May 23 - Floras Lake

3523km

Langlois, OR, US - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 6.5, Goya Bolt 95, MFC KP-RC360  Wind: morning 20G25, afternoon 22G28

Decent late morning session. Picked up a cold overnight but no more muscle cramping. Happy with the Alpha, pretty sure it is a PB for the Bolt. Also, won't complain about a 5x10 PB and 5th fastest 2 sec.

Short afternoon session was a struggle as the wind did a step function uptick to just enough that the 6.5 felt overpowered most of the time. Getting better at controlling the Bolt in both overpowered and underpowered conditions. Another 10 years and maybe I'll have some of this nailed. Cut the session a little short so I would have a relaxed drive back to Corvallis during daylight hours.  I have decided that being at the Freshman team skill level is just fine.

May 21 - Floras Lake

3513km

Langlois, OR, US - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 6.5, Goya Bolt 95, MFC KP-RC360 Wind: 20G24 knots

Another short session because the wind backed off after lunch. Had a late morning session, stopped for lunch expecting the wind to continue/increase - it had its own plan. Muscles not complaining as much today, which was nice.  Might have been able to make a go of the 7.5/Magic Ride 104 but the MR doesn't seem to get on a plane any quicker than the Bolt 95 so spent some time rigging/tuning/marking the 7.5 per Roo.

The afternoon would have been a great time to try out my newly purchased board, except it is still at Big Winds in Hood River (a Goya Bolt 115). Conditions after lunch were very similar to what I had great fun sailing in Bonaire on the 7.8/iSonic 107. The Goya Bolt has similar specs to the 107 (although 10 cm longer and 1 cm wider). 

May 20 - Floras Lake

3508km

Langlois, OR, US  - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 6.5, Goya Bolt 95L, MFC KP-RC 360    Wind: 17 G 22 knots N

Very short session. Wind peaked for only about 1/2 hour but that was OK because my out of shape muscles were cramping for the majority of the session. Lesson painfully learned...  Wind was barely enough for the kit. Would slog half way across the lake before getting into the cleaner wind on the ocean side. Could usually get going in a gust on the return reach and sail at speed all the way back. By then, muscles were too cramped to attempt a jibe and another slog without stopping. Got a couple of Taty Stance runs, first time that I can recall hitting 26 knots on a beam reach, at least in this force of wind. Taty Stance is a fun stance to sail as I felt like I was partially flying and with the head being closer to the water the speed effect is amplified.

May 19 - Floras Lake

3503km 

Langlois, OR, US, Floras Lake
Sailworks Retro 7.5, Sailworks Retro 6.5, JP Magic Ride 104, Ride 36, Wind 15G22 knots N

While the numbers don't show it, I may be making progress.  The Magic Ride handles just enough differently from the iSonic and Bolt that even I can tell the difference, which is not in a positive direction. Maybe in better conditions I'll start to like it more.... Started with the 7.5 but just couldn't keep the fin engaged. Switched to the 6.5 but the gusts had backed off to about 17-18 which meant I slogged most of the way across before getting a short ride. All the slogging, of course, caused my still out of shape legs to cramp. I took a couple hour break and the wind gusts picked up to about 22 knots around 5:45. Went back out for a short session - the few additional knots in the gusts was enough for me to get a few good runs and got to experiment with the 'Taty Stance'. Was slightly faster on beam reach than my normal stance but definitely a more thrilling ride .

I sometimes wonder if I'll ever get off the Freshman squad and move up to JV level....

May 7 - Floras Lake

3490km

Langlois, OR, USA - Floras lake

Sailworks Retro 5.5, Goya Bolt 95L, MFC KP-RC360. Wind: 20 G 25 knots

Wind slightly lighter today at the beginning of the session which was OK as it gave me a chance to practice dealing with slogging conditions. I had gotten spoiled with the iSonic 107 where I could run all over the board with abandon, and it easily popped onto a plane. The Goya Bolt 95 is much twitchier, which is fine, once I get reacclimated. By the end of the session I was feeling more in control during slogging conditions. I could, of course, have rigged bigger but the forecast was for increasing winds as the afternoon progressed - there was a minimal increase which allowed me to have a couple of good runs. That said, I really wanted to get some practice in marginal conditions in order to feel more confident at the Gorge. The drysuit with a thermal layer worked great, hopefully the cold issue is solved. All in all a good day as I got reacquainted with this gear and I had only minor cramps which were 'knuckled out' . I convinced my exercise sergent that excercise on the water would be suffiient - dodged that exercise pain for one day .

