note to self - see secret journal - did this becuz I am unsure ANYONE is reading this
if you are and wish the detail back - ya better let me know !!
no-one let me know and so, will continue like no-one reads here :-)
if you are and wish the detail back - ya better let me know !!
no-one let me know and so, will continue like no-one reads here :-)
reminder - last entries are first
Tuesday October 15th, 2019 La Crête SW 20-25 kph Shark GA Swift 10-oh = 7 outta 10
Was off work since I have an operation scheduled on Thursday.
Winds to be SW @ 20 kph - does the GA Swift 10-oh fit into the Prius C
Yes it does ..
Packed it with the Shark 145 HRS and off i went
First one at the beach as windsurfer or kiter
Fellow I chat with all the time came later - with his BIC and SW Retro 7-oh
Sylvain the kite foiler camer with a 19 meter kite
Marie with the curley hair - had a big sail and a JP SuperLightWind
The wind was up and down, and water was low
Took a chance with my cracked Makani weed fin and lost it
My fault as I was riding too close
Oh well
It was great to get out and did not deduct points for the lost fin - my fault
Otherwise it woulda bin a 6 outta 10 !!
SUN 22Sept2019 La Crête Shark 145 & NS Duke 6.9 + 40 cm freerace fin WSW 20-50 kph 7.5!!
see secret journal
SUN 15SEPT2019 La Crète Shark & SPF = 8 outta 10 WNW 20-40 kph
yesterday was the UWT @ Les Roches with Patrick Bergeron, 2-rad, etc, etc
they had winds of over 30 knots and under 40
WAY too much to do foiling in the p.m.
I could NOT go watch since me mum needed an errand boy (acupuncture, bank, pharmacy, pizza joint, grocery store, back to pick up the pizza, plus quick stop at the mailbox - had not gone in a long time)
So, today was MY day to go windsurfing !! At first there was NO wind forecast, then 20-40, back to 20 and FINALLY 20-40 W!! Went early and planed and played. HAD to wear the wetsuit and it was not warm.
Got the toes in the footstraps, but not for long. Thought I would have to pull out in time :-) BenF aka Archi says non - "Leave it in." :-)
Just head downwind in the lull ...
BENF arrived when I did and was not on the water until I left - about two hours later ...WOW
and when he left he was with his iSonic 117W, Slingshot foil with the larger front wing and a SW Revo 4.6.
benwindy seemed to be screaming down what i call the NW wind channel with his Fanatik Hawk 135 and Ezzy Lion 8.5 cambered.
force5 arrived later and seemed to do one run with his F2 Comet 135 and SW Retro 8.5
i had a good relaxing afternoon session
feel like I am getting ready for the next stage
of insanity
SUN 08SEPT2019 La Crète Shark 145 & SPF 8.5 = 7.5 outta 10 WNW 15-35 mph
rest is in secret journal - seems no-one is interested in the details
next year it will be entirely secret then
here is a pic of the dude that seemed ti have an "e-foil"
SAT 31AUG2019 La Crête Shark 145 & SPF 8.5 = 8.5 outta 10 WNW 15-40 kph
see secret journal ??
FRI 30AUG2019 La Maison SL200 & GA Flow 20-50 kph SW = 8.5 outta 10
Was supposed to be in recovery from a hernia operation, but the operation was postponed ...
So, my brain needs to adjust back to work and then recovery ...
Thus I took this day off work !!
Gary and Julie were up from CT and so ... we went up to the chalet ...
Wind was like SO gusty that it was crazy ...
I fell in about three (3) times when suddenly hitting wind holes ...
Then why the high score ??
Since discussing foot straps with BenF, I have been more open to moving about on the board.
Thus the boom was set higher and I was moving further back on the board
Was glad I had brought the harness - gusts were STRONG
By moving back on the board I was waving my front foot about the strap many times
ALSO... the board was not lying flat on the water, but flying better than in the past...
I always thought this board needed to ride flat - like a longboard
It seems this is NOT the case ...
Like BENF says - once in straps - all will change and I can anticipate it already
AND am understanding why everyone was pushing me towards it !!
SAT 24AUG2019 La Crête Shark 145 HSM SPF 8.5 = 9 outta 10 !!
see secret journal for details
FRI 16AUG2019 whitehouse BIC SL200 mostly south or north GA Flow 15+ kph = 8/10
this should count as 3 outings
was up north for the week on holidays and really relaxed and took it easy
had about 2 or 3 really great days - had forgotten my harness, but that taught me to try other things
took some nice pics of a pink lily and finally made another video
SAT 10AUG2019 La Crête Shark 145 with repaired HSM SPF 8.5 WNW 20-60 kph = 8/10
see https://joewindsurfer.blogspot.com/2019/08/busted-dacron-sail.html for details
SAT 03AUG2019 whitehouse BIC SL200 with GA Flow 3-x 7-oh = 7 outta 10 SW 15-30 kph
was there with Axel
did not go long and fell in twice - slippery deck
27JUL2019 brought SPF 8.5 to country and busted it - either 8 / 10 or 4 / 10
It is now a few weeks later and I remember the session fairly well
Was up north and I insisted on bringing my SPF 8.5 to really give it a go
The wife was to go to the cemetery to plant some flowers and I was to go windsurfing after
Wind was SW 20-40 kph and gusty
When I cam off I had issues with the sail and it was impaled on the dock post
FUCK
so - session was either an 8 outta 10 if one disregards the equipment distruction
or 4 outta 10 :-(
SAT 13JUL2019 La Crête MEQ 2 + SPF 8.5 WSW 20-35 kph = 8 outta 10
Was supposed to start light and build up and that is what it did.
