the windsurfing gypsy

2,700 Miles Pt:2

2012-01-30T14:28:00.000-08:00

59 days off. To travel and do with as I would like. My first decision, get on a Greyhound for a little over a day. 1,500 miles on a bus to visit my mom for Thanksgiving.

Union Station, Los Angeles: the most impressive station I saw.

Then I traveled 3 days. Nearly 3,000 miles. Taking 3 trains. Arriving in North Dakota. Beginning in South Padre Island TX to find myself in Bismark North Dakota. As usual surrounded by water. But doing nothing as I would “normally”.

It all started for me in California. Quitting my job. My 25 yr life packed up into 3 bags and thrown into the back of a conversion U-haul for the better part of 3 yrs. Spending all of my time on a beach somewhere, windsurfing and teaching others to windsurf. Corpus Christi and South Padre Island Texas to start off the spring. Continuing on to Avon North Carolina, and Mauntauk New York before spending my summers in California and Hood River, OR.

As the summer wains its off to Cape Cod, MA back to NY, and Dewey Beach Delaware. Before going back to North Carolina and Texas. Usually with a little less then a month time off its off to Bonaire and Aruba for my winter before it all starts back up in the spring.

Sounds like a dream 322 days traveling around chasing the sun. But their is a price to be paid when using a cooler as a refrigerator, a car as a home, and your moms address as your own. For how much I am out and about I am for the most part alone. My socialization and fraternization all done through work. Everyday normal things and interactions become unusually difficult.

The nice thing is that abnormal begins to become common place. Deciding last minute with no plan I take a train half way around the United States. Finding myself in a foot of snow. 1,000 miles away from a beach. In the beginning of winter. At #2 on the US list of coldest cities. With a friend who was both at the end and the beginning of this story.

Southern California Coastline

Just your average trip. The Texas Eagle took me through 1,000 miles plus of desert and Cactus. The Pacific Starlight took me along the southern California Coastline and through all the neighborhoods of my first 25yrs. Roaming the cars of the train. Sipping on a beer at a table in the observation car. As the scenes of my life, Beaches, cliffs and waves passed by me on the rail. Through a great Halloween, Great Great Grandmother, and Great grandparents towns. Passing by Childhood summers. Into Tennis matches, and past football games attended, first kisses and Friends left behind.

View from my seat, as we steamed through So Cal.

Cental California Valley

This would be the last picture my camera took, on the Coast Starlight. I would not get it fixed until just after getting on the 28 Empire Builder.

Somewhere in Western Montanna.

Waking up just in time to see the sun rising through the clouds and over the mountains. I was somewhere in Western Montana with my camera finally working. This would be the start of scenes totally unfamiliar to me.

Western Montana

Eastern Montana

Above and to the right the two sides of Montana. It was as if a line had been drawn mountains on one side and a totally flat landscape on the other.

3 days on a train and I was finally there. Minot North Dakota where I met my friend and former Santa Cruz roommate Annie. I would not realize it till I saw her brother and sister in law. That they all where there when I stopped living in a house and started at that time living in a tent, [the next season I would upgrade to a van].

2,700+ traveled to get 1,564 miles away! PT:1

2012-01-10T04:06:00.000-08:00

To most it sounds pretty crazy, to take a nearly 3,000 mile trip in order to be 1,500 miles further away then you started. But then again most people don't have 59 days off [estimated] Not to mention most people are not accustomed to my current lifestyle spent solely on the road. Below my planned route to visit a friend and former house mate from Santa Cruz. [I lived in Santa Cruz 4 yrs ago this May]

Below what a normal person would have done, by taking a plane and flying from Arizona to North Dakota.... But as it has already been established over the last few years in this blog I am not exactly normal! Most of you by now must be thinking that taking a train or a bus must be less expensive then flying. [otherwise why would I take 60hrs and almost 1,500 more miles then needed, to get where I was going] Unfortunately to compound my seemingly mad behavior a bus or a train was more expensive to travel by then a plane in my circumstance. I'm sure with proper planning. That is more then 4 days notice before booking a ticket, prices may have been the same.

View Larger Map

For those that did see the Greyhound trip. [below] My bus ride from South Padre Island, TX. The start of my 59 days off [estimated] To my first stop visiting my mom for Thanksgiving. Setting the next path to be taken, my train ride to the snow.

View Larger Map
Roughly 3,788 miles of road and rail to get me from Texas to North Dakota. With a stop over in AZ to visit my mom for Thanksgiving before spending Christmas in the snowy geographical center of the United States [East to west...not north to south] I could not think of any other means more appropriate then buses and trains for a gypsy like myself. Even though I would not recommend a bus ride to anyone, the train however I feel is a form of transportation that more should take advantage of.
The best thing about taking a train is the dignity in which you travel. The seats in regular class make first class airline seats look like high school bleachers. Tremendous room. Leg rests that extend up from the seat to the end of your calves. Foot rests extending out from the seat in front. Plugs to charge your computer or whatever else you may wish. An observation car to have a drink. [Right]

Or just sit with friends and family and take in the sights as you steam past them. [Left] Even a dinning car that serves full on meals [not "meal" boxes of candies and chips like on the planes].

After making this trip I realized how much we sacrifice for "convenience". By that I mean time, for a belief in taking a path of least resistance. This may just be me or the influence of all the Euro's I hang out with... but my destination is just a part of my trip. I do not like having the stress of getting somewhere rushing though all the sites before catching my plane back a week later, only to go back to work the next day. If given that option or the option to stay at home relaxing with ice cream while watching movies, I would stay at home.
When taking the train I was relaxed from the very start. No amazingly long lines to get your ticket from the counter on a train. No long feverishly nervous wait in a security check. No hoping I put on a good pair of socks for the flight. Nor is there a worry if you have the right size bottles of liquid in an approved travel bag. I did not have to take of my shoes, or out my laptop. I did not have to walk through a metal detector or full body scanner only to go to a secondary screening with a pat down, and magic wand between my legs. I simply got my ticket. Boarded my train. Sat back...and enjoyed my freedom to move/travel around.
To Be Continued......

2011 Recap and the 2012 Beric Challenge!

2012-01-08T19:54:00.000-08:00

In 2011 I decided to focus most of my attention on learning as many moves as possible. Broken down into three major Categories,
Realistic = most likely to be attainable,
~~1.Switch in straps~~
~~2.Grubby Diablo~~
~~3.Spock Diablo~~
~~4.One Handed Swayze~~
~~5.Swayze Diablo~~
6.Clew First Spock Diablo
7.Grubby Carving 360
~~8.Stall Jibe~~
~~9.Backwind Jibe~~
Possible = Given other skills learned also very possible,
~~10. Air Swayze~~
11. Ponch
12. Eslider
13.Switch Kono
14. Kono
15.Flaka 720
16. Double Flaka
17.Double Spock
18.Shove it
19. Cheese Roll
20.Clew First Flaka
21.Toad
Fantasy = Hardest moves I could think of but still doable.
22. Shaka
23. Punetta
24. Burner
25.Bob
26.Back Loop
27.Push Loop
28.Double Loop
29. Funnel

My Goal was to achieve 20 of these moves for 2011, I however did not come close. Having only walked away with 9 total all the listed moves above with a line through them and one not on the list a monkey jibe. When writing this down it was 5 moves every 3 months, under perfect conditions in a great year of all around windsurfing this would have still been a challenge. My purpose was to set my mark, and constantly work on something and not get stuck day after day not trying to learn a new skill.

For 2012 my goals have switched slightly to have more focus off the water then on the water. But there is one major goal for the new year thanks to my good friend in Oregon, Beric. The Ponch! Beric, happened upon a challenge after doing a practice drill I had told him for the ponch... which apparently he is really good at, being able to do this drill in his bedroom and vault on the bed, over his wife right onto his side of the bed. "Then I thought maybe I can make myself start throwing down by challenging you?"
Video below Beric trying to get the jump on the challenge/ make up for 3 months of windsurfing I will have in Bonaire while he is in Oregon.

So the contest!
6+ months to Ponch/Goiter. Contest ends at the 2012 Hood River ABK Clinic
The rules...
There are none!
The Stakes
Bragging rights [although I'm open for some other suggestions]

To the left More shots of Beric Wells, my current compitetion...throwing down a back loop in the Gorge. Hopefully by Hood River that will not be me he is looking down at....

Beric doing the "Moon Walk" [left]

Rapper Flo Rida knows WASSUP!

2011-12-14T13:21:00.000-08:00

http://www.officialflo.com/video/1a4f48-flo-rida-good-feeling-official-video/

Rapper Flo Rida grabs an RRD Wassup to get a good feeling! Click the link on the top or bottom to check out the music video!
http://www.officialflo.com/video/1a4f48-flo-rida-good-feeling-official-video/

Greyhound, something you only do once!

2011-12-01T23:14:00.000-08:00

It was one of those trips that in my mind seemed like "A Great American" experience. In hindsight I may have been a little naive. If I would have put my plan to paper or even talked with others my decision to take a Greyhound trip may not have been.
8 scheduled stops. 30 in total. 1,125 miles. 24 scheduled hrs. 34hrs in total. Sleep measured in minutes. One Rather risky pee on a moving bus. [my first experience using any type of transportational toilet!!!...never even on a plane] I was slightly disappointed I did not have to use a token! What happened to those! 3 delays. 1 delay more then 6hrs. Mostly due to the previous. Just to get home for Thanksgiving with my Mom, and have fun along the way.

This bus I was on continued to Reno. For a brief second I thought about going with it. Try my luck out. Hit the casinos. But after 8 hrs on a bus, and still not out of Texas I knew I was not destined to be lucky enough to make that trip worthwhile.

But then there was San Antonio. 1st of 3 transfers. 4hr layover. No checkpoints. No X-rays. No full body scanners or walking barefoot through a metal detector. I was free to explore with reckless abandon. Putting my baggage in a locker at the station [those still exist!! unlike pay-phones]. I armed my self with my camera and set out to explore the city to the brink of getting lost. After being on a bus for almost 6 hrs, San Antonio was not very impressive. To me a standard city with large buildings, traffic, and a lot of people preoccupied with their destinations. That was until I stopped looking up at the buildings and finally looked down. Who would have thought that this Secret Garden would exist in a city like this.

Above these scenes a city was going about its business. Cars, Buses, and Taxis. Lights signaling Go, Stop, Walk. Horns honking. Homeless men like me catching a few ZZZ's on a bench. The tap tap of a nightstick signaling them their time was up. But just below people where out for a jog, couples held hands for a romantic walk. Tourists grabbed a taxi....a water taxi. [below]

This was the reason I had wanted to take a bus. Granted riding on a bus is not to be repeated. But the sense of exploration. The ability to stop and experience something. While most of my stops were so bad I did not want to even get off the bus. If I had not chosen the path that I had, there is no way I would have ever found this gem in San Antonio.

This trip would turn out in my mind to be a Joke. With a punchline that only made sense by the means I took to get there.

Had I decided to spend more time here maybe that would have been different but as it was these ducks were following me. Eating up every trace of what I had left behind to find my way back!

So whats after taking a bus 1,125 miles to Moms house for Thanksgiving!.....An almost 3,000 mile train ride to visit a friend.

Bonaire with ABKboardsports:2012

2011-11-07T08:49:00.000-08:00

I have been saving a lot of Bonaire photos from last year to use just before going back in 2012. These aerial photos are courtesy of Markus Seidel a German photographer I met last year.

Left leeward side of the island and downtown sections where most of the restaurants and bars and Hotels are.

Below is of Lac Bay from just outside its protective reef. The light blue is the shallow water most windsurfers sail in just in front of the center. There its shallow warm, and has onshore winds which makes it hard to get away from the Beach Bar but easy to get back to it.

The picture to the left is me throwing down a Swayze just in front of Jibe City. This is the area where you will find most sailors and most onlookers, and sometimes cameras to capture moments like these.

Below me in the middle of a one-handed Swayze on a 100L TwinTip and a 4.5 RRD Superstyle....in the foreground a beginner student of mine. In the background you can see the waves breaking on the reef. Where else could you find a beginner standing on a board while his instructor sails behind him on a 4.5?

There is 1 last North American camp left in 2011.
South Padre, TX Nov 10-13

After which I will be on vacation for 2 months [aka my windsurfing instructor unemployment period]
Then its back to work, in Bonaire
Jan 23rd-27th
Jan 30- Feb 3rd
Feb 13th- 17th

Bonaire is not just a place I like to go to work [for obvious reasons]. Nor is it just a place I enjoy the most when sailing on my own, but it is a home away from my homelessness. With 7 different stops around the United States I do not have an actual home. Now on my 4th trip around with ABK every stop is no longer a trip to a new or different spot. Rather each trip is a return home which in Bonaire's case could not be truer.

Special thanks to Markus Seidel to the left. For allowing me to share some of these pictures with you all.

Below the popular dive/snorkel spot 1,000 steps from the air.

Left Windward side of the island.

Below A beach I never new existed before, I think this year I will try and go there at least once!

Left Riding the rail nothing more fitting for a Gypsy.

Below Clew First Rail Ride in front of Jibe City.

Hatteras Fall 2011: After Irene

2011-10-29T20:55:00.000-07:00

Hatteras Island had only been open for a few days before we crossed the new bridge spanning Pea Islands "New Inlet" Some 46 days after Hurricane Irene hit the island.
At first glance most things when driving down highway 12 seemed to be fairly normal considering. These first two pics are of an old cart track that I used to believe to be operational but now am fairly certain is not

It is strange to describe to people who have not been to Hatteras and are not from the East Coast how this and other coastal communities operate on the Atlantic. When driving along the coast of North Carolina all along the beach front there are hundreds if not thousands of rental houses, whose sole purpose is to be rented for a week or two. Before you even get to Hatteras Island in Kitty Hawk the road is lined with rental properties and developments not for people living or working in the area but only for people visiting. These houses are fully furnished with beds, couches, TV's, washers, dryers...etc. Every yr this community relies on visitors to rent these houses, take water sports lessons, hire a fishing boat or eat out at restaurants. Hurricane Irene however hit Hatteras Island about 50 days ago and made it unreachable for most of that time. Having missed a good portion of the last part of the summer and a major tourist holiday many of the business have opted to remain closed even after the temporary bridge was made.