Roo commented:

Little by little, bit by bit, the more you sail and soon you'll be fit! Now give me 50 chinups princess! Big improvement on yesterday.

I commented:

Thanks Roo . Fortunately, there are no chinup bars at this park :). However, I did catch some grief from the sergeant after the sailing session when exercise time magically appeared and I suggested I had already had a workout ... Apparently, in her past there was a distinction made between 'practice' and exercise sessions. Guess that is why she was a national champion and I wasn't .

May 6 - Floras Lake

Back on the water again!!
My eye tumor was diagnosed at OHSU Casey Eye Institute, after a biopsy and six weeks of testing, to be an atypical autoimmune inflammation :) . The present treatment is Prednisone which has dramatically reduced the swelling and eye protrusion (proptosis).

3475km
Langlois, OR, US - Floras Lake

Sailworks Retro 5.5, Goya Bolt 95, MFC KP-360. Wind: 22 G 30 knots

Perfect everything except an old man's body. Started with the Retro 6.5 and weed fin but was overpowered. Rigged down to the 5.5 and slalom 360, got a couple of good runs then both legs cramped to where I could hardly stand up or walk. I used the exercise bike but apparently not hard enough. I paid twice for not pushing harder on getting in shape. First was missing the rest of a perfect day. Secondly, my wife, who was a much better athlete than I when we were young has decided to become my exercise drill sergeant until I'm back in shape . We had our first session this afternoon - yikes!

Roo commented:

Good on yer wife, you need some motivation princess! Good speeds for your first day out, just need to bring up the match fitness.

I commented:

I thought I could slide through and get my fitness level back up by sailing - nope . We will see how tomorrow goes... I was told by my sergeant that next time I should just 'knuckle out the cramps' and keep going. This could be an interesting Summer with my fitness sergeant keeping track of me .

By the third run across I was starting to regain some sailing skills and could imagine some 30+ numbers in my future and then BAM...

Feb 25 - No more windsurfing for a while...

Yesterday, Friday Feb 24 I was diagnosed with tumor behind my right eye. The hopeful diagnosis is psuedotumor orbitalis which is benign but without diagnostic equipment not available on Bonaire, the doctor can not be sure. Therefore, we are returning to Oregon next week. My Oregon GP is going to refer me to the Casey Eye Institute at OHSU in Portland. The good news is that a psuedotumor orbitalis is supposed to respond very favorably to Prednison and after only one dose my bulging eye is returning back to its’ normal depth in the eye socket and my vision has returned to normal.

 

We will stay in Oregon until the Fall since the trip from Bonaire now takes over 48 hours elapsed time (because of the pets). 

Feb 19 - stance tuning

3470km

Bonaire Lac Bay. NP EVO 5 7.8, iSonic 107, Drake carbon slalom 38, JP Magic Ride 118, Ride 40. Wind: 10G13 knots E

I knew the wind would be marginal but since it had been a week without a decent session, I was ready to give it a shot. First run was on the iSonic, managed to get a run across at about 21 knots. Slogged back and switched the iSonic for the Magic Ride and gave it a go. Same basic results and essentially the same speed. Not really surprising since the MR, although 6 cm wider, the width is farther forward than on the iSonic where it really isn't too useful. Waited a while then tried it again with the iSonic. Wind was a little stronger and was able to plane in both directions. 

