Side-shore wave sailing at Ponquogue Beach and the Bowl at Shinnecock Inlet in Hampton Bays, Long Island, NY. Conditions started with low tide and small, sloppy waves on 5.8 - 6.2 and big boards, and grew 6 hours later to 4.7 on small boards, dodging (or not) the shore break at high tide. Personally I've been attacking the waves more aggressively, and saw several others out there pushing themselves as well (George Pav). Special thanks to my girlfriend Chiaying, who bundled up against 20-30+ mph easterly (read "cold") wind and blowing sand, for shooting the video. For a much more colorful and complete description of the day, check out the post on the Peconic Puffin.



Watch on Youtube or downloadable Quicktime file (better resolution and larger size).


[Tags: Windsurfing, Ponquogue, wave sailing, Long Island, windsurfing video]

It's the Windy Season on Long Island! A departing storm and approaching high pressure formed a tight gradient and powered W to NW winds in the 25-35 mph range, with the requisite gusts and lulls. Long Island Windsurfer group members were talking West Meadow Beach in Stony Brook on the Long Island Sound, and so were the Wolf and much of the East End crew. I'd heard much about this place, and was finally about to get a taste for myself.

A blow-out tide meant lower water levels, with loads of flatwater (for Mike Burns & other freestylers to play in) between sandbars and 2-4' waves on the outside. Big rollers up to 5-6' were found in the Northeast corner for big backside port tack riding and giant starboard air.

On Thursday I was handling huge power on my 4.7, riding all three of my boards (77, 93, 109) at various points. I hit one cresting ramp on port and caught huge air when I found myself hooked in to the harness! To me it seemed like 10+ ft. I felt the twinge of imminent doom with that much power, that high up, but luckily a soft wave face broke my landing, and somehow I planed away. I rode til sunset, and got home at 8:30 (long days are back)! Friday was 6 hours of more of the same, though this time on 4.2! The above Youtube video should give a sense of the scene. Quicktime versions with better resolution and size are also available.


[Tags: Windsurfing, video, West Meadow, bump and jump, wave sailing, Long Island, Long Island Sound, Mike Burns, freestyle, vulcan, flaka, windsurfing video]

The Wolf and I scored a side-on wave sailing session at Ponquogue today ahead of this weekend's big coastal storm. The East wind built into the 20's, and by the end of it we were both launching off big ramps and riding shoulder-high waves on the way in. Scott swung by and caught some it on camera, but for now, I've got some on-the-water video I managed to take with the hand held Olympus 790sw:

also available: youtube version

[Tags: Windsurfing, video, Ponquogue, Wave Sailing, Long Island, ocean, surf]

Winter windsurfing isn't so bad on days like these:

also available: youtube version

[Tags: Windsurfing, video, Sebonac, Meschutt, bump and jump, Long Island, Peconic Bay]

This post is one for the "dogs of the wind", or Wind Dogs. The dogs I've grown up with and owned all loved car rides, and especially sticking their heads out the window. For me, thanks to my Grandma Sattler, the breed of choice was always the long-haired miniature dachshund, whose long, floppy ears would always get caught by the wind and spread out like little wings. My current dog Spanky got the nickname "Die Fledermaus" during the hey day of The Tick back in the 1990's. See if you can guess which character he is:


The lucky dogs of windsurfers, though, not only enjoy car rides to and from the beach. They also get steady winds, with all sorts of salts and smells in the air, right at the beach. This situation provides great moments for the roving windsurfing photographer, full of funny arrangements of ears and fur. You can find some of these photos in this Flickr photoset of Wind Dogs, which I will add to as I find and meet more "dogs of the wind".

This post is dedicated to Diane's sweet and gentle Tio, who recently passed away, and will be fondly missed.

[Tags: Windsurfing, Wind Dogs, dachshund, Die Fledermaus, The Tick]

I've taken some downtime this week to edit some video of the Pros doing their thing at Sebonac back in October. Jace Panebianco, Fabrice Beaux, and Jon Ford put on a great show at Sebonac Inlet in Southampton, NY, grabbing big air, shredding water and throwing loops on October 12, 2007. Check it out in my .Mac Gallery, or follow the link here:


Update: YouTube version available too.

Also, you can find still shots in this Flickr set: Pro Session at Sebonac.

[Tags: Windsurfing, video, Sebonac, bump and jump, Long Island, Peconic Bay, Jace Panebianco, Fabrice Beaux, Jon Ford, Windsurfing Hamptons]

The ABK clinic this past weekend was a success, despite the mostly light winds. We all pulled off one new move (the sloppy but useful Gecko Loop), and got tons of instruction on many other freestyle moves. I'm on a hunt for a small fin to shave down, so I can start skipping into Vulcans and Flakas. I greatly enjoyed meeting and learning alongside such a cool and enthusiastic group.

I'm starting to upload pictures to Flickr: ABK freestyle clinic at Napeague - Sept 2007



On a side tangent, some fellow campers saw me trying out the orange waterproof Olympus 790SW. The camera is very sturdy and easy to use. Some of the pictures came out great (see the Flickr set), and some came out unfocused. But I was mostly disappointed with the video mode as it had terrible sound, and a 10-second limitation for the high quality mode (640x480 30fps). Read my more detailed rant if you are considering this camera.

[Tags: Windsurfing, ABK, Boardsports, Napeague, Olympus, 790SW]