Above/Right the KOA across the street from Hatteras Island Surf and Sail. What exactly was in the KOA to make such large piles of debris for the life of me I cannot remember.

While the destruction at the KOA is very visible, most of the damage is internal. Mold and mildew, damaged electronics, beds, couches, siding, carpet...etc. But the greatest damage is even harder to see since those who would have visited over the last 50 days did not, and will more then likely not return until the start of the new season.

Most of the homes remain intact, largely because of how well they were made. But as most things when looking from the outside it is very hard to judge the inside. The damage is represented by the piles on the street [Above] basically anything and everything that was once housed or would be housed [renters] inside of a these structures.
Right: trucks like these drive up and down Highway 12 picking up piles [Right] These massive crane trucks take the damaged materiel from the street corner to a large day use beach area [Below]

These piles make the KOA piles seem small in comparison.

Right: Salvo day use turned into landfill not only houses everything including the kitchen sinks but trailers, of which some washed down the street and onto highway 12.

Left and Below a Kitty Hawk kite day use launch area.

Windows and doors busted out by up to 12 foot tidal surges. Decking and pilings uplifted from their foundation.

Local reef store looks great from Highway 12, from all outer appearances it should be open but is not. But the back of the building shows why the doors are not open. 2 back doors both kicked in by surging water, siding and insulation torn away T-shirts and beach chairs line the parking lot and grass pulled from inside out!

For more information about the cleanup and other news.
http://www.co.dare.nc.us/poststorm.asp

If you would like to make donations, these are a locals windsurfer and shop owners choices!
http://wind-nc.com/2011/09/post-irene-update/

Be Careful what you ask for!

2011-10-20T20:23:00.000-07:00

Since hitting the west coast my sailing and progress learning new moves has been stalled by injury and destruction of gear. It has been a solid 2 week cycle of injury broken gear, injury broken gear on a perfectly rotating cycle. Once hitting the East Coast I have pretty much not sailed save 2 days up until arriving in Hatteras. Which was partially a good thing, the extra forced time off allowed my broken toe to heal. But did not allow me to try and finish off my goal of 20 new moves for 2011... I'm still 11 moves off that mark.
So after a while you start asking for wind, with the constant complaining/boredom and weight gain lead to more pleading and wishing for wind. But as usual not only did I get what I wished for but a little more. The first day in Hatteras and the first run of my session left me doing something that I had never done in my 16yrs of windsurfing...leaving me wondering if maybe it was a new skill. I had hooked into the side of my board. As far as hooking into boards go I did a pretty darn good job if I don't say so myself. The real trick was actually unhooking from my board.

But that would not be the last of the wind, The next day of windsurfing would be Oct 19th between the Hrs of 3 and 5 on my 4.0 and the 83 thinking about thinking of wishing for less wind. But I had asked for more wind and gotten it...really I was looking for a couple 25mph days. Not 1 50mph day. At this point I don't dare ask for less for the reason that I know now how little I may get.
I had managed to sail for 2 hrs and not hurt myself or break anything so It was a good day of windsurfing. Although I still have a few more days to keep my streak alive.

October 20th would be another windy day. But it was a teaching day working during most of it for ABkboardsports and after standing in the water for 6+ hrs I did not really have any energy to go out and do much.

Since getting here in Hatteras I have tried to tell people about the hurricane that had hit here, and how a temporary bridge had to be built to reach the island and of the destruction. So here are a few of the pictures of what it looks like here now. I will be posting more in the future and despite the damage most of the island is fully operational and ready to visit.

1 massive pile of debris in a field of wreckage.

All along the roadside piles like this and some even more impressive litter the landscape. As homeowners clean up the damage they make piles like this for the gov. to come by and pick up and place in the larger piles of wreckage.

Trailers, mobile homes, RV's nothing is to small to put on the road and move to the large collection site. Even a former ABK trailer sold to HISS was floated away with the high water onto the road. I was a day to late to get a picture of that trailer before they towed it away.

Long Island, NY Fall 2011

2011-10-16T11:38:00.000-07:00

Long Island, NY is our second stop on the East Coast, and host to two different types of specialty groups. With the first being a Long Board Race group. As ABKboardsports has been sponsored by Fanatic Sailboards for the last 2 yrs it seemed only fitting to throw in a sight from the past, a Fanatic Ultra Cat.

The Second ABK clinic in NY, is the special freestyle group with people working on Vulcans, Carving 360's, Spocks, Flakas and a lot more fancy moves with strange names. This clinic is also host to some of the heartiest windsurfers I have ever meet. Unlike west coasters who tend to be spoiled by an endless supply of great conditions a lot of these sailors go out no matter what when its windy.

For West Coasters that may be offended by not being known as hearty, lets just say there is no 100 degree rule. I'm talking Snow....Ice fields...Saltwater so cold it begins to slush and freeze!!!! oh and its windy so windchill is more like Breeze Bite. Talking with one camper at this clinic, I found out PVC panels found on a lot of windsurf sails will actually freeze and shatter in the conditions he sails in. Luckily for me and ABK we come just before those conditions present themselves... despite buying my new 5/4 wetsuit especially for the North East I never had to use it.

The fact that windsurfers in the North East sail in the dead of winter is in no way related to the quality of their beaches.

I still have a hard time believing when I see them, that beaches like this one are in New York. Beautiful white soft sand extended for miles down the coast line. I would be very hard pressed to find sand and beaches like this in Northern California.

So far this fall we have managed 1 day of windsurfing per stop! So this day not only did we sail for over 3hrs in flat water, but Andy drug me out to go sail sups in the ocean.

Unable to hold on and feeling as if I took about as much advantage of the day as possible I came in to film and take some pictures.

Best Ride to the Beach, Sept. 2011

2011-09-26T21:16:00.000-07:00

HMALTV: High Mobility All-Terrain Vehicle

Pinzgauer 710m, Originally made in Austria and named after an Austrian breed of Horses manufacturing began in 1971 as a Military Multi- Purpose Vehicle

This vehicle had started to increase in popularity and started to replace the Land Rover Defender in the Military Utility Vehicle Role.

It can not only carry more troops then the US Humvee but more rigged sails as well!

David a NY architect and the owner of this 1st generation Pinzgauer, Shows up to the Long Island ABKboardsports Clinic with the special Race Group.

David Below Proves how far this Military Multi Purpose Vehicle can go into the bushes with a rigged 6.5m sail rigged and hanging out the back.

Photo blog: Matt and the Goose

2011-09-09T16:17:00.000-07:00

The first time he has seen the Goose in over 3yrs.

Somewhere along the lines we gave up trying to get in the front door after I killed a wasp, which was next to a nest awaking a fair amount of his brothers....no pictures were taken of this as we were too busy running.

All he wanted was a couple fins, and some centerboards for the Long boards we got from the trailer above. But we could not get the lock undone.....

Matt's Solution for a stuck lock. When all else fails.....Get something big to smash on it!

Smashing an old 4x4 on a lock apparently does NOTHING!.... so we went to Delta Windsurf because Matt said Derek would have the answer....and he did!

After running from the first set of Wasps we found another set once we got the doors open....after dealing with that and other things related to leaving a truck sit in a field for a couple years, he was pretty much done taking pictures!

But we did get 2 complete Granny Goose boards set up for him to take to San Diego...Really they are High Fly Revos but these boards were special edition Granny Goose and Safeway boards made for ABK.

Matts next challenge drive his Camery with two old long boards, a 90L freestyle board a bunch of sails, booms, camping stove.......[all the way back to San Diego]

Legends from the past and the present

2011-07-29T13:12:00.000-07:00

For months now I have been sitting in the shop and surrounded by Delta History reading old issues of Northwest Sailboards and Windsurfing California.

It took Kevin Pritchard Dominating in this past Lord of the Wind Race in Baja, to truly appreciate what I have been surrounded by ever since I first came to the delta. To find out more about the Lord of the Winds visit this windsport link. http://windsport.com/travel_article?news_id=1075 But then I realized something, I had read somewhere of another Baja race that Kevin had been in. Back in 1991 a full 20 yrs before the Lord of the Winds there was a Baja Championship. He placed 2nd back then just in front of his older brother Matt Pritchard in the Amateurs division when he was 15.

So I thought it would be cool to take some pictures of this windsurfing barn out in the middle of nowhere on one of the best rivers to sail on.

Next to all the fancy new extensions there rests a Teak Extension how cool is that to still have a retail item of this generation that has still never sold ;-)

One of the last things you may see when leaving the barn is an old original windsurf sail rigged with a teak boom, one of two located in the shop. One of his goals is to get his hands on an original windsurf sail with a 5 digit number....those apparently are cooler then a 6 digit number.

One of the first things you might notice is music playing in the background but you might overlook or in this case under look the D2 race board speaker boxes.

So here I am again looking at the history of the barn and just some of the things that may have left out these doors. Reading about the Legends of earlier yrs and the ones that were soon to be, thinking about how cool it was to have this shop that not only provides me with everything that I need to learn about windsurfing today, but what I might want to remember from the past. When a current Legend of windsurfing from California stops by on his way down to Baja for the AWT event.
http://americanwindsurfingtour.com/

Kevin Pritchard! that same kid I had read about who was tearing it up at 15 and who 20yrs later Dominated a long distance race in Baja this year stopped by the Delta.

Kevin Pritchard is sponsored by Ezzy Sails, Starboard...to check out some of his stories or amazing pictures visit his Blog

Things to note in this picture other then the fact Kevin Pritchard is signing some of these old magazines I have been reading over the last few months. Above Kevin's head is a picture of his brother thought to have been taken in here in Rio Vista..Kevin noticed this right away...apparently it is in the Gorge. Top Center hangs a picture of a whale that swam down this river some time past breaching with windsurfers flying around...[this actually happened and it is not photo shopped]. Left of Kevin is a frame with a Safe Surfer Kondom, from Germany.

And who knows maybe another 20yrs from now my lesson from yesterday could be stopping by this barn signing magazines.

Roberto Ricci is the man

2011-07-26T12:48:00.000-07:00

Up until yesterday I had never met Roberto Ricci or even seen him in a picture. Yesterday I watched a tour of the RRD Headquarters.....and in the middle there was something very odd that was not really elaborated on. In this video he shows you around, introduces you to all the RRD staff and what they do, and what their dreams and goals are with the future of RRD. Just check out min 12....pretty sweet car but something a little off about the car.

Then I found the second video in which The editor of boards magazine gets a ride with Roberto Ricci in his Aston Martin.....

The Title kind of gave the video away. Not only did Roberto Ricci crash his car, but he had the editor of Boards Magazine filming it.....and they both go on with the tour!
What an interview, and a first introduction to the Head of RRD!
RRD Rocks!!!! Roberto Ricci is the Man! and Dan White gets my vote for Editor of the year!

The windsurfing gypsy is sponsored by RRD Sails and Boards Ocean Sunglasses, and Ozone online,
but is in no way affiliated with Boards Magazine!

Dinner at the Catapults

2011-07-21T16:16:00.000-07:00

As with most spots the Delta rewards those who pay their dues! This year the Delta has not seen much traffic from the South Bay Sailors partially because the patterns have been so unpredictable it has been hard to tell what was going on in the Delta when viewing it from an iphone 4.

Aaron and his girlfriend though showed up Sat afternoon despite an unpredictable outlook and a super flood, to come and camp out on the levee. After our 3hr session we had earned our cold beers, handing Aaron an Ice cold beer he looked over to his van as we stood by mine and with a totally strait face asked if I wanted to have dinner at his house! How could I refuse such an amazing offer after which he said good because I have a lot of left over Baja food I need to get rid of.
That is when I suddenly realized why the Catapult made a trip out to the levee...To cook up all his canned chicken and Alfredo sauce!!! Either way somehow Joyce managed to turn leftover Baja food into really good Levee camping food. Although the last meal made on the levee that I had definitely had a slight polyester and gasoline taste to it.

Not wanting to show up empty handed I prepared a nice little Hors d'oeuvres platter of Sliced Pepperoni and Swiss cheese.... which went well with a 2011 Cold Coors Light.

This was to me what windsurfing, and the Sherman Island is all about. Camping out under the stars sharing stories over food and beer. Having fun wherever it could be made. Its too far to drive from most Bay Area spots to watch the sensor and then drive out. It takes a certain amount of commitment and trust that you will get some good wind. In the end his gamble paid off, with at least 3 good sessions on 5.0 and one un-advertised Freestyle contest "Dirty Water Classic II"

To the right: The view from both of our houses parked at the end under the stars, with a full moon and a tower! Thanks again Joyce and Arron for the great dinner and good company!

Windsurfing, Tent Fires and Breakfast all before 10:30am

2011-07-12T14:26:00.000-07:00

Matt had been up for a while getting a good morning ebb session in on the Delta when he decided to wake me up at 8 am... still tired from the Evening 3.7 session on 4.5. But I woke up grabbed my gear put on my boom and wetsuit just in time for the wind to die at 8:30. So I grabbed my shampoo as Matt started the camp stove and took a little river shower.

As I am changing I help Matt grab the bacon and eggs and some other random stuff. Still kind of clueless as to where the cooking was taking place as I grab my chair and Diet Pepsi as Matt Comments "oooohh Duuuuudeeee!" as I sit down and drink my Diet Pepsi I look in the tent as a little fire is starting inside the stove...

Me: "did you start a grease fire"

Matt: "Naw dude just got a little puddle of gas in the back of the stove"

Me: "ooookay..." Long drink of Diet Pepsi

Matt: "uh oh....dude....holy cow patties...."

