Coolest thing experinced on the water?

Share stores of your big days, soul rejuvenation experiences; moments that defy time.

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Eric S
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Coolest thing experinced on the water?

Post by Eric S »

I had mine yesterday.

I was following Brian Smith a about 75 ft back and slightly upwind of him. I saw him yell and point to somthing ahead (You can't really HEAR anything out there, too windy). It was a monsterous froth and spray. I must have seen it too late but I knew what he was talking about. There had to be at least 2 leviathan wave faces lurking in the churn.

Brians path was perfect and it set him up to take the second wave of the 3 wave set. As he initiated his top turn/stall I found myself perfectly possitioned on the 3rd brute, still just a few tens of feet behind Brian.

Brain dissappeard down his wave as I tried my best to ride mine. When I got to the bottom and started a little bottom turn I looked downwind passed the backside of the wave Brian was on. I could only see the top part of this sail.

Holy cow! I was probably 25 ft away from him and I couldn't see him, just the top of his sail. Maybe this is a dangerous thing to do but it felt natural. We couldn't let those bigones get away without riding on them, together.

We both sail away from that. One of us stayed on the same tack and the other jibed and went the other way. I can't remember exactly because I was so excited I could hardly see straight.

I want to do that again!!
Last edited by Eric S on Thu Sep 25, 2003 10:21 am, edited 2 times in total.
Dave Schneider
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Post by Dave Schneider »

Eric,

Could you maybe call that a "Two-on-One"? :twisted:
Dave Schneider
Tighe
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Post by Tighe »

that you can do...or have done to you :shock:
Tighe
Eric S
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Post by Eric S »

I changed the subject. Question is what's the coolest thing that's happend to you while windsurfing or kiting. Tighe, I think you once talked about kiting with Dolphins. Stuff like that. Stuff that words find hard to describe.

Give up some stories!
Chris
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Post by Chris »

My first small board/high wind sailing experience was at Cannon. I was sailing along and I felt my fin loose its grip – as if I’d lost the fin. Then I crashed. I turned the board over to have look. The fin was still there. I gave it a tug to make sure it wasn’t broken or cracked. When I arrived at shore I told Sid Roberts what had happened. He said, “You spun out.”

I’d seen the phrase “spin out” in the windsurfing magazines and I knew what it meant – spinning around in a circle – like on a motorcycle or in a car. I said, “No. I didn’t spin out. Something happened to my fin – like it was gone --but it wasn’t gone. It was really weird.”

I’m still waiting for my first “spin out”. That will be cool.
Tighe
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Post by Tighe »

I'd have to say the first time I planned and the first time I did a planning jibe.

I remember the session when I first planned. It was in Madison circa 1982. I remember going from basically dragging through the water to this effortless release, like a continuous skip across the water. I can't remember if we were using harnesses at that time...I don't think so. Everything go so much easier. Gusts went from increases adding lbs on the boom pull, to increases in speed. It was so freeing. I was riding a 9' 6" Seatrend, shaped by Randy French.

Then when I first jibed. I was down in Corpus, bird Island. I remember the night before I went through the sequence in my mind over and over, visualizing the hand motions, the weight shift, everything in my mind as I went to sleep. The water was flat, the wind was steady and everything came together. I was riding Gene Reshanovs 8'8" Seatrend, and just went for it. It was so cool. I just did it over and over and over, each time going faster and faster and faster in and out of the jibe. The sun had gone down and I was still out there.

