July 29 - Floras Lake

3741km

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 5.5, Goya Bolt 95, MFC KP-R360, Wind roughly 15G25 both sessions.

Sailed from roughly 1:00PM to 2 and 5:00PM to 6. Downhauled the 5.5 to Roo's 'high wind' mark (about 4 inches in from the gear cog). Fully powered in the gusts. There were some lulls but maybe 80% of a run was in the gusts. Torqued my left thigh on the second jibe attempt (on east side of lake) as well as almost crushed my left foot when I biffed the jibe and the left foot didn't come out of the strap. Other than that little kerfuffle with the board, sailing was enjoyable but a workout for me. RD, on the other hand, just kept going like the Energizer Bunny. I'm really looking forward to his posting.

RD Commented:

Langlois, OR, US

Wild day on the water.  Tried a 4.7 on the foil gear and was struggling.  Later went to a 79 liter JP Freestyle Wave and the 4.7 for a wild session.  Picked up the 5.2 Ezzy Tiger and the 93 JP Freestyle Wave for a great session that lasted into the evening.  8 days of wind so far.  4 more days predicted to blow.

Cheers

Rolfe

July 28 - Floras Lake

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 5.5, Goya Bolt 115, MFC KPR-42 Wind: 14G24

Another mellow day. Launched about 2:30 PM. Nicely powered at the beginning. Got in some nice runs but the wind was gradually fading.  By 3:15 it was slogging time. Hung around on the beach waiting for the wind to pick back up and 'comparing blouses' (I think that is the correct Aussie terminology :) ) with others on the beach. Clearly the wind never did pick back up. Could have rigged the the 7.5 but, hey, would have had to walk ALL the way back to the 'Hilton' to get the gear :) .

Adjusted the harness lines forward by 1/2 a mark, amazing the positive difference seemingly small adjustments can make :) .

No major cramps today - progress... Also port tack jibes coming easier (trying to be as aggressive as on starboard tack even though more chop, seems to be working). Once again, east side of lake had stronger winds than ocean side, just the opposite from a month ago.

Roo Commented:

Another sweet morning session. Gusting to 30 and voodoo chop, perfect conditions to engage animal mode. Had a 37 knot peak through the nastiness then finally came a cropper pushing on one run. Slammed into the back of one growler and got launched from 36 knots to zero instantly. Head into the sail and tweaked my neck, saw lots of stars! Still stiff and slight concussion, probably best to have a day off from pushing it. Getting so comfortable through the chop that you forget what happens when it all goes wrong. Still respectable speeds for the session on the old 5.6, hasn't got much life in it after this season.

RD Commented:

Langlois, OR, US  Floras Lake

Great sailing day.  Wind started blowing early.  Started on 5.8 Ezzy Tiger and a JP 93 Freestyle Wave.  Not quite enough floatation and went to the JP 107 Freestyle Wave with a 36cm wave fin.  Made a few passes sometimes planing.  Switched to a 4.7 Ezzy Panther and a Starboard 134 with a Slingshot Foil and a 24" mast.  Later switched to a 5.2 and spent the rest of the day cruising.  Started nailing my full planing foil jibes!!  Starting tracks with a Canmore GP-102.  Recorded data at 5 sec. samples and am switching to 1 sec. sampling.

-Cheers

RD

I Commented:

Roo, only us mortals are supposed to do that . Glad no serious damage but watch for the after effects of a concussion - it is nothing to 'shrug off'. Those of us that experience 'it all going wrong' almost every session wear impact vests and helmets for a reason (recent memory) .

So far, your postings have done nothing to convince this leisure sailor that the Gorge is the place to sail .

RD spent the day on his futura/slingshot foil, he is now making flying jibes... maybe this evening we will attempt to extract data from his gps and post...

Roo Commented:

By all accounts the dismount looked spectacular from the beach. Helmet would have put more load on the neck, as it is the muscles/tendons are a bit stretched on the upper back from the over extension. Just a flesh wound, a nice single malt scotch will dull the pain! I doubt mere mortals would be crazy enough to go that fast in the chop, this Roo doesn't know his limitations.

Welcome aboard RD.

I Commented:

RD, I'm going to have a lot of vicarious enjoyment reading your posts and watch you rack up the km, especially during the winter months :) . Happy you are on board. Now we just need to work on your father  to get him to sign up :) .

