My brother has suggested I post the newer journal entries at the TOP
This feels like reverse order to me, but is easier for me to enter and easier to know what is the latest news - will give it a try for 2018 HERE
so... if anything is lost or screwed up here - i have someone to blame :-)
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SAT 29DEC2018 am NOT counting this one - will be my mulligan
yesterday it snowed and subsequently got some freezing rain
NOT good driving conditions and people were coming up north for the early New Year's Party
the beer bottle on the ice marking the BAD spot indicated about 8-10 cm of snow
tried the snow sled in NW 20-30 kph unsteady winds
needed more wind or better ice
hoped the ice sled would float, but who knows - gotta try it ...
NO better
the ice for skating tracks had been cleared and freezing rain after = LUMPY
so, all in all - NOT good winter conditions - not for ski slopes either, i am sure ...
in any case, managed to snag this pic with the recent conditions ...
THURS 27DEC2018 my birthday ... up north, ice sled, SW Retro 8 SSE ~ 10kph = 8 outta 10
Ice and wind were not quite as good as yesterday. Slightly different direction allowing me to run the junior run, which was not as long as the senior of yesterday...
The whole gang is here now and they all went out and bought used skates ...
Still too chicken to attempt full tack or jibe...
Some spinouts (no falls) on the 10 outta 10 ice near cousin Stephen's place.
in the last two days I feel like I learned to understand what the foilers mean with the almost soundless ride
was on the kit pictured
yes, it is a 2007 SailWorks Retro 8 square meter sail on ice (with a NP CC mast)
but the wind was only 10 kph (that's about 6 mph)
the sound or lack thereof was so pleasant
while moving at a decent speed
smoker uncle was outside and asked how could i go so fast
there was no wind
fun, fun at sixty-one "
WED 26DEC2017 up north , ice sled, SW Retro 8, SW ~ 10 kph = 9 outta 10
The lake was like I had never seen it.
There were about ten ice skaters going all over the entire lake ...
Ice was about a 9 outta 10 which some minor cracks
So, I set up the ice sled and BIG winter sail ...
People came over to see my sled ...
Some commented that there was not much wind - said, I did not need much ...
SAT 22DEC2018 @ the chalet ... my first winter outing (if you can call it that)
On the 19th of December I checked out the Montreal Ice Boating groupe at the Baie d'Urfé Bay. Yes, Lac St-Louis is frozen across in that area - all the way out to Dowker Island. Rivière Milles Isles is still NOT covered with ice and the lake up north had snow on it the Saturday before - the 15th of December.
So, basically my winter stuff is up north and the ice is down south !!!
After that, the 19th, it got much warmer, as in 8 (eight) degrees Celsius. Naturally it also rained a LOT. Some wind was announced today, the 22nd with changing wind directions and a big drop in temperature in the afternoon.
Now, with my winter stuff up north and ice down south, something HAD to be done !!
So, I went up north to check the conditions and bring some stuff down ...
At the shore, the ice had 2 inches of water on it, the wind was not strong and difficult to tell from where. The ice sled was prepared with the large and old SailWorks Retro 8.0 m² sail and Niel Pryde constant curve mast ...
SUN 04NOV2018 La Crête MEQ2 GA Swift & WNW 20-30kph = 8 outta 10
It was warmer today with the sun - about 6-8 degrees Celcius. The water was a little higher with the recent rains and wind was supposed to be best in the morning. There was NO ONE anywhere and when i got off the wind had started to drop. Such a high rating because I got out. My hands got cold because i refused to wear the Chinook mittens. Had to go in and get them. My feet were a little cool but not cold ...
SAT 20OCT2018 had FULL intentions of going today. Thirteen degrees and 30-50 kph SW winds announced. Had something in the morning and so went in the early afternoon. Wind was EXTREMELY gusty and NW rather than SW. There were NOT many people on the water and some familiar faces were leaving. Some were on 4.8 sails. I had 6.3 as the smallest and was hoping to use the Shark 145 !! Oh well ...
Forgot to say that there were MANY items that were suggesting I should NOT go ...
My older kids Jayro and Tita were here ...
Forgot my phone and almost turned back
Piece of muffler dragged occasionally and almost turned back
My season's pass expired and had to pay the day and then the season getting day pay back
When i was going down the hill did not see people going SW
Lighter fellow that wears the dry suit was leaving as I arrived
Saw only two kites on the water
Total were 3 kites and one windsurfer and another who joined ...
Many people there / not full, but not many on the water and some were exclaiming about stuff
the rest is history - above
SAT 13OCT2018 La Crête MEQ2 GA Swift & WNW 18-35 kph = 7.5 outta 10
Managed to get out in the morning before family going up north for FULL family pasta get together. Was NOT interested in trying my luck on the little lake with the outdated stuff I have there :-( So, when I arrived there was one windsurfer not going too well and two kiters about to get lessons. Put together my typical light wind stuff and here is a little video ...
the wind was okay until I left and even better in the afternoon - people were arriving when I left - Sylvain the kite foiler, his buddy, Stephane (force10 ??), etc
the chart is from windalert which seems free again this weekend
Sunday looks like it was warmer and the wind stayed in the 20-30 kph range ...
Everyone says I always have a story and yes, once again, I do ...
As I was driving down the 640 I thought WHAT a beautiful day. Then , as I was driving 65 kph in the 50 kph zone through the small town with OKA cheese and Auberge d'OKA , I thought what could go wrong on such a beautiful day ?? I remembered the last time I thought that, I made some rude gestures at a police officer and received a $155 ticket - for public nuisance or something like that - ONLY from small town cops it seems that this worth giving a ticket ... So, I quickly slowed down !!
