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

Promise Not to Tell?

Plum Island/ Newburyport Harbor- I find a hidden slick. Nice surprise. I can kite an arms length away from the marsh bank. Who knew this was here? Must be a secret. Don't tell anyone. Beautiful setting sun session on my 10M kite. Slick works in- WNW wind, mid tide, Might work on other tides, not sure. Any hazards? You bet. Lots of em. And the water is murky on the outgoing tide so you can't see squat. 1 mile distance from launch to slick. Speaking of outgoing tide- Don't let yourself get in a position where you could be sucked out of the harbor in the event of a broken line. Not a beginner friendly spot. Remember- This is a secret spot. So don't kite here. And if you do, don't mess with the dock pilings. They were here first. They'll eat you and your board in a heartbeat. Plum Island, Kitesurfed, WNW, 15-25, 10M Rally/ Flx 138, Solo.

Making the Cut

The new cut. Twice! And the old cut. Brad and I start at Monomoy Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, kite upwind in the bay, go out through the new cut, kite downwind oceanside to the old cut, walk across South Beach, kite back to the visitor center. Then we do it again riding surfboards. What a day! These cuts have received many accolades, (by me), for being among the most secluded and beautiful locations in the entire Cape Cod. It's like a different world out here. It's a world of great natural beauty and sharks. Today we only saw the beauty. That's why I'm here writing this now. I appreciate the beauty more than the sharks. Sorry sharks. Go eat somebody else's surfboard. Kitesurfed, SSE, 18-30, 10 Rally/ Mako 150, and strapless surfboard, with Brad.

Camera Crazy or Just Crazy?

Slap me. I've been getting carried away with photography lately. Upgrading my lenses, taking photo classes, calculating mathematical angles to the sun at various times of day with adjustment for seasonal tilt. It's silly. I don't know why I'm doing this. It's distracting me from the really important stuff in life, like kiting. I never thought anything would distract me from kiting. Except perhaps death, or paralysis. Maybe just death. But don't worry. I know it'll pass. I'll wake up one day and be completely cured. I'll come to my senses. What little I have. In the meantime, try to face the camera when you do your inverted triple backroll handlepass kite loop. Just relax and smile. Like This! P Bay, Kitesurfed, SSW, S, 15-35, Rally 14 & North 10 (Thanks Kristof!), Flx138, With Kristof, Kirk, Johnny H, Alex, Mike, Dunoyer, Skyrocket, Others.