The Peconic Puffin Windsurfing Blog

What Will Windsurfing Be Like In The Future?

"Windsurfing in the future

will be exactly like windsurfing right now,

only much, much better."

(Response to a question posed by The Tillerman.  Apologies and thanks to Laurie Anderson, from whom I swiped the answer.)

Inversions and Explosions

I missed the big winds Wednesday, but the bay lit up again shortly after noon at Sebonac Inlet, and a crew was soon on it, sailing 3.7-4.2 (excepting a short misguided period when we rigged larger sails during the first huge lull.)  Scott, Jon, Bill, Bruce, CD, the Wolf, Peconic Jeff and a trio of kiters were all on it.   A friend of Jeff’s stopped by to express her interest in learning to windsurf…we looked out over the water as gusts ripped off the tops of waves and said “today isn’t the best day to start.”

The wind was up, the wind was down, the wind was way up.  Fortunately the gagging periods were short.   The crazy overpowered moments were short too (Shinnecock Inlet recorded a gust of 55…we probably caught 45 at that instant).   It was serious bump and jump…if your dentures weren’t glued in solid, out they came.

Anticipating the pounding with glee, Scott brought out a new piece of high-wind gear:  an inversion machine.   Get clamped into Dr. Kielt’s contraption, hang from your ankles, and let your spine and back muscles stretch and recover from all the flat landings and high-G jibes.

I tried it.  Felt great!   Particularly after my kapow.

Fully lit on a 4.0/77 liter board on port I was having a great time holding it all together (barely)…that crazy perfect zone when you’re at breakneck speed, totally focused to avoid catching a rail and getting slammed…when I heard a sound.

A bad sound.

It couldn’t have been more than a fifth of a second…that sound.  I’d never heard it before, a mid-pitched sharp scratch that said “something is about to break right now.”   I spent one tenth of a second guessing what (the boom was my thought) when there was a loud SNAP and I got slammed forward into the water.   “I broke the mast” I thought as I untangled myself beneath the sail.  On the surface my board was ten feet downwind, so I swam after that, then returned to the rig, which was not broken at all.   The clip holding my uni had released.

I use a two bolt Chinook with the sliding retainer clip.  I’m very, very careful about making sure the thing is properly seated (been sailing with them since the mid ‘90’s with never a seperation…not one) but during my sail switching (4.0, 4.5, 4.0) I had removed the uni to adjust mast track positioning, and obviously I’d rushed the reseating of the uni during the last tweak.   I won’t make that mistake again (I knock wood as I type!)

The waves were such that I needed to drift in to the shallows before I could get the uni back into the board.   But I finally did, and so sailed back from my high speed flip to invert more gracefully on shore.

(iWindsurf records quite the gust at the Shinnecock tower...probably 10mph higher than what we'd get on the deck of the bay.   Meanwhile CD hangs out whilst Scott, Bill and Jeff take a break.)

Rumors of the third annual East Coast Windsurfing Festival

This is just a rumor.   The Peconic Puffin is repeating because, well, it’s fun to repeat unsubstantiated hearsay.  What’s the worst that can happen…you’ll tell us we were wrong?  Thus would we reply:  “DUH!”  So be that as it may (or may not) we take no responsibility whatsoever for the veracity of the chronology of this alleged funfest, and must be held harmless for any injury incurred due to excessive stokeage or practicing vulcans:

The East Coast Windsurfing Festival will take place June 12-13 at Heckscher.  

We didn’t tell you this, but sources close to high-ranking officials deep within the ECWF inner circle are said to have overheard that there will be racing, freestyle competition, and possibly other activities du fun.  If it’s anything like the last two East Coast Windsurfing Festivals (or for that matter last fall’s Regatta) it will be a winner.   No wind minimums.  You may frown a maximum of three times on shore (on the water you may hiss, spit, curse and swear to your heart’s content…or smile and hoot.)

That’s the word, so we’re told.  It may not be true.  But we’re just sayin’.

(Photo:  The editor saying "I told you so," which I'm not saying now.  But I did say it during one of last year's races.  Courtesy Bill Doutney.)

Days without Gloves

Good times of late, and the touch of boom and paddle to bare hands.

A morning session Friday on the Little Peconic, Christian and I sailing from Towd Point.  6.2, big boards, sunny and, well…nice.   Nothing special, just your basic fine time windsurfing.

Saturday SUPsurfing at Cooper Beach with the Wolf, Peconic Jeff and Jon Ford (CD came too, but broke his wetsuit zipper and didn’t bring a backup.  “Chimpidity!” CD called it (also nobody called Scott…that’s a big Oops!)  Anyhow the forecast was for flat water, but somehow we found wide sweet endless thigh to chest high waves, well mannered and friendly.    I told the Wolf that I felt like an eight year old I was having so much fun.  He hooted in reply…no further explanation was required.

Sunday we got greedy and returned to Cooper.   It looked good from shore, but once we’d paddled out (we= CD Wolf and mois) we found ourselves in endless closeouts.  CD bailed first (“I’m here for fun, and if there’s no fun I’m not here”) while Mr. vanderWolf and I required more punishment before we accepted rejection.