Me: "yup holy cow patties"

Matt: "Tosses the bacon on the floor of the tent and puts the pot upside down"....stands for a while...."Crap I should not be standing here right now"

By this time the fire is raging and smoke is billowing out from every open window.

Me: "Dude you should remove the gas tank from the stove"

Matt: "Yup good call"

Matt: "Do you have anything else we can put on the fire to smother it some more?"

Me: "Naw dude"

Matt: "ooh its all good looks like the fire is dying out!"

Me: "Ohh good"

Matt: "If I wasn't about to have all my stuff burn down in a tent I would have had you grab the camera...that was a crazy little fire"

Me: "yeah for sure...If I wasn't worried about the whole levee burning down, and how much time I would have to move my van I totally would have filmed that!" [My van takes approx. 30min to warm up before it can drive away from any spot....not a good getaway vehicle.]

More often then not those really hilarious moments that should be caught on camera, A good flame shot as Matt and I are running around Maybe a shot of all the smoke billowing out of our tent as the other two groups of people stood around...Business as usual.

So after waiting for the stove to cool down, and smoke to clear from the tent, I clean the Gasoline from the pot, as Matt sets up the stove, then we rinse off the bacon and try again.

A little before 10:30 we sit in our chairs overlooking the burnt tent we sit having windsurfed...eaten a great breakfast, and had a huge fire that which only ruined 2 slices of bacon and burnt a little of the tent...and we still had another 9 hrs to try and top that morning!

3 Year Anniversary!

2011-06-14T15:14:00.000-07:00

It was 3 yrs ago that I first showed up to work for ABKboardsports! This was my home on the road the first few months! I had no clue what I was doing, or what I was going to do after. But Andy had an opening for a cook and I was an expert at preparing frozen microwave TV dinners! [Unfortunately for me I had to cook everything from scratch].
I have come and gone a long way since first starting with ABK. Footage that I first put together of Andy, Matt and myself sailing, as soon as I was let out of the kitchen, to finally go on the water for the first time with ABK.

Since then I have made 7 cross country drives, been to Bonaire 3 times and twice for over 3 months. Each year when I think that I have seen everything that there is to be seen or have writen about possible thing that I may have come across, more stuff just seems to happen.
This year I had made plans to go to Mexico with my best friend and sole reason I had started with ABK, before the first San Luis Camp. This is a bit of the footage!

Road Trip: 2011 Trailer from brendon quinn on Vimeo.

This trip would end up turning out a little differently then expected, then again most things we did together do! Hopefully we will get some more footage, and some more wind and actually make a nice little movie otherwise I will have used all the footage just making this clip ;-)

Then to make this 3yr anniversary that much better my Uncle stopped by. Not only did we get a chance to hang out but he made a special dinner for the the campers and myself that Friday evening! Kind of fitting that I cooked dinners for the campers when I first started and another Quinn would make dinner 3 yrs later!
Most of the Group pictured below at the First San Luis Camp of 2011 and my 7th since I first started! Thanks to everyone for making this and all the other camps great. I hope to keep seeing all of you on the water again soon!

The Mondays!

2011-06-06T07:11:00.000-07:00

At no point in time at Jibe City did I ever have a case of the Mondays. Granted most days including Mondays were pretty much the same I would wake up and walk out of my Jibe City apartment and get a Diet Coke in the morning! Some days I would windsurf before they opened and some I would just have a second or third Diet Coke as I waited for the wind or for a lesson.
But this however was no ordinary Monday, this was to be my last Monday on Bonaire! Waking up at 7:30 I stayed in bed and did some work on my computer, and waited until 9 when the beach bar opened! Although I was informed of what was to transpire in the morning and that I should be there. My blond hair prevailed and I FORGOT!!! so one of the only times I did not spend over 14 hrs on the beach was this Monday!
As I dusted the Polar [type of beer in Bonaire] out of my eyes and wandered down to the beach I realized that I had missed something! THE BIKINI SHOOT! As soon as I hit the beach everyone then let it be known that I had missed it. Luckily for me the people that were there had a bright and vivid recount of every little thing that I had missed, and in some cases two very big things...It was however not completely over, so here is the recount and pictures of what I was there for!

Enter the first thing I saw when walking down the beach! Tonya [you can check more out on her Facebook Fan page] Not wanting to be too creepy like all the rest like "Sugar thieves" on...well sugar [you will see later] I grabbed a seat at the bar and had a diet coke. Those that saw me do this and had not already told me what was going on, then came over and recounted what had been going on. After a while wanting to take a shot of this for the blog, but now wanting to be a creep snapping of endless pics I went and got my camera and sat and had another diet coke. Soon the owner of the beach bar realized that I was to shy to take pics and grabbed the camera and got some shots of her and of me sitting at the beach bar...[first pic]
After her first photo shoot she then found me at the beach bar, despite someone else taking the pictures she found me ordered a drink and asked to see some of them. Having a nice conversation I decided I would order a beer and have a drink too! Then the sugar thieves started to attack, flying low overhead and after a few close calls I showed her how to get them to eat out of her hand.
[Sugar thieve pictured below]

Afterwards it was time for her to go off with the rest of the bikini models to their next shoot. After driving them to their boat I started to think, what if I had not shown up to the beach that day, decided that it was not going to be windy and was not worth my time. I would have missed out on a full blown bikini shoot with models running around everywhere and a nice conversation over a few ice cold polars.[not your every day occurrence in Bonaire!!] Weather forecasts, and swell/tide charts are awEsome but in the end you never know what will happen unless you were there!
If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. — Ferris Bueller

The Windsurfing Gypsy turns "Commercial Truck Driver"

2011-05-30T16:02:00.000-07:00

Ok so the picture to the left is not the reason I became a commercial truck driver...but it was however related and equally as funny! On our annual drive from Texas to the East Coast everything was going great! that was until those Red and Blue lights started flashing behind us! We had just passed a weight station and did not stop...but then again we were not driving a Semi.
Standard Police stuff then ensued licence reg/ where are you going? then we were to follow him back to the weight station. Once we arrived we were weighed... we never found out how much we weighed but I do know I was more then likely underweight, and Andy was probably on the line of being at weight or Overweight. [Just Joking Andy!!!] Once there in a very serious tone, from behind the North Carolina D.O.T issued sunglasses he informed us that we were in fact commercial truck drivers that were not operating as such... and that we would have to start. Then we got the full inspection...upon inspection they informed us our break away wire had broken [we literally just broke it too, it was not a surprise but a by product of getting our McGriddle on in the morning] we also found out the trailer lights did not work under a certain set of conditions...namely when the headlights were on [coinciding coincidentally with all times that it was dark]. After getting our fines and having done with all the paperwork to fix the problems we still were not done!

One Andy could not drive for another 8 hrs, two we had to get truckers logbooks! [Pictured to the right, Me with Mine] Three.....while I could drive the truck somewhere we could not drive the Trailer anywhere without first getting it fixed....leaving us with an interesting dilemma since we were parked at a NC D.O.T weigh station! So we left the station without the trailer and talked to some mechanics who were going to come out and take a look at the trailer. Then we were off to the truck stop for some super cool logbooks. Funny side story when buying our log books we got to talking to the check out lady, she made a comment about or situation....My response "yup....they could make a sunny day rain"....keeping in mind it WAS sunny. That is until we walked out of the truck stop store to find it pouring down rain".

After the mechanics had worked on the trailer and truck for about 45 min it was decided that they could not fix the problem there, nor did they know what the problem was. [Big surprise] so finally somehow we were let go with the trailer to the automotive shop.
After trying to put the trailer in one of the work bays, to put up on the lift...[which would have been totally sick] that plan was abandoned. After a few short hrs [more then 4] the problem was found it was some sort of fuse thing, but not a fuse] We

were on our way. The crew all gathered for a nice send off and picture. These are the experiences and people that I normally would not have ever run into doing what I was doing before going on the road, and some of the best experiences I have had on tour.

What a Year Makes!

2011-04-08T14:50:00.000-07:00

This time last year I was in Corpus Christi, TX windsurfing out of world winds. It was also 1 year ago that I became sponsored by RRD Sailboards, RRD Sails and Ocean Sunglasses! But also this time last year I turned 27!
Instead of living out of a rented U-Haul down by the water I am staying in an apartment at Jibe City, In Bonaire. Thousands of miles away from home, but somehow I am more at home then most of the places I will go this year.
From Left to right Phillip my new neighbor, and now new friend who quite his job and is here to learn to windsurf. Monique and Robert good friends who for the last 3 yrs have always taken good care of me, and made sure I stayed out of trouble. Me and my now new twin sister thanks to my new haircut, somehow even though she is from holland she is also friends with many of the people I know back home. her friend Rose, Gerard and of course Yan a good friend of ABK.

This was a far different celebration then I had last year in the back of a rented U-haul with two friends and some beer. But wanting to keep it pretty quite just like last year and just spend some time with good friends, beers and a Bottle of Patron!

My present, wrapped in a cover girl ad.

A Necklace from Grenada, made of all kinds of herbs and spices...it smelled very nice. I think it was slightly more polite then last years necklace made from car deodorizers.

William takes a shot for me, despite his dislike for Tequilla.

Cutting the cake up!

Davey Scheffers shows up just in time for the cake, and to show off his muscles!

Cheers! too all my friends and family who where not here for this celebration. Especially to all those this year that have helped make my 27th year the best I have ever had. Hopefully we can make the 28th year that much better. Special thanks to my Mom, my Grandparents and to RRD Sailboards, RRD Sails, Ocean Sunglasses, and to Andy Brandt who opened my eyes to what windsurfing was really about over the last 3 yrs!
Even though you were not here I had one for you too! Don't worry mom down here the beers are only 8oz!

1st haircut in over 3 yrs!!!!!!!!

2011-03-30T18:10:00.000-07:00

And it was not by choice...... Find out why this happend and who did it.... by visiting Windsport.com or cick on the link below!!!! Please write in your honest opinion of how my hair looks, and who I may look like.

Take it easy, Go slow, and Sail hard
Brendon
http://www.windsport.com/thewindsurfinggypsyblog/post/243/One-Woman-not-to-underestimate-is

1st quarter update: 2011 Goals

2011-03-27T13:04:00.000-07:00

So having set my goals for 2011 I was planning on having a bit more water time in Bonaire then I did this year. Last year I arrived in Bonaire unable to bring my gear and at around 185 plus Lbs. So this year having flown in just after the embargo with my own gear and, at under 175lbs I thought I was primed for a great 2 plus months. But this years wind turned out to be less then stellar, even though I will end up leaving bonaire with more completed moves then last year I swear at a heavier weight, I sailed more days on smaller gear last yr then I did this year on my big sail. Not that I ever kept track of total days on the water, or hrs I have sailed before to base that assumption on anything. This year I have tried to keep a record of hrs I sailed when I landed a new move when I tried a new move. Some of the times I do really well and other times not so much. So far with 3 days left of the first quarter of 2011 I have logged 43.5 hrs on my 5.3, 21.5 hrs on my 4.9 and 10 hrs on my 4.5. Giving me a 39 day total of 75hrs most of which came from the one week I stayed in Bonaire while the rest of the crew went to Aruba. [I did not count the number of days I went out and practiced in light wind]
But then again this place is simply unbeatable, 75hrs on the water here might as well be a 150 in California. Back home I would have to waterstart after most of my crashes, I would have colder choppy, to almost swell like water and very few people sailing around me to watch, or learn from. But here in Bonaire with 3 of the top 5 PWA sailors living here and a bunch of soon to be big names training here, to watch and talk to simply incomparable. Its like I tell everyone else the only day in Bonaire your not really happy, or excited is the day you leave. With 3 more days left before the end of the first Quarter I am on track having now learned 5 new moves and one new skill and am slightly ahead of schedule. But am behind in what I had wanted to accomplish before March 30th by 3 moves.
But then again when I wrote these goals out, March 30th would have been around the date that I first showed up at Worldwinds, in Texas. As it turns out though I will be staying in Bonaire for another 3 weeks, so I still have time to accomplish what I had wanted too before going on to texas. Today waking up to my first bonus morning session sailing alone in the harbor, a local boy sailed down and followed me around. They call him Scrappy [a reference to a character from Scooby Doo], who is the younger brother of Bjorn Saragoza [pg. 36 in Winsdsports 2011 Buyers Guide; Issue 127] Watching me crash on my flakas he would do one so I could see it then give me a tip. Then he asked if I did shove its, or switch stance. I told him I have tried both but can't get the last piece. So he asks what happens when I go switch, I tell him I get pulled over the front a lot going for the back strap.....then he lays out what he does, but goes on to say when your trying to learn its better to do it slightly differently. Following me around for a few runs telling me to go downwind more, or not that far downwind trying for the first time on port I got in the straps switch once, and on starboard 3 times. Who would have thought the son of a former world class racer, brother to a PWA soon to be big name, thinking he to would be a pro would spend the time with me out on the water helping me learn. Only in windsurfing and really it seems to me to be only in Bonaire! that you would have this type of atmosphere and friendship! Which I believe to be the true seceret to why bonaire is such an amazing place to visit, to windsurf, and to learn!

Below is the chart of the numbers assigned to the moves I am trying to learn, with the name and date of the ones that I have accomplished.

Realistic		Completed	Possible	Fantasy
1	Backwind Jibe	Mar 6, 2011	10	21
2			11	22
3	Grubby Diablo	Jan 30, 2011	12	23
4			13	24
5	Switch in straps	Mar 27,2011	14	25
6			15	26
7			16	27
8	1 Hand Swayze	Feb 22, 2011	17
9	Swayze Diablo	Mar 10, 2011	18
			19
			20

Unplanned
28	Reverse Monkey Jibe	Mar 6, 2011

Some Random shots taken of me while sailing in the amazing waters of Bonaire! Clew first spock in front of Jibe City.

Grubby in front of Jibe City.

