Twilight is for Kiting

Another pretty good kiting session. Lightish winds. When the sun touches the horizon, I pull the camera out to get a few shots of the die hards in the gathering twilight. It's a beautiful, almost Summer evening. Warm breeze. Soft, golden, light fading to blue. 9:00 PM- One brave die hard stays out until the only light left is from the half moon and streetlights. It looks like fun until his kite drops out and he has a long swim. Damn! Must be creepy to self rescue in the dark. I drive my truck around the bay and keep my headlights on him until I see him touch ground. This is what happens when there's no parking lot attendant to kick us out. Nature kicks us out. Pleasure Bay, Kitesurfed, SSW, S, 10-22, 14M Rally/Flx138, with Kristof, Johhny H, Peter, Others. Click on pics for full size. Top pic- Peter Mid pic- Johhny H Bottom pic- ?

Closing Time

Horseneck- Light wind, big waves. I'm having a pretty good sunset session. Until we get kicked out. Brad waves me in to tell me that we have to leave. The parking lot attendant wants to lock the gate. What? This is the best part of the day! These people have no respect for kiting into a glorious sunset. Well I was just coming in anyway. So there! It's hard to turn my back on that hazy, golden, setting sun though. Ahh, until next time. Horseneck, Kitesurfed, SW, 10-20, 14M Rally/Mako150, with Brad, Jean, Dan.

Fishing for Kiting

Plum Island/ Newburyport- This is going to be great! I'm fishing in Al's boat. We catch a bunch of mackerel. Josh reels in 2 keeper striped Bass. Now I'm getting ready to kite. I've wanted to kite off of Al's boat for a long time! Al brings his boat close to a deserted sandbar. My gear is ready to go. I tell Al that I have my cell phone in my harness pouch. If anything goes wrong I'll call him for an early pick up. Otherwise, he'll be back in 2 hours. The wind is cranking! I put my gear bag on my back, grab my board, and jump overboard, swim it in. I wave goodbye. Pretty sweet. I pump my kite and reach for my harness to put it on. My harness! I look up to see Al's boat far off in the channel heading out to the ocean. Too far away to signal him. And my cell phone is with my harness. A seagull squawks nearby. It sounds like he's laughing at me. 2 hours later, my harness is right there in the boat where I left it. Al and Josh can't believe it. I'm no smarter than the bass that are in the cooler on ice. My brain is the size of a mackerel brain. It's amazing I can function at all. But I have to forgive myself. It helps that I had a quick kiting session with Brad and Walter yesterday in Buzzards Bay. It helps that it was a sparkling day on the water today with family. Fresh bass for dinner. And my tiny little mackerel brain forgets things quickly. If I was a fish I'd be caught by now. But I'm not a fish. That helps.

Picture- Brad kites better than a Striped Bass.

Top Picture- Al's leg is a striper.

The Smell of a Kiter

I notice when I'm putting on my wetsuit that Hatteras seems to have done it some good. I guess getting wet every day for a week brings out the best in a wetsuit. It's slimy, smelly, and it feels a little thicker, warmer. It's like wearing a petri dish of live bacteria. Don't you love that fishy aroma!? It just makes me want to sing... Ooooh that smell / Can't you smell that smell  Ooooh that smell / The smell of death surrounds you -Lynyrd Skynyrd In spite of my stench, I have a lot of fun at Chapin, kiting the vast outer sandbars at sunset. It quiets the longings in men's souls.   Chapin, Kitesurfed, 10-20, WNW, NW, NNW, 14M Rally/Flx138, Mako150, Plywood Skimmy, with Brad, Flo, Chris L, Steve, Marcello, others.

In the Company of Rocks

It's windy. Hah! They didn't forecast this. Where to kite? Revere? Where all my friends are? Or Deer Island, where the wind is 5MPH stronger but I'm often on my own. Hard choice. I go with the solo session. Wind trumps everything else. In the end, I'm glad my friends aren't here. They don't get to see me bobbing around like a discarded cork when the wind dies and strands me over at The Five Sisters. The only ones who get to snicker at my floundering are a few dog walkers and 1 little boy who runs down to the water's edge to inform me that my kite is really big. The long walk back across the fist size stones makes my plantar fasciitis thrive. All in all, a great day. Not expecting any wind makes any lame session seem like a fabulous adventure. Yirrell Beach, Kitesurfed, ESE, 12-22, 14M Rally/ Mako King, Solo.

A Public Service Announcement

Early onset lunacy. You, or someone you know may have this disease. Do you know the symptoms? -Complete obsession with ______. You fill in the blank. -Avoidance of showering, eating, peeing. Takes too long. -Drooling and speaking in broken sentences when excited. -Getting up in the middle of the night to start the day because can't wait. -Keeping a blog about lunacy. This is a disorder that is treatable! Most sufferers of this degenerative disease don't recognize or acknowledge that they are ill. Early diagnosis and treatment leads to the best outcome.  Be honest. Tell yourself or your loved one to get help. I don't know anyone with this disease but if I did I would tell them to straighten up and fly right. I certainly don't have it! Not me. Chris, flying right. P bay, Kitesurfed, SSW, 20-30, 14M Rally/Flx 138, with Chris L, John, Kristof, Alex, Others.