Not paying enough attention since it is practically my first time out ...
Would have liked to start with the GA Swift 10-oh, but did not bring the HPL long boom :-(
Only brought the long fin for the MEQ becuz the short one was deep tuttle :-(
So, how did this session end up as an 8 outta 10 then ??
First there were some good runs - off and on
Then around 12h30 the winds picked up and with some minor adjustments, I was flying
Without changing out equipment - Should have tried the JP SLW 92 in those conditions !!
Basically I had loosened outhaul in the morning and then tightened it around noon
Also moved the mast track back twice - to try and plane as much as possible
In the beginning it was just kite foils with 17 meter sails and I
They seemed to have difficulty until about noon
Sylvain was there and Marc arrived when the wind picked up
One kite foiler was jumping and doing stuff
FRI 05JUL2019 whitehouse BIC SL200 with GA Flow 3-x 7-oh = 8 outta 10 S 15-30 kph
Wind was light, but had some good runs - hence the 8 outta 10
With the weight loss - just around 200 pounds, the board goes so much better
Do I really need or want that F2 Lightening ??
btw OKA Beach was closed last week due to sewage $%^&*()
https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/oka-beach-reopens-after-precautionary-closure
THURS 27JUN2019 High School Football field - HQ Rush 300 PRO trainer kite SW 20 kph
Marcus offered to take me out for a lesson with this trainer kite that he had encouraged me to purchase. We parked, took off our shoes n socks and set up for the lesson. The lines were well wrapped and we did have to untangle the lines at the kite. Learned many things like: red line on the left, put shoes or something to hold kite down, lark's head knot, keep the arms up, do not move the shoulders or body, pull right and push left and Marcus pushed n pulled HARD, figure eight with the lines until near kite rope and than bungee comes out of handle, centre line is only to drop kite suddenly and has adjustments, etc, etc. We both felt the wind was a little light and the trainer kite was like new !! Kinda hard to rate the "session". There was NO water, light wind, etc butt was FUN, FUN !! The kid did not wanna come out - next time he will have no choice :-)
Some other attempts in CT went pretty well - need more wind and steadier ...
Saturday 15JUN2019 White House SW 20-50 BIC SL200 GA Flow 3x 7-oh = 7 outta 10
This is the day before Father's Day and one day after I got my annual 2 percent pay raise.
SUN 26MAY2019 BIC SL200 HSM SPF 8.5 = 5 outta 10 - winds ?? all over the place
It was supposed to be 20-30 kph from the west and warm
Warm it was and wind seemed to be on track when I arrived ...
I had a REALLY difficult time with setting up the sail . Even when I left, I was unsure of the settings
17.5 downhaul and 32.5 cm applied on the boom - as per memo on my phone ...
I tried to move a clip from front mast base hole to back one on the SL200 and I busted a clip ...
Just checked in the garage and there is a rusty old cotter pin in the screw box which is in my windsurf tool bag and will do the job just fine ... However, none o' that mattered ...
The wind was from all over the place and I had a difficult time doing ANYTHING !!
So, do i get all pissed off or ??
Yes, that's it - pack it in and take a small vanilla soft ice on the way home ...
I was enjoying leaving my long hair down and trying to walk like I did when I was about 20 with long hair :-) My bro n I have been chatting about club 81 aka H.A. and on the way home happened to see two from the Quebec charter. As usual, they always have nice bikes and make a decent racket. :-)
I wished I did not have to rate this session, but I did drive all the way up there n back alone :-(
MON 20MAY2019 BIC SL200 GA Flow 3x 7-oh = 7 ouuta 10 & SW 20-40 kph
This was my first session of 2019 !! Since we had flooding this spring, it iz verboten to put boats on the local lakes and rivers (Lac Deux Montagnes et Rivière Milles Isles) with a potential penalty of $5000. Waterways are reserved for emergency vehicles and there will be NO rescue for pleasure boaters or fishermen. Even on this day people were on the little lake in the water toys with no protection against cold - if they fall in :-(
In any case ... I started with just the farmer john part of my 2 piece wetsuit and booties. I was having fun and smiling. The wind was quite up n down and then started to kick and change directions. I added the jacket in case I was to fall in ...
After a while the wind got quite erratic and picked up. Was changing directions, getting gusty, etc
This means a storm may be coming in and so I got off.
Effectively, it did rain just as I was terminating the putting away of stuff
Was a fun session, but not great. Was fun to see my daughter and her BF having fun up north as well :-) With my weight loss the BIC SL200 felt much better as well ...
I was hoping to use my HSM SPF 8.5 and brought the mast, but I could not find the sail.
Upon arriving home, I think I saw it on top of my JP SLW92 which is up high on the wall ...
The bad thing this year is - my windsurf van is REALLY dying now.
I want to retire soon and am trying to go to one vehicle.
At times the wife seems in agreement, but other time :-(
FRI 29MAR2019 went to the 2-rad party that is to mark the start of the season
Tom was there - back from a trip to his home country, Israel. Did NO windsurfing there, but is going with 2-rad to Morroco. Vincent gave us his spiel on foils. 2-rad has reduced their price on re-enforcing fin boxes down to $200. Apparently they now have a full-time repair man. This also encourages people to spend money on those FOIL$.