Roo, there are few topics that I harp on but head injuries are one of them, given Claudia's unfortunate experience. While the helmet might not have helped the neck muscles/tendons, I suspect the galaxy of stars you saw might have been reduced to just a solar system if your little grey cells had been provided with more impact protection. OK, harping over, carry on :) ...

Roo Commented:

Hitting hard objects and helmets are great Barton, with softer targets and water they can make things worse.

I Commented:

Roo, some day when you have some time, I need to have you explain the physics of your last post regarding helmets and softer targets. Thanks.

RD Commented:

Thanks for the welcome Roo.  See you in the Gorge some time.

Rolfe

July 27 - Floras Lake

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras Lake

Sailworks NX 7.0, Goya Bolt 125, MFC KPR-44, Wind: ~12G20 knots

Launched about 2:15 PM, conditions were close to perfect for this kit. Made some nice runs and then, right on cue at 5 km the leg cramps started up again. Did some resting and was able to sail about another 5 km until about 3:20 PM when the wind backed off slightly. More resting and about 4:15 the wind was back with a little more gusto. Made a few runs and even got to try the adjustable outhaul to flatten the sail some but the gust were just a tad more than made sailing comfortable - and I'm all in for comfort these days .

While I was dinking around, RD was putting some serious km on his Slingshot windsurfing foil. About half way through the day he came in and got his Canmore GPS - hopefully we can get the data off of it in a format for that KA72 can use.

Roo Commented:
Dawn patrol at Waterfront Park before the wind dropped out. Some big growlers in the channel and super choppy. Good fang and nice stretch before an afternoon session.

I Commented:

You were up early .

Thanks for the quick response in getting RD into the system!

Question: On lighter wind days, like yesterday, RD spent the day foiling (Starboard Futura 135 / Slingshot foil) - unfortunately without GPS... Do you have any issues mixing foiling and 'straight windsurfing' numbers in his data?

Roo Commented:

Up at 5AM most mornings so an early morning sess after breakfast is a good way to start the day.

No problems at all. Nice to see the numbers the foils are getting.

July 26 - Floras Lake

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras Lake

Sailworks NX 6.2, Goya Bolt 125, MFC KPR-44, Wind: 11G20

Brought the whole family with me to Floras Lake (Claudia, 2 dogs and a cat) and all seem to be enjoying the trip :).

Time to try out my 'Floras Lake Board' at Floras Lake, the Goya Bolt 125 liter along with a Sailworks NX race sail. Chose the NX 6.2 to compare with similar conditions back on July 2. Launched about 1:15 PM, sailed to about 2:30 PM. I liked the 6.2/125 combination better than the 6.5/115 combination of July 2. The NX being a 4 cam sail, it was much more stable in the gusts than the Retro and, as one would expect, the 125 popped on a plane easier than the 115. Jibing the 125 is not an issue and in light/gusty winds is easier than the 115 (and definitely the 95) as it is more stable. For this Leisureworld class sailor, the 6.2/125 turns out to be a good light wind Floras lake solution. Did a couple of psuedo speed runs and found the extra width of the Bolt 125 to be an advantage when coming across the back of the chop at a 30 degree angle as it was easier to keep the board flat. The wind was good for the kit when I initially launched but by the end of the session the wind had dropped just enough that some work was required to be planing. Given this, I suspect the NX 7.0 would be great in the 17 - 20 knot wind range.

On the Leisureworld theme, the niggling cramping started to show up around 5 km and slowly got more annoying. I stopped at 10 km to deal with the cramping, for an afternoon lunch break, and because the fog had rolled in to the point where one could only see about 2/3 of the way across the lake... spent the rest of the afternoon with Claudia.

For me, a nice mellow session. No worries about what was happening at home as home was here .

Also, recruited and signed up a new team member, Rolfe D Eckmann ('RD'). His most recent 2 sec PB was a little over 35 knots so I can forget about any more jellybeans . There is a reasonable chance we will get his father as a teammate as well, Rolfe R .

July 16 - Waterfront Park

3691km

Hood River Waterfront Park, Hood River, OR, USA

Sailworks NX 7.8, Goya Bolt 125, MFC KPR-44, Wind: 12G25 knots

Even the best laid plans - pft...

