My 2005 Honda Odyssey is long enough a Mistral Equipe (372 cm or about
12'4" long) fits inside with the nose on the dashboard (which
eliminates nearly all seating except for the driver). But a 285 cm
(about 9'4") long and 40 inches wide formula board fits inside on it's
side in the center with room for the driver and several passengers.
Either board will also fit on the roof rack.

Gas mileage with a full load of camping and windsurfing gear plus the
formula board inside plus the driver and a passenger and with the
Equipe on top is about 23-25 mpg on the interstate at about 65 mph.
The same load without any board on top, but pulling a 650 to 800 lb
trailer gives about 20 mpg on the interstate. Both mpg figures are
from 5 to 8.5 hour trips on relatively flat midwestern interstates.


There is room for me to sleep in the Odyssey on one side while the
formula board is still in the van too. The windows on the 2nd set of
doors go down about 2/3 of the way. We use magnetic window screens on
the 2nd set of door windows.

We also have a Dac Explorer 2 "van tent" we got through the Campmor
catalog which covers the rear lift gate and provides a huge amount of
ventilation. There are other models of that "van tent" which cover
different varieties of vehicles.
http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Category___45763__250

Del Carpenter






Quoting Thomas Burley <tburley12@...>:

> Matt,
>
> 1) Did you sleep inside your van? If you did, how did you stay cool on a
> hot summer night?
> I did sllep in it with the windows open. I had 60/40 w/pop out windows, same
> in rear. These had screens that I probably got from JC Whitney
>
> 2) How do the Chevy or GMC .75 ton vans compare and contrast with the Ford
> Econoline?
> Can't say. I never had an issue with the Chevy/GMC so never had reaso to
> consider switch. I had three from '80 - '98 when I moved to Oz.
>
> 3) What kind of highway gas mileage did you get?
> I actually didn't pay that much attention to it. I just refer to the stats
> from the maunfacturer.
>
> 4) About how many miles did your odometer read before you moved to
> Australia?
> First van was about 150,000, bought it used.
> Second was about 110,000, had for 10 years.
> Last one I only had for 3 years before I moved, around 70,000 I think.
>
> 5) Last van I had customized up front. The day I went to the dealer, a rep
> from a conversion place was there and overheard me describing the type of
> customization I was looking for and he said he could do it for me. Front was
> all custom, carpet, captain's chairs, etc. Eterior had custom sport package,
> running boards and all. The back was wide open and I built racks myself
> mostly from PVC. I got floor liner from JC Whitney. I'd do it differently
> today but still do it myself. Boards Magazine, UK Windsurfin' mag, has ads
> for some pretty slick racks made of metal that attach to the side of the
> van, check www.vehicle-racking-systems.co.uk/pages/plans.
>
> Hope that helps.
>
> Tom
>
> On Thu, Sep 11, 2008 at 6:43 AM, Raymond Blivin <rblivinx@...> wrote:
>
>> Tom, thank you for your response. If you can, could you please answer
>> the following, not just for me, but for any one else who is or may be
>> considering getting a van:
>> 1) Did you sleep inside your van? If you did, how did you stay cool on a
>> hot summer night?
>>
>
>
>> 2) How do the Chevy or GMC .75 ton vans compare and contrast with the Ford
>> Econoline? 3) What kind of highway gas mileage did you get?
>> 4) About how many miles did your odometer read before you moved to
>> Australia?
>> 5) Did you build yourself or did you have a professional install a rack
>> inside your van for your boards?
>>
>> Thanks.
>> Matt
>>
>> --- On *Wed, 9/10/08, Thomas Burley <tburley12@...>* wrote:
>>
>> From: Thomas Burley <tburley12@...>
>> Subject: Re: [bw_windsurfing] new car for windsurfer
>> To: bw_windsurfing@yahoogroups.com
>> Date: Wednesday, September 10, 2008, 8:24 PM
>>
>> Hi Matthew,
>>
>> Before I moved to Sydney, Australia 10 years ago, I had either Chevy or GMC
>> .75 ton vans with long wheel base. They are fantastic, mileage may suck but
>> all your stuff fits INSIDE. I used them for 15 years before the move. If I
>> moved back to the US the first thing I'd do is get a new one.
>>
>> Cheers
>>
>> Tom Burley
>>
>> On Thu, Sep 11, 2008 at 8:34 AM, Matthew Lestina <
>> windsurfresource@...> wrote:
>>
>>> Folks, I am in the market for a new car. My Tercel is terminally ill
>>> in that it will not be able to pass emissions in 2010, so I would like to
>>> buy a new car sometime between now and then. Any suggestions for
>>> a make and
>>> a model. It must be able to carry my gear, including boards, either within
>>> or by use of a rack. Reliability and longevity are critical, and I am
>>> thinking long term, and am cradle to grave type of person. Fuel
>>> economy and
>>> low maintenance are also factors. Any suggestions?
>>>
>>> Honda fit, Toyota RAV 4, ??? What would be a good choice?
>>>
>>> Matt
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>