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lake arenal / costa rica
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coachg



Joined: 10 Sep 2000
Posts: 3547

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 12:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

We use backwind sailing on floods when the wind dies in the delta to avoid the walk of shame. Stay near shore & sail upwind in the eddies. If you can backwind you never have to change side of the board or move your feet on a sinker. If you tack a sinker while slogging you have to move around the nose of a sinking board which increases your chance for a fall and losing ground.

By the way, the two sailors are Ken & Brian.

Coachg
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 1:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

An alternative suggestion for flood days (and similar Gorge easterlies): Launch, git yer ass way upwind (aka putting some land in the bank) while you have some power, and use the current to take you home effortlessly and reliably when the wind pukes.
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TheItalianJobber



Joined: 09 Sep 2003
Posts: 120

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 1:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

isobars wrote:
Launch, git yer ass way upwind (aka putting some land in the bank) while you have some power, and use the current to take you home effortlessly and reliably when the wind pukes.
That may not work if you're launching with straight off-shore wind, and there's no upwind to sail to.

I learned in straight off-shore, gusty conditions and the only way I've managed was by learning to jibe on a dime with little to no wind (basically if I could uphaul it, I could jibe it). Learning backwind techniques in gusty conditions was not an option (for me!), and the little difference in height was negligible given the long shore line. Granted the only current we faced was wind drift though.
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johnl



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

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 3:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ah I can see how the backwinded sailing to get upwind on the delta works. Something I never did when I sailed then. But then again my backwinded sailing just got decent the last couple of years and was pretty much nonexistent back then. Back when I sailed the delta my tacking on a shortboard skills were much higher. So I just tacked my way back to the launch Smile
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tstizzle



Joined: 05 Jul 2000
Posts: 242

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 7:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

johnl wrote:
Ah I can see how the backwinded sailing to get upwind on the delta works. Something I never did when I sailed then.


me neither! but i guess it makes sense. plus, it sure seems like another way to have fun on the water. which i'm all for...
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tstizzle



Joined: 05 Jul 2000
Posts: 242

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 7:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

coachg wrote:


By the way, the two sailors are Kxx & Bxxxx.

Coachg


shhhhhhhhh! don't out them! wicked sailors though, right?
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coachg



Joined: 10 Sep 2000
Posts: 3547

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 9:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

tstizzle wrote:
coachg wrote:


By the way, the two sailors are Kxx & Bxxxx.

Coachg


shhhhhhhhh! don't out them! wicked sailors though, right?


Yes they are, and great people as well.

Backwind sailing also will help your regular short board tack. If you go around early, 1 hour before 12:00, and immediately backwind the sail your tack will be much faster because the board never comes to a stop. If you wait until after 12:00 than the board comes to a stop & the nose starts to sink which slows down you exit. Going early & backwinding through the tack the nose doesn't sink so you exit much faster.

Coachg
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tstizzle



Joined: 05 Jul 2000
Posts: 242

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 10:30 pm    Post subject: holy guacamole! just like the gorge... Reply with quote

last night we went to equus for post-sailing platos de carnes (remind me to take a pic of the chow at equus). while the food was great, it was pretty darn quiet outside (wind-wise). i did NOT hold out hope for today. in fact, when i was awakened by my compatriot jamie (aka Dr. Slacker {yes, he has an actual PhD}) at 7 a.m., the air was nearly as calm as an enlightened buddhist monk. after dosing at a methadone clinic.

but after breakfast i heard the increasing rustle of the tree's leaves in the jungle. was it wind?

sweet chutney sandwich!

it's windy wendy! so off we go to the site. remember, we hike a kilometer and a half (for those of you who do not know metric, that's about 4 years, 7 ounces) through the most beautiful monkey-jungle to get there.

and the wind was getting stronger and stronger, much like roweenie in july at 1 p.m. as fast as i could, i natched a 4.2 from the rigging area, made a few quick jokes about rob ford, and boogy-woogied-like to the water's edge.

i hit the water and was absolutely dialed. you know those days when you feel like you're the windshield and the water is the bug? that was me. 2.5 hours without stopping, slowing, or even thinking.

in my previous life, i sailed for a good whack and a half in the gorge (that's a technical term that loosely means "10 years"), so i know strong wind. and this was strong wind. and just like the gorge in july, the sun was shining, the water was warm and the stoke was strong (plus, no parking issues!).

for most, it was 3.7 to 4.2. after a 2 1/2 hour sesh in the morning, i came in, iced the foot, and grabbed the point-n-shoot (btw, the battery in the camera is on the fritz, so not sure how this trip will turn out, from an audio-visual perspective anyway...)

did my very best to grab some pics of windsurfing on lake arenal on a windy day. hope this satisfies! :

**************

below is one of the LEGENDS of windsurfing. this man has owned a windsurfing hotel and promoted windsurfing in this area for something like 25 years. i remember reading about him in windsurf magazine when i first started sailing, in the gorge in 1999. plus, he's an all around great guy. give it up for mr. norman list:




here he is in a (bad) photo him sending it. this photo does not do him justice. he can SEND it. i sailed past him a few times when he sent it and waved, and grinned, at me with one hand while in the air:




here's a dude from russia who is here on vacation. good fella, great sailor, his name is Oleg:



some peeps sailing along. i just liked this shot:



here's the first cameo of your humble narrator hooking a tight jibe. wind was

strong so i thought it was best to get those jibes done quick:



our canadian friend heli-tacking:



sending it:



a front loop:



and, of course, what windy day is complete without a back loop attempt or two?:




so, as you can imagine (don't know if the pics show it or not), it was an awesome and windy day windsurfing here in lake arenal. and while the wind and stoke was good, what i like more than anything is the camaraderie.

being in a place that's so far removed from the rest of the world, with people who share this kooky fetish for windsurfing, it quickly becomes apparent that the passion we share far outweighs the differences among us.

and when you sit on that fantastic strip of grass that is is the beach, you immediately feel a connection to the others around you in a way that san francisco, or hood river don't engender. you immediately gravitate, in your mind and in your actions, to the things which make us similar, not different.

and you're better for it.
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tstizzle



Joined: 05 Jul 2000
Posts: 242

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 10:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

coachg wrote:

Yes they are, and great people as well.

If you go around early, 1 hour before 12:00, and immediately backwind the sail your tack will be much faster because the board never comes to a stop. If you wait until after 12:00 than the board comes to a stop & the nose starts to sink which slows down you exit.


great people indeed. two of the most standup people you could ever ask to meet. i have great admiration for them. (although, Kxx should have let me drive... i'm an excellent driver...)

btw coachg, that advice above is awesome. Kxx and Bxxx were giving me tips but i think that clock analogy will be even better than what they said. thanks.
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tstizzle



Joined: 05 Jul 2000
Posts: 242

PostPosted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 10:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

poussin wrote:
Hey Tstizzle,

Thanks for all the info you've provided for Lake Arenal.
I look forward to doing some research now on flights, places to stay etc. and your input really has helped.
Glad you had a great trip and hopefully I'll be the next to report about my journey there.

Cheers,

Greg


glad you liked! the funny thing is, i know all of you form this forum, even if i haven't interacted before. iW is a small community, right?

i do a lot of int'l travel for work so i'm good at keeping names and locations and contact info so i always have a rolodex of hotels, people, restaurants etc to share.

email of PM any time...
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