Also met Richard\Force5, Antoine Richard and Benoit Falardeau.
Saw the girl who I met @ Cape Hatteras too. She is a great windsurfer !!
Auvent is closing their doors this April too. Saw AHD pamphlet @ 2-rad.
Thought Bruno HATED AHD :-)
SUN 24MAR2019 Rosemere W20-30kph on ice sled using HSMfire6.3 = 7 outta 10
Wind was to pick up a little bit and the ice looked good when we went over the bridge for bagels in Ste-Rose (now that is like advertising - should get a commission) ... The ice did NOT look good where the snowmobiles had passed ...
And yes - the wind did pick up
So ... I got out, butt ice was shite :-)
The ice was no better than a 4 outta 10 !!
It was hard enough, yet the bumps were horrendous
AND there were sections with powdered snow, which just caused sudden drag
#$%^&*()
So ... I re-rigged the HotSailsMaui Fire 6.3 by placing outhaul in lower grommet
and pulling the tension tight - not much of a pocket ...
I always leave some pocket and NEVER rig it too tight
me no like ...
did NOT sail long and it will be the last of my winter outings
spring sessions may be a bit later starting this year
hernia operation and recovery coming up soooon ...
Took a bunch of pics - no videos and posted them here - in no particular order
If you feel one is better than the others - like a fave - please let me know ...
TUES 19MAR2019 Rosemere SW15-25kph Fire 6.3 on ice sled = 8 outta 10
Since I was kinda workin from home ... (was at the hospital at 8h00 - pre-operation stuff)
I stopped work a little early and went down to the local river ...
The ice was NOT as good as Sunday - which means it almost failed - about 5 outta 10
There was crust that broke, good ice, good snow and snow that "broke" i.e. RUFF
The wind was not quite as much as Sunday either
However, I did get to go out with NO damages to me or equipment
Cannot complain ... Brian from out West near Oregon is already on the water !!
Time to move !!!
SUN 17MAR2019 Rosemere SW20-40kph HSM Fire 6.3 on ice sled = 9 outta 10
I was supposed to pick up my buddy the "Mad Hatter" from the metro so that he could get cool pics of himself on an ice windsurfer... Unfortunately I hit a POT hole with the car on the West Island that put a bulge on my driver side front tire. So ... prefer to drive on it as little as possible and double that for the van (which got stuck on the ice in my drive way taday #$%^&*()
So, I went out before groceries i.e. early Sunday morn - which is Saint Patrick's Day
That video was made hanging the camera upside down from the back o' the boom. Unfortunately when i set the camera option to upside down, it did just that = WTF ...
Since the video was quite large ... NO on-line flip is available = WTF
As you can see, I tried filmora who wants $30+ dollars to remove their thumbnail ...
So, the next video was made from the helmet. Actually that was becuz the camera was poorly placed in terms of hitting the ground and camera shake/vibration ...
Here's another one from the same perspective - taken in the morning - with 2 little spills :-(
Also went out again in the afternoon. Before my daughter Mary drops bye...
This time I put the camera on top o' da booooom
Sorry Maddy that we did not get you out there for your pic :-(
Ah, but you are soooo young still :-)
I gave the session 9 outta 10 - the ice / snow conditions were more like 6 outta 10 = quite RUFF
However, I was outside, did not get hurt even tho I fell two or three times (well, maybe my right elbow a little bit) and nothing broke or got lost ...
Just nice to end the winter season with some good runs
Twice on this day and last Wednesday too :-)
WED 06MAR2019 Rosemere SW20-40 Duke 6.9 on snowsled = 9 outta 10 !!
It was warmer than yesterday and the wind was more steady and stronger. The main disappointment was that I was ready to video and my hands got too cold to attach the camera to the wishbone\boom. I shoulda done that near the old van. Sometimes the gusts were so strong I had to open the sail, but kit kept flying over the crust on the snow. Measured against the traffic on the bridge I was going 50-60 kph at top speeds. I had on no protective gear and so was not pushing it to the max and only spun out once. Am starting to wish I could do a tack or gybe and tried a few - always got to half and no more. The picture tells it all - beautiful blue sky, sun and snow getting blown with the wind ...
Many runs in the harness and full out too !! That's why the nines ...
TUES 05MAR2019 Rosemere SW20-30 Duke 6.9 on snowsled = 7.5 outta 10
After some warm n cold spells ... the snow had a better crust than when I went and did my last condition check. Snowsled went fine and so, never even tried the ice sled. What was lacking was the wind. It came in gusts ONLY. There was either none or a lot. So, it was wait and then go , go , go
Since I did have some good runs, am giving it a fairly good rating - and it was a workday after all ... As the kids were off, I decided to spend some time with my family ...
and obviously squeeze in some windsurfing - only about an hour on the ice
5 minutes from my house - was not using the harness - nor did I put safety equipment on :-(
SAT 02MAR2019
okay, put the glue and the screws
and hopefully lined it all up properly !!
SAT 02SAT 23FEB2019
Still workin out the kinks in the setup ...
