Independence Day Sailing on Woodside

July 4th (in U.S.) and strong ESE Winds in NZ (from about 120 deg) meant perfect conditions at Woodside. Surfdale was too sheltered.

4.7 on the Kombat and some major swell in the Tamaki Strait! Of course no one else was on the water. It was a bit cool and I wore my triathlete (full body) wet suit for the first time just in case I had to spend any time in the water. Luckily the equipment, wind, and body held up for about 5 or 6 reaches into the channel.

Prediction is for continued strong winds through Thursday...

June 11th, 3 to 5pm: The front moved over and now blowing strong from SW. 5.4 / Kombat at Surfdale for some perfect conditions at high tide. Rudy stopped by, but said I was the only one crazy enough to be heading out today. Well worth it though! A squall at the end provided a freshwater rinse as the sun went down. 2 for 2 in 2 days. Tomorrow promises more squalls and SW flow. The water is getting cold by the way.

Onetangi Onshore: Another first

3pm to 5pm, June 10th: 20kts from the North led me to Onetangi (Oneroa was too sheltered). Onetangi was a bit challenging to get past the shore break with onshore winds, but the 6.0 and Fanatic had enough power and volume to finally (after 25 mins) get past the break and provide about 8 or 10 long runs along the length of Onetangi. A kite surfer was attempting to get out but never got past the break. Highlight: racing along with hundreds of birds a few feet above the water--perhaps a fish boil somewhere along the way. The foot held up with some athletic tape. A perfect confidence building day back out (2nd time out since the injury)

Other water sports

Two months now since the foot injury and still recovering. Luckily the Hobie Cat and winds were favorable for an island hop to Motuihe while Anne was visiting. We got caught in a downpour once back into the Blackpool bay, but there was still enough wind to crawl to shore.

The wind hasn't been too tempting as my foot convalesces so I've been trying my hand at fishing. Here are a few of the trophies caught on squid. The best so far has been a 45cm snapper.

SW 25 knots due to a "disturbed" flow slowly moving up from the south meant time to try out the foot again. Ace bandage used to hold stiff foot insole to bottom of foot with a piece of plastic on the top of the foot for additional support. Then a final wrap of duct tape before jamming the appendage into a neoprene bootie. Overall it was a reasonable evening of sailing on the 5.4 and Kombat. After 5 or 6 runs and a few wobbly jibes the foot felts like all circulation was gone (which it was). No one else was on the water--maybe they had a chance earlier in the day as it was steady most of the day.

Ankle-Day: A new windsurfing holiday celebrated March 12th

March 12, 2010 "ANKLE DAY, NZ"

Strong winds from the SE required a 4.1 m^2 sail today. More remnants of a cyclone that is clobbering Fiji. I had to borrow the small sail from Mike Giselle as my 4.1 sail needs to be modified at the head to fit my mast. Luckily we had some redundancy in the combined quivers. Pete, Rachel and "Baby-A" arrived this morning from Boston and Pete caught some nice photos of Mike, Rudy, and "Ace", now AKA'd as "Ankle-Ace" after a day-ending injury following a bad landing off a wave :(

Turns out the X-ray facilities on the island are only open 3-days / week, so after a quick visit to the local emergency care the swelling foot and I took the ferry and a cab to the Auckland Hospital ER. After a couple X-rays, followed by a load-bearing X-ray, then finally a CT Scan, it looked like there were no broken bones, subluxation, or dislocation. The weight-bearing X-ray suggested possible spreading of the 1st and 2nd metatarsals indicative of a Lisfranc injury that requires surgery, hence the desire for a CT scan. So from 6pm to 2am I was back and forth from waiting room to radiology 3 times, then finally "plastered" (the term for placing a plaster cast on the foot) and put in a bed to meet with the orthopaedic specialist in the morning, who confirmed that I could be released.

Windsurfers BBQ finally materialized on Saturday March 6th. A great time with Rudy, Marc, Mike, and Ole, and two more kids (Brin and Alex, I think)

The next day didn't follow through with enough wind, but I gave it a go at Woodside Bay, but was absolutely unable to get out of the bay into the channel on the Kombat and 5.4 (I forgot the mast for the 6.0 and the 6.4 is still ripped). Fabio showed up and sailed a little on an 8.0, but said it was sub-planning at times in the channel and only stayed out 45 min or so. He missed the party due to a wedding on the mainland--so we'll have to hold another bbq soon!