The Sylt of The Americas: Side-on in Frisco

Thank goodness for iWindsurf.com!!  Today was one of those weird days where it blew 25-35 mph all day in Frisco, but barely touched 20 in the gusts for much of the day in Avon.  As the crow flies, these spots are only about 5 miles apart...  Without iWindsurf's meters, I would have never guessed that Frisco was crankin'!

 

A bunch of us ended up sailing/kiting the Bathhouses in some super fun side onshore conditions.  Good jumping and fun waves in the head+ range made for a pretty sweet afternoon on the water.  Not to mention temps in the high 60s!  It's tough to believe that it's almost December already!  The only thing that kept me honest was the massive sideshore current, taking my power away right when I wanted it the most- right in the impact zone!

Sorry, no pictures, but think of Sylt, minus the freezing temperatures, a foot or two of wave height,  and thousands of cheering fans!

Looks like another massive storm event on Wednesday/Thursday!  Come on Down and JOIN US!!!!!

Gobbling Up Good Waves

GOBBLE GOBBLE!!

The surf has been just gorgeous for the last day or two!  Light offshore winds and overhead sets...  What more can you ask for?! 

 

 

Happy Birthday, Dad!!  I hope you guys have a great Thanksgiving up north!  Miss ya!

Holiday Reading

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.  For my international readers: Thanksgiving is all about sharing and being thankful for what you have, and has roots in the US's adolescent history when the first European settlers were getting their feet underneath them.  Basically, everyone just gets together with family and friends, watches some football, drinks some beer, and eats a lot of delicious food.  It's really fun!

In honor of the tradition, let's all take a step back for a minute and think about who and what we truly love, and give thanks for those parts of our lives.

And now that you've got a few days on your hands with nothing to do, check out the latest edition of Windsurfer International: (go ahead and click, even you non-windsurfers, it's free to read and has great stories and photos from some amazing places all around the world)

I'm especially smitten with this Edition (#3), as it has a feature article about the Hatteras windsurfing scene and the Hatteras Wave Jam in particular.  It's pretty cool to get some coverage on the event, as Bill Bell, Keith McCullough, Stuart Proctor and I have put a lot of time and effort into the whole thing (Bill especially).  So, thanks for writing about your experience George, thanks for tirelessly photographing the event Janice, and thanks for publishing the article Brian!!

I know a lot of you Northerners are starting to think winter, but bear in mind, there is LOTS of windsurfing season left down here on Hatteras.  For proof, check it out- the hibiscus plant on my porch is still flowering!  If that doesn't scream "Warm enough to windsurf" I don't know what does!

And check out this picture of the moon from last night:

Coming up:  Looks like a very windy end of the week!!  That's a nice compliment to the  

END OF THE YEAR SALE

at Sailworld Hatteras, which starts Friday November 27th at 10 am!!!  We have some killer deals for you guys on what's left of the 2009 gear, and a few opportunities to get your hands on 2010 stuff, too!  Shoot me an email or give the shop a call (252-995-5441), or better yet come on out to the beach, check out the goods, and get some sailing in to top it all off!!

Lighthouse!!

Well, I think I know where all the sand from S-Turns ended up- It's all at the Lighthouse!  That sandbar is working insanely well right now!  We've been getting hooked up with North to NE winds for the last few days in the 20-30 mph range.  The waves have been really fun, too, ranging from chest high to occasionally a bit overhead if you find a good set.

It's a lot of work to sail at the Lighthouse, especially in a due north, as the jetties and the town of Buxton really block a lot of wind on the inside.  Couple that with a jet stream of current accelerating through the gaps in the jetty, and you can definitely get yourself worked if you're unlucky with the timing.  I spent a lot of time in the drink this afternoon, and got pushed a solid 150 yards down the beach before I made it out, on more than one occasion...  But when it all lines up for that perfect wave, you realize that it was definitely worth all of the effort...

Here's Bill, lining up a hit on a nice peak this afternoon:

And...  showing off the bottom of his new 92 liter twin fin!!

heh heh heh, sorry Bill!!

Looks like more of the same for the next two days, then a mid week lull, and another good front at the end of the week!!  Sweeeeeet!!