Decided on IKEA type bolts on the bottom with the 1/4 inch nuts on top
The next trickier part will be putting the legs on with the proper alignment
As in ... straight as shit ...
and on Sunday put a base on the other ski
also put a line down the middle of each ski
to align them together as close as possible
SUN 17FEB2019
Started to analyze the new windski for deep snow combination in terms of measurements ... For example it looks like I can line up the first support leg with the boot strap holes ..
Since I wish to put the mast base behind the front support, the snow board needs to go a little further back ...
In the "back end" I imagine to put the back support leg about one foot in, with the rest of the snowboard hanging out. This should leave a solid large enough area between the legs ... for the rider (me) to be comfortable one foot off the ground ...
SAT 16FEB2019
Since we just had over 40 cm of snow last Wednesday, it only made sense to revisit the idea of a deep snow windski. First I stepped in a snowbank and put my full weight on that foot. Wearing deep snow boots of course. When I measured the depth, it seemed to be about 10 to 11 inches deep. Okay, how deep am I making my current model ? Phew, measured over 11 inches. This presumes that the sled and I will be hovering over the snow while only the legs and skis are gliding through the snow. Good in theory anyway ... My hope is that this experience will, first of all, work ... Then I hope it feels like what i imagine windfoiling is like. After that it should be simple to convince myself that i really need a foil and perhaps even a board too ...
SAT 09FEB2019 Rosemere, ice sled + HSM Fire 6.2 (-7) feels like -17 W 30-50 kph = 8 outta 10
The first criteria in the winter should be the ice or snow surface !!
It is the BE all and END all in terms of potential in that winter windsurfing session ...
In the last little while the weather has been SOOO up n down that there were days with a range of 20 degrees Celcius (36 degrees F) - from deep freeze to melting snow with rain. That's deviant rather than standard deviation ...
HOWEVER, it recently got warm, rained and then froze solid...
Went with the wife around noon to check local conditions. It felt like strong winds from the NW, the ice was solid with snow crust in places. This means it would be up n down with potential of breaking through.
An hour or so later, I was on the ice... Forgot my cleats - damn it ...
Back harness for selfie filming from the back - could not be found - stored up north ??
Wind seemed fine when I got there, but just in case I rigged the HSM Fire on the lower outhaul - something I have NEVER dunn before ...
Only went for about an hour and never actually hooked in ...
The wind was way too variable and quite strong at times ...
Once my forearms were a little tired I decided to call it a day ...
Was not interested in filming it..
Lotsa people parked in lot for the spa and going over the bridge...
Nobody seemed interested in what I was doing ...
WOW - now even I am in my own little bubble ...
SAT 12JAN2019
Went to the local river to check it out ...
It was about -12 degrees C and winds were from the west at about 20+ kph
The snow was still about 10 cm deep and looked like more than last time i checked ..I tried sliding on and pushing my snow windski.
It went okay, but not great.
I am looking for a sliding machine.
Like riding on ice - or as close as possible.
My idea of sliding on skis and being on it in the air is moving forward slowly - pardon the pun
FRI 11JAN2019
On the seabreeze windsurf forum, Zoltan was analyzing windsurfing a foil on a RaceBoard, Formula board and a Freerace board {the Formula seems to be winning}.
I commented about experimenting with windsurfing and posted the windski video under the 01JAN2019 entry that in this post below ....
OR just go to the bottom of this page :-)
or better yet - go to my youtube page https://joe_windsurfer_videos.com
n look at ALL my videos LOL
Zoltan commented on the whole concept: {clique image to enlarge it}
TUES 08JAN2019 Rosemere
It had snowed about 5-8 cm with some fine rain afterwards.
What did this do to my windski arena ??
Put the plastic shovel in the back of the hatchback and off i went ...
Yes there was about 10 cm of snow on the ice and about 8 cm of snow when one pressed down hard.
Shovelling that snow with a plastic shovel did NOT go well.
The ice underneath was about a 7 outta 10 {not sure how my scale for this works - YET}
Yes, I was actually trying to figure out if I could shovel a path across the river for my windski.
IF one was actually to attempt such an insane act, it would require {at least} a metal shovel and sharp skates 😏
SAT 05JAN2019 Rosemere windski Retro 8.0 NNW 20-40 kph = 7.5 outta 10
Supposed to have NW winds of 20-40 kph, temperature of about zero and the river seemed frozen when my young son and I checked yesterday evening. There were spots with water, but read on or check the video ...
Today there was about one to two inches of snow on solid ice. Wind did NOT seem so strong and so rigged the 2007 SailWorks Retro 8 m² sail with the NP constant curve SDM mast and attached it to the ice model of my windskis.
On first run I crossed to the other side of the river and spoke with the ice fisherman there. He was dressed in military gear and had about 8 holes with poles (NOT in the military gear LOL). Asked him how thick the ice was and he said it was one to 1.5 feet thick at the sides of the river !! What about the middle of the river ?? Don't know, but saw snowmobiles go down the middle. Yes, I saw their tracks ...
We discussed the water and both knew those spots froze last and melted first in the spring ...
The wind became quite north and strong at times. HAD to use the harness.
At the end decided to make a film in 3rd person perspective. Naturally that had to be the time the wind died. Either that or I am a hell of a liar :-)
Forgot to mention that as I got off the ice there was a little girl, about two years old with two women. She mentioned my beard and I told her that I was NOT "le père de Noel" :-)
Just look like Santa Claus ...
