Nov 14 - Lac Bay

3909km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

NP EVO5 7.8, iSonic 127 Ultra, Drake Carbon Race 44. Wind: 12 knots      I launched about 4 PM.

Well, turns out that even the 127 and a 7.8 is just barely enough to get old fatty on a plane in 12 knots of wind. As per usual, the run to the mangroves went well but was pretty slow going getting back to the launch area. The slightly downwind run to the mangroves felt good. Board handled nicely. Went a little too far into the shallows and caught the fin on the mud bottom which ended the jibe attempt.

What went wrong today: First off (and I don't want to hear any comments from Roo), even though Roo told me last Spring to replace the rubber u-joints, I noted it but didn't follow through when I got to Bonaire. The good news is that rubber u-joint failed as I was carrying the gear to the water. Switched to the u-joint on my second base and made the run, although was thinking about the u-joint the whole time since they are the same age. Secondly, when the wind is really light, like today, I have a bad habit of using my head/helmet to rotate the cams in the sail on a failed jibe. I did this today and the old sail responded with a six inch rip in the mylar... Good thing I'm getting new sails in a couple of weeks and the wind looks to be very light for at least the next seven days.

What went right today: given the lack of wind, I figured I would stroll over to Jibe City on the off chance that they would have Chinook u-joint rubber. Not only did they have it, but they keep it in the refrigerator to slow the deterioration process!! Tomorrow is u-joint rubber replacement day [update: u-joint rubber replaced on both Euro-pin bases on Nov 15]. Also, while I was there, I got their last Severne 26" to 32" adjustable harness line set. Nice looking lines with clearly marked, sewn-in inch increments so it will be obvious what line length I'm at when I'm messing around with the harness lines. Now have good lines for both my carbon booms.

A couple of shots of my new-to-me 2017 iSonic 127 Ultra board...

Roo commented:
I change them out at the start of every season, better safe than sorry and I like to sail my gear hard. Got skunked today, loads of wind, gusting 40 knots but no sandbar. Nice drive to the coast through the autumn colours though. Good to see you are using your head for the things that matter.

I commented:

Yup, replacing every year seems like a good plan, especially on Bonaire. I don't sail as hard as you do in the Gorge but at $10 a pop it is very cheap insurance.

Sorry you got skunked. I watched the wind but wasn't looking at the tides...

LOL on using my head - that is about all it is good for these days. 

Boris commented:
What happened to the sandbar???

Roo commented:
Boro with the wind came the water, 30 foot seas off the Columbia bar, hence the tide was running 2.5 feet above normal. Didn't drop down enough until it was dark so no sandbar to sail behind in daylight.

Boris commented:
Bummer! Wind forecast was looking really good.

Nov 13 - Lac Bay

3905km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

NP EVO5 7.8, iSonic 107, Drake DW38. Wind: ~ 17 knots. Launched about 4 PM.

Today was a mini-Christmas for me. Just as I finished rigging, Taty arrived with my new-to-me 2017 iSonic 127 board and Drake carbon race 44 fin. In addition he gave me a set of 28 inch harness lines . We discussed foot strap locations and spacing and made the following adjustments: on the iSonic 107, the back straps stayed the same (all the way forward) but the front straps were moved from the farthest back setting to the middle setting. The thought being that this would widen my stance and allow me to get slightly lower. On the iSonic 127, Taty put the back and front straps in their middle location, again to widen the stance and the back strap location might make the board a little livelier.

With those changes completed, I swapped out the 26 inch harness lines for the 28 inch lines. Wow, what a difference! I am amazed that a 2 inch difference in harness line length would make such a difference in ride comfort and gear controllability (true, I also changed the front footstrap location so that might also have contributed to the improvement). Whatever, the impact was being able to get a little lower and farther from the rig which resulted in a much more comfortable and controllable ride. I no longer felt like I was constantly on the edge of getting pitched forward with each gust or bit of chop. I then spent a little time adjusting the harness line locations resulting in a much better balanced rig and a lot less stress on the arms. All in all a successful tune. Did it improve my speed? Hard to tell with the short session I had but it doesn't matter because the sailing was a lot more fun .

