The Peconic Puffin

I have the good fortune to have friends who live on the eastern side of Napeague, where the sands are red and the kites few.  Sally and I had a dinner invitation to go visit…really…and then the 25 knot forecast hit.

"Let's go early".  

After a false start with the 5.3, I was soon out with a 4.5, lit on 77 liters of freestyle wave happiness, along with Dana, Andy, Lili and Wilson.   Side on winds, full power just 50 yards from the beach.  Rip roaring on a sunny fall day!    And when I say I was on a 4.5, that's mostly because my 4.0 no longer exists.  The gusts that came through were many and mighty ("compelling" is the word we agreed upon after a dozen) and I for one found I couldn't really jibe in them.  Wait for the lulls. Or make a big splash.

What all that wind was great for was jumping.  I know…"Napeague" and "jumping" are not normally in the same sentence, but there were some unusually clean and sizable ramps setting up this day.  Air time was had (and my joints had a jumping hangover the next morning…I need to go to restorative yoga or something.)  

After two hours the gusts became the base wind speed, and we were all:

A:  sufficiently fried,

B:  thinking about the wonderful planned dinner,

C:  A and B

(the answer is C)

so we packed it in, and got down to some fine food and wine.   All of life should be like Saturday.

(Top:  It may have been crowded at Lazy Point, but we had the far side all to ourselves.  Dana, Andy and I mug for the camera.  Jumping at Napeague!  Dana on the red sands of happy.  Photos by Wilson.)

P.S.  That was the session I caught.  Tomorrow we shall have the story of the session I missed, as the consortium of wind chimps and greater Puffinry caught it big at Cupsogue.