Maui Windsurfing Video of the Day

Our Maui Windsurfing spotlight today is on local Kanaha sailor Juan Pablo. You can find Juan at Kanaha practicing his assortment of freestyle tricks just about any day it's windy. Super nice guy, constantly working on new tricks. Check him out in the video. (QuickTime, 4.6 MB)

The wind is definitely in summertime mode now. We've seen strong winds the last several days. On Wednesday it was mostly 4.5 sailing but there was a period when I went out on 4.0/77L and was well powered. Like Speedy said in one of his comments, the crowds are out in force at Kanaha. Tons of visitors, tons of locals and racers and and kid's camps. It's easy enough to get away from the crowds by heading up wind to Uppers, but you gotta sail through the crowd first. Still not nearly as crowded as the Hatchery or Event Site in the Gorge though.

Yesterday turned out to be a pretty sweet day. The wind was a bit up and down at times. I initially tried 5.0 but it was a little much. Went to 4.5, but the wind dropped down then so I decided to go back to 5.0. My plan yesterday was to sail upwind from Kanaha to Sprecks to meet up with my better half who was giving a lesson at t private launch just upwind of Sprecks. With the 5.0, I had no trouble at all motoring upwind. The only trouble was trying to refrain from not playing in the waves. Somehow yesterday and the day before we've actually been getting some occasional down-the-line sets, about shoulder high, at Uppers and Camp One. Mostly the waves have been wind swell with backside riding, but every few minutes a nice set comes through that you can get a few bottom turns on. Sweet!

Anyway, got up to Sprecks where the wind was a bit strong. The swell outside the reef at Sprecks was big, clean and sweet. Rolling into the reef there, you can get some really clean backside riding in and some great ramps for jumping. After playing around there for a bit, well overpowered by now (wind was easily 4.5 for me at that point) my arms and legs were begging for a break so we rode the swells down to Camp One, and took a break at the Sprecks Wind Cam beach.

After a brief rest it was back out to play in the waves.Got lots of back side riding and a couple of bottom turns in on the way downwind to Kanaha. Lots of fun, riding so much out of the harness on the waves and too big of a sail was taking its toll on my arms. Great fun though!

Lots of pro action happening at Kanaha too. Micah Buzianis testing Neil Pryde rigs. Robby Naish out testing some race gear. Makes me wonder if he's going to compete in the US Nationals here in August. Or, maybe he's just out testing. Who knows.

Looks like another beautiful day here again today. Forecast is for more of the same today and slightly lighter winds for the weekend.

Shot some more video the other day, so once I get some time to edit it, I'll get some more video posted ... soon.

Back on the water again

After 4 weeks off the water, I finally got back on the water again today. Gotta say it felt pretty good too. I got the opportunity to sail out of a private launch just upwind of Sprecks. I had never sailed Sprecks before. I really appreciated the lack of crowds on the water. Much less crowded than Kanaha. Another noticeable difference is that it's much less choppy at Sprecks than at Kanaha inside the reef. Anybody who has sailed Kanaha when it's windier than 5.0 should know how choppy and chaotic the water can get inside the reef. Sprecks was much smoother. The downside of Sprecks is you get sand in everything and there's no showers. Personally, I still prefer Kanaha, but Sprecks will be a good option on crowded summer weekends.

Wind started out pretty mellow - I rigged 5.7 initially but quickly came in for 5.3. After 20 minutes, it was time for 5.0 and a lunch break. After the lunch break it was up to 4.5, but then backed off again later into the 5.0 range.

Looking forward to getting several days of sailing in a row. There was nothing epic today, but just being able to sail fully powered felt really good after so long without. Forecast looks promising for good trades through the weekend at least.

Kanaha Video

Video action from Kanaha yesterday. Nothing epic, lots of racers out blasting around, some freestylers doing their thing and lots of just cruising back and forth. Sorry about the jittery camera. I've got a tripod on the way from Amazon.

Kanaha June 22, 2006 (QuickTime Video - 7 MB)

Maui Capitulates

Facing mounting tension and threats from nuclear power upstarts North Korea and Iran (see comments in previous post), Maui yesterday backed off its nuclear program, settling its winds down just below the nuclear criteria. Though Maui's nuclear program likely hasn't been completely scrapped, in the interest of global peace and prosperity, Maui seems to have taken the high road and actually listened to concerns from the global community.

Winds today will likely be moderate and may even flirt occasionally with nuclear levels, but the trend seems to be for our trade winds to back down over the next several days, possibly even becoming verly light this weekend. Never fear however, the winds are forecast to return to normal levels next week. Perfect timing for me. I saw the doc again yesterday to look at my ruptured ear drum. Apparently it has healed quite a bit over the last week. I was told to stay off the water for one more week. So, the countdown has begun. Trade winds permitting, I'll be back on the water next week. Woooooo hooooooo!!!!

Maui Nuclear Power

Winds on Maui have gone nuclear the last couple of days with average wind at Kanaha hitting the low 30s with gusts approaching 40 mph. Word of the nuclear conditions apparently reach Washington DC where the Bush administration released a strong condemnation of Maui's nuclear development program. Things could get tense between Washington and Maui as the Maui Nuclear Wind Commission has announced plans for more nuclear conditions tomorrow. Stay tuned to Maui Windsurfing Blog for the latest developments in this story.

