The Peconic Puffin Windsurfing Blog

Notice of Fun: East Coast Windsurfing Festival V Coming in June!

We race.  We freestyle.  We SUP.   The good times they do roll.

The fifth annual East Coast Windsurfing Festival takes place June 9-10 at Joe's Beach in Heckscher State Park on Long Island.   His Highness The King of the East Mike Burns hath said it is so, and Master of Racing Ceremonies MC T-Bone Thom hath seconded the decree.

So it is so.

To register, send Mike Burns an e-mail and say "I'm coming" and "I'm gonna (race, freestyle, or both)."

To learn more, check out the East Coast Windsurfing Festival web site.

For a dubious accounting of the previous four ECWF's, read the Peconic Puffin's coverage of the East Coast Windsurfing Festival through the ages.

June 9-10...save the dates!

(Race photo courtesy Bill Doutney.)

Le Bruise

Wrist to shoulder.  This is a week after being hit in the lower tricep by the 11'4".  Still hurts, but didn't stop me from getting a half dozen waves on Sunday. (It did stop me from getting the other half dozen, though!)

Another ding to another arm

The plan was to SUP for about 90 minutes at the Heliport launch, then handle some work.   Joining George Pav, Jon Ford and the Wolf I caught all of two waves (about ten minutes of water time) when on my third I rode in too far, jumped off the board in the beach break, and had my 11'4" get thrown into the air before it came down just above my left elbow.   Much pain, big time "funny bone" sensation.   After sitting on the beach for 20 minutes I thought I might be able to paddle through the pain (beautiful clean 3-4 footers rolling happy and wide) but every time I tried to catch a wave, I found I couldn't manage the strong stokes to get up to speed.  Misery!

The other guys had all driven their 4WD's on to the beach, while I had a bit of a hike to the parking lot.  With my old bad arm now my good arm, there was no way I could walk the board all the way back, and George generously loaded my gear onto his pickup.  But a minute into the load a gust of wind ripped his SUP from the roof and sent it spinning right by my head!   "What a post you'd have for the Puffin," George noted.  Yeah...I arrived with a bad right shoulder.  Then my dinged left arm made my shoulder seem healthy.  Now if only I might have had my head bashed open by a board...

George's ride suffered a pair of dings, unfortunately, but at least the board was on land so no water was taken on.   Me...I need to take a few days away from these dangerous SUP boards.

(I do not have bulging triceps.  That's all bruise above my elbow.)

Surprisingly Good Sunday SUPsurfing Sunday

The wave forecast was middling (maybe we'd get some knee high) but enough of wanted to get out that a search for waves was called.  I checked Flying Point whilst Peconic Jeff (Atlantic Jeff on these days) cruised the Hampton Bays breaks.   Scott was scoffing at photos from the Bunger cam and other reports ("Anklesnappers!" he roared, and suggested Bunger was under the influence of influencers) but Jeff reported 4-5 foot waves running wide and long at Ponquogue, so the Wolf and I met him there (Flying Point had nothing).

The sun was shining, air about 60, water not too cold (we wore light hoods and no gloves, 5/3 wetsuits) and Jeff's call was accurate!   Long rights could be had (Jeff was on one for half an hour, it seemed to me) and lefts too.   I haven't SUP'd much over the winter, so what my Sunday performance lacked in grace, style, competence etc it made up for in gratefulness and laughs.

Scotty me droog, ya shoulda been there!

(Top:  I am happy to be on the water.  Bottom: I would be happier if I stepped forward.  Photos by Jeff Schultz.)

Lord Scotworth Wants to Sail

"if it blows please call me i will go anywhere"

Thus spake Chimply Lord Scotworth, the Earl of Kielt.   Wind Chimp, Puffin, a Man Who Would Shred, he like the rest of us clings to the increasingly distant hope that there will be a SW blow this afternoon.

Let it be.  I want to windsurf today.

Windsurfing Swap Meet (SUP and Kiteboarding and Surfing too) May 12th

You need more gear.  Or newer gear.  Or different gear.  Maybe (I can't believe I'm saying this) you have too much gear, and need to sell some of it to someone else.

Nah.

