Re: Shoreline sailing

From: Bo3b Johnson (bo3b@apple.com-DeleteThis)
Date: Thu Sep 18 1997 - 18:26:20 PDT

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Message-Id: <199709190124.SAA32236@scv4.apple.com-DeleteThis>
Subject: Re: Shoreline sailing
Date: Thu, 18 Sep 97 18:26:20 -0700
From: Bo3b Johnson <bo3b@apple.com-DeleteThis>
To: "windtalk" <wind_talk@jr.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

>Subject: Beginner sailing in Bay Area
>Author: <wind_talk@opus.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis> at INTERNET
>Date: 9/18/97 12:11 PM
>
>
>
>I'm getting a little bored of Shoreline... what are other options for
>a beginning sailor? (still uphauling mostly) Especially, what are
>options that still have wind late in the season?
>
>I'm told the Foster City Lagoon typically has less wind than
>Shoreline. What about Alameda? San Luis Reservoir? Are there
>Peninsula sites which are beginner friendly? (Palo Alto? 3rd?)
>
>Thanks,
>--
>Martin Frankel |||| mdf@sgi.com-DeleteThis |||| (650)933-6191

As a long time Shoreline sailor, I can offer a little advice too. I
learned there 5 years ago, and still sail there about once a week because
it's so darn convenient, and nice.

First, windsurfing goals depend upon the person. For me, I get my
challenges at work where I make money from them. When I'm sailing, I
want a fun time, not a hard time. I like the challenge of learning new
things in sailing, but I don't like being frustrated.

kcorr@framatech.com-DeleteThis said he thought going to Crissy is the right place to
push yourself. I strongly disagree, because I think that leads more
people to quit sailing because it's too hard. Nothing like two or three
life threatening experiences at Coyote to really make me wonder if the
sport was for me or not. (collapsed boom, separated mast, lost gear)

Maybe you prefer heavy duty challenges, and don't mind being frustrated.
In which case, I would agree that 3rd is probably a good spot to push
your skills. An alternative is to sail at Palo Alto, on high tides, and
stay in the cove area near the dock. Lighter wind, but steady, and low
risk. Smoother water, uphauls are perfectly OK.

However, if you are more into having fun:

Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to have big fun at Shoreline.
When I sail there, it's a rare day that I work on my heli-tacks. Mostly,
I'm fully planing and working on smoothing out my jibes on the flat
water. Having sailed extensively at Palo Alto, I can confidently say
that it would have taken another 3 years before I got my carving jibes
down, if I was learning them in the chop. Like I say, I like the
challenge of the sport, but I don't want it to be insanely hard. For
reference, I hit about 80% of my carving jibes in chop (meaning, I don't
fall in), and about 95% of the short board tacks (which I also smoothed
out at Shoreline).

There is only one secret to sailing at Shoreline, and it's very simple.
Get a big sail. No, I mean a really big sail. This will push your
sailing in an easy way, getting you planing all the time. That way you
can work on footstraps, harness lines, and jibes, in flat water. That
takes out a lot of the variables that make Coyote, 3rd, Crissy, Palo
Alto, etc. so much harder to learn at.

The gear I mostly use at Shoreline is a 7.3 Delta 3, on a 150 liter
Rumba. I weigh 150 lbs. On the really light days (12 knots at the PA
airport), I grow the Delta 3 to 8.2 meters and still plane. For some
really interesting challenges, I've sailed the 8.2 on a Tiga 263.
Bizarre. Worked fine, planing, in the footstraps, going fast. Pretty
damn hard to flip the sail right on the jibes though.

Some folks think that big gear isn't worth using, but I disagree. The
twin pillars of windsurfing for me are fun and exercise. When I use big
gear I get a great workout, and I'm having fun the whole time, which
gives me incentive to get out there. When I'm feeling peppy but the tide
is wrong at Palo Alto, I sail the Tiga 263 with my 7.3 at Shoreline.
Great fun.

So, before you give up on Shoreline, I'd recommend trying some really big
gear to see if provides enough challenge to keep up your interest. If
you see me out there, just ask, and you can borrow my rig to try it out.
(Red trim Delta 3. Goofy Rumba with the Pink Dr. No graphics. Black GMC
Typhoon is the car.)

--bryan "bo3b" johnson

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