Spock with Mangrovia and the deep water in the Background!

Tragedy on Flight 662: Conclusion....@Windsport.com!!!!

2011-03-03T11:11:00.000-08:00

(Note: If you haven't read Parts 1 & 2 of Tragedy on Flight 662 then simply scroll down this page a few posts and you'll find them!)

So after mailing away my claim I had a few weeks left of great internet, hot showers, and big city living before heading off to Bonaire. Having secured a board from a local Team Rider Jason Voss, I was off to Bonaire. Living right on the beach at Jibe City, I could wake up put on a shirt and walk to the water..[one hand flaka pic behined one of my students I had taught that very day]...usually never leaving the beach until the sun was well past set. I had almost totally forgotten about my board when I received a message from the motherland, via my Mom that US Airways had sent something back. I sat for a few minutes thinking if I really wanted to know what they said, and if they had said no what I could do about it from Bonaire.

For the rest of the story please visit windsport.com

cheers, by clicking on the link!

Taking the Scenic Route to Bonaire: 2011

2011-02-18T10:31:00.000-08:00

So after spending much of the winter in San Francisco it was time to go to Bonaire! Flying out just at the tail end of the embargo and not wanting to get stuck without gear for another trip to bonaire. I flew with Delta airlines....wich led me on another path less traveled. After having my board broke in half I decided to pad the rails of my board. [I used only the best materials....abkboardsports STAFF t-shirts]
Flying out of Oakland... I was supposed to go to Salt Lake City then to Houston and on to Atlanta before finally catching a flight to bonaire. But as per usual there was a problem...luckily it was fixed and I was on my way 400 USD and my gear was going to bonaire. But upon arriving in Atlanta I realized that problem I had in Oakland was not actually fixed just changed and altered. The solution to the original problem was to send me directly to Atlanta, the new problem was since I had 2 seperate tickets I technically missed my flight to Atlanta and thus could not fly out to Bonaire....and since it was booked via the internet and not through the airlines I was allowed to pay another 350 USD to stay in the airport for 18hrs...

But as a true Irishman would I made some friends and influnced some people.....ok actually he said hello first! But I ended up spending the night in the lobby of the Atlanta airport with Hamish McNab Campbell Cross, who worked for MTV New Zealand and just finished producing a travel show in which he stared alongside his best "mate" [Australian for friend] Called "Wingin' it". Before we both flew out we exchanged contact info for the next time he is in the states or if I ever make it to New Zealand.

Arriving in Bonaire my 30 plus hr trip was over [usually does not take that long] and I was anxious to collect my bags and inspect them for damage!.................But that would not end up happining. After waiting for a long time it was apparetnt I was going to have to fill out more airline paperwork! I was given a picture sheet of "all the types of bags out there" there are apparently only 30 different types of bags. This sheet only had luggage bags, so I picked the one closest to my suitcase, and then tried to describe the windsurfing bags, and sailbags. I left the airport with a piece of paper and was told it would probably arrive the next day.

When someone says that something will happen the next day in Bonaire it usually means next week. Next week means next month and if they say next month....don't hold your breath. But true to their word the next morning when picking up my girlfriend from the airport, not only did she have her bags but mine as well. After flying on 3 flights and hanging out in Houston for a day they arrived in bonaire practically unscathed. A minor crack on the tail of the board....but then again anything would have been minor after the last flight I took with my gear.

Still Waiting!

2011-01-06T15:20:00.000-08:00

As I wait to see how my board claim goes I can't help but almost laugh now about what happened to my board. People have been sending me links and all sorts of stuff in an attempt displace my true feelings and cover them up with humor...It worked. The first two things that were sent to me right after my board had been destroyed, but the last one and the most randomly hilarious of all of them was just sent to me today. So I hope this stuff brings a smile to your face like it did mine.
The fist thing sent to me was a link to a site with a very special button. This button was to be pressed only in extreme dire situations. Finding myself feeling like I was in a totally dire situation I pressed it. Click Here to view button I still press it from time to time!

Then a longtime camper sent me a video he had found on the interweb, someone on youtube had a similar situation occur to him and the airlines did not take care of him. Hopefully this will not be the case for me, otherwise I will be pushing the button above a little more.
While this video is not about the airline I flew with it is however how I imagine ALL baggage handlers carefully load every passengers gear.

The last thing that was sent to me was some video that was shot of me on the day that I got my 100L Twintip. I had been waiting for this board for a while and when I came back from lunch it was hiding under the trailer...or ABK Christmas tree[it was green]. Back then I was wondering why Beric an absolutely hilarious dude, and first time camper last year would be filming that!......

If you missed out on what this was about.
http://www.windsport.com/thewindsurfinggypsyblog/post/221/Tragedy-of-Flight-662---Pt-1
http://www.windsport.com/thewindsurfinggypsyblog/post/222/Tragedy-on-Flight-662---Pt-2

Making a Plan not a Resolution!

2010-12-31T18:07:00.000-08:00

In 2010 I became sponsored by RRD Boards RRD Sails, Ozone Online, and Ocean Glasses which made this season the best I have ever had. Without my sponsors this year I would not have been able to achieve what I did this year and I would not be planning what I am for the New Year. Learning 16 new moves including the Forward Loop which I never really saw myself doing and the Flaka which I have wanted to do for ever. My sailing discipline this year was non-existent I randomly worked on moves and sometimes I was pretty successful. Landing 6 New School aerials and 10 Carving tricks.
So this year with the help of my sponsors and friends I have decided not to make a Resolution: "a firm decision to do or not to do something." But to make a plan: "a detailed proposal for doing something or achieving something." For 2011 I plan to make 20 new moves! I have listed out 27 total moves that are possible now and may soon be possible in the near Future.
The Realistic moves are those moves that are most closely related to the moves I currently already can do!
The Possible moves are those that I will be able to do but those that are more closely related to the Realistic moves then to anything I currently do.
The Fantasy Moves those are moves that at this point are so far out there that landing on the moon might be easier to achieve.
Starting Jan 20th or so I will have at least 318 days, breaking that into 4 quarters of 80 days I will be trying to land 5 moves a quarter and a move every 16 days! Pictured to the left 9 realistic moves, 11 Possible, and 7 Fantasy! Last year will be tough to beat but hopefully I will see you out there either on the water or at one of ABK's camps.
Happy New Years!
Brendon Quinn

Tragedy on Flight 662: Pt 2

2010-12-13T14:02:00.000-08:00

Please Visit windsport.com for the next part of this ongoing story!

Go directly to the page! http://windsport.com/thewindsurfinggypsyblog

Tragedy On Flight 662: Pt 1

2010-12-06T01:24:00.000-08:00

So every windsurfers worst nightmare when traveling with windsurfing gear is arriving at your destination only to find out your board made it in a less then ideal condition. This is now only the 3rd time that I have ever tried to fly with windsurfing gear. I say try because the first time I packed my gear to fly there was a luggage embargo where I was flying to and I was unable to take my board and sails. The second time I flew with my gear my bag arrived duct taped together with a note from TSA [damn security people ripped my zipper off my bag] and a cracked nose. It was OK though the ding on the nose was not that bad, and I could put some solar rez on the nose and wait to have it repaired as I enjoyed some sweet sessions on the East Coast!

This post however is not about either of those times but the 3rd time. Pictured to the Right the hole in my bag as I picked it up from in front of the claim office. Normally I probably would have missed this hole in my bag but when looking out the window as my gear was being loaded I saw my bag so I decided to watch.....where upon I noticed my bag was open. Having TSA rip my zipper off the last time I flew I thought I made sure they could not do that again. But when I picked up my bag at my destination the zipper was closed...odd I thought so I decided to check it out. Take a close look and try and imagine what you think the board would look like......what kind of damage do you think????

OK so I bet you did not see that coming...and this is just with me unzipping the bag. At this point I realize that this is not just your every day normal "ding". I am quite willing to accept a scratch or a crack or a dent or ding! If it was a ding or something I would have just fixed it and been done with it but this was no ordinary luggage handler juggling accident. Luckily for me my bags were right in front of the claims office for my airline and the guy "SURPRISINGLY" already knew my name........

Things I did not know but everyone should know about making a claim.
1. Most airlines require you to make a claim at the airport where you picked up your bags.
2. Most airlines want you to make a claim within 24hrs of getting your bags.
3. My airline required that you make a claim within 4 hrs.
4. The airline will reimburse uninsured items for up to 3,300 USD.
5. With insurance you can be reimbursed up to 5,000 USD, for 1 USD per 100USD extra.......up to 5,000USD.
6. Insurance does not cover fragile items...... which very well may be a surfboard despite their willingness to sell you the insurance.
For more pictures and further details about making a claim on damaged windsurfing gear, make sure and Bookmark Windsport as I will post further details about each step of my claim.

One Year Wiser: Andy Brandt at Wind-NC

2010-10-30T21:56:00.000-07:00

The last Hatteras night clinic at Wind-NC for 2010 was a Big one. If you were not there then what you may not have known is that it was Andy Brandts Birthday. On his Birthday he spent the night telling stories and answering windsurfing questions of locals and visitors to Hatteras.

Andy McKinney and Annie Mckinney give Andy Brandt his cake in front of a large standing audience halfway through the Question and Answer period.

Despite being publicly embarrassed on his birthday the show must go on, after the break and cake it was on to answering more questions. From how to get up to speed to some of the steps to landing your first aerial freestyle move the vulcan. [to the left; Andy Brandt officially a yr wiser]
With only a few days left in our stay on Hatteras Island it is almost time to move on to our last US stop Texas. If you have not been to a clinic or are just looking for a good excuse to sail warm, flat, shallow water this winter come check our dates out; Nov 4-7 in Corpus Christi TX; and Nov 18-21 in South Padre TX
If I had to pick one reason to my success in my windsurfing today, and in the future it would be joining up with ABK and learning from Andy. It definitely makes me wonder why it took me 13 yrs of teaching myself before going to ABK, and how good I would be now if I had learned from him 15 yrs ago.

No matter how old he is [we wont tell you] this year is going to be the best yet. Hope to see you there with us.

[Left to right: Brendon and Tom ABK instructors Annie Mckinney, and Wind NC shop guy Ken] Cutting the cake and wishing Andy Brandt a Happy Birthday!!!!

Windsurfing Gypsy Rig of the Month! Oct

2010-10-04T23:49:00.000-07:00

Well it is the month of Halloween, so what would be more fitting then some Skull and Crossbones. This is Davo and Snaps Naish mobile, which has always been an haunting sight for me since joining the ABK Tour. Every year before leaving California I always manage to see this rig, signaling me to harsh and cold reality that summer is over. Usually Andy and Myself would be packing up the big truck in Rio and they would pull up the day of our departure half way through packing. This time our paths would cross in Coyote Pt. after retreating to the south bay for some wind, the day before I was to leave for the east coast.

This is a converted airport shuttle, that takes these two travelers up and down California chasing the most shocking conditions possible. Calling Southern California home, this is not just their mode of transportation but their home away from home, as they try and leave the typically light winds of So Cal to find some startling windsurfing.
If you see this man, or that your driver is Davo.....you may want to think twice about what you signed up for, but there is one thing for sure this is probably the only shuttle stopping at your destination.

Like all good windsurfing "Lifestyle" rigs maximizing your space is key. With plenty of room to hide all their sails, and keep their living space somewhat separate from their windsurfing space

Their guard dog, protecting the precious cargo. The compartment doors swung open to show off their full quiver of Naish sails.

A full kitchen with diamond platted counter tops, sink, stove and an OVEN to make all of your baking needs.....

and of course the full stainless steal fridge, angle grinded for effect.

Enjoying their lives and the lifestyle of windsurfing so much Davo has spent the last 2 yrs not only traveling around and windsurfing, but filming and editing a movie that is due out soon. Boardheads featuring not only windsurfing but all the other board sports that many of us also enjoy, Surfing, Snowboarding, Skating and of course windsurfing.
http://www.boardheadsfilm.com/about.html

Davo and Snap posing by the boards before boarding thier fright mobile to their next epic session!

Mike Burns the Best of the East.

2010-09-27T09:37:00.000-07:00

Its not everyday you sail with "The Notorious B.U.R.N.S." who is the current East Coast Freestyle Champion. Earlier in the week Jake [left] and I drove up to Heckshire to try and sail with him...only to find no wind, so we invited him out to Napeague. Having sailed with one of Mike Burns closest rivals Chachi, for pretty much the whole summer in the Delta, I could not help but feel like I had been sailing with Burns for just as long. Both Chachi and Burns are F2, North team riders and both are exceptional sailors who came from NY.

Bottom right Chachi in Rio Vista after 2 yrs of training on the West Coast will be returning this Winter after his trip to San Carlos. Once Chachi returns the big three east coasters will finally be reunited and the chase for the ECWF Freestyle Champion will begin. There were no pictures taken of our day of windsurfing, so imagine this picture was taken in the east coast, there is no boat, the 2010 sail is really a 2011 North and the rider is Burns and the move is the Shaka and you have what it was like to windsurf with him.... Ok so the only thing that is similar is they both ride the same board. Run after run I was working on Flakas and as I splashed in the water or just got back on my board there were two moves he would do right on top of me Shaka and Flaka. As we both sailed away it was the Air Funnel [which by the way I feel should be a Wind Tunnel]

It would turn out to be the 2nd best day I have had on Napeague this season and the longest I have sailed in one day in over 2 yrs. Getting out on the water around 10:30 taking a few breaks here and there [I changed sails 3 times and boards once] we would finally call it a day at 3:30.
If you want to find out more about the East Coasters.....
Check out the one track mind of Mike Burns on East Coast take a look at his blog http://purewindsurfing.blogspot.com/. If you want to check out the competition there is always Chachi http://windchachi.blogspot.com/. The other East Coaster you may have already seen in http://windsport.com/videos_display/video:2236/Full-Power he is the one on the orange sail making windsurfing look like magic!