Based on the forecasts I felt pretty comfortable rigging the NX 7.8. Unfortunately, I launched around 2 PM just as the wind picked up from gusting  to 20 to gusting to 25. That extra 5 knots was a deal breaker for me to feel comfortable. I made a couple of runs, said to myself "wtf am I doing here, time to go home", which is where my mind was anyway. 

I think it would have been a great session had I been on the NX 6.2, or maybe the NX 7.0...

July 14 - Waterfront Park

3691km

Hood River Waterfront Park, Hood River, OR, USA

Sailworks NX 7.8, Goya Bolt 125 liter, MFC KPR_44, Wind: 15G23 knots

Had difficulty staying focused today, mind was on non-windsurfing issues.

Decided today was the perfect day to try out the new Bolt 125 and Sailworks NX 7.8 race sail - and it was. Spent considerable time dorking with the adjustable outhaul (first time I ever used one) even though Bruce Peterson of Sailworks had it already mounted on the boom. Spent some time trying to dial in the NX 7.8. Also spent time trying get the MFC fin to fit properly. Since I didn't have any sandpaper I eventually gave up and sailed with a marginal fit. Finally hit the water a little after 2 PM shortly after the wind bumped up, so I didn't get to sail the kit in the conditions for which I purchased it. That said, it worked very well. I downhauled the sail per Roo and it was nicely controllable even in the gusts - very happy with it. The Bolt handled just like its smaller siblings except it coasted better through the wind shadows. Jibing will take some adjustment from the smaller Bolts - that said, I think it will jibe very nicely when I'm more aggressive.

I spent some time practicing clearing the water out of the luff sleeve of the sail while swimming. Not nearly as difficult to do as on the Neil Pryde EVO sails because the luff sleeve is considerably smaller - thus less water to get rid of. This smaller luff sleeve is why, per a certain unnamed individual, that the NX sails are slower than Pryde and Gastraa. This coud be true but for this LeisureWorld geriatric sailor on a FreeRace board, it has more potential than I do. Seemed to have plenty of power located in the sail where I want it and was very controllable in the gusts. The waterstart practice paid off when I dumped a jibe in the middle of the river. No problemo. Sail cleared and waterstarted with ease.

Once I proved to myself that this kit was a keeper and will be excellent for conditions on Floras lake and lighter wind Gorge, my focus drifted again so I bagged it.

Roo commented:

I will no longer be known as Roo, I am just an unnamed individual!

I commented
Was just trying to keep two alpha males from being upset 

Roo commented:

Almost as easy as herding cats. Wouldn't worry about it Barton, just go windsurfing....it's blowing out there. Should be another gorgeous Gorge day. I'm heading east again, should be windy out there.

I commented:

Roo, knock of that NM, have fun. See you when I see you.

July 12 - Waterfront Park

3691km

Hood River Waterfront Park, Hood River, OR, USA

Sailworks Retro 6.5, Goya Bolt 115, MFC KP-R42. Wind: 16G23 knots

Was great to be back in da Hood. Spent yesterday helping the local windsurfing economy by purchasing more gear for Oregon. Got Sailworks NX 6.2, 7.0, and 7.8 race sails, a carbon boom, two carbon masts, a mast base and extension, and a new Goya Bolt 125. I had originally planned on purchasing the Bolt 135 liter board but after looking at the board and talking with the Goya rep (Jason) it was clear the Bolt 125 was the correct board to solve my light wind issues. 

Today I finally made it on the water a little after 10 AM. The equipment selection worked well. Made a few runs, even had a nice jibe on the inside and then the niggling cramping began. Decided to take a break and have a banana, since I had all day... During the break I got a call from our primary care doctor regarding the results of my wife's CT scan. All windsurfing focus vanished. Time to derig and head home.

Roo commented:

Mellow training day, did two 1 hour sessions to keep in shape. Started on Mistral Speed 55, been a while since I rode it. Still sorting out the right fin for it in the chop, felt pretty slippery. Ended up on the Naish replica for a good fang.

Barton was back in town, good to catch up and hear of all his new toys. He had to head home early as his wife is poorly, best wishes from all of us for a quick recovery.

