Welcome to the new California, ....
... out here really is feeling more like central California. I’d already been feeling it the last couple years but this year it’s been pretty unmistakable. Central Cal just exported their weather to the south coast of Oregon. And southern Cal must be feeling like the new Baja desert. Though maybe it already was though before they stole all that water. So is Newport the new Pistol River? Mike Jacobson was down to kite with us this day last week at the Rock and he confirmed my suspicions that it had been uncharacteristically blowing its ass off up there this Summer. Even North Bend is feeling the wind when we’ve been shut down on the south coast by the triple digit valley temps. Bandon not so much, but Bandon has always been finicky about giving up wind.
In the way of happy news, the red tides abated by mid summer and the ocean temps have been running in the high fifties. It’s quite a pleasure to be so comfortable both during and after sailing. So this must be how it feels in California.
Still been pretty flat and not especially windy which supports my theory the new weather is going to more favor the Spring and the Fall around here for windsurfing in the coming years.
The new Summer weather ...
9/2/14
Much love and gratitude to Tigi for getting us shots from the Rock last week. Especially since the sesh was a bit of a going away party for Boss as he’d been threatening to head back home after this wind cycle.
Yeah and it’s always a sure sign that Summer is over when the Boss heads back to South Dakota. Miss him already too, and I’m happy to have shared the waves with him this day.
So don’t believe them if they are grinding you about unreal the windsurfing was on the south coast in August. Sure there was enough to get by on but the fishing was probably better. And the surfing even, as most the waves that did come through came with the wind was calm. Pretty cruel for the most part. Maybe my perspective is skewed and I am in a bad mood about the damn injuries dogging me all summer. But I’m heavy on the therapy and training and trust I’ll be back in time to be all over it this Fall and Winter.
I guess I will have to admit it was pretty fun at the ROck this day. Not so onshore and some smooth patches. And a fun bunch out shralping it up. So glad I was there for that. And grateful to Tigi for the shots even though I was feeling embarrassed that I didn’t feel like I gave her much action this day.
Injured reserve bites but at least I’m still able to be out there training and dialing in the new board. Much gratitude is due. _____________________\_
So it’s like I can’t help myself. I see the ramp, i get loop face and have to go and huck something. Then while I’m up in the air spinning all huli, I remember that I’m supposed to be taking it easy on the ankle I just sprained again up in the Gorge. “Oh yeah. Man damn. This one’s fairly endo too. And it’s the new board, ....
Yeah, it was right about here my trainer started screaming at me to bail. And I knew he was right. I could even console myself a little by saying I was feeling a little over rotated anyway. I was all clear downwind, so why risk it?
Yep. See ya. The ocean is so warm right now that you don’t even mind a bit of a swim. Refreshing and sweet. And we got a lovely sequence of the only safe (assuming you are clear downwind of course) bail in forward looping -- “the backdoor”.
Too bad I didn’t have that one a little more under control as I had Tigi on the beach shooting a really sharp sequence of my cowardice. So just call me “the Baron of bail”.