"How fast were you going ??"

People often ask, "How fast were you going?" when they meet me ice sailboarding or see the videos on ice ... Believe I have done about 50-60 kph max. Buddy who kitesurfs on ice with GPS says he goes 80 kph. In order to give a REAL feel for the speed on my iceboard, I made this video in 2013:



To get a TRUE feel of what people do in terms of speed on the ice, one only has to check out Jeff Brown of the iceratz:



When I go out on ice n snow, my intention is NOT to reach some amazing speeds, but instead to have FUN n get out in the SUN ...



In the summer, it is pretty much the same idea for me. I want to be outside, on the water, having some fun and getting fresh air. In terms of windsurfing classification (if there is such a thing) I would consider myself a "freerider". No free-style, no slalom speed runs and no racing. Some of my favourite sessions have been out in light wind on a longboard when no-one else is around...



Then again, the same board with a little bit more wind can be a whole lotta FUN:



There are people like AA who seem to like speed on the water and try to beat records ...



BUT I am NOT one of them. Perhaps if and when my skills reach a level where I might be competitive,  it would be another story 😊 However, at this time in my life, I am in no hurry to get anywhere fast. For me windsurfing is all about the FUN and the TOW (time on water). For different people that means different things ... Some look for speed, others like tricks, some like to try the new things like foiling and some like the social aspect ...

For now when people ask me, "How fast were you going?" , I try to be nice n polite  ...
Much easier than giving the long story about no need for speed 😊

Out in the COLD ??

There is cold and then there is BLOODY COLD !!
In French we say froid et FRAITE/frête !!
If these surfers can do it, why is it NOT more popular amongst North American windsurfers ?

Première neige sur la Côte-Nord from Mathieu Crepeau on Vimeo.

In Montreal I only know of local legend Yvente...



Here is a photo from Baie des Brises in 2016 - from Yvente/quebecwind:

The BIG problem is the sail(s). When it gets cold, the sails get full of ice and the mast freezes together. I have gone in the cold up at the chalet and the only saving grace was being able to bring the sails directly into the cottage. Some people say one just needs some warm water to pour over items that are frozen ... Sorry, even I cannot get into this and I am considered a polar bear...

and then there was this video from December 2015 :-)



apparently this one is from some movie ?? "Ayahuasca" ??

 for these Austrians it is cold - six degrees

well, I probably could make it out in that weather :-)



Well, it does look like some cold weather videos are showing up 😊

Summary of My 2016 Summer Windsurfing

As usual I specify  summer windsurfing on water as opposed to winter windsurfing on ice n snow 😊

This year was supposed to be the year about the foot straps. However, once again that did NOT happen. As FORCE10 from quebecwind suggested, Hatteras is not only key, but actually required in order to actually "get better". Here in Montreal, one goes windsurfing when one can, depending on work, family and obviously weather. Unfortunately I also did NOT make it down to Lake Champlain this year.

As usual, my big longboard and 8.x sails are my saviours. They can go in 20 to about 50 kph winds with some chop as well. By end of September the Mistral Equipe II XR board was used 21 out of 28 sessions; that's 75% of the time !! Since the 8.x sails get used on other boards as well, they were used 25 out of 28 sessions which is almost 90% of the time !!!

All the other longboards were sold: Mistral Equipe I, Fanatic Ultra CAT and Mistral Equipe II CHS.



The Mistral Equipe II XR is a special board in the sense that it has a LOT of float with 260 litres, is quite light since it is carbon and is fairly narrow at 66 cm. The Hot Sails Maui SpeedFreak 8.5 is also a special sail because it is made out of modern dacron and has a PVC window. This all makes it light, durable with a VERY large wind range ... This year I also purchased another NP mast to replace the one broken on the trip to Hatteras last year - 2015...

Took less videos this year, but did take the occasional one ...



Have been trying to determine what the next board down should be. Have a JP SLW92 which I almost sold until buddies warned me to keep it until I have fully managed it in order to really benefit from it - yes, foot straps ... I have taken the board out about four times this year and do always enjoy those sessions ...

Tried a SB iS 117W, but knew it was beyond me and would take some time to benefit from its amazing qualities. Traded it out for an AHD SL2 132 and am trying to get full benefit out of its qualities...Agree with "parked" on seabreeze forum that it does NOT feel like 132 litres of flotation. Oh well, time to lose weight and improve skills :-)

Most changes this year were in terms of boards and not sails ...