Note to SELF:
Maui Sails Switch 5.6 CT south shore with SUMO mast - he sold it out from under my nose
Looking at an F2 Lightening - Serge in St-Come (and another on St Thomas - too far)
since it took me some time to get there - the F2 is gone too
I hafta get the roof-rack working on the Prius C or ...
Tuesday October 15th, 2019 La Crête SW 20-25 kph Shark GA Swift 10-oh = 7 outta 10
Was off work since I have an operation scheduled on Thursday.
Winds to be SW @ 20 kph - does the GA Swift 10-oh fit into the Prius C
Yes it does ..
Packed it with the Shark 145 HRS and off i went
First one at the beach as windsurfer or kiter
Fellow I chat with all the time came later - with his BIC and SW Retro 7-oh
Sylvain the kite foiler camer with a 19 meter kite
Marie with the curley hair - had a big sail and a JP SuperLightWind
The wind was up and down, and water was low
Took a chance with my cracked Makani weed fin and lost it
My fault as I was riding too close
Oh well
It was great to get out and did not deduct points for the lost fin - my fault
Otherwise it woulda bin a 6 outta 10 !!
SUN 22Sept2019 La Crête Shark 145 & NS Duke 6.9 + 40 cm freerace fin WSW 20-50 kph 7.5!!
see secret journal
SUN 15SEPT2019 La Crète Shark & SPF = 8 outta 10 WNW 20-40 kph
yesterday was the UWT @ Les Roches with Patrick Bergeron, 2-rad, etc, etc
they had winds of over 30 knots and under 40
WAY too much to do foiling in the p.m.
I could NOT go watch since me mum needed an errand boy (acupuncture, bank, pharmacy, pizza joint, grocery store, back to pick up the pizza, plus quick stop at the mailbox - had not gone in a long time)
So, today was MY day to go windsurfing !! At first there was NO wind forecast, then 20-40, back to 20 and FINALLY 20-40 W!! Went early and planed and played. HAD to wear the wetsuit and it was not warm.
Got the toes in the footstraps, but not for long. Thought I would have to pull out in time :-) BenF aka Archi says non - "Leave it in." :-)
Just head downwind in the lull ...
BENF arrived when I did and was not on the water until I left - about two hours later ...WOW
and when he left he was with his iSonic 117W, Slingshot foil with the larger front wing and a SW Revo 4.6.
benwindy seemed to be screaming down what i call the NW wind channel with his Fanatik Hawk 135 and Ezzy Lion 8.5 cambered.
force5 arrived later and seemed to do one run with his F2 Comet 135 and SW Retro 8.5
i had a good relaxing afternoon session
feel like I am getting ready for the next stage
of insanity
SUN 08SEPT2019 La Crète Shark 145 & SPF 8.5 = 7.5 outta 10 WNW 15-35 mph
rest is in secret journal - seems no-one is interested in the details
next year it will be entirely secret then
here is a pic of the dude that seemed ti have an "e-foil"
SAT 31AUG2019 La Crête Shark 145 & SPF 8.5 = 8.5 outta 10 WNW 15-40 kph
see secret journal ??
FRI 30AUG2019 La Maison SL200 & GA Flow 20-50 kph SW = 8.5 outta 10
Was supposed to be in recovery from a hernia operation, but the operation was postponed ...
So, my brain needs to adjust back to work and then recovery ...
Thus I took this day off work !!
Gary and Julie were up from CT and so ... we went up to the chalet ...
Wind was like SO gusty that it was crazy ...
I fell in about three (3) times when suddenly hitting wind holes ...
Then why the high score ??
Since discussing foot straps with BenF, I have been more open to moving about on the board.
Thus the boom was set higher and I was moving further back on the board
Was glad I had brought the harness - gusts were STRONG
By moving back on the board I was waving my front foot about the strap many times
ALSO... the board was not lying flat on the water, but flying better than in the past...
I always thought this board needed to ride flat - like a longboard
It seems this is NOT the case ...
Like BENF says - once in straps - all will change and I can anticipate it already
AND am understanding why everyone was pushing me towards it !!
SAT 24AUG2019 La Crête Shark 145 HSM SPF 8.5 = 9 outta 10 !!
see secret journal for details
FRI 16AUG2019 whitehouse BIC SL200 mostly south or north GA Flow 15+ kph = 8/10
this should count as 3 outings
was up north for the week on holidays and really relaxed and took it easy
had about 2 or 3 really great days - had forgotten my harness, but that taught me to try other things
took some nice pics of a pink lily and finally made another video
see https://joewindsurfer.blogspot.com/2019/08/busted-dacron-sail.html for details
SAT 03AUG2019 whitehouse BIC SL200 with GA Flow 3-x 7-oh = 7 outta 10 SW 15-30 kph
was there with Axel
did not go long and fell in twice - slippery deck
27JUL2019 brought SPF 8.5 to country and busted it - either 8 / 10 or 4 / 10
It is now a few weeks later and I remember the session fairly well
Was up north and I insisted on bringing my SPF 8.5 to really give it a go
The wife was to go to the cemetery to plant some flowers and I was to go windsurfing after
Wind was SW 20-40 kph and gusty
When I cam off I had issues with the sail and it was impaled on the dock post
FUCK
so - session was either an 8 outta 10 if one disregards the equipment distruction
or 4 outta 10 :-(
SAT 13JUL2019 La Crête MEQ 2 + SPF 8.5 WSW 20-35 kph = 8 outta 10
Was supposed to start light and build up and that is what it did.