Those are at the top of my mind though I have 20+ years filled with experiences. I'll try and pull some more out.
Tighe
Dave Z
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Post by Dave Z »

I bet everybody can remember their first waterstart.
Mike W
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Post by Mike W »

My most memorable contact with nature came last winter on WBL while I was sailing my ice board. I was ripping along when I saw a huge bird approaching from the distance. As it approached, I noticed it was a bald eagle. It just kept flying toward me. I think it took me for prey of some kind. I starting getting really worried as it got closer. When it came within 20-30 feet, it swooped away. Wow, was that ever exciting!
Jan
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Post by Jan »

For me, it was an epic day back in Holland in 1990 when everything came together. I was in shape, my sail (3.5 neil pryde) and my board worked together perfectly. The wind was probably around 30 – 35 knots. The conditions were perfect for bump and jump, and I still remember jumping so high that you feel like you are flying. You hang in the air for seconds. I remember moving my sail and my board during the jump which caused my board to turn off the wind in mid – air. Unbelievable feeling. This is the stuff that makes you truly addicted to windsurfing - and I imagine it works the same for kite sailing. You keep chasing for days like that.
Jan
Barry P
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Post by Barry P »

Man, how do you choose?

After years of back breaking uphauls, those first waterstarts were really magical. Just rising out of the water right onto the board. Wow!

Lots of going fast memories.

Back before harnesses and really light weight (breakable) boards I though catapults were loads of fun.

The Crossing (my 1st) two years ago is still my best-of experience on the water. Good wind, sunny, clean cool water, nice 2-3 foot rollers, FAST sailing for miles & miles without any thought of going back... just go faster, along with this huge armada skipping, flying togther. It was really cool experience.
Tighe
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Post by Tighe »

I remember kiting out on Tonka a few years ago. It had been snowing and misting for the last 3 days, so there was between 4 and 15 inches of fresh snow. The wind had kicked up the night before and had blown some of the new snow off and left these wonderful patterns in the sand, much like looking at the river plateaus of Arizona or Nevada from the air. Layers of snow, some swept away, in other areas steep "cliffs" as a bowl was created. The sun only poked through the clouds now and again but for the most part it was hazy blowing snow. Enough that you could only see maybe a quarter mile in front of you, the rest was white. It felt like I was traversing another planet, in another time. absolutely quiet as my skis sliced the new snow. It was very special.
Tighe
steveb
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Post by steveb »

My most memorable contact with nature was when I met my wife for the first time at the crossing.
:oops:
Sid
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Post by Sid »

I've had so many moments relating to progress, and continue to get them. Wed I did a planning jibe on the smallest board yet and felt that special thing again. The thing I remember most, though, is sailing at Kanaha and loosing track of how far out I had gone. On the way back to the beach I couldn't really see much in the way of civilization. The incredible deep blue of the water, the feeling of having it all to myself, and the complete beauty made me forget that I was sailing. The only feeling was that of being so extremely lucky to be able to experience it all.
Coach
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Post by Coach »

You're so damn sappy, Steve. :-P

My most memorable moment on the water was watching you get lofted (unintentionally) five feet up on your longboard in the middle of Mille Lacs during the '96 Crossing. I never realized you could get 225 lbs. on a 12 foot board 5 feet in the air off a 3 foot wave. :roll:


-Coach
bmr
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Kule Experience

Post by bmr »

One of my favorites happened when I was water starting for the first time with my orange/pink Wip Classic 8.1 (?) at East Medicine LK Beach. The wind was blowing approx. 15mph and gusting to about 25mph. I was steering my kite to each side of the window trying to get it turned upright.

All of a sudden there was a lull, and then a huge gust. My kite went airborne lifting me and my board far into the lake...heading toward the swimming area of the beach. I can remember the cheers of the kids and screams of their parents as I dangled and flailed above the water like a squirrel trapped in a cardboard box.

My flight ended abruptly when I plummeted into the lake and was towed gracefully out-to-sea.

Good times...great oldies.

~ Brad
kyakmike
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Post by kyakmike »

Ummmm...... Sounds silly, but for me I suppose it was my first time making upwind in my buggy... ;-)

Then, after a few seasons of fustration, going to Madison on some really smooth clear ice, making upwind without effort, and actually clocked by radar at over 40 mph on a reach using a 3 meter kite... ;-) ;-)
(I bought a helmet when I got home...)

