Cool, I wouldn´t advise buying kit straight away, you need a big floaty board for a while, then you want to change progressively smaller as you get better. I´d say hire for a while, as you will probably progress quite fast. New gear will also make it easier, plus you won´t be limited by sail size (you need to change a lot). Windsurfing can be a bitch to learn, I used to race dinghies and cats at a high level too and it took me a good few summers to be able to plane and use my harness properly.