Not paying enough attention since it is practically my first time out ...
Would have liked to start with the GA Swift 10-oh, but did not bring the HPL long boom :-(
Only brought the long fin for the MEQ becuz the short one was deep tuttle :-(
So, how did this session end up as an 8 outta 10 then ??
First there were some good runs - off and on
Then around 12h30 the winds picked up and with some minor adjustments, I was flying
Without changing out equipment - Should have tried the JP SLW 92 in those conditions !!
Basically I had loosened outhaul in the morning and then tightened it around noon
Also moved the mast track back twice - to try and plane as much as possible
In the beginning it was just kite foils with 17 meter sails and I
They seemed to have difficulty until about noon
Sylvain was there and Marc arrived when the wind picked up
One kite foiler was jumping and doing stuff
FRI 05JUL2019 whitehouse BIC SL200 with GA Flow 3-x 7-oh = 8 outta 10 S 15-30 kph
Wind was light, but had some good runs - hence the 8 outta 10
With the weight loss - just around 200 pounds, the board goes so much better
Do I really need or want that F2 Lightening ??
btw OKA Beach was closed last week due to sewage $%^&*()
https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/oka-beach-reopens-after-precautionary-closure
THURS 27JUN2019 High School Football field - HQ Rush 300 PRO trainer kite SW 20 kph
Marcus offered to take me out for a lesson with this trainer kite that he had encouraged me to purchase. We parked, took off our shoes n socks and set up for the lesson. The lines were well wrapped and we did have to untangle the lines at the kite. Learned many things like: red line on the left, put shoes or something to hold kite down, lark's head knot, keep the arms up, do not move the shoulders or body, pull right and push left and Marcus pushed n pulled HARD, figure eight with the lines until near kite rope and than bungee comes out of handle, centre line is only to drop kite suddenly and has adjustments, etc, etc. We both felt the wind was a little light and the trainer kite was like new !! Kinda hard to rate the "session". There was NO water, light wind, etc butt was FUN, FUN !! The kid did not wanna come out - next time he will have no choice :-)
Some other attempts in CT went pretty well - need more wind and steadier ...
This is the day before Father's Day and one day after I got my annual 2 percent pay raise.
SUN 26MAY2019 BIC SL200 HSM SPF 8.5 = 5 outta 10 - winds ?? all over the place
It was supposed to be 20-30 kph from the west and warm
Warm it was and wind seemed to be on track when I arrived ...
I had a REALLY difficult time with setting up the sail . Even when I left, I was unsure of the settings
17.5 downhaul and 32.5 cm applied on the boom - as per memo on my phone ...
I tried to move a clip from front mast base hole to back one on the SL200 and I busted a clip ...
Just checked in the garage and there is a rusty old cotter pin in the screw box which is in my windsurf tool bag and will do the job just fine ... However, none o' that mattered ...
The wind was from all over the place and I had a difficult time doing ANYTHING !!
So, do i get all pissed off or ??
Yes, that's it - pack it in and take a small vanilla soft ice on the way home ...
I was enjoying leaving my long hair down and trying to walk like I did when I was about 20 with long hair :-) My bro n I have been chatting about club 81 aka H.A. and on the way home happened to see two from the Quebec charter. As usual, they always have nice bikes and make a decent racket. :-)
I wished I did not have to rate this session, but I did drive all the way up there n back alone :-(
MON 20MAY2019 BIC SL200 GA Flow 3x 7-oh = 7 ouuta 10 & SW 20-40 kph
This was my first session of 2019 !! Since we had flooding this spring, it iz verboten to put boats on the local lakes and rivers (Lac Deux Montagnes et Rivière Milles Isles) with a potential penalty of $5000. Waterways are reserved for emergency vehicles and there will be NO rescue for pleasure boaters or fishermen. Even on this day people were on the little lake in the water toys with no protection against cold - if they fall in :-(
In any case ... I started with just the farmer john part of my 2 piece wetsuit and booties. I was having fun and smiling. The wind was quite up n down and then started to kick and change directions. I added the jacket in case I was to fall in ...
After a while the wind got quite erratic and picked up. Was changing directions, getting gusty, etc
This means a storm may be coming in and so I got off.
Effectively, it did rain just as I was terminating the putting away of stuff
Was a fun session, but not great. Was fun to see my daughter and her BF having fun up north as well :-) With my weight loss the BIC SL200 felt much better as well ...
I was hoping to use my HSM SPF 8.5 and brought the mast, but I could not find the sail.
Upon arriving home, I think I saw it on top of my JP SLW92 which is up high on the wall ...
The bad thing this year is - my windsurf van is REALLY dying now.
I want to retire soon and am trying to go to one vehicle.
At times the wife seems in agreement, but other time :-(
FRI 29MAR2019 went to the 2-rad party that is to mark the start of the season
Tom was there - back from a trip to his home country, Israel. Did NO windsurfing there, but is going with 2-rad to Morroco. Vincent gave us his spiel on foils. 2-rad has reduced their price on re-enforcing fin boxes down to $200. Apparently they now have a full-time repair man. This also encourages people to spend money on those FOIL$.
Also met Richard\Force5, Antoine Richard and Benoit Falardeau.
