got a couple of single seats which go in occasionally to make it a 6 seater, but not tried to fit windsurfing kit in as well in that configuration. i have used just the single seats with the bench removed and that works well with kit slid down the middle but getting the bench seat in and out is a real pain and not something I would want to do regularly.

Overall I think the 2 bench seat beach can do everything the kombi can plus a whole lot more and Is a great choice if you are looking for something more than a van to rack out for windsurfing kit.

 

[RoB5urf]

Thanks. We typically have 2 windsurfing scenarios. My son races a Techno which at 293cm would be a tight fit in any SWB vehicle so I guess that would go on the roof. When we're racing I might want to take a shorter board as well so I'd like to put that and all the rigs inside. We also need to retain the sleeping options for these weekends.

The other scenario is day trips to the coast when the Techno gets left at home and we want to take 2/3 short boards. What's the max length board that will store down the side? Also how do you protect the vehicle from dripping kit?

We currently have a small estate plus trailer whereas most seem to use the regulation T5 kombi, often LWB. My wife and I feel we want something that's not just for windsurfing!

Cheers

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[Waldo]

"If I was able to add a single 5th seat, can this be used with the bench seat folded flat so kit could be laid over it?" yes of course

 

[EnricoWindsurf]

Owen_h, ouch! must have been tricky getting back in to the beach, hope you had someone to help you de-rig and get to A&E. Wish you a speedy recovery and are back on the water soon.

Rob, I have a 2 seat bench and find it amazingly versatile. Depending on what boards you sail, there is room to slide a board, masts, sails and boom in on top of the storage box without putting the seat down. I had four of us, 2 wave boards, surf board, 6 sails, masts etc in the van last weekend.

In the winter months I take out the storage pod and rear shelf which gives loads of room for kit. The rest of the year when we are doing more overnight trips the storage box tends to stay in and I have slide pod kitchen unit in the back - windsurfing kit and surf boards either go on the roof or in the van alongside the seat.

We have also got a couple of single seats which go in occasionally to make it a 6 seater, but not tried to fit windsurfing kit in as well in that configuration. i have used just the single seats with the bench removed and that works well with kit slid down the middle but getting the bench seat in and out is a real pain and not something I would want to do regularly.

Overall I think the 2 bench seat beach can do everything the kombi can plus a whole lot more and Is a great choice if you are looking for something more than a van to rack out for windsurfing kit.

Hi "Life's a beach" I'm also a windsurfer and just collected a T6 Cali Beach 2seater bench. Do you have any photo of windsurfing kit stored inside the van ?
Thanks, Enrico

 

[Crell]

Hi I used to carry my gear in or on my Caravelle. It had 7 seats but you could be creative
Not yet tranported it in the beach but my config is identical to my old Caravelle
I have a pic somewhere but can’t find it. Will try to dig it out. Basically I could get the board in with the rear 3 seat up, and the mid row seat down and front seat up. That was a 140 l starboard. Doubt you’ll get a Tecno in there though.

If you need to sleep though I’d look at roof options. I had the Thule board carrier and it worked well. Though 2 side doors on the Velle made it easier to fit and strap down. Always had the mast and boom in the van but it comes with a mast carrier as well.

 

[Bramco]

I bought a small set of steps and put everything on top. Not sure I fancy all the wetness over the seats. It's not that bad putting the boards on top with a bit of practice. Boom on top, mast to the side and so far sails inside, although one of those bags that have the straps through the underside would mean you could get everything on top without damaging your sails.

Mind I generally only got to our local club lake. Very recreational sailor now I've retired. No racing or any other fancy stuff. Great to still be out on the water though.

 

[RoB5urf]

We use various configurations to carry windsurfers:
1. RS:X, 2 shorts boards, 2 iSups and all the rigs - Oxendon trailer
2. RS:X only when we can't use the trailer - board on the roof, rig in a quiver bag lying along the top of the storage box. The quiver bag helps to prevent wet sails dripping on the seats.
3. One short board and a couple of rigs and no plans to sleep overnight - storage box removed, board (up to around 2.45cm) on its edge and the rigs in a quiver bag in place if the storage box.
4. One or 2 short boards and their rigs and no plans to sleep and max 1 passenger - bench seat flat, all kit on top.

We can usually find some way to get the kit in the Cali, the trick is to avoid water dripping off sails onto seats etc. I don't want my precious Cali looking like some of the surf vans I've seen where the constant damp has caused internal rusting around metal seat parts etc ( and that horrid damp smell)
Cheers

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[EnricoWindsurf]

Hi,
have you considered to modify the rear shelf in order to fold it on the left side? In that way you could slide the boards (removing the storage box) and you would not loose the bed extension / sleeping possibility.

Another modification could be to drop / ply the front part of the shelf (just behind the 2 seater bench) in order to obtain some additional space for legs when putting the 5th seat in.

I hope it's clear!

 

[EnricoWindsurf]

3rd modification could be the possibility to lift up the back part of the shelf to store higher objects like the coolbox (to be moved somewhere else when sleeping downstairs). Ciao.

 

[Trebor]

Rob5urf. I retired from 10 years windsurfing about 25 years ago and moved onto yacht racing . The only thing I’d say is that if you put boards on your roof after use in saltwater your roof will fizz. There are big corrosion problems with the aluminium roof without putting salt on it !

I see a lots of Vw vans wind /kite surfing at Avon Beach Christchurch and Sandbanks Poole when it’s windy . Everyone seems to use Lwb t5/6 . ( no aluminium ) . Never seen a Beach or Cali being used .

Sorry just seen the dates on your posts . It’s too late ! In that case I’d try to find a fresh water hose before they go on roof . Now I’ve read more carefully I see you use a trailer as well . That’s the way I’d go . I have 2 Anssems a VT2 and a camping type ( not sure number ) . They are great . Waterproof / locking / elevating roof and built in roof rack that carries 100 kg .

 

[RoB5urf]

View attachment 27671 Rob5urf. I retired from 10 years windsurfing about 25 years ago and moved onto yacht racing . The only thing I’d say is that if you put boards on your roof after use in saltwater your roof will fizz. There are big corrosion problems with the aluminium roof without putting salt on it !

I see a lots of Vw vans wind /kite surfing at Avon Beach Christchurch and Sandbanks Poole when it’s windy . Everyone seems to use Lwb t5/6 . ( no aluminium ) . Never seen a Beach or Cali being used .

Sorry just seen the dates on your posts . It’s too late ! In that case I’d try to find a fresh water hose before they go on roof . Now I’ve read more carefully I see you use a trailer as well . That’s the way I’d go . I have 2 Anssems a VT2 and a camping type ( not sure number ) . They are great . Waterproof / locking / elevating roof and built in roof rack that carries 100 kg .

The boards are always in bags when being transported so its not a problem. If there is an issue with alu and salt I would say regular proximity to sea air is a much bigger potential risk.

 

[Trebor]

If boards are in bags agree you’re probably fine . My old Mistral Malibu would have needed a big bag . You’re right about sea air . I’ve had 5 Land Rover 110 S a Discovery and 2 Range Rovers . The salt air got them all . Landcruiser Amazon the last was the best but even that started to suffer from salt air .

As an aside we were thinking of taking our van to Spain on the ferry this month as we were sailing May to Sept on West Coast France . Brittany Ferries said good chance van would go on deck and be hosed down when it arrived . I said no thanks .

 

[ddgp]

Hi guys... Dont you strap the boards on the roof or so?