Well, sure enough there was a police cruiser at OKA cheese - phew , one down ...
Once at the OKA gate, there was a BIG lineup and it was NOT moving ...
As I had done this in the past, I drove past the right side of the line, over the orange cone waving my season's pass. The young kept yelling,"Monsieur, monsieur, non, non !!" but I just kept on going.
Made me nervous that they might send someone after me, but I do have season's pass. Okay , two down ...
The last one was not so bad - forgot to put harness on fully, but a quick stop and off i went ...
and the rest is history :-)
lundi 08OCT2018 Vaudreuils MEQ2 GA Swift 10-0h & NE/ENE 18-30 kph = 7 sur 10
Aujourd'hui je vais faire mon rapport en francais pour JF qui m'a aidé avec la voile Gaastra Swift. La voile est 10 metres carré avec 2 cambers. J'ai eu moins de misère de la monté aujourd'hui que la semaine passé. Kamel est venu avec sa planche F2 Strata et voile 4.55. Il avait un "dry suit" mais plus pour la plongé... Il a eu le misère de le mettre et je suis allé faire la planche parce que je ne peux pas aider non plus ... Avec le vent on-shore j'ai resté près de rivage (bon mot ? cote pour moi). J'ai eu de plaisir et j'ai vu Kamel rentré dans l'eau. Il a reussi de mettre son stock mais il n'a jamais reussi de faire son uphaul et partir. Je l'ai essayé avec son kit et le boom a été monté trop haut. Il n'a pas voulu faire l'ajustement parce que ce n'est pas "clamp on". J'ai continue pour une autre demi-heure. Je suis arreté même temp que Kamel parce que mes avant-bras faisont mal. Ensuite j'ai discuté avec les kiters ... Comment ca fonctionne - les kites, les foils, ect ... Un kiteur a mentioné que Kamel a semblé prête pour la guerre avec son "dry suit" 😏
translated to Hinglish ...
btw this was Thanksgiving Monday ... could NOT get out Sunday
heard it was NOT much better !!
Monday 08OCT2018 Vaudreuil MEQ2 GA Swift 10-0h & NE / ENE 18-30 kph = 7 out of 10
Today I will make my report in French for JF who helped me with Gaastra Swift sail.
The sail is 10 square meters with 2 cambers. I had less trouble rigging it today than last week.
Kamel came with his F2 Strata board and 4.55 sail . He had a "dry suit" but it is more for diving ...
He had the trouble putting it on and I went windsurfing because I cannot help either ...
With the wind on-shore, I stayed close to shore .
I had fun and saw Kamel back in the water.
He managed to put on his stock but he never managed to do his uphaul and sail.
I tried it with his kit and the boom was mounted too high.
He did not want to do the adjustment because it's not "clamp on".
I continued for another half hour or so . I stopped at the same time as Kamel because my forearms were sore.
Then I talked with the kiters ... How it all works - kites, foils, etc ...
A kiter mentioned that Kamel seemed ready for the war with his "dry suit" 😏
SAT 29SEPT2018 La Crête JPSLW92 GA Swift 10-oh & MEQ2 WNW 15-30kph = 7 outta 10
It was cool, cloudy and breezy when I got there in the morning around 9h00. Already the regulars there - benwindy, Sylvain, other kitefoiler, Greg from work and his wife ... Started with the JP SLW and benwindy was with his largest board and the Lion 8,5. I rigged the GA/Gaastra Swift 10-oh for the first time. The sleeve is tight and it was not easy to rig the sail with the 2 cambers. However, it is the lightest 10-oh I have ever tried and the cambers rotated like they were not even there. Too bad the wind was just missing a bit. Traded out to the MEQ2 and it was a little better, but the wind dropped even more. When I told the wife I was off the water and safe she texted back "already?". Still giving the session a 7 outta 10 just the same. Still no hood or gloves required. When the sun comes out, it is almost warm !!
SAT 22SEPT2018 La Crête JPSLW92 TR-4 MEQ2 SPF NW20-40kph = 9 outta 10
When I arrived there was NO ONE else. Mario from VoilOka showed up. Two windsurf novices too. One of them it was his second time ... Winds seemed light and so went for the JP SLw92 with the Maui Sails TR-4 10-oh and 66 cm Select fin. Wind was inconsistent and when i did plane well, I was slapping the waves.
Since the board was a bit wide and the wind was picking up, called the wife for okay to stay longer. As I was setting up the MEQ2 and SPF 8.5, Sylvain and the other kiters started to show up. Some of them were out yesterday when there were Tornados in Ottawa and 40 knot winds on Lake Champlain. Vincent of 2rad ?? went out with a 5.6 sail and said it was not too bad. Sylvain kite foiled yesterday with a 7 or 9 meter sail/ Apparently Martial was there foiling too. On this day, Saturday, I had a riot in the afternoon and only got off cuz my muscles were hurting. It was only 10 degrees C when I started and was in full wet suit for the first time this season ...
The irony is - all the weather checking suggested SAT morning would be the best and yet, the best time was had in the afternoon - thanks Lisa :-)
Vincent checked the wind and went out with a Fanatic Falcon 136 which is 81 cm and only 225 cm long - and a North Sails 9 meter race sail, musta bin the WARP. His fin was a 46 cm Gasoil which he says costs over $500 !!! Checked on 2-rad website. The GasOil CHR L (absolute control) medium flex, deep tuttle and 46 cm is listed at $669 !! WTF !!