I returned to the launch area about 5 PM with the intention of giving the 127 a quick go. Fortunately, I checked my phone first and learned that medication that Claudia really needed had finally arrived at eZone. So, a much faster than normal for me derig had me at eZone 10 minutes before they closed - another success!

*** Breaking News*** For now I will just leave this teaser... We may soon have a very skilled sailor as a team member on The West Coast Speedsters. 

Roo commented:
Sign him up!  Sorry couldn't back you up today, wind went feral!  Gusting to 85mph so Hurricane strength, didn't feel like getting my arse handed to me so I abstained. Wouldn't have mattered, tide was 2.5 feet above normal so not much sandbar to be had. Hopefully calms down a bit tomorrow.

Get all the other young guns signed up as well, they'll love trying to get the fastest speeds.

I commented:

No issues about backup. Tomorrow looks pretty light, may get a chance to try out the 127, or may get more work done on the house...

I was thinking about the young guns and realized they have enough critical mass to have their own team, and have the pride of the team being Bonairian... There is a logo going around here (and in the Netherlands), started I think by Taty and Amado called 'The Island Boyz' and it is becoming very popular. Decals, hats, clothing are popping up everywhere on Bonaire with the logo... This island has a lot of local pride.

Young guns on a team might be fun to watch but wouldn't help our West Coast USA membership much... I haven't heard back yet from our 'potential member' and am thinking he may have had the same idea (about a local team).

Peter commented:

Barton, good to see you're having fun on the water again. Have you checked the slalom tuning section in the new Tricktionary? Written by top-level sailors and very useful. Also, consider getting adjustable race harness lines. Optimal length depends on conditions and gear. Fixed length works well enough for freestyle and freeriding, but for speed, length adjustments when conditions change can really help. Longer for chop and strong winds, shorter for lighter winds and flatter water (according to Andrea Gucci, Point-7 founder and PWA sailor, and Vincent Langer, multiple World and European slalom and formula champion and 2nd at this year's Sylt PWA World Cup, in the Tricktionary 3).

I commented:
Peter, thanks, yes I'm starting to have fun again :). Regarding harness lines, the ironic thing is that I looked at some of my old 'gorge gear booms' and every boom has adjustable harness lines, all of them cinched up tight to the shortest length. Unfortunately, these were all designed so that the polypro protection cover could not be replaced without re-sewing the lines. I was just going to borrow Taty's 28 inch lines thinking that either I would not notice a difference or they would feel very un-natural, but now I'm sold on using longer lines, and he gave me the pair. Hard to loose in that situation. Since conditions don't change much here on Bonaire, I could probably get away with fixed length lines, but may order an adjustable set from BigWinds... What you described regarding line length is strikingly similar to what Taty told me yesterday. Imagine that . I'll check out Tricktionary 3.

Roo commented:
It doesn't matter how many tips people read or are given, if they don't have the right attitude and can't get over the fear factor most of these people will never go faster. They make excuses for everyone else going fast but never improve themselves. They read everything and watch every video, giving out endless advice but they are still slow! Barton I suggest you hang out with Taty and the young guns down there and copy and learn. You're happy and comfortable in the warm island waters and mellow breeze so suck up as much knowledge from them as possible. Much easier to go faster when you see someone else doing it right in front of your eyes.

I commented:

Roo, I plan to do a lot of 'shadow racing' and maybe some actual head-to-head with these guys this year. If I can get them involved in a GPSTC situation, so much the better for everyone. You are right, nothing inspires copying someone else's technique than when that person blows past you on the water :). 

Fear factor: I'll probably always be slow, unless the change in harness line length helps me feel like I have some control margin - which it might. I've always been a belt and suspenders personality - pushing myself sailing is a little out of the norm for me. That said, if I'm able to increase my confidence level, I expect my speeds to increase as well. Will I ever be pushing you in a speed challenge? I can't imagine that happening but I can imagine maybe hitting mid-thirty knots at some point before my body disintegrates.

