ra·dar is used here to indicate that someone or something may not have come to your attention.
Robert Bruce Swift, Jr passed away May 16 at the age of 63. His obit
reported "Bruce was fluent in three languages, traveled extensively in Europe and the United States, while enjoying hiking, cross-country and downhill skiing and camping. He was also an avid windsurfer, played hockey and enjoyed biking, swimming, reading and listening to French and German radio." If you frequented iWindsurf Forums over the last decade, you might have been tricked by one his demented rambles. Take a close look (left) at Mo's satirical cartoon eulogy. Those names in the background are the many personas of, perhaps, America's most famous forum troll.
When I ask the
racerhads here in Florida why slalom isn't more popular, they always say it's not windy enough. But on the PWA, they race in 7 knots. At this year's recent Korean event, a chronic light wind venue, the average big sail was a 9.5. Finian Maynard had the biggest sail at 10.0.
Check it out.
American
Ben Barger, ISAF Athlete Representative, reported from the ISAF Mid Year meeting that President Carlo Croce would ask the IOC for an 11th medal for Kite Board Racing. Olympic sailing is now only permitted 10 medals. Ben added, kite is widely supported among the meeting participants.
ISAF President's Report
AWT Tour Director,
Sam Bittner, revealed in a recent interview that she's working on bringing the AWT and the PWA together for an event at Ho'okipa.
The
Jason Voss website
JRV Windsurfing is back online. Somebody forgot to pay the server rent. His website was incorrectly reported, by this blog, as having passed away.
Mike Godsey, from Weatherflow,
reported what it's like at a new sensor location on the south tower of the Golden Gate Bridge 746 feet above sea level. The new sensor will be used to help forecasting during the upcoming America's Cup competition beginning this year in July and ending late September.
The America's Cup is by far the biggest sailing story in San Francisco and the United States. There is a mountain of news, discussion and opinion ably and thoroughly covered by Florida based
Scuttlebutt.
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| Windsup for Florida |
Alex Morales is offering Formula, Slalom and custom designed boards. All are built in Miami by his new company,
Tilo International.
Mark Angulo has been very busy ever since his
arrival last year here in central Florida. Catch up with his latest work on his FB page
Mark Angulo Custom Maui.
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| 134 L 8'9 x 30 15.5 lbs w/o deck pad |
Dwight Fisher on windsurfable sups: "I think a lot of industry have been puzzled by the flop of the windSUP. Most
thought it would be a big hit. Now most brands have dropped the windsurf option
from their SUPs. Well its the rocker folks. Change the rocker to a windsurf
rocker and strapless rocks."
His latest creation, a strapless windsup with a windsurfing rockerline, has exceeded all expectations: "This board wave-sails, so much better in typical summer conditions, than a true
windsurf wave board, or a windSUP... Light on the inside, honking outside. Side off wind. You come smoking
in toward the beach. Searching for a wave, find one, and try to surf it. It
turns into a lame ride, as the sail power goes away, and the true wave board,
bogs like a dog. This is where this new board kicks ass. It doesn't bog on the inside. The tail
floats and flies. I could get on the tail, spin without bogging, flip the sail,
sail clew first out of the bottom turn, smack the lip and redirect and the board
takes off again. Repeat, again and again. Jibe in light wind right in front of a
set, and still not bogging down. Just effortless and fun. So ideal for our
summer conditions... Find out more on the blog,
SUP SURF MACHINES
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| Internal structure of the M 1 |
Perhaps the newest, most nerdy and interesting idea of the last decade in board building is
additive manufacturing or 3D printing. When we use CNC machines, the shaping process is subtractive. Router bits carve away a solid slab of EPS foam. 3D printing uses a heated coil to drop plastic material on multiple levels to create a 3 dimensional object. The process allows for internal space and structure, meaning, you can make a hollow board with ribbed internal structure or whatever else you could imagine. I think one challenge will be for the shapers who must translate good shapes via CAD software into finished products. Large printers are very expensive. If you want to make something as large as a windsurf or sup board, most likely it will have to be made in sections. But worry not over the details, there are board builders who are pioneering this new technology:
Made Boards. If you're curious visit their
Facebook Page for more photos and information.
Peter Hart ~ If there was a contest for "Best Instructional Communicator,"
Harty would win. He has a special gift of putting you at ease, making it painless to laugh at yourself and getting to the core of what you need to improve as a windsurfer. Thanks to
Windsurf Magazine for sharing many recent articles.
Peter Hart Website
If your windsurfing is stuck, the rut you're in may be physical as much as technical. Peter Hart suspects the wrong body parts are being used at the wrong moments in the wrong way:
Plateau and Body Parts
How big? It’s the hardest decision the buying windsurfer has to make. There’s no easy answer but Peter Hart helps you unravel the volume conundrum:
Understanding Board Volume
There are contrasting ways to describe the challenge of completing a planing carve gybe. Peter Hart, who has helped millions off this over-crowded plateau, offers advice – and not all of it technical:
Completing a Planing Jibe
The harness
, the lines and you are windsurfing’s single most important relationship and, like all relationships, you have to work at them to keep the sailing smooth
. Harty suggests that another level of comfort and joy beckons if you’re prepared to experiment
: Harness Issues
You use your whole body windsurfing, but, is there one key part? Harty reckons so:
The Long Front Arm of the Law
Looking to get one in the bag or impr
ove them?
Peter Hart describes the intricacies of his favourite transition – the Duck Gybe:
Ducking the Issue
It’s the most powerful of human emotions, which both inspires and incapacitates. But in windsurfing, it’s usually the latter. Peter Hart suggests that, unless you understand, confront and conquer your fears, the learning of new techniques is, at best, impossible:
What Are You Afraid Of
SIZE – so VERY important. Have you got the right amount of the right kind? Peter Hart examines the element that has the most immediate influence on your performance:
A Sizeable Question
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