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Gear selection help wanted
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johnl



Joined: 05 Jun 1994
Posts: 1330
Location: Hood River OR

PostPosted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 7:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

RocRobster wrote:
got the 115l 2007, will come in handy for both my son and I when we are able to both sail at the same time... and my wife will buy that justification. Thanks johnl for finding that great deal for me!


Your Welcome RocRob,

I needed/wanted a new freestyle board and couldn't decide on size. So I picked up a Naish 100 and a Naish 115 (same older stock deals) for the price of one new freestyle board. I just wish I needed a board in the sizes they offer since there are some real awesome deals to be had....
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gregnw44



Joined: 23 Jul 2008
Posts: 783
Location: Seattle, Wa

PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 2:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yeah, I concur... great decision for you to get the 115 L board Smile

For all that you've said, your goals, where you want to sail, etc. And also including your son... you guys at some point and in "some conditions" will probably switch back and forth between two of your boards. So, good job, it's totally a win/win.

If and when I get to Stevenson this summer, I'll keep an eye out for that shiny new board... have fun Smile
Greg -
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 12:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

RocRobster wrote:
Isn't Blackberry beach directly across from Bob's? and if I do attempt east wind sailing and end up at the Cascade Locks beach... will someone really give me a ride back or should I really count on walking?

You made me look, and you're right. I thought BBBeach was on the WA side near the Bridge of the Gods, in the stumpy/swampy/brushy area towards which most Bob's sailors drift if caught in dying E winds. Walking gear back to Bob's from there is a nightmare, easily the worst "walk of shame" I've ever encountered on the Columbia.

It took me only minutes to find a car with boards on top at the Cascade Locks ferry landing terminal (+ food, bathrooms, phone, etc.) and snag a ride back to Bob's. I had planned to wait for the next ferry ride up to Bob's, but got a ride right to my van much sooner. (Some) people pity a guy wandering around in a wetsuit miles from his dog. Compare the options if dying E winds make returning to Bob's impossible:
Plan A (what everybody else does):
1. Try for 30-60 minutes to slog back and forth across the whole wide river back to Bob's.
2. Face reality and end up swimming through brush back to the WA shore west of Rock Creek way west of Bob's.
3. Climb the boulders onto the RR tracks and carry your gear back on the rip rap (barefooted?), hoping you don't get arrested by the RR dicks or hit by a 70-mph train, or
4. Swim across the wide mouth of Rock Creek against the current, then walk back along the shore chest deep in a submerged jumble of waist-high tree stumps and felled trees, ignoring or flipping off the homeowner screaming at you to get off his property (I hear he's gone now).
Options 3 and 4 can take well over an hour of very hard work.
5. Collapse at your van and vow NEVER to sail west or abreast of Bob's again. ALWAYS rig big and get thy butt upriver. If you need to uphaul, don't even think of sailing E winds.
Notice that every step in this plan involves a huge amount of work, time, and maybe even pain (e.g., rocks, thorns, submerged stumps in the knees and groin) and if the wind picks up again you're not in a position to use it. You're committed to the shadowed WA shoreline.

Plan B (the easy way):
1. Sit on your board and run dead downwind directly to the Cascade Locks public beach.
2. Lay your gear on the grass by the terminal parking lot.
3. Snag a ride to Bob's.
4. Get in your vehicle and retrieve your gear.
Note that every step here requires minimal effort and time and no pain even if barefoot, and if the wind resumes, you just turn right or re-launch and sail back upwind. Some sailors regularly park and launch from that beach.

Mike \m/
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RocRobster



Joined: 22 May 2002
Posts: 80

PostPosted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 2:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

[quote="isobars"] Some sailors regularly park and launch from that beach.


That was my primary sailing site in the late 80s. Relatively flat water because there is no chance for the waves to build from the Locks to the site. Small wind shadow from the launch, but drifting out a bit and was where I learned to waterstart. Thinking of teaching my son to waterstart there now as the event site is impossible with so many kiters everywhere.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 3:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Just don't try that launch in E winds. Drifting into the locks interferes with shipping, and the only way out is in a motor boat.

I've seen entire fleets of Bob's Beach sailors struggle ashore WAY west of Bob's when an E wind goes sour. Whether it drops suddenly or fades so slowly ya don't see it happening until it's too late, it's one of the most common walks of shame on the Columbia. The main solutions are big fins, sails, and boards and ripping way upwind and staying there until you get hungry. Folks who mow the lawn in the rut anchored to Bob's are begging to lose ground when the wind backs off and the inside wind shadow catches them by surprise.

Mike \m/
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