Roo commented:

Distance is your friend! Being light and short getting as far as possible away from the rig will give your more leverage. Longer lines will help with that. Drop your boom height as well and rig with lots of twist to bring the power down low. Go to the supermarket and buy some big melons to shove down your boardshorts. You'll then look as if you have the big balls to go all out!

I commented:

Not sure I'm 'light' any more - I haven't been able to avoid the 'automatic' weight gain attributed to Prednisone use. I haven't gained a lot of weight yet but is sure has been redistributed - I look like I really like beer, even though I haven't had any... 

Boom height: unfortunately, I have already done this. The only way for me to get it lower now is to take a knife to the luff sleeve . I do rig with lots of downhaul - try to mimic what I remember your sails looking like. 

Being belt and suspenders I wear  .5 mil long john wetsuit bottom and long sleeve rash guard to protect from the sun. The only part of me not covered is the backs of my hands and the open part of my helmet. Not much room for mellons with my present attire - and I already get enough weird looks with the full face guard helmet that I don't need any more attention ,

Nov 12 - Lac Bay

3893km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

NP EVO6 7.0, iSonic 107, Drake DW38. Wind: 15G17 knots  Launched about 3:00

Was expecting the wind to build with the typical afternoon wind bump about 3:30 or 4:00 so rigged the 7.0 - not today. Made a couple of longer runs but realized the wind was dropping off so headed back to the launch area - too late. Was on the far side but wind was too light for me to even water start. Eventually drifted in to shallow enough water that I could get going but had to walk it part way back once I was on the shallow sand bar.

Taty went out on a Vapor 7.1/iSonic 107 about the same time I launched but being smarter than I, he stopped earlier. When I got back to the beach he looked at me, pointed to the 7.1 and said, "here is your sail" :). He sailed it five days in Fuerte and two days on Bonaire, including today. We took all the decals off, except for 'The Island Boyz'. Tomorrow he is bringing the iSonic 127 and Drake fin to the beach for me. The 7.9 and 6.4 sails are in Holland and will pick them up in a couple of weeks.  I asked if he was going to New Caledonia and he said no. His leg still feels a little weird and conditions in New Caledonia could cause him recovery issues. He is doing the smart thing and focusing on recovery to be fully ready for next years races that start in May.

Roo commented:

Good to see you back in action. Good news on the sail, get some speed tips from Tatty as part of the package. Looks like wind here for the next few days, will try and back you up Monday/Tuesday.

I commented:

Trying to give it a go...  there are plenty of obvious speed tips that I'm still not able to execute. They are obvious when watching Taty and the new crew of young guns here on Bonaire. The most obvious ones are also the ones you have given me many times - especially 'get away from the rig'. Below is a picture of one of the young guns, Terence Clapper - his stance pretty well sums up what I SHOULD be doing. Today I'll be attempting to get longer harness lines as a first pass at this...

Nov 9 - Lac Bay

3879km
Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

NP EVO6 7.0, iSonic 107, Drake DW38, Wind: 17G20

A non-noteworthy day except for me being back on the water getting some exercise. Launched about 3:45, derigged starting at 5:30. Enjoyed the cruising although I had to rest between each 2 km run, hence no alpha number.

Held my own against one of these guys, before they started training together...

Stumbled across this picture of me on Facebook taken today by Kuma

Oct 24 - Lac Bay

3863km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

Neil Pryde EVO5 7.8, iSonic 107, Drake DW38, Wind: 14G17 (launched at 3:30 PM)

Nibble by nibble. Another non-noteworthy day except I spent time on the water getting some exercise and maybe improving muscle memory by being on the water.

Spent a few minutes sitting on the tailgate of the RAV4, resting and enjoying the view... Difficult to imagine an easier launch scenario .

