Duluth
Moderator: MK
JNIt's lookin good. I think the Paulson clan (and one dunklee) will be making the drive to ride some real waves again. We kinda got skunked on the whole wave thing on the coast. Looks like this could be our chance. Where is everyone riding? The forcast is still saying more east, so the closer to Duluth, the better the waves will be. Hope to see a crew at the Tot tomorrow.
Eric
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ice_kmauve
- Posts: 537
- Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 7:18 pm
- Location: St. Paul, MN
On our way.
Judd and I should be at Tot Lot between 10 and 10:30.
Ride...just be it!
www.just-be-it.com
www.just-be-it.com
Unbelivable power out there today. What a time we all had. I'm not even going to try and name everyone that was there, but the crowd was stoked. The wind was the real thing today, with gusts hitting 45 acording to the below link. Great stuff. We'll have to do it again some time.
http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstat ... =KMNDULUT1
http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstat ... =KMNDULUT1
Eric
A long time comin'
Mother gave us about as good as it gets. Not too big, enough wind, and beautiful terrain to play. I know there were several who made the trip into these conditions for the first time and I would hope we could get some good stories. The conditions were challenging and we all had our mental highs and lows through the day.
It'd be great to hear your story...fresh in your mind, screw grammar and the critical mind...just a free hand flow of your more significant events of the day.
For me, rigging down and going out to find more wind rather than the typical result of reduced wind. Beautiful rolling, long and well developed waves, not too fast, not too slow, with wind power to play them. Catching a wave with Judd, sharing turns just a few feet behind him. Coming up over the Duluth hill to see partly cloudy skis, a lake frothing in white, Sky Harbor wind readings of 25-30, a parking space, a calm rigging area, finding an area where the waves seemed to consistently set up....being able to still get out after catching the wave and finding myself near shore in seconds, passing a loaded viewing gallery, catching port ramp air looking down at Judd as he passed starboard tack....watching some awesome 40' jumps that seemed to carry forever, and catching smiles ear to ear no matter where I looked.
Great to see veteran Chip return to the waters. Kevin, Steve...you had some awesome rides...would love a story or two. Kiters new to Mother, you got her full glory... story?
Anybody stay up there for today's wind?
My kite lesson: double check your struts. I failed to inflate my furthest out and found myself without control. God bless rigging areas protected from wind. My estimate was about eight windsurfers, ten surfers, four kayaks, and over twenty kites. It was a long time comin'...thanks for the party.
It'd be great to hear your story...fresh in your mind, screw grammar and the critical mind...just a free hand flow of your more significant events of the day.
For me, rigging down and going out to find more wind rather than the typical result of reduced wind. Beautiful rolling, long and well developed waves, not too fast, not too slow, with wind power to play them. Catching a wave with Judd, sharing turns just a few feet behind him. Coming up over the Duluth hill to see partly cloudy skis, a lake frothing in white, Sky Harbor wind readings of 25-30, a parking space, a calm rigging area, finding an area where the waves seemed to consistently set up....being able to still get out after catching the wave and finding myself near shore in seconds, passing a loaded viewing gallery, catching port ramp air looking down at Judd as he passed starboard tack....watching some awesome 40' jumps that seemed to carry forever, and catching smiles ear to ear no matter where I looked.
Great to see veteran Chip return to the waters. Kevin, Steve...you had some awesome rides...would love a story or two. Kiters new to Mother, you got her full glory... story?
Anybody stay up there for today's wind?
My kite lesson: double check your struts. I failed to inflate my furthest out and found myself without control. God bless rigging areas protected from wind. My estimate was about eight windsurfers, ten surfers, four kayaks, and over twenty kites. It was a long time comin'...thanks for the party.
Ride...just be it!
www.just-be-it.com
www.just-be-it.com
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Kevinousdigian
- Posts: 646
- Joined: Thu Nov 28, 2002 10:37 pm
NOW I get it!!
I've been enjoying big days on Mille Lacs for several years - I love that swell at Father Hennepin et al places. I've tried Superior a couple times but the wind was dying and never got to really enjoy it. After yesterday I now realize that those waves and swell at Superior beats many other places, not just MN around the globe. I've sailed 4.0 days in the gorge, margarita and Maui and Superior is as good or better.
