The Peconic Puffin Windsurfing Blog

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This time was better.

-The dredging boat left (hand took such a pounding from the big chop and gusts that we were worried the boat would flip) so the water was clear and the air sweet.

-Some puffins (bird puffins) were flying around, coming out of Bullhead bay to bless the sesh.

The Wolf went 3.7 (good call)...Scott and I opted for 4.2's, which worked for a bit.   The chop was so disorganized that it was hard to sail fast...lit is fine when board speed is 30+...when it's 20ish that rig is YANKING.    Into these conditions inexplicably appeared John Natalie, who may need to surrender his "I only sail when it's perfect" middle name.    But sail we did.

Young Eric arrived after awhile, and was out in the mess sailing switchstance!   I got dropped once when I caught a rail in the messy water, and he's switchstance.   #humbled.    

I love sailing this time of the year.  So much wind.  Too much wind lately...would love to get out on a 4.7!

A Million Pageviews of PP

What is surely the most ridiculous windsurfng blog in the history of windsurfing blogdom recorded it's millionth pageview yesterday.   The culprit page was from the Reasons To Hate Mike Burns series, in this case Reason To Hate Mike Burns #211: Looping a Sunset Slalom.   Mike up and moved to Hatteras recently, and when last we saw him in social media he and Chrissy were sailing in shorties...this whilst my drysuit is drying on a hanger.  Another reason to hate him.

But we digress.

Thanks to everyone who looks at this thing and doesn't send hate mail!

(P.S.  Don't know why you'd want to, but you can follow Mike Burns here.)

 

Blown Off The Water

I was last to arrive.  

"What's the sail call?"

Scott said 3.7.   I said I had a 4.2 and a 3.4.  He did not blink:  3.4 was his call.

"But it doesn't look that windy!"

Scott rolled his eyes.  This happens often.  He puts up with me.  "Walk down to the water" he said.

I didn't get three steps before I was in the full blow.  Sh** it was windy.   And the wind smelled like sh**   Bullhead bay was being dredged, with the outflow into the Peconic, and the currents being what they were were were launching in mucky water that reeked.   

"Motivation to not blow a jibe" Frank would later say (after his customary 90 minute nonstop sesh.)

Scott and the Wolf had already been out.  Frank launched, and Jan, Bruce, Christian, John Natalie, Arty and I rigged and went.  Or attempted to.   My first launch I was fully overpowered...my sail was bucking like it was misrigged.   I sailed a few hundred yards and then just layed the rig down.  Kicked it around and sailed back.  Jan was right behind me.   Word was that if you made it a quarter mile out things calmed down some.    But soon everyone came in and hid behind the dredge pipes waiting for the wind to back off...to 30.   
Finally it did, the Wolf launched, and I said "if the Wolf is sailing then so must I!"  Scott agreed.   

I launched, and was okay for about a quarter mile.  Then it came up again.   Back to Stink Beach to give up, and watch others tailwalking (except for Frank.  Frank is different.   Frank on his 4.2)

Would have liked to cut that wind in half and had two days of 20!

(Top:  Arty, Jan, the Wolf, Scott and Christian shelter in the lee to contemplate monster gusts.  Bottom:  The Wolf says sometimes walking away means you get to sail another day.)

 

There Be Wind A Comin'

Thus spake NOAA:

Friday:  SW winds 15 to 20 kt with gusts up to 25 kt. Seas 6 to 8 ft. Showers. Vsby 1 to 3 nm.

 

Saturday:  SW winds 15 to 20 kt with gusts up to 25 kt, increasing to 20 to 25 kt with occasional gusts up to 35 kt in the afternoon. seas 6 to 9 ft, building to 8 to 11 ft in the afternoon.

 

What say ye, windy folk?

Three Days Napeagueing

There were several reasons for me to have Napeague on the brain last week:

-My dinged knee would fair better on flatter water than in Meschutt/Iron Pier/West Meadow conditions,

-Wilson had acquired a bunch of exotic foiling gear,

-A reprise of a wonderful session with Wilson and David last October was past due.

So with knee brace and loaded van I was Peaguebound.

Friday afternoon winds were west and moderate…me on the 6.2, Wilson rigged a bit bigger, and we were on Reach and Jibe patrol. Nothing fancy, just a good lead in to the weekend. My bad knee didn’t like having its attendant foot in the front strap much, so I babied it.   Nothing like trying to coddle an injury while committing to a jibe to induce mediocrity, but still it was fun to be out there on flat and friendly water.

Saturday winds were southerly and light, but to a bunch of ABKers it was catnip.   Wilson took out a foil and had his longest foiling reach yet…I’d guestimate it at 75 yards fully elevated.   I was out on the 6.2 and managed to pump to a plane a few times, jibe once, otherwise it was mostly helitacks and pivot jibes. David, Lili and Dana were also out for various stretches doing the nonplaning thing.   Followed by gin and tonics and a fine dinner, it was a good day of sailing.

Sunday it nuked.   Eyeballing it I thought a 4.7 was the call, and despite Wilson and David's local advice to rig smaller I went out with too much sail. After two runs rigged down to 4.2, where I was again lit to overpowered (note to self: always defer to local knowledge!) David somehow made a 4.4 work, while Wilson took a few runs and thought better of it.   It wasn’t just the wind (3.7 would probably have been perfect)…there were uncharacteristically sets of waves coming into the beach. If you hit them right on port they made for nice jumps, but generally speaking beach break is not what Napeague is known for!

It was punishing but good fun…I bagged it early for my knee, and David wanted to return the harness he borrowed from Lili (on account of she said she’d kill him if he left with it.) Top:  Michael outbound.  Middle:  David inbound.   Bottom:  We shall live to sail another day (Lili got her harness back).  Photos by Wilson.