Quiet

Unbridled Joy
I'm having a great time by myself while all my friends are in Hatteras. Yep, great time.

It's been relatively quiet around the scene here in the last few weeks. It's not that no one is windsurfing. They are just windsurfing elsewhere with a large local contingent up at Hatteras. From their reports [1],[2],[3], it's been a windy spring and they've been able to break out gear - small stuff - not often used in Atlanta.

Where'd I leave off - Forecast looked good, understatement.

Sunday - REALLY cranked up, but NE wind which did blow the water out (per Barrett's post.) I did the long walk out to get to water deep enough to sail, it stayed 6" -12" way out. But did end up having a good session on my 4.5 and 86 liter, way powered up.

Read more »

Van Pugh Parking

Van Pugh ResidentSeppe Van Pugh, Pepe Le Pew's Dutch cousin.Van Pugh Burn Out
A windsurfer who was concerned about the parking situation. Shred Dog, is that you?

There has been much anxiety recently over windsurfing access at Van Pugh Park on Lake Lanier- more specifically, windsurfing trailer access. To recap for those who haven't been paying attention or cared (which is the larger number of you, we're sure): Recently, several club members found themselves under the scrutiny of park officials for parking trailers along the curb by the windsurfing beach as we have since before World Champion Philip Köster was born. While we thought we'd put the issue to bed after consulting Chief Ranger Chris Arthur, a subsequent episode indicated that things weren't quite settled.

For the windsurfing community, the issue was both symbolic and real. Lake Lanier is the largest open body of water in North Georgia. Van Pugh Park is the most popular windsurfing location on Lake Lanier, mostly due to its exposure to prevailing westerlies. Most of the best high wind sailing occurs here as countless photos in our Foto Gallery document. If there is a picture of a windsurfer in N. Georgia five feet over the water, it likely was taken at Van Pugh. (Clarks Hill is every bit as good and big but it's two and half hours away in Augusta). Read more »

Sprung

Spring
Spring

Spring has sprung like Tigger off his meds. This is the time of year when two opposing seasonal forces, like a tide running against the current, meet. We cheer the longer days and warmer temperatures that give us more sailing time and less ice cream headaches. But, we lament the waning effects of the jet stream as it slowly moves north for the summer like a migratory goose. The fronts that come through carry less and less energy and, in the back of our minds, we know that by June, it won't be worth packing the smaller stuff.

Water temperature vs Wind
The relationship between Lake Lanier water temperature and wind. Sorry for the graph but our art department is on vacation.

This winter was warmer than even our climate-changed winters of late. The only winners here are the bugs that didn't get killed off and pruned back by temperatures in the teens. We windsurfers didn't benefit much because good sessions were few and far in between.. Read more »

Monthly Caption of the Week Contest 3

We'd like to thank all those who participated in last month's contest - in terms of our modest little web site, it was an overwhelming success.

With Opening Day of the baseball season just around the corner, we thought this would be a good choice for this month's Caption of the Week contest. It appears to be Gene Mathis sliding safely into home but we're not sure. That's just our take on it. Surely, you can do better.

The usual rules apply
- The captions need not be directly related to what actually was happening in the picture. No, the purpose is to think of re-interpretations, much like a child inventing an excuse.
- Of course, no disrespect is meant to those in the picture. Think of yourselves as actors in a performance; you are only playing the part. However, there are no royalties, residuals or awards for your participation.

Here's this month's picture. Put your entry for the Monthly Caption of the Week in the comments below.

caption of the week contest 3

From here

Odds and Ends March 2013

A smattering of good stuff we've collected that deserves attention
Red Bull Storm Chase 2013 Recap

Our good friend and correspondent, Dmitris Savidis, has put a wonderful recap of the recent Red Bull Storm Chase event in Ireland as well as an overview of the Chase. He includes some wonderful pics that illustrate the hurricane-like conditions.

Victor Hernandez in Ireland
Victor Hernandez going big. The sequence goes left to right. He was blown that far downwind during the jump.
I don’t think it could really be any windier and still possible to sail – but I have a 2.5 that I’ll take on the next one for sure!”
-Thomas Traversa (F-3) Red Bull Storm Chase blog Read more »

Changed

Janitor's Note: We admit that this is a thinly-veiled attempt to get you, our club members, readers and visitors to share your story in the comments below. But to get things rolling, we'll go first.

When we started windsurfing, our lives changed. Some of those changes were subtle. Who among us can ever drive across a bridge over a lake and not look to see if there are white caps? Others, more substantial, the way we spend our spare time and money, where we go on vacation, and even how and when we work.

But sometimes, windsurfing changes us. Not what we do, but, who we are.

My change was about five years ago. I'd windsurfed for years by then, of course. But, I'd entered that part of middle age where family demands overshadow personal hobbies and activities. My kids were busy and I spent a lot of time with them, driving them, watching their sports. None of this I regret in the least. But, slowly, I was morphing from a butterfly into a caterpillar.

If I weren't a windsurfer
My future without windsurfing. No disrespect to the dude in the photo, I feel ya, buddy. Read more »

Recent Gainesville Wind