Not much in terms of BIG wind sessions, but am definitely more comfortable in 7-oh conditions. Just not sure which of my boards is the ideal one in those conditions. I still believe in my formula of sail size times 10 is ideal board width in terms of conditions. This works for 7-10 in any case. Formula with 10+ meter sails, 80 cm wide boards with 8.x sails and 70 cm wide boards for 7.x sails. A nice board for 7-oh is the Fanatic Hawk 135 (245x73) , but they don't make them any more :-( Was looking at the Fanatic Blast new in 2017 and it seems to cost almost $3000 !!! Around 2007 when I purchased my AHD FF 160, boards were closer to $1000 and I saw them rise to about $2000, but now they are at $3000 !!!

At the end of 2016 I purchased a 2006 Fanatic Shark 145 HRS which is 263 cm x 75 cm and will go very well with a sail of 7.x. The board was purchased as it has many options for foot strap placement. Yvente says it is a keeper and so, will need to re-evaluate my quiver in 2017...

My smallest sail is a 6.3 and I am estimating the next one down should be a 5.4 with probably a 105-110 litre board. Obviously this can be rented at Hatteras and I discovered (after big wind day :-) that this equipment can be rented from VoilOKA @ OKA as well !!

As stated, need to lose weight and improve skills. SURE hope Hatteras happens again next spring !!!

At the chalet, the BIC Dufour is in BAD shape and needs repair. Found another for fifty bucks and managed to do a clip with a bit of wind - before the board pretty much fell into disrepair. Will need to repair my original board after all ...



After writing this report ... went out @ OKA using the above home made selfie stick made from a wooden broom handle. While rushing to aid a kiter in need I broke the stick without realising and lost my GoPro 3 Silver. Oh well ... lesson learned. Good thing I still have my trusty GoPro 1.

At the end of the year I got a Pictek (GoPro copy) which I will test out and compare with the GoPro. It is about one third the price of a GoPro.

Lightweight windsurfers and wind minimums

As a heavyweight of over 100 kilos / 220 pounds ... I have been using large gear for quite some time. Folks like Dave White aka Whitey , who is heavier than me and dances on boards, suggests this is not necessary... Lightweights don't even need to think about that... Gear is aimed at average weight windsurfers - let's say 170 pounds or about 75 kilos ...

So, when someone of 130 pounds starts asking about sailing Formula and which sails to use, I get surprised. Is that really necessary and what are the wind minimums for someone like that ?? A big 100 cm wide board and a big sail larger than 10 m² ??

For me 10 knots / ~20 kph is my wind minimum for longboarding with 8.x sails. Larger sails work, but are also MORE work... People are saying 10 knots planing is attainable with not too much trouble...

This is me - out with a Mistral Equipe II XR carbon race longboard with a MauiSails TR-4 10 m² race sail in about 10 knots. People say I can go faster railing board with mast track forward and in the railing straps ...



Lightweights on the other hand, can plane in winds even less than that !!
In this video I do not even see much pumping ...



My question is : Is it necessary to go to a Formula board and pump large sails or even try to handle them when one is SO light ??  And in that video , how is that fellow able to hold up such a large sail ? What does he do if it drops in the water ??

A wide freeride or freerace with an 8.x sail should plane early enough for such a light weight ??
Like this ...BIC Techno Formula 94 cm wide with 7.8 sail ...



Who the heck would want to do this - pump like crazy with BIG gear in LIGHT winds ??



For myself as a BIG heavyweight, I use a BIG, WIDE freeride board JP SLW of 92 cm width with the race sail MS TR-4 10 m² in over 12 knot winds in order to be planing ...That is my wind minimum for planing - NO pumping ... and YES straps can drop planing threshold too !! My bad - not in straps ...



When I asked on forums if it was worthwhile to go from 10 to 12 square meters, it was pretty much a BIG NO. So, i cannot imagine lightweights on such large sails either ... nor on Formula boards ... still feel it is overkill - unless you race or ...

Based on what we are seeing now, perhaps wind foiling will take care of the light wind dilemma ?? Regardless of sailor weight ...

Will post a video from AHD since they have been at it the longest and have designed a board around it. They are now talking of making another foil board with more volume as well - this one is around 110 liters ... and FLYS in about 7 knots of wind