MON 17SEPT2018 La Crête SL1 140 SPF8.5 SW20-30kph = 8 outta 10
Weather report on the phone said winds of 30-50kph SW and the internet links all suggested 20-40 kph SW all afternoon. This sounded very promising after a weekend of NO wind. It was not yet Florenece hurricane/tornado that devastated the Carolinas over the weekend.
And so ... I brought the AHD SL1 140, Fanatic Shark 145, HSM SpeedFreak 8.5 and the NS Duke 7.0. When I arrived, many people were leaving and it did NOT look so promising. JF was derigging an 8.5 and that was what I rigged. Benwindy felt it would be good until just past 6h00 and he was correct. Antoine arrived late and missed the wind with the sun getting ready to go - check the pic below. All the regulars were there. Think I saw Georges who seems to only kitesurf now, Richard/Force5, the woman who used to use MauiSails, but now uses Ezzy, the shorter fellow who was out with a 5.5, Vincent from 2-rad - saw him put away a windfoil, etc, etc ... Russian fellow seemed to be putting away his Formula board ... btw I was surprised that the Fanatic Shark 145 felt so much heavier than the AHD SL1 140 ... For me the BIG question still is: should I have brought the JP SLW92 and the 10-oh sail ?? JF from Mascouche/Terrebonne offered me his GA 10-oh with 2 cambers since he does not use it - that should be a perfect sail for me ....
Oh yeah - was using my Unifiber Lessacher 42 cm weed fin ...
Not bad for a 42 cm fin and weed at that with an 8.5 sail ...
On the way home saw many geese on their way home and it was getting dark, Feels like that was probably our last summer day - myself and others were out in bathing suits. Oh yeah - with the rains, water was a little higher - much better. I planed on occasion, did a fast tack, did some uphauls and learned about the board. Would have liked one or 2 more knots - as Marc always says - we are constantly hunting that missing one or 2 knots
This is what sundown looked like across Lac Deux Montagnes - plenty of people were takin' pictures!!
SUN 09SEPT2018 OKA main beach MEQ2 SPF8.5 Curtis 47 NE15-25k = 8 outta 10
the expectations were low - they were announcing NE 15 kph winds
was ready to go early with even the 10 meter sail
had to wait - too light early and left around 10-10h30
winds were better than expected and put the 8.5 on
the rest of the story is here ...
from quebecwind ...
okay - je suis rendu weekend warrior complètement
trop de travail et c'est au centre ville :-(
mais avec ma Mistral Equipe 2 XR, HotSailsMaui SpeedFreak 8.5 et l'aileron Curtis Slalom 47 cm
temps en temps je trouve un peu du vent
aujourd'hui il n'y avait pas beaucoup NE 15-25 kph
il y a des kites qui ont essayé et la dame qui a utilisé MauiSails avant - mais c'est Ezzy Lion maintenant
trop tard - ne plus assez du vent - même pas pour moi ...
mais j'ai eu du fun en avant-midi :-)
MON Labour Day 03SEPT2018 La Crête MEQ+SPF NW 15-35 = 7.5 outta 10
What a rainy weekend !!! The street almost got flooded out Sunday and it rained off and on today. Somehow managed to windsurf between the down pours ... Kamel went SAT and Helmut thought about going SUN = yuck ... Before I made the video I thought I was going fast in the fast section. The helmet view does not show this ... If the video was better I may have given the session an 8 !! When I arrived benwindy was there with an Ezzy 8.5 rigged and Fanatic Ray 145 ready. After downpour and drop in wind, he left and I waited. Had one good run and then ran to get the camera.
Time to do the back mount !!
Had brought the AHD 140, but was hoping SW and more wind (and it was choppy) - to practice !!
and here is take 2
SUN 26AUG OKA/La Crête MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 SW 18-30kph = 7 outta 10
used a smaller fin since the water is low - do not feel like wallkin out so far !!
there were 3 windsurfers and four kiters
half the kiters were on kitefoils
the 17 meter kites were dropping out of the sky - too light winds
the Maui Sails girl planed past me once
she seemed to head in quickly, but towards the sandbar - hope ok ??
BIG rains after - missed it :-)
SAT 25AUG at the chalet BIC SL200 with GA FLOW3X 7-oh = 6 outta 10 - light winds from S
winds were too light and when they picked up, I was disappointed with the board
too heavy ?? me or the board or both - schlogger :-(
WED 15AUG2018 OKA/La Crête MEQ2 SPF 8.5 WNW 18-25 kph= 8.5 outta 10 !!
When I arrived I saw windsurfers leaving. As seen in the pic below, I was the ONLY windsurfer there. There were about 3 to 4 kiters, but mostly only 2 active ...
For about one hour the wind was light, but okay. Then it picked up for about 45 minutes. The last 15 minutes were light wind again. It was a work day and I got to windsurf. This is a RARE phenomena since I changed jobs and work downtown now ... However. still glad to be away from Bombardier Aerospace I.T.
SUN 12AUG2018 at the chalet and was NOT a wind day - as expected
in the morning around 8h00 I did my "morning stroll" on the lake and it was ok
around noon tried again and already NOT so good
by 14h00 winds were from all different directions and sucking $%^&*()
on the way home I stopped to see SLAMGO in Auteuil who is selling his 2008 SB Formula 161 for ONLY $500 with three fins (original Drake 70, Select 66 and SB weed 56) and board bag !!
As he says, he is giving it away at that price ... Seems there is NOT much interest ...
One fellow in Quebec City, but neither is ready to travel = WOW ...
I could buy it, try it , sell 2 fins and then sell board with original fin for $600 ...
however, i already have too many boards to "try" and not much room
SAD to let it go ... buy it and bring it to the country ??
Brother-in-law, Guy is not interested in windsurfing and one major repair felt a little soft...