I commented:

Roo, Thank you for your support and best wishes.

As my mother was fond of saying, "getting old isn't for sissies" (she made it to 96) ...

Peter commented:

Barton, have you tried taking vitamin E against your cramps? There are a few studies that show it works. I used to have leg cramps when or after windsurfing, and they went away after I started taking 400 units vitamin E per day. Look for a brand that contains mixed tocopherols, if you can. I would not go much higher in the dose, though. 

I commented:

Hi Peter. I'm taking a multi-vitamin which has vitamin E but only 60 IU (200% DV). I'll look for an additional supplement. I could certainly be wrong, but I suspect that my cramping issue is due to the high dose of Prednisone (corticosteroid) I'm taking to deal with the autoimmune inflammation behind my right eye. My suspicion is based on information I have read about side effects of Prednisone, one of which is an altering of the potassium in the body (reduction) and a resulting increase in the potential for cramping. Fortunately, I'm now on a steroid-sparing medication so over time I should phase off of Prednisone and it's nasty side effects.

Thanks for the heads-up.

Roo commented:

Make like a monkey Barton, go bananas!

Peter commented:

Barton, no doubt you are right about the link between your meds and the cramps. My mother has been on corticosteroids in varying doses for decades, so she's been dealing with cramps a lot. Potassium is always a suspect in cramps. There's been one study that found that the serum potassium levels are unchanged in patients receiving corticosteroids. They speculated that perhaps only intracellular levels are changed, but that was just a guess. The same study found that quinine help reduce or eliminate the cramps, but quinine has it's own problems. However, there are also studies that show that vitamin E worked better than quinine against cramps. There are only a few studies about this - there's no money to be made selling vitamin E.

It's still not well understood what really causes muscle cramps. Electrolyte imbalance plays a role, as does dehydration, so eating bananas and drinking a lot won't hurt. But it may not make much of a difference, either (except maybe for monkeys - they never complain about cramps!). Trying 400 IU vitamin E for a few days can hurt and may help more. Let me know!

I commented:

Peter, thank you for the additional information! I'll provide a 'cramp update'  when I have some data.

Roo commented:
This place is sounding more and more like a hangout for leisureworld sailors. Come on boys, man up and start posting some big numbers. First person that mentions incontinence is out!

I commented:
Incontinence 

Roo commented:
Right back to the United Speedsailors of America with you, or better known as the geriatric slowpokes!

I commented:
Peter, sign me up

Peter commented:
Barton, of course we'll be glad to have you. But there's no need to switch teams yet. Just laugh when it appears that Roo makes a joke (even if most people would consider it an insult), bow to his infinite wisdom, and NEVER EVER mention that other windsurfers living in the US are faster than he is, despite windsurfing a lot less.

Peter commented:
"Geriatric Slowpokes beat West Coast Speedsters in monthly rankings" sounds good, though. If I were you, Barton, I'd be worried about what motivational tools Roo will bring out next .

I commented:

Peter, I talked with Roo later. Yes, he intended it as humor, although my passive aggressive response probably didn't help . We have talked about his approach to humor and he is aware that it blows right past a lot of Americans, and some Aussies too... Also joked about 'Alpha Males'... No issues, I'll stay put on The West Coast Speedsters.

One problem with 'geriatric slowpokes' is that, as a percentage of membership that sails regularly, he has a higher percentage on his team than Team USA . I have tried recruiting for the speedsters to lower the percentage but no luck yet...

Roo commented:
Careful Barton we'll be changing our name to Leisureworld Speedsters if you don't find some new blood soon!

I commented:
Wait, I'm not the team captain.Until that activity is officially delegated, that job is above my pay grade 😂

Actually, Leisureworld Speedsters has a certain charm to it. Roo, while it doesn't fit your sailing style, it fits fits mine perfectly. Maybe we need a third USA team, one for me .  Unfortunately, GPSTC probably isn't too thrilled to have teams with only one member... and Leisure World is a registered trademark so two strikes against it already... bummer . Guess will have to settle for the second alternative, Geriatric Slowpokes 

Roo commented:
That's the other team Barton, your memory is already going.

I commented:
Oh, I didn't think they were too keen on the name so I could appropriate it. .


Roo commented:
I don't think they will find that very funny.