On the Ninth Day of Hatteras

I say goodbye to Kite Mecca with a short oceanside downwinder. It's back to perfect side shore wind, NNE. This is the best riding of the whole week! The waves are nice, friendly trolls. Smaller than yesterday but still overhead, easy, fun. Goodbye Hatt! I camp on Chincoteague Island. I'm thinking about kiting at Tom's Cove, Assateague Island, but I'm running out of light, decide it isn't worth it. I throw my camera in my bike bag and take a sunset ride around Assateague. When I crawl into my sleeping bag, in the back of my truck, I'm happy, contented. It's been a great vacation of listening to my heart, exploring, and following the call of the wind and waves. It may take a few days to get the fine sand out of the folds in my brain. Hatt Downwinder, NNE, 15-35, 8M RPM/Mako150, Solo.  Picture- Baby Blue Heron strutting it's stuff on Assateague.

On the Eighth Day of Hatteras

Another oceanside downwwinder. Today the conditions aren't so easy. Side on wind, big shorebreak, waves breaking out as far as you can see, gusty, fully depowered on my 8M kite. I'm glad to have Denn's company on this one. I'm on the edge of my comfort zone. The waves are lumbering trolls. Some are friendly. Some are not. I ride way out, getting lost in the deep valleys of the troughs. There's really no place they aren't breaking. I'm not taking my eyes off of them for  a second. I'm cautious for the first mile or so. I don't drop into anything. Then, I look for smaller ones to ride. Finally I start to loosen up and ride some waves. Oh yeah! Scary fun. It seems like I'm just starting to get into the zone when we're at the endpoint. Frank walks over the dunes at Kite Point just in time to help us pack up and give us a ride back. Thanks! Later, Denn says that he thinks the wave height on the outside was 20'. I can't tell if he's joking. He must be. I do know that I had to pay attention to the angle of my kite when I was down in the troughs. It felt like I could easily loose my wind or snag a line in a lip if I let the kite get too low. I've never felt that before. Tired muscles! It's not a question of which muscles are tired. They all are. It's just a matter of degrees. Hatt Downwider, Kitesurfed, NE 15-35, 8M RPM/Mako150, with Denn Picture- Frank sets the water on fire.

On the Seventh Day of Hatteras

Oceanside downwinder. Soundside downwinder. This is what Hatteras is all about. The ocean is great! After 6 days of NE wind, the waves are showing some spunk but the perfect sideshore wind, NNE, makes the kiting easy.  I kite in front of the house for awhile. If you stay in one place you get to see all the other downwinder traffic blowing thru. One minute I'm kiting by myself. Then I see kites approaching. Suddenly other kiters are all around me, like a pod of dolphins frolicking in the waves. Then they're gone downwind, and the next group approaches. So fun! Just another day in beach bum paradise. Tired muscles. Hatt Downwinders, Kitesurfed, NNE, 15-30, 10M Rally/Mako150, Solo.

On the Sixth Day of Hatteras

Downwinder from Mikes house in Frisco, near Frisco woods campground, to Frisco washout. Strong wind. Denn and I are the only ones who enjoy this downwinder. The other guys are too overpowered on their 12 meter kites. I tenderize a rib on a bad 720. I'm buying an impact vest tomorrow. And a big bottle of Advil. Beautiful sunset session. Our crew is the last to leave the beach. Tired muscles. Hatt Downwinder, Kitesurfed, NE, 15-30, 10M Rally/Mako150, With Denn, Yuly, Alex, Paul. Picture- Yuly carving hard

On the Fifth Day of Hatteras

This is the day with a terrible forecast- cool, rainy, no wind, sad. It's the best day yet! Mostly sunny, windy, happy. Everyone is learning stuff. That's the best feeling. Jane gets up and riding for the first time after a year of bodydragging and kite flying. Yuly gets his first back rolls. I make progress with what I'm working on- back rolls with a board grab to a crash. Such a great day! Tired muscles. Frisco Turnout, Kitesurfed, NE, 10-20, Flx 138/Rally14, with Frank, Paul, Denn, Yuly, Alex, Jane, others. Picture- Dark Slide Denny

On the Fourth Day of Hatteras

No wind. We cook. We eat. We cook. We eat. Talk a little. Cook. Eat. We better get wind soon. Resting and eating all day is exhausting work.

On the Third Day of Hatteras

Our crew is kiting at Frisco Point. I decide to downwind it from Kite Point, 6 miles, even though the wind is fickle and light, always the foolish optimist. I barley have enough wind to get off the beach. I make it all the way except the last 100 feet. The wind just shuts off. I can see Frank leaving the beach with his gear as I land my kite. Wait for me! I rush and make it to the parking lot as the crew is loading up, just in time to get a ride back. I shoulda told them in advance that I was doing this. I can't believe how lucky I am with timing. 6 miles of kiting and if I had started a few minutes later I would have been stranded. A smart person would learn something from this. Hatt, Kitesurfed, NE, 7-17, Solo downwinder.

On the Second Day of Hatteras

5 boards for kiting, 2 for SUP, 1 board for surfing, and a bike, in a pear tree.   Frisco Turnout, Kitesurfed, NE, 10-20, 14M Rally/Flx 138 & surfboard, with Frank, Denn, Paul, Others.

On the First Day of Hatteras-

I don't make it to Hatteras. We have a convoy of 3 vehicles, filled with kites and kiters, heading south to The Outer Banks. I don't make it. I break ranks in Maryland. Head straight to the water. Assateague National Park! I kite in super light winds, a beautiful spot, then bike, dinner on the beach, camp in the truck. So nice!!! Ahhh, I'm on vacation. Assateague Island, Kitesurfed, E, 5-12, 17M Fat Lady/Surfboard, Solo Boardwalk to Twilight