Observation:

Last Sunday, as I mentioned, I sailed briefly 'with' Taty Frans. I had plenty of time this past week to contemplate why he is so much faster than I am, besides the obvious that he is a Pro and more skilled. But WHAT was he doing since we were on essentially equivalent rigs. To answer that I spent time reviewing the video I took of Taty and reviewing some videos that were taken of me. There were some obvious differences in our stances, which to some will likely be a 'well duh' response. Taty was much closer to the water, legs almost parallel to the water and his mast was tilted much more to windward, maybe 10 degrees off vertical where mine was basically vertical. This difference is significant to me in that I thought I was sailing much lower than I really was. My hypothesis is that this stance off-loads some of his weight from the board and the weight is carried by the sail as it is 'flying' him. I have noticed that it is not just Taty, but most of the really fast sailors here have variations of this stance. 

So, even with the light wind, I tried to mimic the lower stance. While Chatty Cathy wasn't impressed enough to significantly alter her speed pronouncements, what I noticed was an increase in stability in the slight wind gusts. This makes sense. A week ago, every gust seemed to push me a little more vertical, which I had to fight. I suspect that with this stance I'll just 'fly' a little more in the gusts. Sadly, I'm just now finally doing what Taty told me to do a year ago. I thought I was following his advice but the videos told a different story. On the plus side, I have learned a lot about slalom board control in the last year and am comfortable going faster in chop.

For Bonaire, I think this new stance will work well for me. For the Gorge, I'm not convinced that it makes sense due to the much bigger chop/swells, which might create control issues for me. As Roo says, a good sailor has to adapt to the conditions...

Unfortunately, the next decent wind is a week away - the learning experiences are coming slowly for now. 

I commented:
Regarding 'stance for Gorge': I just finished watching some of the Fuerteventura PWA Slalom 2016 races which had 'big winds' and big chop with the Pros all sailing at their power limits. Sure enough, they all were in a more upright sailing stance than what I recorded for Taty on Bonaire. Adapt for the conditions...

Roo commented:

There's a limit to how low you can go in the swell and chop in the Gorge. I prefer to drop the boom and stay low without my bum smacking the chop. With bigger sails and flat water you can crank over even further.

I commented:

Roo, Roger that! The 'bum smack' was part of what I felt would be a 'control issue'  .

Assuming mast sleeve openings are somewhat similar between sail brands, your boom height is very similar to what I am presently using, and comfortable with, here on Bonaire.

Looking forward to some decent practice sessions here on Bonaire so I will be better prepared to attempt to chase you around on the water this Spring/Summer . I'm going to purchase a dry suit to eliminate my 'cold water aversion' which caused me to tense up last year and not properly 'go for it'...

Peter commented:
Barton, that was a good observation about Taty's stance! Both Nina and I played around with it today, and liked it a lot. GPSLogit announcements seemed to go up by a knot or two everytime I got down into "Taty stance". It also made it a lot easier for me to keep the front leg straight, which I otherwise can only do when fully powered, or for a short time, and to close the gap. We did not have great conditions today (planed maybe 30 minutes in 4 hours on the water), but we will try again next time. 

I commented:

Peter, good to know that I'm not just 'talking to myself', and Roo, with my postings, although mostly I'm just writing to reinforce/remember what I thought I learned, and am providing a place for me to refresh my memory in 6 months when I've forgotten it . 

Glad to know that GPSLogit showed some difference, and this observation may improve the comfort of your stance. I was only able to get a couple of short trials which were not conclusive. We may get some wind again on Saturday or Sunday...

Regarding the 'Taty Stance': the day it really struck me what he was doing differently was a day or so after I took the video. Taty was out just as I arrived at the beach, and before the wind died. He made a couple of runs close to the beach doing laydown jibes and was in 'Full Taty Stance' and FULLY powered. His stance was even closer to the water than in the video and it was very clear that he was approaching 'lift off' just before initiating his jibe. Unfortunately, he wasn't wearing his GPS as I would have loved to look at that track - he was smoking fast for the wind conditions ... [maybe not as SCARY fast as Roo in the chop at Waterfront Park, but still impressive ]

I commented:
[May 21]
Just finished a very interesting FB message chat with Taty Frans (he is in Costa Brava Spain for the PWA Slalom race). I was amazed he spent the time to immediately answer my questions regarding stance/harness lines. Here are his thoughts...