But still, the water was warmer than its been in months, and what’s better to do than splash around in the waves?

Time to box the gloves until December.

Be Kind to Gilgo Day

Mid-island windsurfer/Surfrider activist/the first guy I ever saw carve a jibe Frank Messina forwards this information about a call for volunteers to help fight erosion at Gilgo, which took a pounding from storms earlier this year.  If you can make it, be there!

(from the staff of Robert Moses/ Captree State Parks):
 We are planning a volunteer effort to plant beach grass in the area at Gilgo where fresh dunes have been constructed. The date of the event is April 25, 2010 at 9 A.M. The meeting place is the Town of Babylon parking field. Through State Parks and Save the Beaches we have approximately 12,000 bare root plants to get in the ground. Volunteers should bring a small spade to facilitate planting. I apologize for the late notice. This date was establish a while ago for another project but as you know this issue came arose and we feel it must be addressed quickly. Any assistance your group can provide will be greatly appreciated. Hope to see you Sunday.

It Doesn't Always Rain at the Bowl

It began with comedy: Jeff Schultz arrived sans drysuit, and upon heading back home to get it a series of riffs on Hogans Heros’ Sgt Schultz  erupted: “I know NUTTING!”

John Hulse was engaged in an in-depth phone conversation with CD about butt cheeks. We did not inquire.

Then of course the Wolf launched on his 5.2 and 104 liter board, returned to pronounce the conditions “good” (Scott dissented, declaring the day to have insufficient wind for his liking, and persisted in saying so throughout his all-day sesh.)  Yet into the Bowl we went:  Mr. vanderWolf, Eric, Scott, the returned Peconic Jeff,  Fisherman, Jimi Sobeck, and Chris Daniels as “CD” on sails, whilst Messrs Hulse, Barber, Ford, and Randy with a Question Mark launched on kites.

There were barely any waves (though if you were in the right spot at the right time you could catch a few bottom turns,) the ramps kinda sucked, the water got way choppy a few hundred yards out, and as noted before there wasn’t enough wind for Scott, but fun was had.   Towards the end of the day the wind came up, smaller boards were the call, and CD is said to have said to have said that a 4.7 would have worked.

And it didn’t rain.   Four times out of five (at least) to sail at the Bowl is to sail in the rain.  It’s an ESE thing, but we lucked out.

(Photos by Sgt. Schultz)

Noreasting on Saturday? And does blogging about a forecast jinx it?

Second question first:  EVERYTHING jinxes the wind.   Still, somewhere else there is probably someone saying "but the forecast says 'rain' so I'm not going...still too cold" to counter the blog jinx, so I'll get to sail.    I hope.   But where?  Napeague for some freestyling?    Past Napeague to Gardiners if it really blows?   North Sea Road?  Towd Point?    I just wanna get out there.  Thus speaks NOAA:

Sat

NE winds 10 to 15 kt with gusts up to 20 kt.

My favorite fear of windsurfing jinx story (just a moment, really) involves OG Puffin Steve.  Steve's a neurologist, Mr. Empirical Science, believer in nothing the laws of physics don't have a firm grip on.   At a baseball game you can't tell him that whether he focuses or not will have an impact on the game (he baffles me.)  Anyway one morning during a Hatteras trip we had a forecast for 30mph winds in the afternoon.   So I thought I'd derig my 7.5.   Steve came upon me as I removed the boom, asked me what I was doing, and when I replied he shouted "ARE YOU INSANE?" and had me put the boom back on the rig.  I was going to kill the wind, singlehandedly.

How Long Does A Deep Thigh Bruise Take to Heal?

Mine took five weeks.

I post this because I found precious little information when I sought it for myself.  Lots of "time will tell" and "it depends on the severity of your ding, your overall health, physical therapy and RICE treatments" etc that never got to something that read "four to six weeks" for example.

So here is one puffin's tale:

-Got slammed in the thigh by my SUP board (whilst getting worked by a closed out wave).
-Was able to continue SUPing (following five minutes of swearing) but after the drive home found walking difficult.
-Major swelling around the impact zone (of my thigh) later that day.
-After several days of semi-limping, developed bruising everywhere BUT where the board hit.
-Tried windsurfing two weeks later...I could not jump the board, and found myself limping again the day after.
-About the time my bruises cleared (five weeks) tried another session.  I was 90% good, which is fine by me.
-I still have a bump at the impact site, and it's still sore, but it continues to slowly improve.

So if you've googled the question (HLDADTBTTH?) I hope this one example is of use to you.  YMMV.

(The thigh, 2.5 weeks after getting slammed.)

Windsurfing, Kiteboarding, Stand Up Paddling Swap Meet (and other important dates)

Traffic has been way up on the Puffin since last Saturday (between the wind and the weather, last weekend seems to have woken up a lot of windsurfers) so I thought it was a good time to list some dates.