Says it has been like that a long time
Oh well ...
SAT 11AUG2018 chalet SL200 with GA FLOW 3x S winds < 15 kph = 8 outta 10
it was not the power of the wind nor the board or sail that made it 8 outta 10
no-one was around and there was NO wind announced
ideal weekend to spend windsurfing at OKA - except for the NO WIND #$%^&*(
did some things around the house and invited Jalal to the chalet - no go
Kamel bought an F2 Strato with some old sails ... and one piece mast !!
and i managed to windsurf for about half an hour on the lake !!
BEAUTIFUL day too
here is what the crazy Kamel did - lucky there were NO COPS !!!
He put a longboard in a small Nissan - Micra ?? seemed smaller than a Versa !!
FRI 10AUG2018 looks like all the wind is gone 15-20 kph WNW today
and none forecast for the weekend
could have gone with MEQ2 and SPF 8.5, but it was a day off sick
would even have gotten an 8 outta 10 with the beautiful sun !!
oh well
Kamel is now looking at getting equipment !!
SUN 05AUG2018 OKA/La Crête JP SLW92 + SPF 8.5 SW 15-23 kph = 7 outta 10
went with my team-lead from work to see if he likes windsurfing ...
started him on the MEQ2 with the WindWing 4.6
also tried the JP SLW92 with the sail, but Kamel preferred the MEQ2
he did quite well for his first outing and he seemed to love it !!
says he learned a LOT
once he was comfortable and was willing to continue ...
i set up the JP with the SPF ...
wind was a bit light for that sail ...
my issues of the day were - the water seemed VERY low
and too many dead fish - many of them in such bad decay that they stank
put one in the woods and gagged from the smell
poison ivy is doing great also ;-(
it was a pleasant day on the water tho ...
SAT 28JUL2018 OKA/La Crête MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 SW/W/NW 15-30 kph = 8.5 outta 10
originally was set to be 20-40 kph and i was excited to get out with the SL1 140 again
no such luck - 20 kph SW was forecast and so, brought the MEQ2 and SLW92
slit the gasket and tried sailing with the centre board
this was to practice for next week - did i really wanna go to the races ??
had a lot of fun, but my gybes/jibes suck ...
wind was up n down , but had a riot
it changed sudeenly from SW to NW and with fervor !!
when it calmed down i continued and each time i was gettign off , another set of wind came
had a lot of fun!!!!
SAT 21JUL2018 Cartier MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 SE 15-25 kph = 7 outta 10
This is my least favourite wind direction and least favourite spot ...
As I setting up, older fellow came by and said he NEVER sees windsurfers any more - just kites ...
Told him I was a dying breed ...
If you launch closer to the school and church, there are less rocks now !!
There were times when it all aligned and the waves were clean with good wind and I was anticipating an 8 outta 10 session...
Then the waves went back to their "dirty"/choppy/unpredictable state and the wind dropped again.
It was REALLY HOT and I got to go out for about an hour while the young son visited his buddy Noah...
Tomorrow is really difficult to guess - E ? NE ? 20-40 ? 30-50 ? rain am ? rain pm ?
and the wifey is coming back from the States - her mother is really NOT well :-(
noticed boom was not on properly while out on the water, rope looks frayed ...
forgot to put all clips on the harness and forgot the camera ...
was for test - not show ...
SUN 15JUL2018 brought my bag of tools and the new camera with the stick to try angles and the camera to the "country"/chalet. FORGOT to bring the mount required to go on the stick ... Need to set this up better !!
Almost NO wind this weekend - not even for newbies ,..
SUN 08JUL2018 OKA/La Crête SL1 + SPF 8.5 WSW 20-50 kph = 7.5 outta 10
so many people going to the main beach that i skimmed by on the right - creating horns and fingers. when i got there, Helmut was already on the water and the wind was really up n down. Heard 20-40 kph SW and 30-50 kph SW announced - was more like 15-50 kph WSW !! Decided to rig BIG and stay close to shore.
Had some major issues today. Firstly the board kept going upwind. Then I could NOT water start in the deeper water unless both feet hit board at same time - board is so light back foot kept pushing it around... When I did get it all aligned, it went like a "bat outta hell." So much so, that I catapulted a
few times and did touch the nose. Nothing serious, but will put some SolarEZ on it !!
Now, how do I stop the rounding upwind when starting issue ??
This was Helmut's first time out this year and first time with the Gecko 156!!
SAT 07JUL2018 OKA/La Crête MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 NW 20 kph = 7 outta 10
Was thinking of giving 8 outta 10, but the wind was really lacking and the motor boats kicked up what i call "dirty water" i.e. random waves. One boat generated 3 foot waves. Marc was there - camping and said I went too downwind. He was right - i was trying to gain speed that way and originally had the mast base back - moved it up and it was better. Had a couple of okay runs and that was about it. Wifey gone to States and so I go daily ... Even the kites had issues today
Marc spoke about yesterday - he was out with a 5.5 and 104 liter board using 34 cm fin. Says he smoked a few other windsurfers and says benwindy had issues climbing upwind ???
FRI 06JUL2018 went to AAO to check it out since I had been chatting with Franco recently. He went there yesterday and did not like his experience either ... Today was sure of at least 20-40 NW winds and brought JP SLW92 and the AHD SL1 with NS Duke 6.9 and HSM SPF 8.5. It was too much. There were white caps and people were flying. The kites on land were all 10 m² which means sails of around 5 meters for PAV/windsurfing. Oh well, went home and took a nap. Enjoy that just as much as windsurfing !!