Saw the girl who I met @ Cape Hatteras too. She is a great windsurfer !!
Auvent is closing their doors this April too. Saw AHD pamphlet @ 2-rad.
Thought Bruno HATED AHD :-)
SUN 24MAR2019 Rosemere W20-30kph on ice sled using HSMfire6.3 = 7 outta 10
Wind was to pick up a little bit and the ice looked good when we went over the bridge for bagels in Ste-Rose (now that is like advertising - should get a commission) ... The ice did NOT look good where the snowmobiles had passed ...
And yes - the wind did pick up
So ... I got out, butt ice was shite :-)
The ice was no better than a 4 outta 10 !!
It was hard enough, yet the bumps were horrendous
AND there were sections with powdered snow, which just caused sudden drag
#$%^&*()
So ... I re-rigged the HotSailsMaui Fire 6.3 by placing outhaul in lower grommet
and pulling the tension tight - not much of a pocket ...
I always leave some pocket and NEVER rig it too tight
me no like ...
did NOT sail long and it will be the last of my winter outings
spring sessions may be a bit later starting this year
hernia operation and recovery coming up soooon ...
Took a bunch of pics - no videos and posted them here - in no particular order
If you feel one is better than the others - like a fave - please let me know ...
TUES 19MAR2019 Rosemere SW15-25kph Fire 6.3 on ice sled = 8 outta 10
Since I was kinda workin from home ... (was at the hospital at 8h00 - pre-operation stuff)
I stopped work a little early and went down to the local river ...
The ice was NOT as good as Sunday - which means it almost failed - about 5 outta 10
There was crust that broke, good ice, good snow and snow that "broke" i.e. RUFF
The wind was not quite as much as Sunday either
However, I did get to go out with NO damages to me or equipment
Cannot complain ... Brian from out West near Oregon is already on the water !!
Time to move !!!
SUN 17MAR2019 Rosemere SW20-40kph HSM Fire 6.3 on ice sled = 9 outta 10
I was supposed to pick up my buddy the "Mad Hatter" from the metro so that he could get cool pics of himself on an ice windsurfer... Unfortunately I hit a POT hole with the car on the West Island that put a bulge on my driver side front tire. So ... prefer to drive on it as little as possible and double that for the van (which got stuck on the ice in my drive way taday #$%^&*()
So, I went out before groceries i.e. early Sunday morn - which is Saint Patrick's Day
That video was made hanging the camera upside down from the back o' the boom. Unfortunately when i set the camera option to upside down, it did just that = WTF ...
Since the video was quite large ... NO on-line flip is available = WTF
As you can see, I tried filmora who wants $30+ dollars to remove their thumbnail ...
So, the next video was made from the helmet. Actually that was becuz the camera was poorly placed in terms of hitting the ground and camera shake/vibration ...
Here's another one from the same perspective - taken in the morning - with 2 little spills :-(
Also went out again in the afternoon. Before my daughter Mary drops bye...
This time I put the camera on top o' da booooom
Sorry Maddy that we did not get you out there for your pic :-(
Ah, but you are soooo young still :-)
I gave the session 9 outta 10 - the ice / snow conditions were more like 6 outta 10 = quite RUFF
However, I was outside, did not get hurt even tho I fell two or three times (well, maybe my right elbow a little bit) and nothing broke or got lost ...
Just nice to end the winter season with some good runs
Twice on this day and last Wednesday too :-)
WED 06MAR2019 Rosemere SW20-40 Duke 6.9 on snowsled = 9 outta 10 !!
It was warmer than yesterday and the wind was more steady and stronger. The main disappointment was that I was ready to video and my hands got too cold to attach the camera to the wishbone\boom. I shoulda done that near the old van. Sometimes the gusts were so strong I had to open the sail, but kit kept flying over the crust on the snow. Measured against the traffic on the bridge I was going 50-60 kph at top speeds. I had on no protective gear and so was not pushing it to the max and only spun out once. Am starting to wish I could do a tack or gybe and tried a few - always got to half and no more. The picture tells it all - beautiful blue sky, sun and snow getting blown with the wind ...
Many runs in the harness and full out too !! That's why the nines ...
 |
| Clique the pic |
and yes, I am still workin' on my deep snow board 😏
After some warm n cold spells ... the snow had a better crust than when I went and did my last condition check. Snowsled went fine and so, never even tried the ice sled. What was lacking was the wind. It came in gusts ONLY. There was either none or a lot. So, it was wait and then go , go , go
Since I did have some good runs, am giving it a fairly good rating - and it was a workday after all ... As the kids were off, I decided to spend some time with my family ...
and obviously squeeze in some windsurfing - only about an hour on the ice
5 minutes from my house - was not using the harness - nor did I put safety equipment on :-(
SAT 02MAR2019
okay, put the glue and the screws
and hopefully lined it all up properly !!
SAT 02SAT 23FEB2019
Still workin out the kinks in the setup ...