Turn the Volume Down on Your Work Computer!

2010-09-24T16:03:00.000-07:00

Upon hearing that I would be staying in Long Island Jake and Mitch put me up in thier house until ABK came back. For the next two weeks they would be two of the best hosts that I had ever stayed with. The first morning there it was decided that we would go out on their boat. Making some hamburgers and grabbing some beers, it was a beautiful sunny day with very little wind. With the forecast calling for no wind, and me calling for wind at three we had a few hrs to go out and relax, as we ate our hamburgers and drank our beer the winds slowly picked up and we would be off to a not so brilliant day of windsurfing, but some good ole fashoned east coast gust busting.

Jake and Mitch right before pulling out of the slip.

Out of all the boats in thier harbor or in any of the others that we passed this boat is the one I would have...A floating

bar, with bbq, palm leaf roof and barstools powerd by a small outboard motor.

Below some of the houses on our way out of the harbor, and some clamers out digging in the mud. An absolutely beautiful ride, as we drove past the harbors and homes I could not help but think of who was in those homes. Or who's boats were

berthed in the marinas. Ok that lasted for a minute, and then one of my favorite youtube videos popped into my head.
No one had an inflatable dolphin, or sailing suits and I definatly did not own a tux. We did however have burgers, and Flippy Floppies.

If your at work try not to get in trouble watching this video. I would however recommend watching the explicit verson of this video in full screen and the volume way up! at home. But if you are at work don't forget to turn your volume down.

Windsurfing Gypsy vacations in the Hamptons!

2010-09-23T10:30:00.000-07:00

2010 ABK Ping Pong Championships Andy vs Steve a highly competative series with Andy ending up victorious. Ok so not so much of a championship, but when in Montauk better bring your own paddle beacause Andy did. On the East Coast Saturday night is group dinner night and outside the MTK Cafe is where all the action happens. [below steve fires a shot at Andy with everything he has.....Andy smiles as the ball hovers over the net.]

Bottom left: Mel enjoys a beer as she watches the excitement of the days races, a non typical abk discipline but here on Long Island we have an annual Race Group who want to learn all about racing, strategy, and rules. Bottom right Wilson and Emma, pose for the camera as they realized I was taking a picture.....she must have held that water in her mouth for over a min, waiting for me to finish.

To the right and below the first Long Island camp during dinner and video analysis

With the ending of the camp I was to stay on long Island as the rest went their seperate ways for our two week break. But before we would part there was one thing for us all to do..... Go Windsurfing!
Below one of the coolest beaches ever, with a copper/bronze sand surounded by green dune grass and blue water.

We would sail large 4's for most of the morning before Andy would have to hop on the bus, leaving me with the empire and free to sail as much as I could for the next 2 weeks. To the right Wilsons Beach with our gear strewn all around as we break for lunch.
ABK travels around a lot as we go from spot to spot for our camps, but on our time off we often go other trips as well. Last year before the East Coast camps started I left Penn on a 1492 mile sightseeing trip. There was one day of sailing as a crazy storm and I met up on the beach at exactly the same time, with winds gusting up to 50. But that would prove to be the only day for those two weeks. This year I chose to stay behind in California to land a loop which would turn out was only a day away from landing. Now as the start of our 2nd two week break I am going to try and stay here in Napeague and not drive over a thousand miles and see how much wind I can get. But more importantly to work on a move which after landing for the first and only time 3 months ago I had not been able to reproduce afterwards.

Breaking down Prejudices on the East Coast!

2010-09-21T22:11:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the problem with only going to a spot on vacation, or only going for a week out of the year is that whatever those 7 days are is all you will ever know. That has been what has shaped my perception of the East Coast, however the nice thing about going every single year no matter what, is eventually something will be different.
Already on the East Coast my experience has been drastically different then I have experienced before. It has yet to rain during a camp, I have not needed my long wetsuit to sail on my days off. Not only have I not been cold or rained on, but I have sailed 3 really good days and 1 ok day out of a possible 6 days of sailing. With the last day Sept 20th being one of the best days of windsurfing in the North East I have ever had.
With one day in Cape Cod of sailing we were then left with a decision to move on to Long Island or to stay in Mass and hope for wind there. We decided to go with Andy's gut and went to New York, and it turned out to be the second day in a row we sailed and even better then the first. On the last free day before camp we had a phenomenal session for the 3rd day in a row, as a Nor Easter blew threw giving us a tremendous lightning storm and the best session of the 3. This weeks camp turned out to be lighter wind but extremely warm, usually its pretty windy but brutally cold. I even wore boardshorts in the water all three days of the camp, granted this is usually the warmest time of the two ABKboardsports camp seasons [not saying much].
Top two pictures above where taken somewhere along our trip from Cape Cod to New York. To the left a beautiful sunset on Long Island New York after a day of camp. The picture below is to give you an idea of what it looks like where I will be sailing for the next 2 weeks.
After two East Coasters finally experienced what I have grown to know for my whole life of windsurfing how great California can be, it seems that I am just now getting to understand what they have had. With Just under 2

weeks left in the North East, this season seems as if it is just the beginning of me understanding how beautiful, and how great sailing on the East Coast can be.
The Right Coasters I sailed with in California this year, Chris Eldridge, and Jon Sassone. If you would prefer to read about how one of the East Coasters felt about California how about Chris Eldridges better half the original East Coast Sick Chick, [and inventer of the CLAM DIGGER!]

Beach Rules! No Windsurfing?

2010-09-15T23:05:00.000-07:00

The day after flying in to PA I had to pick Andy up in Newark, and then we were off to Cape Cod, with only a day left before our first East Coast camp. It was a partly sunny first day on the Cape and it would be a mostly warm weekend for our first camp on the "Right" Coast. Normally when getting ready to teach in the Northeast, I also get ready for lecturing in the rain, and standing in the cold. But this week would turn out to be a pretty warm and pleasant camp. When the weather is nice here it can be the complete antithesis to my home waters of California, beautiful white sandy beaches, dune grass, green trees, colonial style homes on the waterfront, wearing board shorts in clear blue water.

After a hard days work, the camp breaks for Popcorn and a movie....well OK, chips and salsa during video analysis. With 20+ people showing up on the Cape it was a pretty packed house, standing room only... Taking a look at any number of things from Jibes, to water starts all the way to Loop drills, Andy goes over video that we shot that day, explaining what was going on with their attempts at learning a new skill or trick.

Saturday night is group dinner [for East Coast camps], where the campers and ABK staff get to hang out and socialize with cloths on... This time it was Pizza on the Cape. These types of social get togethers usually lead to the same game. Each group tries to learn more about a lifestyle that they are intrigued by. In my case I try and work out as much information as possible about what everyone else has done, been, and what its like on the outside. While I try and figure out what makes the campers tick, I also talk about other windsurfing spots in the states, and the Caribbean. About my favorite places to go [I have three, but it depends on what I'm looking for or doing], that answer usually does not fly, and I'm forced to pick. Besides that life on the road is the next big topic, and despite having a blog I find I talk a lot about things that did not make it on to this screen. A nice change in pace the group dinner allows me to talk to people outside of the windsurfing spot which is always about windsurfing and a chance to feel like everyone else for a few hrs. It also allows the campers to talk about everything but work, school plays and gives them a chance to distance themselves from a 9 to 5 lifestyle.

Peter on the sound side of Kalmus beach where apparently you cannot do anything but sit on a towel. There is a lifeguard tower to hold a no lifeguard on duty sign, and swimming is to be done only in designated areas [just mind the jellyfish]. No fires, No drinking, No snorkels, No loud music, No ball games or Frisbee's, any hole dug must be filled and the number one rule NO WIND SURFING! Had it not been for the fact that this sign did not say No sailboarding or any other variation, I probably would not have even noticed it. [Actually I have been here three yrs in a row now, and it took me until the second day of camp on my third yr to notice this sign]. This did not however deter us from windsurfing at this launch after seeing this sign or for the other 2 yrs I have been there. Something tells me that the federales will have their hands full chasing kite flyer's and Frisbee's and not pay too much attention to us.
Part of the reason I believe I have never noticed the sign is due to the absolutely amazing scenery behind. Boats moored behind, in the mostly sandy bottom the water remains crystal clear unlike the muddy silty waters of California, where ferry's and all kinds of boat traffic come in and out as you sail right in the "backyard" of classic New England homes, light houses and luscious green foliage. Might not be on my favorites list, but it would be high on my most beautiful spots to visit and sail.

Windsurfing Gypsy Rig of the Month! Sept.

2010-09-13T02:37:00.000-07:00

The Minimalist. A Toyota Tacoma 4 wheel drive truck. When camping and living on the levee there are always an assortment of different makes and colors of your standard windsurfing van and usually quite a few RV's. But rarely does someone bring so much gear and decide to camp on the levee without some sort of roof. In the back of this truck a Fanatic Freewave, Starboard Stand up, and an RRD TwinTip 105 with his largest sail a 5.2. Only in California would you pack a truck up with a big sail of 5.2 and decide to and be able to sail and sleep out in the open air for 3 nights, [only a So Cal windsurfer would do that in Rio.]

For the most part when dealing with windsurfing Equipment, lifestyle and transportation its more than likely all about more. More gear storage, more living room, a kitchen or a refrigerator and soon your off to the same rat race for windsurfing that we deal with everyday at our home or work. A truck on the other hand is really a great example of minimalism in windsurfing. In art terms Minimalism is where the work is stripped down to its most fundamental features. In this case gear and personal transport coupled with a possibility of a place to sleep if needed. Anything more is really a luxury sure its nice to have more, but its not necessity or a requirement to lead the lifestyle of a mobile windsurfer.

Excess Baggage and Duct Tape!

2010-09-10T04:51:00.000-07:00

This will be the first time traveling by air with windsurfing equipment, the last time I tried was a total failure. Due to the fact that I was traveling during an embargo period and they would not let my gear on the plane. So while booking a flight from the West Coast to the East Coast right before I decided on a flight I thought maybe I should check their baggage fee's. I had decided to keep my 100L RRD TwinTip and, 1 400cm mast, 1 boom, and my 4.5, 4.9, 5.3. Packing them into a board bag and a sail bag that could be expensive.

United Airlines:

Over sized baggage charges are applied in addition to any charges that may be assessed for overweight and/or excess baggage.

Over sized 159- 292cm

Overweight 51-100lbs

Each individual charge is 100 USD

US Airways:

Windsurfing equipment

Windsurfing equipment will be accepted as checked baggage for a charge of $100 per item. Windsurfing equipment is not accepted on US Airways Express flights. One item of windsurfing equipment consists of:

1 windsurfing board with a wooded boom
1 mast with a maximum length of 19 ft/5.8 meters and a sail

If I were to fly United it could cost up to 200 USD per bag if they were both overweight and over sized making the baggage total 400 USD it would more then likely be more like 300 because I have the TwinTip, and I kept only 3 RRD Super Styles which are pretty light, and the mast and boom are not wooden but Carbon. That would make my trip total in the 550 USD range. But flying US Airways it would only be 100USD and my boom is not wooden [if it was my board would be 12ft], and my mast is actually only 4 meters but it separates in half so 2 meters.....but I do have three sails Somehow I don't think that's going to be an Issue! So it seems 350 USD is way better then 550 USD and I will not have any other checked baggage as I am packing my cloths and stuff into the sail bag as well.

But it seems I may have jinxed myself when I said that I did not think it was going to be an issue! Turns out that US Airways does not care about what their online criteria says and charged me twice because there were two bags 35 USD each, and 100 for being over sized totalling 270 USD making the trip a nice 420 USD! But at least they did not weigh them and since I paid the extra money they would also probably take really good care of my bags.
ha ha ha!

My board bag as it turns out was selected for inspection and the zipper had been removed, not that hard to do since the end of the zipper is not actually sown shut. The bag was then re-sealed up by the use of 170 USD worth of duct tape. Seems they must have been thinking ahead and planning to duct tape my bags shut. On the back of the piece of paper the zipper was taped to was my notice of inspection tag which explains why they inspected, and why they may have cut a lock. But at the very bottom they give you a website and a toll free number to call if you have questions or packing tips.
www.covenantclaims.com 1-800-764-8050
All in all it tuned out OK a few minor dings on the nose of the board, but it already had a couple from me demoing the board so they should be pretty easy fixes, for the amount of duct tape it came out rather well.

Saving the best for last!

2010-09-07T20:49:00.000-07:00

After sailing Coyote Point for two days I got a message from Just Bob telling me how great Palo Alto had been the day before. [pictured left to right Mark, Myself, Just Bob] So I had decided to go and check out the flat water on my last day in California. Having grown up in this area Palo Alto was always one of those spots that seemed to torment me. Never quite getting windy enough, it was always chosen as a last minute spot because either I or Matt could not make it further up north in time. As I pulled up it seemed as if it was going to be more of the same, light wind and not much water. I sat there with Mark talking about Bonaire and other travel related things when Just Bob showed up. We all three sat in the shade of the van as another group of sailors arrived, but their plan was to go to Candlestick, [key word was]. As they start talking Just Bob gets up and starts rigging, he had a dinner to go to so he was going to do some light wind if nothing else. Then Mark rigs up, walking over to the dock it does not look promising. But I rig up anyway, it was sunny the water is warm, I thought I might as well go out too.

Little did I know as I hopped off the dock that I would actually have the greatest day of the entire season. All I had to do was sail out of the channel past the birds in between the Mud out into the "Bay" Never have sailed out of the channel at this low of a tide I had no real clue how deep it was going to be. I would find out later after falling a couple times that I was lucky if my fin was not hitting the mud, anywhere I sailed.

The smoothest water I had sailed in since leaving Bonaire, and maybe even smoother then Bonaire. The one problem was the fact that when you fell you drove yourself into a thick sludge of mud.
[To the right Me sliding a Vulcan in less then 6" of water].
I would hit everything that I knew how to do with total ease on this day, as I sailed with Just Bob and a few of the others that never actually made it to Candlestick. Sailing on 5.3 and my 100L RRD TwinTip, fully powered.