Oct 23 - Lac Bay

3841km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

NP EVO6 7.0, iSonic 107, Drake DW38, Wind: 17G19 knots (Launched around 3:30 PM)

Nothing particularly noteworthy today. Muscles still tired from yesterday so just felt like an effort to stay focused. Once on a plane I felt fully powered but was a struggle a couple of times to get going.

Sailed with Bert and Jeff from The Netherlands. They come to Bonaire about four times a year - I think they are building a house here, or are doing some sort of construction. Jeff just got a new Fanatic Falcon 101 and Bert likes sailing his older style Fanatic slalom board.

Roo commented:

Stevenson, WA, USA 19knot E gust 22knot

Surreal day, water was milky brown after 2 days of torrential rain. Couldn't see the whitecaps so hard to gauge the wind strength. Debris everywhere in the water with lines of logs in the channel. Had to throttle it back and engage cruise mode today, going for speed was not recommended by the doctor!

Roo commented:
Had to post some numbers to keep you company Barton.

I commented:

Hey, finally have a day when the numbers 'count' . Thanks for posting!

It is a little depressing (for me), however, to read about throttling back and cruise mode and then see that the numbers would all be PBs for me . On the other hand, this provides me with plenty of aspirational goals .

Additionally, I think I'll pass on logs in the channel and muddy water, and doctors saying the conditions are too dangerous to sail. If I have to have muddy water, I can sail in the mangrove shallows, otherwise, it is kind of nice to see the bottom and see sea turtles swimming around .

Roo commented:
It was pretty sketchy out there today, I don't normally ease up but there was so much debris it wasn't worth it for a few knots. Still did over a race distance so happy with that. Billy no mates here, 3 kitefoilers out and that was it. Looks windy for the next few days so I'll keep sailin and postin! Kiters seem to have adopted me...they all smile and wave. Might be the Slingshot logo on my sail!

Oct 22 - Lac Bay

3826km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

Sailworks Retro 5.5 downhauled to Roo-highwind, iSonic 90, MFC KP-RC 340, iSonic 107, MFC KP-RC 360. Wind 21G25 knots

More Little-by-little... Wasn't able to make it an all day situation but that was OK as a couple of hours (on and off) of chop bashing was enough of a workout for me . Did manage to add a few more KMs to the distance category from Friday. Started out on the iSonic 90 but after slogging back from the mangroves decided that I could either tune the sail or get on the iSonc 107 - I chose the 107 and was rewarded with a great afternoon of riding. No struggling to get it on a plane.

I will say that out in the blue water on the long runs and the NM run downwind that the chop had a certain Hood River Waterfront Park feel (as I remember it) although with a tighter period and minus the rolling swells. Was certainly enough to keep me focused, especially coming over the backs of the chop on the NM run. If I get enough of these types of days this winter, I'll probably be game for sailing Waterfront this next Summer... Looking at the tracks, it is clear that I was doing some 'avoidance sailing' to keep from getting air off of the chop faces.

Made no real attempt at jibing today. By the end of the long runs, I was ready to float for a while in the 80+ F water and recover for a while before making another run, especially after the NM run . Cramping wasn't a big issue today, at least not until the drive home...

All in all a good day, and the attitude is starting to shift back to 35 yo mindset.

Oct 20 - Lac Bay

3806km

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean

Sailworks Retro 5.5 downhauled to Roo-highwind mark, iSonic 90, MFC KP-RC 320. Wind: 21G27

Little by little... Took some diddling to get dialed back in on the iSonic 90 but was a nice ride after I relearned the tricks. Fully powered but in control. Since it will be a day or two more before I'm 'back in the saddle' here, I chose not to 'let the beast loose' as Roo would say. Was pretty bouncy on the long runs so kept the foot straps the way I left them last year - works fine in the chop but I need to loosen them slightly to make jibing easier. Enjoyed the long runs - been a while since I could just lock-down, focus on the chop, and go. Was happy to see a 30+ peak on the dial, been a while.