Decided on IKEA type bolts on the bottom with the 1/4 inch nuts on top
The next trickier part will be putting the legs on with the proper alignment
As in ... straight as shit ...
and on Sunday put a base on the other ski
also put a line down the middle of each ski
to align them together as close as possible
SUN 17FEB2019
Started to analyze the new windski for deep snow combination in terms of measurements ... For example it looks like I can line up the first support leg with the boot strap holes ..
 |
| Clique on ANY PIC to elarge |
With the final result looking something like this :
One from the back and one from the front
No obscene implication(s) intended
SAT 16FEB2019
Since we just had over 40 cm of snow last Wednesday, it only made sense to revisit the idea of a deep snow windski. First I stepped in a snowbank and put my full weight on that foot. Wearing deep snow boots of course. When I measured the depth, it seemed to be about 10 to 11 inches deep. Okay, how deep am I making my current model ? Phew, measured over 11 inches. This presumes that the sled and I will be hovering over the snow while only the legs and skis are gliding through the snow. Good in theory anyway ... My hope is that this experience will, first of all, work ... Then I hope it feels like what i imagine windfoiling is like. After that it should be simple to convince myself that i really need a foil and perhaps even a board too ...
Here is another shot of the prototype:
SAT 09FEB2019 Rosemere, ice sled + HSM Fire 6.2 (-7) feels like -17 W 30-50 kph = 8 outta 10
The first criteria in the winter should be the ice or snow surface !!
It is the BE all and END all in terms of potential in that winter windsurfing session ...
In the last little while the weather has been SOOO up n down that there were days with a range of 20 degrees Celcius (36 degrees F) - from deep freeze to melting snow with rain. That's deviant rather than standard deviation ...
HOWEVER, it recently got warm, rained and then froze solid...
Went with the wife around noon to check local conditions. It felt like strong winds from the NW, the ice was solid with snow crust in places. This means it would be up n down with potential of breaking through.
An hour or so later, I was on the ice... Forgot my cleats - damn it ...
Back harness for selfie filming from the back - could not be found - stored up north ??
Wind seemed fine when I got there, but just in case I rigged the HSM Fire on the lower outhaul - something I have NEVER dunn before ...
Only went for about an hour and never actually hooked in ...
The wind was way too variable and quite strong at times ...
Once my forearms were a little tired I decided to call it a day ...
Was not interested in filming it..
Lotsa people parked in lot for the spa and going over the bridge...
Nobody seemed interested in what I was doing ...
WOW - now even I am in my own little bubble ...
SAT 12JAN2019
Went to the local river to check it out ...
It was about -12 degrees C and winds were from the west at about 20+ kph
The snow was still about 10 cm deep and looked like more than last time i checked ..I tried sliding on and pushing my snow windski.
It went okay, but not great.
I am looking for a sliding machine.
Like riding on ice - or as close as possible.
My idea of sliding on skis and being on it in the air is moving forward slowly - pardon the pun
 |
| Clique the pic |
FRI 11JAN2019
On the seabreeze windsurf forum, Zoltan was analyzing windsurfing a foil on a RaceBoard, Formula board and a Freerace board {the Formula seems to be winning}.
I commented about experimenting with windsurfing and posted the windski video under the 01JAN2019 entry that in this post below ....
OR just go to the bottom of this page :-)
or better yet - go to my youtube page https://joe_windsurfer_videos.com
n look at ALL my videos LOL
Zoltan commented on the whole concept: {clique image to enlarge it}
TUES 08JAN2019 Rosemere
It had snowed about 5-8 cm with some fine rain afterwards.
What did this do to my windski arena ??
Put the plastic shovel in the back of the hatchback and off i went ...
Yes there was about 10 cm of snow on the ice and about 8 cm of snow when one pressed down hard.
Shovelling that snow with a plastic shovel did NOT go well.
The ice underneath was about a 7 outta 10 {not sure how my scale for this works - YET}
Yes, I was actually trying to figure out if I could shovel a path across the river for my windski.
IF one was actually to attempt such an insane act, it would require {at least} a metal shovel and sharp skates 😏
SAT 05JAN2019 Rosemere windski Retro 8.0 NNW 20-40 kph = 7.5 outta 10
Supposed to have NW winds of 20-40 kph, temperature of about zero and the river seemed frozen when my young son and I checked yesterday evening. There were spots with water, but read on or check the video ...
Today there was about one to two inches of snow on solid ice. Wind did NOT seem so strong and so rigged the 2007 SailWorks Retro 8 m² sail with the NP constant curve SDM mast and attached it to the ice model of my windskis.
On first run I crossed to the other side of the river and spoke with the ice fisherman there. He was dressed in military gear and had about 8 holes with poles (NOT in the military gear LOL). Asked him how thick the ice was and he said it was one to 1.5 feet thick at the sides of the river !! What about the middle of the river ?? Don't know, but saw snowmobiles go down the middle. Yes, I saw their tracks ...
We discussed the water and both knew those spots froze last and melted first in the spring ...
The wind became quite north and strong at times. HAD to use the harness.
At the end decided to make a film in 3rd person perspective. Naturally that had to be the time the wind died. Either that or I am a hell of a liar :-)
Forgot to mention that as I got off the ice there was a little girl, about two years old with two women. She mentioned my beard and I told her that I was NOT "le père de Noel" :-)
Just look like Santa Claus ...
Note to SELF:
Maui Sails Switch 5.6 CT south shore with SUMO mast - he sold it out from under my nose
Looking at an F2 Lightening - Serge in St-Come (and another on St Thomas - too far)
since it took me some time to get there - the F2 is gone too
I hafta get the roof-rack working on the Prius C or ...
There may not have been that much wind but the back lighting makes for some beautiful shots.
ReplyDelete