Below the dock landing, sail up...hop off its a lot easier when your feet are not all muddy.

I was told quite often that if I did not come home muddy, I did not play hard enough.......

All of the sailors out there were soooooo good that the fire dept actually came down out of a fear that we would ignite the methane in the shallow mud. Ok actually maybe not because of that, but everyone was fine and there was no major problem out there.

Looking back I would always give my buddy Matt a hard time for wanting to sail this spot, it was shallow the wind was rarely that good.....whatever the excuse, but now I realize why he liked it so much. Chances are he had had one of these days were everything was perfect, water, wind, warmth, people and he just wanted to have that one more time. If I could bottle up that experiencing and sell it on the street corner, I believe that a lot more people would windsurf, it is because of those days that I truly love windsurfing. [above left me hosing off the mud, Right Primo who I have sailed with at Palo Alto since I was a teenager]

Stand up Paddling Saves Lives

2010-08-31T12:55:00.000-07:00

Random encounters with people every now and then end up seeming like maybe they were meant to be. Sometimes we take for granted just getting out, talking to people or even sharing your passion or enthusiasm with other people and opt not too. But maybe a random encounter and conversation about what you like to do or how you live your life can actually influence someone else, or maybe even through them impact and influence something even greater.

While on vacation on his way up to Tahoe Joe stopped by the Delta to check the place out and hopefully sail for a few days. He would end up getting one day of good wind, pretty much the last day of the almost 2 months of non stop wind in the delta. The next 3 days would be light [by light I mean to say NO wind] and hot! After the hottest day of the heat spell he invites me to try his stand up paddle board. I liked it, it was quiet, relaxing, and remarkably stable for never having been on an official paddle board before. Despite only getting one day of windsurfing he said that just simply having the time off, to lay under the shade of a tree and enjoy the leaves rustling, to paddle on the river and just be somewhere else was priceless. [He actually described sitting under the trees and the leaves rustling to a trip he once had in Maui]

Enter Kevin who still sails to this day at the spot that I learned how to windsurf, Shoreline Lake in Mt View, CA. He dropped me a line saying he was going to pick up the stand up paddle board I had told him about. After looking online and checking out hundreds of boards, he felt that this RRD Wassup 10' would be perfect. Planning to use it in on his trips to Southern California to do some light wind small wave sailing and maybe even some paddling, and when it was light back home even some light wind freestyle at Shoreline. Kevin was probably one of the biggest influences in me continuing to windsurf as a kid, he was always the cool dude out windsurfing and going fast that I looked up to! So here he was retired, making a trip to get a paddle board I had showed him and I had never really done it!
So there I was a day after trying sup'ing for the first time, and a day before Kevin came for his paddle board, sitting on Delta Windsurf's couch. So I took the Demo 8'5" RRD Wassup and loaded it into my van. Driving out to the end on another hot windless day I grab the board and go out for a sunset paddle, traveling around the Islands going down river further then I had ever gone, with the sun making the hills black and the water look like liquid gold.

Pic of Joe the day before, during the same time I was out with the sun and water identical. So out enjoying my view on my first paddle when I hear some yelling from the shore, a swimmer had swam out and gotten taken out a lot further then they could swim back with the strong tide. I paddle over and ask how they were doing and if they needed help, we agreed that they would be unable to swim back against the tide. Trying a few different options of pulling them on the board, non of which were very stable for us to make any ground. But having them hold on to the board as I paddled also did not get us anywhere, not hip as to what to do in this case I was running out of options. But then one of their friends came out on a board he borrowed from a windsurfer and a kayak paddle, upon reaching us I felt better because maybe they both could sit on that board and hold on to the leash as I or both paddled. Well on paper that sounded good, but despite being on a really large windsurfing board neither could balance on the board sitting/laying/kneeling and stay on. Spotting a boat near by I paddle over as they continued to struggle and get the boat to take them both in.
Granted I was on an 8'5" and a newb as far as those techniques go, and did not actually get them back under the power of the Paddle board. But I was out on the water, I did keep someone afloat who may have otherwise been unable to remain floating. Normally I would have been no where near the water on a no wind day, and if I was I would definitely not been on a paddle board or in any position to be of any help. But because of an encounter with Joe from Southern California, and one of my childhood windsurfing role models I was on the water. Not only was I on the water but I was on the water at the right time and place, who knows maybe the Coast Guard would have found them and they would be ok, but then maybe you would be hearing about this in a different way on your local news media. Even as I try and think about it now I still don't know what to say, about how random, how perfect the whole scenario played out.

Made Man! my chamber is empty...rounds on target!

2010-08-26T14:14:00.000-07:00

So call it perfect timing, ment to be whatever but as I woke up and saw Jon Sassone drive down the levee I knew I had to get myself in gear. Walking up to the top of the hill to survey the water I see another local boost a 6+ foot floater and I knew it was ebbing. I rigged 4.9 and hit the water with the 88L RRD TwinTip, only to sail in and put on the 4.5 RRD SuperStyle and down haul it further then I ever had. As I raced to the other side where the ramps really set up another local sailor came by and we jibed together as I planed out of mine I was well in front, with a good witness at my back. Hitting the steepest ramp possible I sent my first attempt of the day.....landing on the tail leeward rail down I was unable to stick it as I rolled over the board on the sail. The second attempt was an aborted takeoff managing to kick the board around like a vulcan 4 feet in the air kicking free of my gear. Sailing all the way into the beach I watch Jon sailing on the outside and decide to try and put myself in place. As we sailed in the same direction I watched him reach the other side and duck the sail knowing he was going to set up for something, I jibe around slowing a bit till I saw him sailing the new direction. Spotting a couple ramps downwind I go a little deeper and start to turn up wind, as I saw Jon slowing down. On Aug 26th at 9:25 am with a captive audience I spot my ramp and comited....doing a loop like I have known how to loop for years, tucked rotated extend and landed on top of the board knees and butt dry sailing away. Enter yelling and screaming, pumped up like I had pounded 30 redbulls.

Jon sails in right on my heals yelling we both stop and give high fives, at that point it seemed like I had somehow joined a special band of brothers, I was now MADE....my life windsurfing as I have known it has now changed. Before I was hesitant to pull the trigger, to do the job now I don't think twice, with my guns loaded, I am and I LOOP! Later as I sat on the beach, drinking a beer....[yes I know but unlike all the other times I have had a beer at 9:30 in the morning, this one was actually well deserved] I had an image of Charlton Heston.....in regards to my loaded gun, and ability to use it.

Thank you Jon for slowing down and taking the time to watch my loop! There will be some beer with your name on it! for you.

Castaway Windsurfer!

2010-08-23T15:34:00.000-07:00

So its some light wind action in the delta and I happened across this hilarious video. I have often wondered if I were trapped on an Island and needed to get off, if I could windsurf myself to freedom. On man vs. wild he tried but apparently he did not ever use an original windsurfer because his and the original had the same flaw.

This is just a clip of the show but I imagine the full show, shows how he made his windsurfer/raft, and if he indeed did get off the Island.

Delta's: Zero to Hero WEEK!

2010-08-20T13:51:00.000-07:00

With the winds here in California and on Sherman Island lasting longer then most can ever remember it has been pretty hard to not progress and get better this summer! Seeing how Jon Sassone [Chachi's World] and I have shared most of those days together we decided to team up a bit to bring you some stories with multiple perspectives!

Christopher up from So Cal only had a week to try and claim a loop before going to SoCal. I sailed with him the day before the start of our last clinic and he was making it around and water starting. I sailed up cheering but apparently his front foot came out of the strap on the ones that I saw so I had celebrated a little early.

But the next morning with a full ebb flowing out of the river and great wind, as we sat down for introductions he said he landed one! Clean with a water start out, our response was did anyone see it! His answer No! We reluctantly gave it to him because of his honesty with the fact that he told me he did not land the ones, that I thought he did. But really the loop is one of those big moves that you really need a witness for?
ENTER Jon Sassone

I was driving into Access parking lot as usual when I saw a green Maui Sail heading towards the playpen. I slowed to look thinking it was Andy (Brandt). The sailor threw a perfect loop and continued in until he was close enough for me to see that it was Chris. "Weird" I thought to myself, "I didn't know that guy could loop." I shrugged it off though, since he's an ABK instructor and all those guys are sick.

Later that day I was in the shop talking to a customer who was taking the clinic. She said there was controversy at the camp, since one of the instructors (Chris) was claiming to have stuck his first forward, but since no one saw it the other instructors told him it didn't count. I couldn't help but laugh.

Jon had told me this story the next day before he went out sailing and it was slightly different then that...when he was driving up he was trying to figure out who was out at 8 in the morning "that could loop"....then when he found out who it was he told me "he didn't think Chris was that good" then he added "but I guess everyone on the river can loop" [after hearing Jons account I was stoked for Christopher but couldn't help but feel a bit of a stab...seeing as how I don't loop"]

Then there was Jan [Pronounced yawn] from Colorado who went further then Vulcan! in 10days!!!!

Less then a week in and he is already trying to spice up the Vulcan....one footed attempt!

see Chachi's world for the full story!

http://windchachi.blogspot.com/2010/08/zero-to-spock-in-10-days-interview-with.html

Trying to add to this epic week with my own story I set out on not just trying loops but really going after it, like Christopher had for 2 yrs and like Jan had for those ten days going after the Vulcan! Both of these guys set clear goals and worked towards them, both where highly successful so, with my written goals in hand and fired up more about them then I ever was I set out every strong EBB to send it big!

Safety off, Trigger pulled from brendon quinn on Vimeo.
A couple of my latest attempts, caught on film thanks to Christopher from abkboardsports.com and Clewfirst.com
My rounds unfortunately did not make their mark when Christopher was still here, but know I feel like its not just possible but a matter of when! 2 days after Christopher left I fully rotated a bunch landing with the board and standing upright, not on my butt. The best I actually started to sail a bit away from before the sail ripped me off the front, the others I was leaning to far back and not putting the sail forward on the landing. Unfortunately Jon is now gone to the East Coast so I do not know who will witness my eventual landing, considering he saw Christopher's and Jan's firsts it seems as the best witness to testify on my behalf will not be here!
For more info on setting goals and why you might want to do so Ridge sent me the article that inspired me to give it a try, http://www.lifemastering.com/en/harvard_school.html

Windsurfing gypsy rig of the month! Aug.

2010-08-16T16:17:00.000-07:00

While wrapping up the day after a clinic I was invited over for a beer by a local sailor I had meet just a week before. Man what a pleasant surprise to find that not only was I getting a beer, but it was going to be out of a keg.
The Campbell Bros.
standing next to their MKU.....Mobile Keg Unit! I was shocked to find out that they were actually working on producing this contraption. At first I thought they were just two guys having fun with their invention which apparently is not the first model.
It dose not require electricity, and is a totally free standing unit with wheels on the bottom, produced for the sole purpose of having cold beer during a long weekend stay at their windsurfing destination, or anywhere else they may need a keg!

The MKU in person, the keg goes in the center and ice around the sides, with a sealed top it can keep a keg of beer cold for up to three days. The release date of the MKU is still tentative due to extensive field testing! For more info you can visit
Campbellbrosbeerdynamics.com and email them and click the info button with questions or product details.

Personally this is close to being on the must have list for those who camp out on the levee here in Rio Vista or for those that travel in their RV to places like Oregon or Texas. An totally green way to go, no beer cans or bottles left over to haul out. Just your empty keg, and your reusable beer mugs. I can think of a whole ton of reasons to get one and use it, and not to many for not having it. I look forward to seeing more of these on the road and at the beaches I happen to stop by, next time I will be sure to have my own cup.
For more info or if you would like to have one and feild test it too! visit
Campbellbrosbeerdynamics.com

My Gun is Loaded, and the Safty is OFF!

2010-08-02T23:54:00.000-07:00

As I sit here watching "3:10 to Yuma" I can't help but thinking about looping and everyone out there who has given me advice. From campers, to ABK sponsors, to other windsurfing instructors all have had their own words of wisdom in motivating me to take the safety off.
Reading:

When introducing myself at an abk clinic I mentioned that I was working on loops. I continued to say that I felt like I could do it I just needed to take the safety off and pull the trigger! After introductions Barak talked to me about how ironic my intro was and asked if I had ever read [load aim loop] his process for learning to loop with a form he filled out and signed. The article talked about pretty much everything I had thought about the loop, as far as the mental side and gave no instructional. It was all about loading your guns before hitting the water and not getting off until the chambers were empty! and the barrels were smoking!

Thinking:
This whole writing down goals and intentions productivity tool was not a new subject for me. Ridge an ABK Sponsor [ozone online] had asked me what my plans for the future were, I then sidestepped his question by talking about my goals for windsurfing this year. He asked if I ever wrote these things down, [no] and went on to tell me about studies that were done with College students in which the students that wrote down their goals were dramatically more successful [paraphrasing]. When you put pen to paper you turn your thoughts into something tangible. You can actually see it, touch it, and even smell it if you want to. Your goal is no longer just a thought! It becomes something, what motivates us and creates a gut feeling inside. [click text for full article on writing down goals]

Talking:
Oddly appropriate, when searching for a picture of Andy, this one just seemed to be perfect, while to most he is simply pointing at his sponsors logos, but if there were lines on this post this image would be between them.
I know how to just GO FOR IT!! from the rest.....

But thanks to Andy owner of ABKboardsports

I know every step of the process every movement and every drill for the loop. I have seen a thousand loops, I know what it looks like, I know when they are going bad, and I know when one was hit 300 yards+ strait down the fairway.

Truth be said though the one thing holding me back from looping on every run is MYSELF!
So now its time to put

words into action, thought in motion, and talking to walking!