• About the chops hitting my body it's a fact that it could happen but i always adjust my body position depending on the conditions
• And if I am sailing in windy conditions with bigger chops 30 inch or even 32 inch lines
• For flat water - 28 or 30, depending on sail size. His general rule is : everything from 7.0 and smaller is 30 inch, bigger then 7.0 is 28 inch
• He said I could use 28
• Longer lines gives you more space to play with your body position and adjust your body stance while sailing
• In the past when I was with Maui Sails I was using only 30 inch lines and I like it still do prefer long lines
• The reason for longer lines is because then you are more far from the sail
• The shorter the lines the more upright you are on the board, so every chop you encounter you will feel it directly and you will be moving constantly and will be slowing down unless you are committed.
• 28 inch lines will be good enough for you. Then you can try 26 vs 28, But it depends on the conditions if you need 26 or 28 inch lines. You should use 28 in choppy, And 26 in the lake. All pro do use longer lines in choppy.
• Taty says he does NOT change boom height, it stays the same while he is changing the line lengths.

Feb 14

3459km

Bonaire Lac Bay, NP EVO5 7.8, iSonic 107, Drake carbon slalom 38. Wind: 12 and dropping

This afternoon the wind was a little too mellow. Got one run across the bay and a slog back. 4PM wind bump failed to materialize...

Spent some time inspecting the sail after I realized that the Mylar in the bottom panel had a 2 inch split. Found another split in the panel above the boom. I knew the Mylar was getting brittle, but was not prepared for this rapid deterioration. Looks like I'll be investigating repaneling this sail or springing for something new/newer... 

Roo commented:

Just use some Mylar repair tape, should keep it together for the rest of the season. Looks like ARooBar could turn on for the next 2 days here, hopefully the freezing rain doesn't close the freeway to get there. Been 3 months since I sailed, hope i remember how to do it.

I commented:

I taped the splits this afternoon. I have no problem taping the sail, until the Mylar disintegrates to the point that the sail panels are mostly tape . A friend here does sail repair (Mylar panel replacement) so I have a local repair source as long as he has the correct thickness Mylar. The question will be at what point it makes more sense to replace the sail than to repair all the panels. Might be kind of fun to have something like a new Sailworks NX on the water here considering that almost all the race sails here are hand-me-down-from-the-pros, or the Pro's newest Gaastra Vapors and Severne Reflexes. Only one other person using NP EVOs, and EVO5 at that. 

The wind looks to be slightly improving here for the next couple of days. I'll try to 'do good' so the Speedsters can get some numbers on the board .

Enjoy your sessions! Be slow and safe getting there and then rip it on the water. Your 'muscle memory' is so entrenched that you could do it in your sleep!

Feb 12 - sailing 'with' Taty

3457km

Bonaire Lac Bay. NP EVO5 7.8, iSonic 107, Drake carbon slalom 38. Wind: 15G17 ENE

Fun day today. Today was the day that I got a qualitative answer to the question of how much of speed is equipment and how much is skill. Equipment is necessary but a large percentage is clearly skill. Taty Frans was out on his 2017 iSonic 107 and Gaastra Vapor 7.9. Just the two of us on the water and he and I did some laps together, or rather I should say that he was lapping me while testing his gear . It was fun to have a few head-to-head drag races (didn't last long...) and then to sail behind him as he disappeared into the distance. I got an up-close-and-personal view of his sailing style. Clearly, I have no excuses except lack of skill since we had roughly the same equipment and when he was blasting past me we had the same water and wind conditions. I'm not a good judge of closing or opening speeds but would guess that most of the time he was approaching ten knots (maybe more) faster than I was when we were doing the beam reaches. And we won't even discuss my jibing humiliation  . One thing that I noticed was that after a jibe, he would stop and look at his upper right arm (GT31) to evaluate his run. After the session, when I mentioned GPSLogit and the speed chat feature and waterproof Bluetooth earbuds, he was initially surprised and then very interested. We will see if anything comes of it.  I showed him my GW60 and expect him to have one very soon .