I woke up early with adrenaline going so I came over that hill into Duluth by 9am. That was quite a sight - dark clouds to the right and blinding sunshine over superior with that look of lots of wind. I rigged up and went out on my 5.5 about 9:30. I almost got through on the first try but was by a put in my place by one wave. Next try I made it through.
Some of those waves were so huge and endless. I've never gotten to ride for that long. Some were very fast movers which meant I had to unhook and go straight down to beat it. One of them was frothing and spraying my face because I was so close to the top - I was holding onto the boom with one hand and somehow made it out of there having stayed up and beaten the wave.
Besides my own fun riding the highlight of the viewing was seeing Judd jump and carve. I swear one of his jumps he had to have been 50' up in the air.
I want to thank Mike Winter who kept couraging me to get up there as well as Randy. I will definitely go back for more.
I stayed out for a marathon 3.5 hour session. I had nothing left and my body is sore today but that was definitely the highlight of my nearly 20 years of windsurfing.
Kevin
I've been enjoying big days on Mille Lacs for several years - I love that swell at Father Hennepin et al places. I've tried Superior a couple times but the wind was dying and never got to really enjoy it. After yesterday I now realize that those waves and swell at Superior beats many other places, not just MN around the globe. I've sailed 4.0 days in the gorge, margarita and Maui and Superior is as good or better.
I woke up early with adrenaline going so I came over that hill into Duluth by 9am. That was quite a sight - dark clouds to the right and blinding sunshine over superior with that look of lots of wind. I rigged up and went out on my 5.5 about 9:30. I almost got through on the first try but was by a put in my place by one wave. Next try I made it through.
Some of those waves were so huge and endless. I've never gotten to ride for that long. Some were very fast movers which meant I had to unhook and go straight down to beat it. One of them was frothing and spraying my face because I was so close to the top - I was holding onto the boom with one hand and somehow made it out of there having stayed up and beaten the wave.
Besides my own fun riding the highlight of the viewing was seeing Judd jump and carve. I swear one of his jumps he had to have been 50' up in the air.
I want to thank Mike Winter who kept couraging me to get up there as well as Randy. I will definitely go back for more.
I stayed out for a marathon 3.5 hour session. I had nothing left and my body is sore today but that was definitely the highlight of my nearly 20 years of windsurfing.
Kevin
Kevin Ousdigian
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littlejohn
- Posts: 18
- Joined: Mon Jan 12, 2004 12:17 am
I can't belive after all these years yesterday was my first experience there. It's the best minnesota has to offer. Steady winds and big waves. I was lightly powered on a 4.7 and some of the waves out there were over head high. It took a while to get used to it being onshore and all but by the end the only thing that kept me from going back out was my body telling me I can't take it any more.
I will be back for more...
I will be back for more...
Glad to see there were so many folks that had a good introduction to the Mother Superior. Because I live on the point, I have the luxury of being choosy about when I sail, so my go/no go threshold is 30 mph wind-speed. This is my starting point because of gear selection and because I primarily sail in the shore break, not outside of it. In order to be powered-up that close to shore, you need Sky Harbor to be reading around 20 knots. I prefer to sail in the shore break because of the flat water between waves, the radical nature of playing on the steep breaking waves on the edge and, sailing alone, the ability to walk home from a crash. I sail on the outside when others go out to play – but it is a lot rougher and I prefer to the inside most of the time. If you are fully powered up on the inside – you will be overpowered on the outside. This is because of lift at the shoreline – more on this later.
To sail inside, bring a short fin you like – if you have a short wave fin, you can rail up your board slightly and get over all but the shallowest sandbars. Watch the wave heights on the sandbars. They tell you how deep the water is. As the wind increases, the wave get bigger and the rip current sets up – This rip is creates a trench near shore to return the water to the lake. If you watch the little waves that roll over the sandbars, you will note that the waves disappear when they get within 30 feet of shore. This means the rip trench is deep enough for you to sail in. A lot of people have trouble inside because they cannot get around the sandbars.. learn to read these waves.
One of variations in conditions you will experience are the amount of lift – i.e. the variation in wind speed between inside the shore break and the outside. Usually, but not always – sunny conditions equals more lift. This may affect go/no go or rig size. You can generally judge this by standing on top of the dune and looking at water color or intensity “cats paws” on the water.