Parahippocampal Gyrus

2010-07-21T14:24:00.000-07:00

I have heard all the arguments as to why I should start kiting! Mostly ignoring their less thoughtful ploys to lure me to the Dark Side. Most peoples arguments are not well thought out, very shallow, and seem like they have been taken straight out of a "convince people to go kiting for DUMMIES" book. For those of you not familiar with the Dark Side of the Force or Even just the Force here is some Wikipedia background. The Force "is an energy field created by all living things, that surrounds and penetrates living beings and binds the galaxy together.^[2]" "The Force has a "Dark side", which feeds off emotions such as anger, jealousy, fear, and hate, whereas the Jedi use the Force only for peaceful purposes.^[3]"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Force_(Star_Wars)
I have sat through how you can get going in less wind! well to them I say I have been known to take out my big board [109L] and do light wind freestyle in 5kts or less [they can't fly their kites in that]
I have listened to how its easier to learn, to them I generally say if I wanted something easier I would not have kept windsurfing for 15 yrs, and that I don't mind working hard for something I really want or love.
They have tried to convince me about how much safer it is now! To those I say can't get much safer then windsurfing.

You name it I have heard it all before, for the most part none of those arguments had convinced me to go kiting! Until a few days ago, when one of the most well grounded Kite ambassadors I have ever heard speak, gave me the most convincing reason to go kiting. When I say convincing I mean he used 6 syllables like a Jedi lecturer. Like a fog had been placed over my head, and all the positive aspects of windsurfing were now erased I thought of only one thing going out and getting a kite! It may sound hard to believe but I am now TOTALLY convinced to go kiting! You may by now be wondering, what this totally profound piece of wisdom that I had heard led me to my new decision.
Just after midnight, and a long day of windsurfing a car pulled by my van and from the window yelled
"get a kite ya f@g". I have conversed with PHD holders, rocket scientists and all kinds of marginally educated and intelligent people who made their case in an effort to get me to go kiting....but non of them were as eloquent and thoughtful as this amazing ambassador for kiting. Who would have thought 5 words, 6 syllables [I did not count "ya" as a word] would have led me to throw my windsurfing gear in a chipper shredder, and walk immediately into delta and purchase kite gear! If you have not been personally blessed with the most profound words of wisdom from your local kite ambassador I will repeat it for you one more time "get a kite ya F@g"..... For those of you who were happy windsurfing before you read this post, and have now also set your own gear on fire as you drove off to the nearest kite retailer.."sorry" But I felt that all should hear these truly awe inspiring words of wisdom from one of the most profound thinkers of our time.

[For those who may be reading this who kite.... Sarcasm as defined by Wikipedia Sarcasm is “a sharp, bitter, or cutting expression or remark; a bitter jibe or taunt.” ^[1] Some authorities sharply distinguish sarcasm fromirony,^[2] however others argue that sarcasm may or often does involve irony.
Understanding the subtlety of this usage requires second-order interpretation of the speaker's intentions. This sophisticated understanding is lacking in some people with brain damage, dementia and autism,^[6] and this perception has been located by MRI in the right parahippocampal gyrus.^[7]^[8]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarcasm ]

Delta Paddleboard Race Series !

2010-07-19T13:08:00.000-07:00

Ev, sounds the start and gives a friendly yell to the participants. This would be the second of the 6 race series!

One of the spectators watches his Dad Jason! It was a close race between 3rd and 4th, with Jason trailing much of the race, that was until the last buoy when the paddler narrowly holding onto his position rounded the last mark, falling off his board. Which gave Jason a great opportunity to get into 3rd, barely making the mark himself.

1st Place: Mens; Charlie

1st Place: Womens; Lisa

2nd Place; Scott

3rd Place; Jason

4th Place; Kurt

Post Race Board Meeting!

Announcing the 2010

Naish Delta Paddleboard Race Series !

Skipper's meeting at 12:15pm

Races start at 1:00pm

Saturday, July 10

Saturday, July 17

Saturday, July 24

Saturday, July 31

Saturday, August 7

saturday, August 14

The top 3 finishers in both mens and womens divisions will get an opportunity to go to Tahoe and compete in Nationals. The WINNER of nationals will win a board and a trip to 2011 Naish Paddle Board Championships in Maui.

For race info in the Delta
http://www.deltawindsurf.com/deltapaddleboard/
For race info near you

http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=7105.0

Best Ride in Town!

2010-07-17T15:42:00.000-07:00

Waking up early in the AM [for me thats about 7:30] I hit a Dawn Patrol [again for me thats about 8:00]....."its Dawn Patrol somehwere". Had a great session getting off the water till just after noon. When driving of the levee I noticed the helicopters were back. You may have seen these from time to time on Sherman Island, last time I saw them it was in Aug 2009. It was a Roaster that day, hot and no wind with these Helicopters towing all kinds of stuff to the power towers. But today it was blowing in the mid 20's and it seemed at least to me a little windy....aparently not!

Here PG&E ground crews attach something to the Helicopters hook to take up to the towers. Just in the background another helicopter lands just behind the levee road.

Now I had a great ride that morning, but something about being attached to a helicopter by a 100+ft cable flying off the ground and to a power tower seemed like it would be one of the better rides in town!

The helicopter deposits its human payload atop the power tower!

I give the dismount a dificult rating of about 7.5. and the helicopter pilot a 9.5 for control. Don't think I would try the dismount, wouldn't mind the ride but not If I had to do that work.

Windsurfing Gypsy Rig of the Month!

2010-07-04T15:51:00.000-07:00

Traveling around I see my fair share of various modes of transportation used to get out, travel and windsurf and live out of. This one is from the City "San Francisco" for those east coast readers.... the west coast "City".Ok so looking at this picture big deal....we have all seen a trailer. But this is no ordinary trailer, its an Airstream and this is not all that is too it. Pictured above is the Airstream in travel mode set up with its own Yakima racks on the inside for boards which are removable. Folding benches/bed a sink a stove, food storage, TV, battery power, and more storage then even the owner knows about/ uses.

Ridge and the whole ride, parked at the access in Rio Vista, CA. Pulled by a mean Land Rover jeep, this Airstream gets more attention then he originally thought. While I was hanging out with him I personally witnessed 8 people come up to get a look at the inside and ask about how he likes it. He apparently that day got at least 25 people stopping at lights, getting grocery's whatever, come up and comment on how cool his rig was.

The Airstream Basecamp set up with the attachable tent in San Luis Res. A pretty sweat ride tow able by pretty much any type of car you can put a hitch on...and I have seen smaller cars pull a lot more then this thing. Windsurfers of all kinds could pack this thing up and have a pretty sweat little "basecamp" for all their trips.

Special.... People!

2010-07-01T15:31:00.000-07:00

Pete Dekay started out our Tuesday Party a little unconventionally, I guess thats what happens when you have a bunch of hungry sailors, twizlers and beers.

We all got in this crazy van [short bus], and it was not until after we started moving that we realized that the van had been taken back out of the shop because they did not have the parts to fix it. It was ok though the only thing that might happen was a wheel would go flying off......its not like we were driving on winding levee roads.

Isleton Chinese food.
The "Dinner special A" is amaZing especially when you substitute everything it includes for other stuff!

Matt poses with the owner! I had to lighten up the mood after we placed our crazy order. It started off simple enough lets get the dinner special A for 6! By the time we were done I don't think we actually had anything from dinner special A, but we somehow orderd it. After all our crazy shenanigans and quibbles over what to replace the items in the special for other items, she still had a smile on her face!

I don't know what was more special, us or the dinner SPECIAL a. [right to left] Pete,Brendon, Derek, Lisa, Matt, Susan enjoy this truly special dinner!

Matt and I sail with "Rossi"

2010-06-30T11:55:00.000-07:00

Our first morning in Rio Vista sailing together in more then a year Matt and I awake to find Michal Rossmeier writer of Tricktionary already on the water. One of the better mornings in Rio I have sailed so far this year. I am the last to hit the water with my 4.7 Wave Vogue and 88L RRD TwinTip which is rapidly becoming my favorite combo to sail. The first hour I was really powered on a great ebb with the outside ramps nice and steep and the Play Pen super flat for starboard aerials.
As it turns out not only was the Tricktionary man out on the water but so were the Windsport men Pete DeKay and Derek Rijff. Pictured below Pete going big!

By the time I made it off the water and on the beach with my camera the morning session was pretty much done. Somehow Michael Rossmeier was still going strong, but Matt needed to rig 5.3 for some extra power to go for the new move he was working on. Unfortunately it would turn out to be still not enough for what he wanted and it was a bit light and pesky on the inside. Like most times when the camera is pulled out it is rarely the right condition, the sailor is by then more then likely tired and it just seems off somehow. Although when the camera is not out is usually when we want it there.

After making a few runs, we got some pretty good pics but every frame I took the wind would get lighter and lighter. It would be time to pack it in and go get some lunch. Before heading to Lira's for some fried chicken and some chicken fried potatoes, Matt and I stopped and talked to Rossi a bit about how he liked the spot, what he thought of California and the spots he had been too!

He was on what seemed a pretty crazy tour, he had been to Pistol River, "the" Gorge, Candlestick, Rio and some other spots and would be spending some time in Santa Cruz before heading back home. Super cool and very approachable, he had had a pretty good day sailing for 2 or 3hrs plus. When telling him we were leaving to save some energy for when it got good his eyes lit up, as he asked "this wasn't good." It was good but, for Rio on a windy day it wasn't nearly as good as it could have been or should have been for this time of year.
Before leaving he stopped in at Delta Windsurf where Matt and I were finishing up our chicken and looked around and talked about various things before asking about Santa Cruz and the conditions. Matt gave them the low down and told them about a spot we had sailed a few times in town, that day it would blow 38 right in Santa Cruz. Luckily he did not decide to stay for when it "got good" because it never got better in Rio that day. I don't know if he made it out to any of the spots in Santa Cruz, but I hope he had a great time there and in California, a place that I believe is one of the best in the world that few travel to.

Windsurfing Rio Vista 2010 Slide Show from brendon quinn on Vimeo.

Levee Roads Most Dangerous Creatures!

2010-06-24T10:25:00.000-07:00

Back home! This sign has been a permanent fixture in my windsurfing in California, kinda like the sailing here thus far this year it we have seen better days. But this trip was made with my good friend Matt Case who along with me learned to sail with Sam Studer at Stanford Sailing and then to windsurf from Sam at Shoreline. Too young to go anywhere good Matt and I spent our time sailing Shoreline lake, until I reached the ripe age of 18 and could finally drive us out of there!
Ever since I turned 18 either he or I have had a dodge van, but neither of us has ever had one at the same time. I wish at that time I had pictures of that first sweat set of independence wheels. Piling our gear in the back of the van who ever it was that owned one at the time and tooling around the bay area became our shtick.

Pictured here Matt's Dodge van in 2005 and I just after getting attacked by ants during one of our weekend trips to the Delta. Where I stand with my shorts flying on a mast used to lie a tent, which was torn down by me when I awoke in the middle of the night with ants looking for a new home. [To this day I still believe the most dangerous creature on the levee, is the Ant] Throwing cloths all over the place while running in circles slapping myself silly trying to get the ants off and out of me, I would later crawl into the passenger side door and sleep on a seat that did not recline for the next 3 nights.

I first started teaching windsurfing at shoreline, Later Matt would get a job teaching there and eventually take over my position when I quite. Getting my "real job" I eventually moved to Santa Cruz to have a better option to sail with better hours and a closer spot. Funny how things never worked out that way, I think for the 4 yrs I lived there I sailed maybe 20 days on the coast. So one day after a little premeditation on my part I quite my job and decided to go windsurfing for a while. Traded a house in Santa Cruz for a tent and a folding hammock, packed all my worldly possessions into 2 bags and threw my windsurfing stuff in the ABK truck. We were back to working together teaching windsurfing, for a short time at least. My plan was to go with ABK if they would have me till after Oregon and then go figure something else out to do.

Little did I know then I would take over his position with ABK finding what I wanted to do. Here in the Gorge Matt teaches his dad how to water start in 2008 my first year with ABK. He would go on after this summer to get a real job and windsurf about as much as I did while I went on the road living out of a van, windsurfing more days then not.

Full circle again, Matt comes up to Rio in 2010 to try and windsurf as much as he could. Just how it used to be, I talk up a windsurfing trip and convince him to take his days off to go windsurfing on Sherman Island. Matt playing air guitar on a boom next to his new windsurf mobile Toyota Camery. Not wanting to get attacked by ants, and learning in part from lessons from the past, he would sleep the three days in his trunk. Parked next to his Toyota is the newish Dodge van formerly ABK instructor Ben Kermans. Back on the levee together despite the fact he grew up and got responsible in SoCal.

San Luis Res. Week 2

2010-06-21T16:47:00.000-07:00

The Final shipment of gear for the 2010 tour finally arrived just before the 2nd San Luis Camp in California. The brand new 2010 RRD Sails lineup with booms, masts and extensions completed our demo fleet which already had a large selection of Maui Sails, Fanatic Boards, and RRD Boards.

Campers hide from the sun behind the big truck for the days video debriefing.

The one BIG surprise was a blast from the past Sam Studer. When I was 10 or 11 Sam taught me to Sail small sailboats, 420's and FJ's then later on at around 12 I ran into him again when I learned to windsurf. I along with my friend Matt Case and I would run into him every now and then and hang out or sometimes even sail together. One time Sam even handed over his house keys to Matt and I around 19yrs old to watch his house and feed the horses while he and the family went to the gorge for a windsurfing trip.......he has not given us the keys to anything sense then.
The last time I ran into him was by chance in La Ventanna Mexico as I was in the process of ordering my fish tacos I looked over and said no f-ing way.......Sam it took him a while to recognize me with long hair and a tan.
This time I was getting out of the water as he walked up to the hill. I quickly put all the camp gear away, and grab a chair and a beer. He was in town from SoCal for hip surgery, and stopped by to shoot the breeze and maybe grab a session if conditions where really great. Luckily for him [his hip] the conditions were less then great so he had to settle for story telling and beers.

