The Peconic Puffin

A blog about a group of windsurfers and other water sports enthusiasts, and their friends. Established 1993.

What is it that makes August so horrifying?   Is it that everyone else finds Long Island waters to be primo about now?    So many people enjoying swimming, waterskiing, jetskiing, boating etc without the slightest idea of how terrible the conditions really are!   Don’t they realize that we windsurfers are marooned and miserable?

I certainly am.   It’s one of the first things I learned when I began windsurfing:  What used to be “a beautiful summer day” is now a bleak, unplanable dead zone in which cobwebs form over my footstraps.

I foresee the near future of the Peconic Puffin as one filled with a mix of:

A.    Distracting posts linking to other people’s thoughts and videos, and
B.    More whining on my part.

About now I expect CD to appear and comment along the lines of "Mike, enjoy the beautiful beaches and warm sun, and take in how wonderful it is to be alive!"  To which I reply in advance "I'd prefer to complain and whine and feel my bone-dry gear and moan about it!"  

A single planing jibe would feel spectacular about now.   Slide the back hand back, unhook, hang from the boom, bear off, and describe a smooth and speedy arc, throwing up plenty of chick-pleasing spray.   Catch the boom, hook back in, and inhale the wind.

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7 responses to “The Windless Hell of August”

  1. Bunty Avatar

    Now you know what it feels like!! I haven’t been down on the water for the past 3 months! Wot’s worse is that we did have some wind during that time but I was unable to enjoy it cos I was nursing my parents at the time. So…………I am ready for a really good dose of it!!

  2. rod_r Avatar
    rod_r

    I make it a rule not to complain out loud about sunny windless days…it just adds to my wifes impression that I’m wayyy too obsessed about windsurfing. I just nod and say..yeah…beautiful,while secretly keeping an eye on the nearest tree looking for a hint of movement.

  3. mike burns Avatar
    mike burns

    Not to worry. I think we’ll have some wind this week. Tuesday might kick up a little something useful later in the afternoon which makes sense because I have a meeting right smack in the middle of the afternoon, and thursday and friday might actually be windy which makes perfect sense because I’m on Kiddie patrol all day. But I’ll still try and move my appointment and get some baby sitting coverage from somewhere. Come on wind!!!!!

  4. Dennis Avatar
    Dennis

    Well, if you’re willing to get a hybrid board (Exocet Pacer for me) and a giant sail (9.5 Aerotech Pacer), you can get some planing time in. I’ve planed 3 of the last 4 days, starting on Friday. The only reason I wasn’t planing on Sunday, was that I sailed all day Friday and Saturday (well, most of the day any way), and my old bones and fingers were too tired on Sunday. But, today was good, at one point it was close to 14 knots for a little while. That giant Pacer (255 liters) was hauling. First time I got into the back straps on that board.
    anyway, like I posted on LI Windsurfer Group Forum, Friday is guaranteed to be epic, best day of 2009 so far, because I have to go to the city all day.

  5. TonyWind Avatar

    Yeah, I agree with Mike Burns this week looks promising! Perhaps it’s my impression, but last year was even worse than the present one. Or perhaps it’s just that I got a 135L board that has turned a few otherwise schlogging days into planing happiness….For my weight it doesn’t really make sense to go with larger volumes unless I switch to formula of course…

  6. Andy Avatar

    Fret not, for your time will come… In the meantime, check those UJs and replace those frayed lines 🙂

  7. James Douglass Avatar

    Oh Lord, please bestow upon Michael a mighty wind that he may windsurf. May his footstraps be wet and his spray be chick-pleasing.

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