Oh yeah, I do NOT like AAO. There is hardly any grass, it is all gravel and sand. The kiters take over the area at the end and with the NW people are all competing for their slice of the bay. No-one goes further out ... Okay for learning, but that is about it ...
This graph from wunderground suggests winds of 20-30 mph when i was there !!
THURS 05JUL2018 OKA/La Crête SL1 with HSM SPF 8.5 SW 15-24 kph =6 outta 10
This feels like reverse order to me, but is easier for me to enter and easier to know what is the latest news - will give it a try for 2018 HERE
so... if anything is lost or screwed up here - i have someone to blame :-)
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SAT 29DEC2018 am NOT counting this one - will be my mulligan
yesterday it snowed and subsequently got some freezing rain
NOT good driving conditions and people were coming up north for the early New Year's Party
the beer bottle on the ice marking the BAD spot indicated about 8-10 cm of snow
tried the snow sled in NW 20-30 kph unsteady winds
needed more wind or better ice
hoped the ice sled would float, but who knows - gotta try it ...
NO better
the ice for skating tracks had been cleared and freezing rain after = LUMPY
so, all in all - NOT good winter conditions - not for ski slopes either, i am sure ...
in any case, managed to snag this pic with the recent conditions ...
THURS 27DEC2018 my birthday ... up north, ice sled, SW Retro 8 SSE ~ 10kph = 8 outta 10
Ice and wind were not quite as good as yesterday. Slightly different direction allowing me to run the junior run, which was not as long as the senior of yesterday...
The whole gang is here now and they all went out and bought used skates ...
Still too chicken to attempt full tack or jibe...
Some spinouts (no falls) on the 10 outta 10 ice near cousin Stephen's place.
in the last two days I feel like I learned to understand what the foilers mean with the almost soundless ride
was on the kit pictured
yes, it is a 2007 SailWorks Retro 8 square meter sail on ice (with a NP CC mast)
but the wind was only 10 kph (that's about 6 mph)
the sound or lack thereof was so pleasant
while moving at a decent speed
smoker uncle was outside and asked how could i go so fast
there was no wind
fun, fun at sixty-one "
WED 26DEC2017 up north , ice sled, SW Retro 8, SW ~ 10 kph = 9 outta 10
The lake was like I had never seen it.
There were about ten ice skaters going all over the entire lake ...
Ice was about a 9 outta 10 which some minor cracks
So, I set up the ice sled and BIG winter sail ...
People came over to see my sled ...
Some commented that there was not much wind - said, I did not need much ...
SAT 22DEC2018 @ the chalet ... my first winter outing (if you can call it that)
On the 19th of December I checked out the Montreal Ice Boating groupe at the Baie d'Urfé Bay. Yes, Lac St-Louis is frozen across in that area - all the way out to Dowker Island. Rivière Milles Isles is still NOT covered with ice and the lake up north had snow on it the Saturday before - the 15th of December.
So, basically my winter stuff is up north and the ice is down south !!!
After that, the 19th, it got much warmer, as in 8 (eight) degrees Celsius. Naturally it also rained a LOT. Some wind was announced today, the 22nd with changing wind directions and a big drop in temperature in the afternoon.
Now, with my winter stuff up north and ice down south, something HAD to be done !!
So, I went up north to check the conditions and bring some stuff down ...
At the shore, the ice had 2 inches of water on it, the wind was not strong and difficult to tell from where. The ice sled was prepared with the large and old SailWorks Retro 8.0 m² sail and Niel Pryde constant curve mast ...
Here you can see the trail made on my return back to base. It almost looks like there was NO ice and only water !!
The wind felt like from the North, butt in the end was from the West when SE was announced ... Actually, when i said earlier on that there were 2 (two) inches of water ... that was at the shore ! There was a time when I was windsurfing my winter sled with the SW Retro 8-oh in five to six inches of water !! I was planing on the water and generating a WIDE wave pattern on top of the slush ...
 |
| Clique to enlarge pics |
Needless to say, it was not much of session, but I wished I had filmed it !!
The water spraying up while windsurfing on ice was amazing !!
The very NEXT day Unca Freddy called,"They r iceskating on the lake."
There was no wind there and Baie d'Urfé ice was now 6 outta 10 - as per farcebook.
and the local river is NOT frozen yet $%^&*()
thought it was gonna be a early n good start to this winter season ...
The very NEXT day Unca Freddy called,"They r iceskating on the lake."
There was no wind there and Baie d'Urfé ice was now 6 outta 10 - as per farcebook.
and the local river is NOT frozen yet $%^&*()
thought it was gonna be a early n good start to this winter season ...
SUN 04NOV2018 La Crête MEQ2 GA Swift & WNW 20-30kph = 8 outta 10
It was warmer today with the sun - about 6-8 degrees Celcius. The water was a little higher with the recent rains and wind was supposed to be best in the morning. There was NO ONE anywhere and when i got off the wind had started to drop. Such a high rating because I got out. My hands got cold because i refused to wear the Chinook mittens. Had to go in and get them. My feet were a little cool but not cold ...
SAT 20OCT2018 had FULL intentions of going today. Thirteen degrees and 30-50 kph SW winds announced. Had something in the morning and so went in the early afternoon. Wind was EXTREMELY gusty and NW rather than SW. There were NOT many people on the water and some familiar faces were leaving. Some were on 4.8 sails. I had 6.3 as the smallest and was hoping to use the Shark 145 !! Oh well ...
Forgot to say that there were MANY items that were suggesting I should NOT go ...
My older kids Jayro and Tita were here ...