Wind on AutoPilot

The Maui trade winds have been on auto pilot this past week, with winds predictably in the 4.5 to 5.0 range for guys each afternoon. Monday and Tuesday there were waves on the north shore, but that has since declined. I stopped by Kanaha yesterday afternoon just to check it out. 4.5 conditions were prevailing with some smallish backside riding waves at Uppers. Great conditions for blasting around or trying tricks.

Lots of good swell on the south sides of the Hawaiian islands this past week, so Diamond Head on Oahu is probably going off, as well as the few places on Maui that get good wind and south swell, maybe La Perouse and the west side.

The second Maui Race Series race is today at Kanaha Beach Park, so it will be a hub of activity today. Looks like good conditions setting up for it - mostly clear and sunny skies, temps should be in the upper 80s, wind should be in the low to mid 20s. Great racing conditions.

June Wind and Waves

No doubt about it, Maui spoils you. As a windsurfer living on Maui, you become accustomed to being able to sail a lot (except December through February when it can get pretty sketchy). But, get an injury that keeps you off the water for more than a week or so, and you start to go through withdrawals and remember what the rest of the windsurfers in the world go through. I'm on week number three of an injury-imposed windsurfing sabbatical and it's starting to take it's toll on my sanity.

I was managing ok, desperately grasping a slim tendril of sanity for the last few days as the trades kicked back in. But today, an anticipated late-season north swell arrived. WAVES!!!! Oh you cruel bitch! How am I supposed to stay sane with wind AND waves!!!! (I'm sure all you non-Maui windsurfers are crying rivers right now at my sob story.) I get the report from my better half that it was pretty nice 4.5 for her (that would be 5.0 for me) in the early session (11:00) at Uppers today, with some nice waves and hardly anyone out. The wind apparently picked up later by a half a meter or so. Wow, 4.5 and waves - in June! These are conditions that make the HotShots section in Windsurfing Magazine. Hookipa must have been fantastic.

I thought about going down just to get some photos, but I just couldn't subject myself to the torture. I settled on a trip to Costco instead (about a mile inland from Kanaha) where it was blowing 5.3 in the parking lot. I was so desperate I rigged a cardboard box on my shopping cart and cruised around the parking lot, terrorizing tourists, in my make-shift land windsurfer. Caught some sick air off of a VW Beetle, though the landing was a bit harsh on the ankles. Jibing was a bit tricky. Gotta figure out how to rig a mast and boom on that box. Trade winds are supposed to increase the next day or two. Might get strong enough to rig down from my Maui Pineapple box to a Kraft Cheesy Mac box. Sweeeeet!

Saturday morning in Paradise. The sun is shining. The birds are chirping. The scent of burning sugar cane lingers in the morning air. Aaaahhhh! While we had some light wind days this week, Maui was able to pull off some sailable conditions if you timed it right on the north shore or if you went to Kihei. I got word from Jazz that Tuesday was sailable 4.7 for him at Hookipa and there was awhile on Wednesday when I could have sailed 5.0 at Kanaha. Unfortunately, I got confirmation from the doctor on Wednesday that my ear drum is indeed ruptured. Even though he himself is a windsurfer, he told me to stay off the water for 3 to 6 weeks! Ouch. That's gonna be tough. The fact that there are no waves right now will help ease the pain a little, but this is going to be a long drought.

Nevertheless, I stopped by Kanaha briefly yesterday to get a first hand look at what it was doing. Conditions in the early afternoon looked perfect for mellow freeriding, racing around, or freestyle. The Pacific ocean looked like a giant lake, not a hint of a wave anywhere - just mellow 5.5ish looking conditions. I drove by Hookipa yesterday. It too was absolutely flat. Nothing. Zilch. Nada.

So, wind is back. No waves at the moment, though I did hear on the news last night that the north shore might get a small bump in the next few days some time. So, summer conditions have set in here on Maui. Some time in the next few days people will be able to go on rigging auto-pilot - 4.5 for guys every afternoon 4.0 for the wahine. If you're looking to get some serious TOW and almost guaranteed wind every day - now is the time to come to Maui.

Catching Up .... Again

You'd think with it being summer and all that this blog would be full of reports. Sorry. I've been a little remiss about reporting lately since last weekend I seem to have ruptured an ear drum from a back loop gone bad. So, I'm in recover mode, trying to keep my ear dry and my head just isn't in the game - pardon the pun. Not that the winds have been that epic anyway. Thursday and Friday we saw light winds. The winds returned yesterday for the first race of the annual Maui Race Series. Winds were still somewhat light yesterday, 5.0 t0 5.7ish for guys on wave gear. There was a complete absence of surf yesterday. Must have been perfect racing conditions for the slalom event.

Winds so far today are pretty light. It's a beautiful sunny warm day here on Maui though. Great beach weather unless you're looking to get some powered sailing in. But, who knows, maybe the wind will kick in a bit later. Forecast for the next few days though is for the wind to continue to decline and bottom out on Tuesday. Looks like very light wind through Thursday. This is very unusual for this time of year. Normally we should be getting 4.5 winds on a daily basis. But, this has been anything but a normal year so far.