Where We're Sailing Today / where we sailed today

[dsgrntlxmply]

Wind today: excellent.

Sailor condition today: not so good, gut trouble.

Other sailors were out and having a ripping good time on 4.5-6.0.

I was not going to drive out to the site with wind like this and not sail at all, but I was not in good shape. I managed to rig and get the gear (155L as always, 5.0) to the beach with frequent breaks in fetal position for pain relief.

Finally got out but decided that with this degree of gut pain, I needed to limit risk with a symbolic reach out and back just to say that I had not missed the best day since Oct. 20. I did that, and actually made the jibe after not having sailed at all for many weeks. I came out nearly dry.

That was good enough, and I called it a day.

[jse]

[bert]

4.7/90ltr at Coyote for an hour right at noontime. No one else there. It was frickin' cold with wind at ~ 20 to 23 mph with good flood chop. Decided to come in when the wind dropped below 20. Not good conditions to be slogging.

[zirtaeb]

Short late afternoom sesh at LasMarias, PR. Light breeze 5-17, 5.9 and 111 Hypersonic. It's 77 air temps, 71 water. Rainy today, heading E for a couple of no wind days.

[dvCali]

Dec 18th at Stick: at least 8 people out, 12:30 to 2:30 with 4.8 to 6.0 ... I was late and with a small board and ended up slogging (and sinking) when the wind died at 2:30. It came back at 3pm in 7-8 conditions. Surprisingly warmish.

Lesson: bring the big stuff in Winter!

[DonORiordan]

Air 62F, water much colder. 5 sailors out on usual size gear for PA but everything was on opposite tack from normal (ESE wind). Trick was to launch on low water, sail downwind out the channel to escape the mud inside, then water was higher to sail back to the launch at end of session. 5.5 good for 60% planing, perfect in the gusts on 99L board. 5 happy smiles at the end, guess we got an early Xmas present. Now we don't care so much if the world ends tomorrow

[PAmuddog]

Yes Don I agree, great session yesterday at PA.

Sorry you missed the early nooner today. Four of us from 10:30 to noon (4.7, 5.2, 5.4, and a 5.6 waaaaaay opeed) powered on a full plane thru the mud on the return.

Could be a repeat tomorrow and Sunday for the ultimate end of the world sessions.

Nice that it hasn't rained much to foul the water.

[dvCali]

Good day! Took out my new Ezzy Tiger 5.2 in very powered up conditions!!! Nice sail and great December sailing.

[dsgrntlxmply]

Gusty: 5.0 was not quite enough power in the lulls, though I did get a couple of waterstarts. 5.0 might've been enough with some rigging adjustments, but that would have required two trips through a mud slog with some deep and sucking holes in unfamiliar new locations after the storms.

The main problem for me today was the 155L board and relentless chop, in shallow and ebbing water too churned and murky to allow the depth to be readily seen. The board was all over the place trying to get waterstarted or uphauled (including catching gusts and flipping), though it behaved fairly well once I managed to get some headway.

My hands got cold quickly, but the 4/3 wetsuit was adequate once I acclimated. Not yet quite time for the 5mm hooded.

I ought to try a smaller board to see if that might help.

--- PS: reply to jse's comment on 155L board size

I agree that the 155L board is big. It's been a great board for transitional learning, which arguably is what I'm still mostly doing, and it's great for relaxation sailing on lighter days when few to no other people go out. It's not so fun in higher/gusty winds and especially in shallow water chop: yesterday's conditions and also typical for the upcoming early part of the season.

[jse]