Forgot my phone and almost turned back
Piece of muffler dragged occasionally and almost turned back
My season's pass expired and had to pay the day and then the season getting day pay back
When i was going down the hill did not see people going SW
Lighter fellow that wears the dry suit was leaving as I arrived
Saw only two kites on the water
Total were 3 kites and one windsurfer and another who joined ...
Many people there / not full, but not many on the water and some were exclaiming about stuff
the rest is history - above
SAT 13OCT2018 La Crête MEQ2 GA Swift & WNW 18-35 kph = 7.5 outta 10
Managed to get out in the morning before family going up north for FULL family pasta get together. Was NOT interested in trying my luck on the little lake with the outdated stuff I have there :-( So, when I arrived there was one windsurfer not going too well and two kiters about to get lessons. Put together my typical light wind stuff and here is a little video ...
the wind was okay until I left and even better in the afternoon - people were arriving when I left - Sylvain the kite foiler, his buddy, Stephane (force10 ??), etc
the chart is from windalert which seems free again this weekend
Everyone says I always have a story and yes, once again, I do ...
As I was driving down the 640 I thought WHAT a beautiful day. Then , as I was driving 65 kph in the 50 kph zone through the small town with OKA cheese and Auberge d'OKA , I thought what could go wrong on such a beautiful day ?? I remembered the last time I thought that, I made some rude gestures at a police officer and received a $155 ticket - for public nuisance or something like that - ONLY from small town cops it seems that this worth giving a ticket ... So, I quickly slowed down !!
Well, sure enough there was a police cruiser at OKA cheese - phew , one down ...
Once at the OKA gate, there was a BIG lineup and it was NOT moving ...
As I had done this in the past, I drove past the right side of the line, over the orange cone waving my season's pass. The young kept yelling,"Monsieur, monsieur, non, non !!" but I just kept on going.
Made me nervous that they might send someone after me, but I do have season's pass. Okay , two down ...
The last one was not so bad - forgot to put harness on fully, but a quick stop and off i went ...
and the rest is history :-)
lundi 08OCT2018 Vaudreuils MEQ2 GA Swift 10-0h & NE/ENE 18-30 kph = 7 sur 10
Aujourd'hui je vais faire mon rapport en francais pour JF qui m'a aidé avec la voile Gaastra Swift. La voile est 10 metres carré avec 2 cambers. J'ai eu moins de misère de la monté aujourd'hui que la semaine passé. Kamel est venu avec sa planche F2 Strata et voile 4.55. Il avait un "dry suit" mais plus pour la plongé... Il a eu le misère de le mettre et je suis allé faire la planche parce que je ne peux pas aider non plus ... Avec le vent on-shore j'ai resté près de rivage (bon mot ? cote pour moi). J'ai eu de plaisir et j'ai vu Kamel rentré dans l'eau. Il a reussi de mettre son stock mais il n'a jamais reussi de faire son uphaul et partir. Je l'ai essayé avec son kit et le boom a été monté trop haut. Il n'a pas voulu faire l'ajustement parce que ce n'est pas "clamp on". J'ai continue pour une autre demi-heure. Je suis arreté même temp que Kamel parce que mes avant-bras faisont mal. Ensuite j'ai discuté avec les kiters ... Comment ca fonctionne - les kites, les foils, ect ... Un kiteur a mentioné que Kamel a semblé prête pour la guerre avec son "dry suit" 😏
translated to Hinglish ...
btw this was Thanksgiving Monday ... could NOT get out Sunday
heard it was NOT much better !!
Monday 08OCT2018 Vaudreuil MEQ2 GA Swift 10-0h & NE / ENE 18-30 kph = 7 out of 10
Today I will make my report in French for JF who helped me with Gaastra Swift sail.
The sail is 10 square meters with 2 cambers. I had less trouble rigging it today than last week.
Kamel came with his F2 Strata board and 4.55 sail . He had a "dry suit" but it is more for diving ...
He had the trouble putting it on and I went windsurfing because I cannot help either ...
With the wind on-shore, I stayed close to shore .
I had fun and saw Kamel back in the water.
He managed to put on his stock but he never managed to do his uphaul and sail.
I tried it with his kit and the boom was mounted too high.
He did not want to do the adjustment because it's not "clamp on".
I continued for another half hour or so . I stopped at the same time as Kamel because my forearms were sore.
Then I talked with the kiters ... How it all works - kites, foils, etc ...
A kiter mentioned that Kamel seemed ready for the war with his "dry suit" 😏
SAT 29SEPT2018 La Crête JPSLW92 GA Swift 10-oh & MEQ2 WNW 15-30kph = 7 outta 10
It was cool, cloudy and breezy when I got there in the morning around 9h00. Already the regulars there - benwindy, Sylvain, other kitefoiler, Greg from work and his wife ... Started with the JP SLW and benwindy was with his largest board and the Lion 8,5. I rigged the GA/Gaastra Swift 10-oh for the first time. The sleeve is tight and it was not easy to rig the sail with the 2 cambers. However, it is the lightest 10-oh I have ever tried and the cambers rotated like they were not even there. Too bad the wind was just missing a bit. Traded out to the MEQ2 and it was a little better, but the wind dropped even more. When I told the wife I was off the water and safe she texted back "already?". Still giving the session a 7 outta 10 just the same. Still no hood or gloves required. When the sun comes out, it is almost warm !!
SAT 22SEPT2018 La Crête JPSLW92 TR-4 MEQ2 SPF NW20-40kph = 9 outta 10
When I arrived there was NO ONE else. Mario from VoilOka showed up. Two windsurf novices too. One of them it was his second time ... Winds seemed light and so went for the JP SLw92 with the Maui Sails TR-4 10-oh and 66 cm Select fin. Wind was inconsistent and when i did plane well, I was slapping the waves.