Swap Meet:   Saturday May 8th at Hampton Watersports (formerly Windsurfing Hamptons).  Like the name implies, there's more than windsurfing gear to be had...stand up paddle stuff will be there, as well as a large selection of kiteboarding gear for the Vader set.  (Other stuff to contact Hampton Watersports about:  a Starboard stand up paddling demo on June 19th and 20th, and an Ozone kiteboarding demo on June 5th and 6th.)

Windsurfing Clinic:   ABK Boardsports makes its Spring Long Island appearance May 21-23 at Napeague.   You know you want to get better (or just learn how) and there's no better way to start your summer than with Andy Brandt and his merry men.

Port Washington Yacht Club windsurfing instruction:  starts June 15th, as per Frank M's Drysuit 2.  If you can't make it to ABK, PW is worth checking out.  Quoting the announcement as seen on Frank's blog:

"We are very pleased to announce that we have retained the services of a windsurfing instructor for the summer season, beginning June 15^th. Philip Muller is a US Windsurfing National Champion who has participated in events in Hawaii, Spain and Portugal.

In addition to windsurfing instruction being available to the children enrolled in the Junior Programs, there will be instruction available for all active members, children and adults, Monday - Friday from 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM and on Saturday and Sunday by appointment from 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The first one hour lesson is free and instruction will be $20.00 per hour thereafter."

So much to do!   If you haven't yet hit the water (or even if you have) remember to give your gear a good inspection before starting the season.   It may be time to replace downhauls, outhauls, and inhauls.  How is that uni looking?   Are your fins still tight?

Windsurfing Frenzy at Saturday Megasesh

It was sunny, windy warm (the air at least) and a Saturday, and anyone who could walk (and rig) seemed to show up at Sebonac Inlet, many for their first session of the year.

 Many feared it would not come to pass.  "Does NOAA lie?" Christian asked me on Thursday, hoping against hope not to be burned by the promising forecast.   Of course they lie, but we were due for wind and we scored.  And my stupid dinged leg did not hinder me (much)...I'm back, baby!   And so were over twenty others.   The sail call was  mostly 4.7-5.2 lit (me on a 5.3 and 77 liters with more power than  I needed) in the morning, but by noon many were boarding up to handle the lulls that started to come through.

There were seemingly hundreds (probably about 25) people on the water...a partial list of shredmeisters includes CD, Scott, the Wolf, Peconic Jeff, Frank, CPU John (and his brother), Ethan, Christian, Dr. Pain...it's largely a blur because I was so manically focused on getting back on the water (if you're one of the many whose name I missed, please leave a comment ("Dude, how could you forget how I BLEW PAST YOU AT THE REEF?!?!" for example.)  

The mighty Bill Doutney took several hundred photos of the action...check out his imagery here. 

If it's been awhile since you've windsurfed and you're wondering if it will feel incredibly wonderful when you finally do, let me tell you:  It does.

(All photos courtesy Bill Doutney.)

Windsurfing Flapper (boop boop be doop)

During a casual conversation in mixed company about strange sailing tech I mentioned flappers (properly known as anti-ventilation skirts, those semi-silly plastic tongues that allowed raceboard designers to chop off the tails.)  This immediately sparked the imagination of Bonnie Queen of the Kayak Bloggers (see Frogma).  Bonnie can draw, and so here we are.   Awesome, I say!

(Click on the art above for Bonnie's original post.   To the right we have the best photo I could find of an AVS flapper.   Not an ideal photo, so if you're new to flappers, the white tongue is a rubbery material that extends several inches behind the fin. The idea is it prevents air from getting sucked down behind the fin where it would induce spinout.  I never raced, but I sailed a few AVS-equipped boards.   They worked, but gave the overwhelming impression of It's Not Going To Work For Long.)

How does an elephant catch a wave? He paddles with his trunk.

What...you think he used his feet?   This is stand up paddling, I say!

"Insane Big and Perfect!" Scott's Video Pick: Angulo at Cabo

As we get drier and drier...waiting for conditions...we can dream.

Lightwind Tricktionary? Welcome to Pierre's World

It's April, it's 60-something degrees out, and I'm thinking I might rig a 5.5 and work on lightwind freestyle next weekend (yeah the water will be cold but I haven't shredded in ages...need to get the old boom in my hand!)   With a possible date with my longboard looming, Pierre comes to mind.   If you don't know Pierre he's the guy turning twisted tricks on a longboard...the video looks like it's from yesteryear but the guy is doing this stuff en oh doubleyou NOW.   He preaches the gospel of Grab Some Ancient Gear and Tear It Up, and recently sent me a bunch of video clips illustrating the point.  Check these out and let me know if you're feeling it.  Ladies and Gentlemen:  The Pierre Show!

Theo is a Puffin

If you're not one of the ten or so people who read the Peconic Puffin in the '90's, this is one big "what the heck?"   Well that's just how it's going to be!   

The creature above ("pre-smushed" says Cindy) is Theo.  Theo is Jordan and Avery's new puppy, and adopted little brother of Spooky.   Or at least he hopes to be.  So far Spooky has expressed nothing but disdain for the new arrival ("You are dead to me" Spooky says, in a heavy doggy-Slavic accent) but Theo is persistent.   And very cute.