First tentative steps....but need advice on wind

Croweman,

I very strongly recommend you do NOT go out on the bay this Saturday. The forecast is for 30 knots+ winds and storms which means it could be gusting up to 40 knots+.

Sunday is looking better for beginners around 12 knots so you'll be able to uphaul easily on fairly calm waters in the afternoon.

1. Elwood is good for beginnners when the wind is blowing anywhere between westerly and southerly (i.e. WNW, W, WSW, SW, SSW, S) up to about 20knots. Winds stronger than this will be too much to handle for a real beginner plus the waves will be getting bigger and make it hard to uphaul and may destroy your gear in the shore break. If the wind is Northerly then go to Green Point in Brighton. BEWARE: if there's any easterly component to the wind then it will be blowing offshore and if it all goes wrong you may not be able to get back to the beach!! Next stop Geelong. As summer kicks in we'll be getting afternoon seabreezes so from around 3pm onwards you should be seeing 15 to 20 knots south-westerlies which are good for beginners at Elwood and there will be plenty of other sailors there.

2. Haven't heard anything about sailing at Lysterfield so I'd be surprised if it's any good. Very flat water and very little wind would mean you'd be just floating around on a board holding up a mast with a sail stuck on it...not gonna learn much that way.

3. Haven't sailed Inverloch but Sandy Point is great for beginners. As a beginner it would "work" on pretty much any wind direction and even in strong wind there are usually some areas that are protected/secluded from the full force of the wind. Don't know about regular groups. The drive from Melbourne is about 2.5 hours and definitely worth it but I'd make sure someone else is gonna be there. It's in the middle of nowhere and if the worst happened you'd want someone to be there to help.

Welcome to the greatest (and most frustrating!) sport on the planet.

See you on the water. I'll look out for a Go/Kult combo and come say "Hi".

I would follow previous posted and not sail this weekend. What you need is 10 - 15 kts. As a beginner I would recommend that you start where there is flat water to get your balance and feel for windsurfing and get a few of the basics down pat, then go to the bay.
I have sailed all 3 places you mentioned.
Lysterfield Park Lake is great to start as a beginner as the water is flat and the wind is generally lower than forecast. If you get into trouble the shore is not too far to swim to. However, being a lake the wind gets a bit flukey and will change in direction so as you get better look for alternate places to sail.
Inverloch is great. In the inlet flat water and good consistant winds. Shallow in places which is ideal for learning and again if you get into trouble not too far to swim. Do not bother on Northerlies as the sand hump in the middle of the inlet is too difficult to navigate. My first choice of sailing even though it takes me 2 hrs to get there.
Elwood is shallow in close and is flatish on NW and is a good place to learn. Be careful on N and S as you will be sailing straight offshore and as a beginner you do not want to be stuck out in the middle of the bay and struggling to get back in.
I would visit all 3 places and speak to the windsurfers there as to the best conditions. We are a friendly lot so do not be bashful

Hey Croweman

Before you go for a sail in the bay you can always check out the baywinds site, the bloke that created the site should get a knighthood:

earthsci.unimelb.edu.au/engage/dynamic-earth-updates/bay-winds

Nearly every kiter/windsurfer/sailor in melbourne uses this site.

Sandy pt is an awesome place to go & learn, again check the forecast and also very important check the tide - needs to be a low tide. Dont park too close to the water, unless you want to claim insurance. Plenty of friendly crew there as well (like most spots). You can get some of the flattest most perfect conditions in australia!

Some other places good to learn in melbourne are Hampton and St Kilda.

With Hampton you can park FREE on beach road, rig on nice grass then carry your gear to the beach (dont sail between the flags if they are up). Best conditions are SSE to SW wind - West a bit too onshore. It has a fair amount of wave protection from Sandringham yacht club, but wind is a bit gusty. If you have a big fin (>500mm) watch the rocks, outside the breakwalls you are ok. A few kiters but they are cool.

St Kilda is also slightly wave protected but can have plenty of kiters if the wind is up. Go a but further up the beach, normally there are a few windsurfers out that can give you some advice. Good for SE to SW winds, also NW winds as well. Many a batten has been broken on the shorey in winds over 15kts so be careful. Primo scenery walking past as well on most days when the sun is out. The water can get a bit skanky after a rain, be careful. You have to pay for parking on the water side of the road.

Be careful with your big fin (I assume you have a long fin and a shorter one) - when I started on my GO I nearly hit every underwater obstacle in the bay, I was forever fixing my fin. maybe use your smaller "shallow" fin when starting?

You have bought a great first board/rig combo!