Since the board was a bit wide and the wind was picking up, called the wife for okay to stay longer. As I was setting up the MEQ2 and SPF 8.5, Sylvain and the other kiters started to show up. Some of them were out yesterday when there were Tornados in Ottawa and 40 knot winds on Lake Champlain. Vincent of 2rad ?? went out with a 5.6 sail and said it was not too bad. Sylvain kite foiled yesterday with a 7 or 9 meter sail/ Apparently Martial was there foiling too. On this day, Saturday, I had a riot in the afternoon and only got off cuz my muscles were hurting. It was only 10 degrees C when I started and was in full wet suit for the first time this season ...
The irony is - all the weather checking suggested SAT morning would be the best and yet, the best time was had in the afternoon - thanks Lisa :-)
Vincent checked the wind and went out with a Fanatic Falcon 136 which is 81 cm and only 225 cm long - and a North Sails 9 meter race sail, musta bin the WARP. His fin was a 46 cm Gasoil which he says costs over $500 !!! Checked on 2-rad website. The GasOil CHR L (absolute control) medium flex, deep tuttle and 46 cm is listed at $669 !! WTF !!
MON 17SEPT2018 La Crête SL1 140 SPF8.5 SW20-30kph = 8 outta 10
Weather report on the phone said winds of 30-50kph SW and the internet links all suggested 20-40 kph SW all afternoon. This sounded very promising after a weekend of NO wind. It was not yet Florenece hurricane/tornado that devastated the Carolinas over the weekend.
And so ... I brought the AHD SL1 140, Fanatic Shark 145, HSM SpeedFreak 8.5 and the NS Duke 7.0. When I arrived, many people were leaving and it did NOT look so promising. JF was derigging an 8.5 and that was what I rigged. Benwindy felt it would be good until just past 6h00 and he was correct. Antoine arrived late and missed the wind with the sun getting ready to go - check the pic below. All the regulars were there. Think I saw Georges who seems to only kitesurf now, Richard/Force5, the woman who used to use MauiSails, but now uses Ezzy, the shorter fellow who was out with a 5.5, Vincent from 2-rad - saw him put away a windfoil, etc, etc ... Russian fellow seemed to be putting away his Formula board ... btw I was surprised that the Fanatic Shark 145 felt so much heavier than the AHD SL1 140 ... For me the BIG question still is: should I have brought the JP SLW92 and the 10-oh sail ?? JF from Mascouche/Terrebonne offered me his GA 10-oh with 2 cambers since he does not use it - that should be a perfect sail for me ....
Oh yeah - was using my Unifiber Lessacher 42 cm weed fin ...
Not bad for a 42 cm fin and weed at that with an 8.5 sail ...
On the way home saw many geese on their way home and it was getting dark, Feels like that was probably our last summer day - myself and others were out in bathing suits. Oh yeah - with the rains, water was a little higher - much better. I planed on occasion, did a fast tack, did some uphauls and learned about the board. Would have liked one or 2 more knots - as Marc always says - we are constantly hunting that missing one or 2 knots
This is what sundown looked like across Lac Deux Montagnes - plenty of people were takin' pictures!!
SUN 09SEPT2018 OKA main beach MEQ2 SPF8.5 Curtis 47 NE15-25k = 8 outta 10
the expectations were low - they were announcing NE 15 kph winds
was ready to go early with even the 10 meter sail
had to wait - too light early and left around 10-10h30
winds were better than expected and put the 8.5 on
the rest of the story is here ...
from quebecwind ...
okay - je suis rendu weekend warrior complètement
trop de travail et c'est au centre ville :-(
mais avec ma Mistral Equipe 2 XR, HotSailsMaui SpeedFreak 8.5 et l'aileron Curtis Slalom 47 cm
temps en temps je trouve un peu du vent
aujourd'hui il n'y avait pas beaucoup NE 15-25 kph
il y a des kites qui ont essayé et la dame qui a utilisé MauiSails avant - mais c'est Ezzy Lion maintenant
trop tard - ne plus assez du vent - même pas pour moi ...
mais j'ai eu du fun en avant-midi :-)
MON Labour Day 03SEPT2018 La Crête MEQ+SPF NW 15-35 = 7.5 outta 10
What a rainy weekend !!! The street almost got flooded out Sunday and it rained off and on today. Somehow managed to windsurf between the down pours ... Kamel went SAT and Helmut thought about going SUN = yuck ... Before I made the video I thought I was going fast in the fast section. The helmet view does not show this ... If the video was better I may have given the session an 8 !! When I arrived benwindy was there with an Ezzy 8.5 rigged and Fanatic Ray 145 ready. After downpour and drop in wind, he left and I waited. Had one good run and then ran to get the camera.
Time to do the back mount !!
Had brought the AHD 140, but was hoping SW and more wind (and it was choppy) - to practice !!
and here is take 2
SUN 26AUG OKA/La Crête MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 SW 18-30kph = 7 outta 10
used a smaller fin since the water is low - do not feel like wallkin out so far !!
there were 3 windsurfers and four kiters
half the kiters were on kitefoils
the 17 meter kites were dropping out of the sky - too light winds
the Maui Sails girl planed past me once
she seemed to head in quickly, but towards the sandbar - hope ok ??
BIG rains after - missed it :-)
SAT 25AUG at the chalet BIC SL200 with GA FLOW3X 7-oh = 6 outta 10 - light winds from S
winds were too light and when they picked up, I was disappointed with the board
too heavy ?? me or the board or both - schlogger :-(
WED 15AUG2018 OKA/La Crête MEQ2 SPF 8.5 WNW 18-25 kph= 8.5 outta 10 !!