Those were quite a few years ago.....
Recently... last winter...
On our little lake in front of our house it was Nukin... Had a 3 meter foil out and was having a blast for a couple hours dodging the fish houses, and came back in to my (soon to be at the time) wife saying that "those other guys on Mom's lake" had much Bigger kites".... I laughed my butt off, and I think she still don't understand
There is a lot of humor in "civilians".......
:roll: :roll:
Mikey Luvs Ya!!
Timwalker
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Coolest...

Post by Timwalker »

Coolest Slalom Sailing Nature Interaction.
Sailing out of the 'Vela Cancun' center, when it was open 9 years ago, about a mile off shore, and a 3-8 ft oblong school of rainbow neon tetra fish, about 1-4 inches long each, swam alongside my board in the crystal blue carribean waters, and then burst out of the ocean at the nose of my board, some flopping about on my longboard, sparkling in the afternoon sun, catching a ride on the huge machine at the surface, before wriggling off to swim away with their buddies! So cool!

Coolest Shortboard Nature Interaction.
Sailing out of Vela Margarita 2002, on an outbound starboard bump & jump fest, I pulled a nice 8-10 ft floater, and as I came down to the water, 3-4 flying fish darted through the air in front of me, some left, some right, sharing my airtime! These little 4-6 inch fish are so much like a jumping windsurfer, a quick slash of power, and then Pop the sail, and flllooat as far as you can!! It felt as if they jumped the same time as me, and we flew together, although they were the better fliers!

Coolest fellow-surfer Interaction.
Resting in the shallows at Margarita 2000, and watched a local sailor come flying out to jump right downwind of me, get about 6-8 ft of air, then take his back hand off the boom while mid-air, and swing it in the 360 degree, Pete Townsend style, air guitar circle, and back on the boom, while staring and smiling at me! All midair! Perfect landing, and off. What controll! Of course this year was a bit better, the local guy looped right in front of me! Sailed away with a smile. Shows what sailing 170 - 220 days a year can do for your skill!

Coolest back to nature interaction.
I took my longboard on a fishing trip into the BWCA, to Trout lake, for a week of camping. I got one day with some wind, and put on my wetsuit, and grabbed some bait and a pole, and sailed out to do some sailboard fishing. Caught and released a couple perch and a small walleye, then made a totally silent ride back to the camp site on the island. Only the call of a loon. Not a boat, motor, or other human in sight! At least for a half hour or so, untill I got back to the shore. Very personal 'one with nature feeling'!

Thats the cream of the coolest, still so many more, but enough for now.
Sid
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Sailing the BWCA

Post by Sid »

It might amaze you that windsurfing is illegal in the BWCA! Any form of assisted travel is included even putting up you poncho on a canoe is technically out. I have often wanted to get arrested doing this. One can't even windsurf in a 25HP motorized zone! What were they thinking?
stevegoertz
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Post by stevegoertz »

- definately the first time that great big windsurfer one design with a nylon sail and 8lb wooden center board caugh enough wind to plane up - THAT's what I'm talking about -

And of course the first time I got in the harness, back in the straps on a powered up plane on my fanatic Viper (remember those gems???) THATS what I'm talking about -

And of course now any time I'm lucky enough to simply be on the water, in any condition, with any gear (sans fossil fuel that is), enjoyin what god gave us - I feel like I'm stealin sometimes :)
Timwalker
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Post by Timwalker »

On that BWCA trip, when I got to the entrance at the motorized portage at Vermillion/Trout lake the operator said he couldn't take that surfboard accross the portage, 'not a registered boat.' I showed him the sticker.. 'Well, it's a wind powered craft' was his next statement. I reminded him I payed taxes for registration, just like a canoe, or boat with motor owner, and it was fully inside the 14ft alumacraft fishin boat. I was fully willing to pay the same fee as a canoe, so he aggreed, but said that the rangers might see it differently. I had no problem, the ranger did stop buy our campsite, and never mentioned it.
The only reason I can see why they won't allow them, it opens the door for regular sailboats, and this larger keel is what they don't want, on or near the portages, although who in their right mind would want to bring in a big sailboat, I don't know!
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