Another variation you will see is wave size. Yesterday, the wave were “smaller than the wind”. That is, the fetch – the distance the wind and waves were running down the lake was limited. You can expect to see wave about 2 feet higher than yesterday for that amount of wind.. If the wind speed and direction are consistent down the lake.
Rip – as the waves get bigger, rip current gets set up. (Rip was just getting going yesterday) Rips live in the deep zones between the sandbars. You can also identify rip by confused waves coming from differing directions. Rips can be your friend, or they can kill you. As the waves get larger, the water piles up on the sandbar and then cuts a trench along the shoreline as it flows down the beach. The water then is returned to deep water via the rip zone. Rips can help you get to the outside because the waves generally do not break as frequently and you’re on a conveyer belt headed out into the lake. On the other hand, if you fall on the edge of the break, say in 6 feet of water – the rip will trap you there, constantly being cycled through the break zone, getting thrashed each time.
To sail inside, bring a short fin you like – if you have a short wave fin, you can rail up your board slightly and get over all but the shallowest sandbars. Watch the wave heights on the sandbars. They tell you how deep the water is. As the wind increases, the wave get bigger and the rip current sets up – This rip is creates a trench near shore to return the water to the lake. If you watch the little waves that roll over the sandbars, you will note that the waves disappear when they get within 30 feet of shore. This means the rip trench is deep enough for you to sail in. A lot of people have trouble inside because they cannot get around the sandbars.. learn to read these waves.
One of variations in conditions you will experience are the amount of lift – i.e. the variation in wind speed between inside the shore break and the outside. Usually, but not always – sunny conditions equals more lift. This may affect go/no go or rig size. You can generally judge this by standing on top of the dune and looking at water color or intensity “cats paws” on the water.
Another variation you will see is wave size. Yesterday, the wave were “smaller than the wind”. That is, the fetch – the distance the wind and waves were running down the lake was limited. You can expect to see wave about 2 feet higher than yesterday for that amount of wind.. If the wind speed and direction are consistent down the lake.
Rip – as the waves get bigger, rip current gets set up. (Rip was just getting going yesterday) Rips live in the deep zones between the sandbars. You can also identify rip by confused waves coming from differing directions. Rips can be your friend, or they can kill you. As the waves get larger, the water piles up on the sandbar and then cuts a trench along the shoreline as it flows down the beach. The water then is returned to deep water via the rip zone. Rips can help you get to the outside because the waves generally do not break as frequently and you’re on a conveyer belt headed out into the lake. On the other hand, if you fall on the edge of the break, say in 6 feet of water – the rip will trap you there, constantly being cycled through the break zone, getting thrashed each time.
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steve erickson
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Thu Apr 03, 2003 10:11 am
ready for another day
What a day! This was my second trip to Superior. The first was very humbling. Lots of fun but not much real sailing. This time was humbling but not embarassing. Finally found the groove on the inside. Thanks to tips from Randy and Chip! The unlimited reaches, play the waves, jumps, slash, outrun the white water. Great day, can't wait for the next opportunity.
It was an amazing day in Duluth. Truely one of my best sessions riding Superior yet.
Some pictures here:
http://www.lakawa.com/lakawaphoto/?show=128
Some pictures here:
http://www.lakawa.com/lakawaphoto/?show=128
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Sponsored by Slingshot Kiteboarding
Sponsored by Slingshot Kiteboarding
As I was telling Steve earlier today, I unfortunately missed out on yesterday...but after today, boy am I glad... I would never have made the trip two days in a row and schedules being as they are, yesterday was out and today was in. Being my fourth or fifth day up there ever, today was BY FAR the most fun I have ever had on Superior, and maybe the most fun I have ever had sailing period. The waves and wind were nowhere near the intensity I have sailed other days up there (and what it sounds like they were on Sunday), but the pace, shape, and rhythm of the terrain was absolutely fantastic. Still awe-inspiring, humbling, and exciting, just turned down a notch...5.5 and a 100L board was perfect with multiple 4-6 bottom turn waves per tack, the ability to rail into and out of the shore-break at will, waist to head high waves, and just slowed-down-enough rips and swell to allow at least a couple falls on the inside and outside w/o experiencing the "death" that Chip alludes to above. I was hoping to see someone up there, but I sailed for nearly four hours completely alone this morning, but from the sounds of it, I guess I can't feel too bad, you guys did alright on Sunday...it'll be my last Minnesota session for a few years, and finally dialing it in solo was somehow appropriate.