Okay, but maybe you have perfectly good gear (or gear that was once perfectly good and now is ALMOST perfectly good, and would be good for a good person who is just not as good or as monied a windsurfer as you.  Then selling some of that good gear to make room for new (or newer) good gear for you would be good.

Yeah.

Okay so May 12th is the date of the 75th (give or take) windsurfing/stand up paddling/kiteboarding/surfing swap meet at Long Island's Hampton Watersports.  There will be more gear than you can shake a stick at (unless you're Neil Peart.)  Contact the store for details.

Sweet Sunny 4.0, and Debating Jeff's Broken Nose

After an hour of a full powered ripfest at Sebonac (sail sizes 3.7-4.2, the reef serving up fine ramps) Peconic Jeff headed for shore with face a-troubled.  We all joined him and gathered round.

"I broke the nose," he said, pointing to the front of his fairly new 86 liter Fanatic.  "And my other board is busted too!" 

The Wolf, Scott, and I examined the trauma site.  A good 6" crack, exposed foam, water inside...serious damage requiring a serious repair.  Certainly unsailable.

"Tape it up," Scott said.

"I got some solarez," the Wolf offered.

"Don't be wimp," I added helpfully.

Jeff said he wasn't going to sail it anymore this day, and instead was going to begin the water draining process.   Scott and I advocated standing the board up nose down so the water could drain.  The Wolf countered with a suggesting of standing it nose up, so that the water might evaporate out.

"Think of a bottle with some water in it.  If you leave it standing up the water evaporates out," he said.

"Think of a bottle with some water in it," I too said.  "If you turn it upside down the water comes out.  Maybe he should drain it first and then set it up for evaporation?"

Then we all started in again on Jeff to tape it up, maybe try a glob of ding stick or gum, and sail some more.  He wisely said No again, so three of us heckled the Wolf about his Stand The Board Nose Up suggestion.

"You guys don't want to listen to anything I say," he proclaimed.  So off he walked, grabbed his board and 3.7, hit the water and proceeded to tear it up some more.  You won't listen to me?  I'll show you how it's done!

Inspired, Scott and I launched too whilst Jeff took pictures and thought about getting better friends.  Tape it up?

(Top: Scott likes to sail right up to the beach, lit.  Bottom:  Jibing is serious business for me when it's my first Peconic session since November.  Photos by Jeff "Broken Board" Schultz.)

 

Happy and Bleeding...Hot Girl Horror Show

Christian Charles has made a movie.   It’s got my wife Sally pacing (“I’m so tense”) and me very, very, happy I am married. Dating can get you killed (or worse)!   It's called Happy and Bleeding.

Dori is searching for true love. She wants to be swept off her feet. She’s a looker...she draws the guys, but she hasn’t found Him yet. Then she meets Norman. He could be the one. Dori feels a connection, and after a few months of dating invites him to spend a long weekend at her place upstate. He accepts.

This is a profound mistake.

I’m not going to tell you what happens then. Take 1/3 Fatal Attraction, 1/3 Misery, and 1/3 Christian’s own wonderfully twisted mind, and add M. Emmet Walsh with a shotgun.

Happy and Bleeding completely freaked Sally out. Me...like I said, I’m just happy I’m married. I’m also glad I saw it as a screener on a television.   Don’t know if I could handle it on the movie theater screen. It hasn't been released yet, but when it is I'll ask Peconic Jeff for his big-screen take.  He's young and strong.

Yep...Christian has made a movie.    Bleeding...for sure!  Happy?

(There's a web site for Happy and Bleeding...check it out.)

Sunday SUP

I had to do gardening (code for "my shoulder is still iffy") but a SUP sesh was had at Cupsogue.  Jeff emailed me: "Jon, Christian and I found an outer bar well to the east of the Cupsogue pavilion. Rides were short and waist-to-stomach range, but the incoming tide kicked things up to an occasional head-high+. Winds were light, and the surface went semi-glass for a bit, until winds switched to on-shore. 

Shorebreak on the inner bar was brutal - we all paid dues for ill-timed attempts. But once through, the outer bar waves were giant and gentle."

I probably chose correctly vv the brutal shorebreak, but oh could I have used a few waves!

(Photo by Jill Fox)