I commented:
Just as I was about to launch today a fellow walked up to me and asked if I was going to Floras Lake soon - it was Rolfe! I made another pitch to get him on the GPSTC team. I think he will, at some point in time...

July 4 - Floras Lake

3681km

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 7.5, Goya Bolt 115, MFCR-42, Wind: 12G22 knots

Had a nice, quick session before heading back to Corvallis. Launched about 11:15 AM. Getting better on starboard jibes but port jibes, not so much... even for this short session had a few muscle complaints...

The port jibe issues: fairly sure I know my issues here. 1) failure to stay forward and aggressive in the jibe with a tendency to lean back as I flip the sail causing the board to stall and for me to fall backwards. 2) When I do stay aggressive, I'm flipping the sail much later than on starboard tack, again causing the board to stall (point into the wind).

Aside: to some new friends I met here this week, I'm now 'Yellow Helmet Guy' or Stig (from the BBC Top Gear) . (Jim and Beth McCain from Salem, Chip Martin from Bend - also has a house in Corvallis)

Roo commented:

Celebrating Independence day, July 4th. and windy....yeehaa! Nothing more patriotic that a great windsurfing session to celebrate America's birthday. I did my best to make speedsailing great again! Another morning fang before the crowds arrived to watch the fireworks. 80 degrees F, 20 knots of wind and blue skies...couldn't want anything more. Nautical mile had a jibe in it so not too shabby for the Gorge.

Barton you need a white helmet to be the Stig.

I commented:
I didn't anoint myself with the name, it was some kid on the beach :).

Roo commented:
Hopefully you drive like him, otherwise we'll have to rename you. Gorge looks good for wind the rest of the week.

I commented:

I'm open to being renamed . It was mostly a passing comment based on being the only one on the water with a helmet with face guard which from a distance may have looked like Stig's.

I'm not in your league but had fun in a series of Nissan 240Z, 280Z, 300Z, 300ZX Twin Turbo, and Porsche 928S Euro version with stick - starting in 1971 with contiguous (and sometimes overlapping) ownership to today (928S is in the Corvallis garage).  That said, I drive the speed limit now . 

Claudia has a couple of CT scans Thursday morning, will evaluate the Gorge after that...

July 3 - Floras Lake

3673km

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 5.5, Goya Bolt 95, MFC KP-RC-360, JP Freestyle Wave 77, Black Project 26 plus two 10 side fins. Wind: 15G28 knots, then blown off water.

Personal Training Camp Day 5. Goal for today was 'hang on'

Short session cuz, just cuz.

Wind was forecast to ramp up today, which it did. Figured, based on yesterday's muscle cramping that I would not last very long so waited for wind to become stable. Launched around 2:30 PM on the 5.5/95 with winds gusting to 27-28 knots. This was at my upper comfort level for the 5.5 but doable - and the wind was still a little gusty. Made a psuedo-speed run just in case but blew the jibe. Made a run back to the east, actually made the jibe. OK, 'speed' and alpha were both in the can, actual number values were irrelevant. Decided to try the FSW 77 for a  quick comparison. Had to open up the footstraps just a tad for the new booties which cause some futzing around. By then the wind was starting to ratcheted upward and the holes filled in. The FSW was yippie-skippie time bouncing over the chop and being twitchy, but also fun in an adrenaline rush sort of way, which required some standing around after blown jibes in order to calm down. By about 3:30 it was clear that soon I would be more than an accident waiting to happen (of course, took one launch to convince me) and the wind had ramped up to gusts over 30 knots. Time to bag it. One more run, made the jibe, OK, homeward bound. A fellow sailor, Jim, about my size, was on a small Open Ocean glass board and a 4.2 and also decided enough was enough... and the wind just kept slowly ramping up for the rest of the afternoon. I had experienced enough, no need to rig down and get trashed.

Learnings: The FSW is obviously more controllable in 28-30 knot winds than the Bolt 95 but being so light, it was surprisingly twitchy (or should I say agile) in these conditions and didn't provide a whole lot of 'stick me to the water' help when a gust would hit. While these conditions provide some 'excitement', from a speed standpoint, I would rather sail in 10 knots less wind as I could go about the same speed (and faster) with a lot less effort.