Will take some time to get back into sailing shape - fortunately the next couple of days look like repeats of today. Goal is to significantly improve distance. Still dealing with the stupid cramping although today it was mostly in the hands. Coming off of high levels of Prednisone back to more normal dosages so this should help. Looking forward to hopefully starting the next steroid sparing medication trial the end of next week if the Bonaire doctor is willing to follow on with OHSU doctor's suggestion.

Roo commented:

Great effort Barton, 2 days in a row. Be careful with those kids, they wont know what hit them when you unleash the beast!

I commented:

Uhm, yes, I will be careful. Thank you for the warnng.  I hope they don't hurt themselves from laughing too hard . 

I had great plans of doing three days in a row but a tweaked shoulder from trying to move too heavy dog kennels by myself at the airports and the stupid cramping forced a change in plans. Still good wind forecast for Sunday so will try to make it an all day event with multiple sessions.

Drifter commented:
Barton, lifting heavy objects is a mugs game. These days I don't lift anything heavier than the combined weight of a windsurfing board and rig.

I commented:
John, I'm a little slow at times but finally starting to come to grips with the issues of age-and-heavy-objects . For me the issues seem to have had a fairly rapid onset. Things that were not an issue a couple of years ago can now quickly become a major pain in the butt. Thanks to you, 'Mugs game' just got added as a label for my 'activity filter' .

Oct 19 - Lac Bay

Lac Bay, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean
Neil Pryde EVO5 5.8, iSonic 107, MFC KPR360, Wind: 22G27 knots

Finally back on the water for a short session.

Taty arrived shortly after I started to rig. We had a nice chat. He is looking good but rightly a little tentative about the condition of his leg. He said he has sailed once and straight-line felt OK but jibing was iffy - the right leg felt like it wanted to buckle easily in the jibe. He wants to go to New Caledonia but maybe not as a racer... this will depend upon MRI results in Holland in November to see how well the muscles are healing. No sense ripping everything apart by being too agressive. He said that after the accident, the area around the back of the right knee was basically numb - fortunately, he now has feeling/pain in that area so the nerves are healing.

Today was one of the windier days I have experienced on Bonaire in the past couple of years. I think today was only the second time I've rigged the EVO5 5.8. I was basically close to my control limit for the couple of runs I made across the bay before I needed to derig before darkness became an issue. Fortunately, no crashes, some adrenaline rush, and a small increase in confidence that maybe I can still do this activity... Yesterday, while thinking about sailing, I realized that sometime during this past Summer I slipped from the mindset of a 35 year old dealing with an aging body to the mindset of a 69 year old dealing with an aging body. The second mindset is not conducive to continuing sailing, at least for me. Fortunately, I'm back at a location that will allow me to transition back to my previous mindset. On the positive side, a young (17 yo) up and comer racer here on Bonaire wanted to race – I managed to hold position with him in the drag race – felt good. He was on a GA Vapor 6.4, iSonic 90 something and probably weighted 30 lbs less than me. Slalom racing has captured the interest of a number of high school age locals here so there will be plenty of drag racing opportunities for me in the after school time-frame :).

Roo commented:
You big bully Barton, stop picking on the young guys!

I commented:

Uhm, I think there was a problem in the US English to Aussie translation... I wasn't picking on the young guys, they are the ones that are looking for additional sailors to humiliate . These guys (haven't seen any girls yet) have really upped their games in the last year. Last year they were mostly just putzing around. Now they are cranking high-speed laydown jibes and appear to be having fun jumping their iSonics. One can only guess where the inspiraton source for the equipment came from - since almost all of them are riding 2017 GA Vapor sails and a couple year old to 2017 iSonics :).

This is the young guy that was picking on me yesterday . https://www.facebook.com/jayanthony.nicolaas

Drifter commented:
There is Nothing like the company of younger sailors to change your mindset Barton.

I commented:
Drifter, absolutely correct! It is fun to watch them have so much energy, doing both slalom and freestyle, full power! I'm looking forward to getting more involved with them, assuming I can keep up, and/or they are willing to tolerate me . The great part is that a couple of them have actively requested that I participate in their drag races... cool.