Bugsy brings wind

The wind came in late. Most of us arrived early. We had a good crew of dreamers waiting around, hoping to pull some magic out of a bad forecast. No wind, a good time to tune the gear The wind gave us teasers all day, keeping us interested. Bugsy, the dog, kept us entertained on the beach during the lulls. Jay pulled out his home made rum and spice beef jerky and we didn't care if there was wind or not, it was that good. Bugsy thought so too. He didn't waste time chewing it. When a stronger wind blessed us with it's company in the late afternoon we were all sooo excited. You'd think 14-18 was the pinnacle of kitesurfing. It did feel good though. I didn't wasting time chewing. I got right down to back roll practise. By the end of the day, we were a happy crew. All it took was a little sun, fog, clouds, more fog, and a dog eating rum and spice beef jerky to bring in the wind. West Dennis Beach, Kitesurfed, SSW, SW, 6-18, 17M Zephyr/ Mad Cow & 6' Surfboard & Flex 138, with Fred, Frank, Andre, Colleen, Paul, Bugsy, Tom, others.

Senseless Kiting

Adam makes it look windy at Coast Guard Beach Gregor and I planned a fantastic 15 mile downwinder from Head of the Meadow to Coast Guard Beach based on the solid NE wind forecast. Stupid us. We got E wind. That makes it an upwinder to start, then a sidewinder. And the wind was light and flukey. But the two of us were too stubborn and lacking in any sense whatsoever to give up on our trip just because the wind was wrong. Why let 1 little detail ruin such great plans? We dropped off the vehicles. We pumped our kites. We struggled to get off the beach in the shorebreak and then didn't have the power to go upwind. We kited, going nowhere. We struggled. We walked. We tried again. We cursed... At 1:00 we gave up and drove over to Mayflower, where the wind was strong, steady, and NE. There was a big crowd and everyone was happy. We were happy too, now that we were acting like we had some tiny shred of sense in our heads. Head of the Meadow, and Mayflower Beach, Kitesurfed, 10-25, E, ENE, NE, 13M Octane/Mako 150 & 6' surfboard, with Gregor, others.

Frankenstein Board

I did a mad scientist experiment with an old windsurfing board. I lopped off its rear end, glassed up the wound and called it a kiteboard, no straps, no fins. Yeah, I knew the lack of fins might be a problem but I wanted to give it a try. No way. It was about as stable as riding a surfboard backwards, and upside down. Alright now I've got to paste some fins on and try it again. After my test pilot runs on Frankenstein board I had a very respectable light wind session on my surfboard. Not enough wind for jumps, but I still had fun working on tacks and jibes. Mayflower, Kitesurfed, NE, ENE, 8-20, 17M Zephyr/ 6' Surfboard, Mostly Solo.

Hello Martha's Vinyard

Unloading a few toys at Katama Bay I knew something was wrong. We had 30 people going to Martha's Vineyard for 3 days of kiting and camping and the forecast was for nearly perfect weather- blue skies, warm temps, windy... For 3 days in a row. It was like reverse Murphy's law. Whatever can go right will, and at the best possible time. So, of course, I'm waiting for something bad to happen to mess it up. Saturday is great! Great weather, secluded barrier beach, kiting inside in flats, outside in waves, or in the tidal inlet. Everyone is completely psyched to be here, pulling off their best crashes right next to the beach in the offshore winds. Nice dinner and bull session around the campfire apres kite. Incoming! Johnny D covers his head to avoid getting a haircut Sunday is great! Repeat of Sat. This is making me nervous. I do some pain free backroll practise in the shallows. Upwinder in the bay, walk over to the oceanside for a downwinder to the inlet, upwinder in the bay back to where I started, good company, so fun. We counted 19 people on and in the truck for the 4 x 4 ride out to the launch. Monday starts great! Then the wind gets flukey. Ahh, now I feel better. I could stop worrying about a natural disaster striking us. Although flukey wind is pretty bad, at least it's a disaster I'm familiar with. We all get some water time to stretch our tired muscles. Note: Click on pics to see full size. I like the way Dunoyer summed up the trip, "those sweeping views of sand, sea and birds will stick with me for at least another year..." I hope so. Thanks to Eric F for bravely leading 30 crazed kiters to a salty canvas waiting to be painted with kite tracks and rooster tails. Martha's Vineyard- Katama Bay, kitesurfed 3 days, 8-28, SW, SSW, 13M Octane/Mako 150 & 6' Surfboard, with Masskiting, others.