Windsurfing is ...

[Stephen]

For those of you who are learning and don't want to do the walk of shame, head down to the Gorge! If you fall in, the current takes you up wind nicely. You can spend hours messing up jibes and tacks and still come back to the same spot on the beach. Just make sure to bring some small sails.

[Bobson]

Dude, if you went down to the Gorge recently and haven't given us, even just a short summary, we are greatly saddened . This is what this forum is for....I want to hear about things like this......I think you should post a story for us.

For all the rest of you who have done the same recently(Patches..?? )please let us know how it went, good places to sail, bad places to sail, why and anything else that could be relevant for others contemplating the same trip.

Well .....whaddya say..?? Got a story for us Stephen/Patches...??

[mortontoemike]

That's interesting.

I recall about eight (?) years ago or so I made my first trek to the Gorge. I was trying to get the hang of waterstarts and really knew nothing of what the Gorge was capable of dishing out. I had my first "short board" with me, a Cobra 290 pintail I had bought for $149.00. It was apparently the first production Carbon/Kevlar board and under the right feet, a real speedster. I was with Eric the Toker. We launched at Hood River near the event site I think and I took off like a rocket toward the far bank on the Washington side. I was just getting the hang of footstraps and hooking in and I didn't know what to do with the speed! About half way across I paniced and crashed on purpose. There was swell, waves, wind, spray, and I had never seen anything like it. However, instead of getting carried downstream I seemed to be caught in an eddy formed at the outlet of Hood River, some place where all the forces balance to keep yopu trapped. For 3/4 of an hour I tried to get waterstarted in the middle of the river but I kept on getting launched. This must the "The Trying to Get Waterstarted Bobbing Around of Shame" I suppose. I was swearing like my drunken sailor and saying I'd never get on a board again if I could just make it to land without drowning.

Then I saw the barge. Somehow I got a waterstart in and managed to straggle back to the Event Site or around there.

Here's the amazing thing. I was exhausted, had cheated death (in my mind at least ), humbled, "shamed", but the ride was such a blast, that I decided to go out one more time. The second time I got waterstarted after a couple of minutes and I was well and truly adicted!

[more force 4]

Whew, philosophy of windsurfing for my 200th post, how appropriate

I remembered reading that "Reward is in the Struggle" article. Almost brought tears to my eyes! It was really well written, if I remember right, and there were several articles like that in that issue. The struggle is what makes so many windsurfing personalities stand out, I think - as well as the adrenaline rush, there is pleasure in finally succeeding after the long struggle to learn new things. I think many windsurfers think this gives them a kind of moral superiority over kiters because kiting is so much easier to learn (at least the basics) even if it gives huge jumps in little wind etc. But even windsurfing is so much easier to learn today thanks to wide short boards, if it wasn't for the kiting option I expect it would be having a huge resurgence. Its still quite hard enough that I don't ever begrudge a newby learning straps and harness in a few sessions instead of the years it took me. And many seem to be buying late 80s garage stuff and trying to learn on that junk - wait a minute, I still sail some of that junk.

If you are pushing your comfort level at all, it takes total concentration, there is never any way your mind can think of anything else, like other problems while you are going. THis has got to be therapeutic. And then you can have very Zen like experiences in a waterstart/rest position or doing the Walk (maybe this should be abbreviated WOS?)

"Reward is in the Struggle" sounds like some Maoist/Marxist propaganda!

And philosophising about Windsurfing is like the Far Side cartoon of the dogs standing around, the caption went something like:
"You know, Rex, this probably isn't any great revelation, I mean all dogs probably share this, but you know, I REALLY like dogfood".

Love "Windsurfing is like licking honey off a thorn"

[Russian Dood]

"Reward is in the Struggle" sounds like some Maoist/Marxist propaganda!

That's Mao not Marx.

Mr. Guest, you are very welcome!

[TURTLE]

Marx believed things had to get so very very severe that the struggle would shock the masses out of their social conditioning. Sounds a lot like board riding is revolution, and perhaps a revolution of the mind!

[mortontoemike]

You think Turtle! Therefore you are!

[Russian Dood]

Marx believed things had to get so very very severe that the struggle would shock the masses out of their social conditioning. Sounds a lot like board riding is revolution, and perhaps a revolution of the mind!

That's lenin's development on marx' theory