Sam gives me a hard time at the end of the day!

Although I think I had the last laugh when I gave him my Hammock to sleep on. [then again my sailing certification book is still not signed from 16yrs ago.......]Sam Studer "crashes" on the San Luis Res. Hopefully the conditions and his hip will be better next time I run into him wherever that may be.

2 seconds

2010-06-18T12:25:00.000-07:00

After having ended the camp, everyone packed up and went on their way. Not knowing where else I would go I stayed in San Luis for the week. After a ton of light wind and more heat then I wanted, I didn't know if I could stand being there for 2 weeks straight. Mon was pretty up and down marginal 5.8. But waking up on Tues. morning around 7:30am only to find that two other people had beaten me onto the water. Little did I understand at that moment that this day was going to be the BEST day of sailing I had this year.
Watching for a bit I rig up 4.7 Wave Vouge and the 88L Twin Tip. Despite usually never having good morning sessions, I have a great time on the water but it soon fades out and it was time to hit the coffee shop for some internet. As I drive out I notice the red light was still on, which I hoped ment it was going to get windy again later since I left my gear rigged. This light is always something about San Luis I had never understood, because it would blow hard and the light would come on, and then it would stay on for the entire day despite the fact the wind had died.

Trying to kill some time and escape from the heat of the mid day at the San Luis Res I go into town for some internet and lunch. Not too many times do things work out as perfectly as it does here, not only did I get internet and a Frappuccino but I got to have my favorite sandwich of all time. The Quizno's Honey Bacon Club on white with a side of Batch 83 sauce.
As I get back I see the light is still on..... sitting in my van I finish up my Quizno's and read a little. When I notice Charles, who did not launch from my side of the Reservoir. As he comes out of the water I notice he has his new board with him the Fanatic Skate, which he decided to bring here for its maiden voyage. We talk for a little before he takes off to the other side, as he reaches halfway I see him get lit up, and I imediatly start to get my stuff together and ready to sail. Shortly after that I am out on the water overpowerd on 4.7 and riding my 88L TwinTip and decide to go sail on the other side with Charles. Its not too often while sitting in a van you get a visitor who traveled to you by windsurfing, so rather then sailing on my side alone I repay the favor and get some company in return.

This would be the only day that week that I would sail and only the 2nd day I had sailed for the 2 weeks in Cali. As I sailed over to the other side I should have known then that this day was special. Looking back at my wake and spray I notice the sun is shining through and making a rainbow, that never left my side. Sailing in 90 degrees and a shorty with the brown rolling hills in the background blue sky, and whitecaps everywhere under foot. The entire week I stayed in San Luis it was 90 degrees and windless, with the exception of that day even having sailed in the morning and in the evening I don't know if it would have been that great use of time. But there were 2 seconds of glory that made the week of waiting for wind all worthwhile. It was not only that those 2 sec. justified it all, but rather they made me aware of all that had gone on. I had a great morning sail, air conditioning, cold coffee drink, my all time favorite lunch, someone visited me via windsurfing over, and I sailed with a friendly face. Landing my first new move in California in more 3 years and it was an aerial, just as it always is when working on somthing new, no one saw it. Looking around in amazement that I had finally pulled it off, only to see the only sailor on the water, Charles!!!.. on the other side of the Res. I think windsurfing alone is like the tree in the woods that may or may not make a sound if no one is there to hear it. So we will call the new move, NEW MOVE #1 which hopefully sometime soon someone will sail in my neck of the woods and hear me land it......... "Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." Ferris Bueller

San Luis Res. Margarita party

2010-06-16T11:06:00.000-07:00

Peter and Kate two campers in the first San Luis camp decided to host and organize a social get together. What better way to get people to show up and be social then a lot of tequilla!

The only stipulation was that you bring your own cup....of course Just Bob forgot his cup!

Kate, Joanne and Ridge!

As the sun was going down it was the best lighting I would have to shoot pictures but as all things with time it was fleeting. One camper gives me a lesson! Field of view I wish I could remember the technical details it involves but basically when I focus in on an object the image beyond slowly gets less defined, while the image up close is crystal clear.

Soon the light was gone, and not wanting to use the flash because cameras are bad enough with out a flash blinding you. It was pretty much perfect timing the sun was down the air was cool, the tequila gone. Windsurfing is fun but sometimes I think if there was no one to talk to afterward to share stories with and talk about success or failure it would not nearly be as enjoyable. This little get together was perfect, after a hot two days to relax cool off and just talk and laugh, thanks Kate and Peter!

To see this image in a larger form just click on it!

San Luis Res.

2010-06-14T11:05:00.000-07:00

I arrived for work the night before camp started. After being left for dead in Rio Vista with a stomach malady that.......was ... most unpleasent on Mon. it was now Thurs. evening. Prior to my arrival all kinds of reasons were being drempt up as for why I was not there. From I was going to show up fri. to be difficult, to I was traped in a Honey-Bucket [port-0-potie] somewhere in rio, a petty good one was that I had forgotten what day of the week it was like in Aruba that was one I would not put past me to do. But really I got sick on Sun night and it took me until Thur to feel as if I could walk freely after spending most of my time in a van down by the river being sick, I was now in San Luis with ENERGY TO BURN! Leaping out of the car I snap some pictures with my camera blinding Christopher and Sarafina. It had been almost a year since we last saw each other and that was just as good of a way as any I could come up with to say hello!

Friday came around and it was now time to go to work, It was hotter that day then I had seen in a long time. Luckily it would not be like that forever, but it would seem like it did. Lots of light wind, and long lectures the first couple days soon broke out into some pretty good wind for which everyone would be ready for by then.

Just Bob, out sailing!

Andy goes over the video of the day.

My Visit to MacGyver's Workshop

2010-06-10T12:54:00.000-07:00

Just before going to San Luis Res, I was given a loner boom until my RRD booms arrived from Jason Voss. Immediately I was pretty impressed, it had a good head on it and was pretty light but then I started looking at it. There was a lot of extra room at the end of the tail piece for extra holes and adjustment. A 160-210 it would barely fit my 4.7 UNLESS I went to see MacGyver.

Upon Telling him my problem, he immediately said why not drill out that hole thats just painted......after a few Min. we were well on our way to voiding any type of manufacturing warranty. Now what may posses me to do this and trust MacGyver's assurances that it would not harm the boom. Well he does it to his own stuff all the time, he has a boom that I have never seen before in any store, complete with custom tail pieces, not to mention he once built his own three piece mast...lets just hope the boom works out better then that one!
First step was measuring, that was done faster then it took me to get my camera. Precise measuring and prep work always the most important part of any job.
Next up Drilling Holes, we decided to add a total of six extra holes to the tail piece. Each hole was drilled with a starter hole using a small drill bit, then followed by a slightly larger bit until we achieved the desired fit.

The next to last process was to round out the holes and finish them off like any of the others. Using a Dremel tool he lightly beveled the edges and sanded the rough parts off.

Finished! The Zero mark to the -4 mark were drilled out adding 6 extra cm of adjust ability to my new borrowed boom! Next off was to put the finishing touches, using a silver sharpie fine tip pen we wrote in the measurement marks. Since they had already put the Zero mark in above a painted on circle we decided to make them negative and put on a new Zero painted mark...or should I say -6.

I have since used it 3 times and it is till holding up very well, I even used it on a 4.2 day while riding on a 4.7 and still holding tough thanks to MacGyver!
"Sorry Jason!, you cant have this tail piece when I get my new booms!!!"

Cross Country Again

2010-06-08T12:50:00.000-07:00

View Larger Map
Wow so I have been cross country a few times twice a year for 2 yrs, and this was my 4th time making the drive. To date just for abk I have done 5,381 miles for camps, and windsurfing, and this drive according to google is 2,992 miles of that. Now I have been thinking of this for a while in that I don't work very much maybe 3 days a week for 14 or 15 weeks in the US but I drive an awEfull lot! So I looked up the average commute to work from what I read it was around 40 miles round trip every day of work. So 5,381 miles divided by the number of days I have worked so far ends up being just over 283 miles of commute per work day! Now once at work there is never much more driving until going to another spot, and there is also less drive for windsurfing since we are usually already there.
So here I am again trip #4 cross country, and there is one thing I have now learned that is very crucial to the whole cross country drive. Something that I had had for all the others but not for this one, and it is so important I don't know if I would want to do it again without......MUSIC!!!! The radio in the truck had been out for a while, and we put a new one in the back but it was barely audible up front. So we were left with two situations drive without anything or listen to ipods or whatever we could find. Neither of which was a great help, nothing like driving 2,992 miles with no tunes, Somewhere around Utah with 800 or so miles I was starting to sound a bit like Jack Nicholson "all work and no play makes Brendon a dull boy" and right when I was about to the REDRUM part the radio miraculously started working. 2,000 miles of no radio and suddenly it started playing, and at that exact moment I realized if starting a cross country drive you could pretty much forget everything, but you cannot leave without a radio.

Long Island Camp

2010-06-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

One of the nicest warmest Long Island clinics I have been too. Lots of sun and even some wind made it a pretty good camp.
On Saturday we got some more of our new toys, and busily got them out of the boxes and setup for the weekend. Brand new Fanatic boards shipped to Hampton Watersports for us, on the first day of the Long Island Camp and picked up that evening.

Tom goes through speed, on a simulator hooked to the trailer.

Below Merideth simulates the tack hand and footwork, on land.

Hampton Watersports

2010-06-02T15:03:00.000-07:00

The local host shop for our 2010 Long Island clinic, Hampton Watersports. The day before the clinic Tom and I picked up the massive Budget truck, usually not only a place for us to store all of our gear and camper gear during the clinic but also a great place to huddle and stay out of the rain and cold. This time however it was mainly going to be used for gear storage.

John Ford gets all the gear ready that people will be renting during our clinic, before throwing it in the back of the truck. A really cool guy, who goes sailing, or sup'ing, surfing, so much I sometimes wonder when his shop is open. Luckily when he is out on the water usually he is out with all the other sailors in the area, and he probably gave a few of them a call to make sure they were going too.

Our shipment of new Fanatic boards were to have arrived for us to pick up and throw into the truck, but they would not arrive until the next day, so we picked up the rental gear and went sailing for ourselves.
With the forecast being only 5mph for pretty much the whole weekend we did not think we would have much opportunity for free sailing. But despite all forecasts showing nothing over 7mph, John assured us that it would pick up to 18-20 around 3:30. So after sitting on the couch we drive out to the spot, and sit for a few min before the wind builds out of nowhere and we get a pretty nice 5.8 session before camp.

If your in the area and want to check out more of Long Island windsurfing and the crew of sailors out and about in that area you can hit up the ECWF. The East Coast windsurfing Festival. http://www.ecwindfest.com/East_Coast_Windsurfing_Festival/ECWF_Home.html

North Carolina to Long Island

2010-05-29T17:27:00.000-07:00

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With Andy switching out trailers and getting gear and things organized Tom and I stayed in North Carolina a few extra days to sail. Unfortunately the wind that was for casted never came and we still stayed. But we got to spend some good time together and road trip in Honda Element. Doing a drive I had done a lot of times, when we started out nothing new was expected to be seen and experienced. Usually now those are the times that the most unusual events happen, during the time you least expect it. Like a billboard on our drive through Virgina for the Airforce with a helicopter flying high with a windsurfer.

The next crazy thing that happened was during our drive over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Opening on April 15, 1964 and is considered one of the 7 engineering wonders of the modern world. Going over and below the water it was initially designed to accommodate boat traffic of the unusual kind. The boat yards in the Maryland area house our subs, and East Coast Navy vessels. While I had been over this bridge quite a few times and heard talk of subs going by I had never seen one. Granted driving randomly twice a year over this bridge the chances of our paths ever crossing were next to non existence, or so I thought.

The section pictured is at the end of the bridge where there is a turnout and look out area to watch the boats or just check out the water above you before you go into the tunnel.

Andy's First talk at Wind NC

2010-05-26T19:10:00.000-07:00

While it was not his first time giving a night clinic at this spot, it was his first time under new ownership. Andy McKinney formerly known as shop lackey at Sailworld Hatteras, is now known as Proprietor of Wind-NC. Deciding to open his own shop, and make a mark on the Hatteras scene and the windsurfing world on his own terms, by putting it all on the table or better yet [shop floor].

Andy Brandt interacting with the crowd.

60 people give or take showed up on the Thurs. night to come ask questions, socialize, and or drink beer.

Caught in the act, while everyone else was busy listing to Andy's talk I spotted this guy staring at the boards, so I decided to keep my eye on him. Unfortunately for him he was wearing tight legged jeans, and couldn't make his move comfortably. ha ha ha [i'm just joking but I did give him a napkin to wipe the drool from his chin before I took the picture]

Not everyone just drooled that night, Coach Ned walked out that night proud owner of a New 2010 RRD Freestyle Wave 120, after trying it out at our clinic. I took the moment to snap a couple of pictures as Andy McKinney and the whole family made sure everything was cool with the board. Making sure to double check the footstraps, and to insert the vent plug for him just in case he forgot.
Left to right Andy Mckinney, Coach Ned, [soon to be Anne McKinney] and Ken.

All in all it was a great night with most of our campers in attendance, and all kinds of sailors from all over North America. There are not very many times that the number of people here that night get together all in one spot, and talk windsurfing and socialize in the manor we did.

One of the nicest people you will ever meet running and working in a windsurfing shop, Andy McKinney has been a staple of the Hatteras windsurfing scene and I truly wish him luck in making this year the best year he has ever seen in Hatteras...and not just because I ride RRD but because I really like him and what he believes in and stands for in windsurfing. So cheers and good luck Wind-NC I hope to see your logo around for a long time to come. [Andy Mckinney's Hatteras Ride Guide]