When I arrived I saw windsurfers leaving. As seen in the pic below, I was the ONLY windsurfer there. There were about 3 to 4 kiters, but mostly only 2 active ...
For about one hour the wind was light, but okay. Then it picked up for about 45 minutes. The last 15 minutes were light wind again. It was a work day and I got to windsurf. This is a RARE phenomena since I changed jobs and work downtown now ... However. still glad to be away from Bombardier Aerospace I.T.
SUN 12AUG2018 at the chalet and was NOT a wind day - as expected
in the morning around 8h00 I did my "morning stroll" on the lake and it was ok
around noon tried again and already NOT so good
by 14h00 winds were from all different directions and sucking $%^&*()
on the way home I stopped to see SLAMGO in Auteuil who is selling his 2008 SB Formula 161 for ONLY $500 with three fins (original Drake 70, Select 66 and SB weed 56) and board bag !!
One fellow in Quebec City, but neither is ready to travel = WOW ...
I could buy it, try it , sell 2 fins and then sell board with original fin for $600 ...
however, i already have too many boards to "try" and not much room
SAD to let it go ... buy it and bring it to the country ??
Brother-in-law, Guy is not interested in windsurfing and one major repair felt a little soft...
Says it has been like that a long time
Oh well ...
SAT 11AUG2018 chalet SL200 with GA FLOW 3x S winds < 15 kph = 8 outta 10
it was not the power of the wind nor the board or sail that made it 8 outta 10
no-one was around and there was NO wind announced
ideal weekend to spend windsurfing at OKA - except for the NO WIND #$%^&*(
did some things around the house and invited Jalal to the chalet - no go
Kamel bought an F2 Strato with some old sails ... and one piece mast !!
and i managed to windsurf for about half an hour on the lake !!
BEAUTIFUL day too
here is what the crazy Kamel did - lucky there were NO COPS !!!
He put a longboard in a small Nissan - Micra ?? seemed smaller than a Versa !!
FRI 10AUG2018 looks like all the wind is gone 15-20 kph WNW today
and none forecast for the weekend
could have gone with MEQ2 and SPF 8.5, but it was a day off sick
would even have gotten an 8 outta 10 with the beautiful sun !!
oh well
Kamel is now looking at getting equipment !!
SUN 05AUG2018 OKA/La Crête JP SLW92 + SPF 8.5 SW 15-23 kph = 7 outta 10
went with my team-lead from work to see if he likes windsurfing ...
started him on the MEQ2 with the WindWing 4.6
also tried the JP SLW92 with the sail, but Kamel preferred the MEQ2
he did quite well for his first outing and he seemed to love it !!
says he learned a LOT
once he was comfortable and was willing to continue ...
i set up the JP with the SPF ...
wind was a bit light for that sail ...
my issues of the day were - the water seemed VERY low
and too many dead fish - many of them in such bad decay that they stank
put one in the woods and gagged from the smell
poison ivy is doing great also ;-(
it was a pleasant day on the water tho ...
SAT 28JUL2018 OKA/La Crête MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 SW/W/NW 15-30 kph = 8.5 outta 10
originally was set to be 20-40 kph and i was excited to get out with the SL1 140 again
no such luck - 20 kph SW was forecast and so, brought the MEQ2 and SLW92
slit the gasket and tried sailing with the centre board
this was to practice for next week - did i really wanna go to the races ??
had a lot of fun, but my gybes/jibes suck ...
wind was up n down , but had a riot
it changed sudeenly from SW to NW and with fervor !!
when it calmed down i continued and each time i was gettign off , another set of wind came
had a lot of fun!!!!
SAT 21JUL2018 Cartier MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 SE 15-25 kph = 7 outta 10
This is my least favourite wind direction and least favourite spot ...
As I setting up, older fellow came by and said he NEVER sees windsurfers any more - just kites ...
Told him I was a dying breed ...
If you launch closer to the school and church, there are less rocks now !!
There were times when it all aligned and the waves were clean with good wind and I was anticipating an 8 outta 10 session...
Then the waves went back to their "dirty"/choppy/unpredictable state and the wind dropped again.
It was REALLY HOT and I got to go out for about an hour while the young son visited his buddy Noah...
Tomorrow is really difficult to guess - E ? NE ? 20-40 ? 30-50 ? rain am ? rain pm ?
and the wifey is coming back from the States - her mother is really NOT well :-(
noticed boom was not on properly while out on the water, rope looks frayed ...
forgot to put all clips on the harness and forgot the camera ...
was for test - not show ...
SUN 15JUL2018 brought my bag of tools and the new camera with the stick to try angles and the camera to the "country"/chalet. FORGOT to bring the mount required to go on the stick ... Need to set this up better !!
Almost NO wind this weekend - not even for newbies ,..
SUN 08JUL2018 OKA/La Crête SL1 + SPF 8.5 WSW 20-50 kph = 7.5 outta 10
so many people going to the main beach that i skimmed by on the right - creating horns and fingers. when i got there, Helmut was already on the water and the wind was really up n down. Heard 20-40 kph SW and 30-50 kph SW announced - was more like 15-50 kph WSW !! Decided to rig BIG and stay close to shore.
Had some major issues today. Firstly the board kept going upwind. Then I could NOT water start in the deeper water unless both feet hit board at same time - board is so light back foot kept pushing it around... When I did get it all aligned, it went like a "bat outta hell." So much so, that I catapulted a
few times and did touch the nose. Nothing serious, but will put some SolarEZ on it !!
Now, how do I stop the rounding upwind when starting issue ??
This was Helmut's first time out this year and first time with the Gecko 156!!
SAT 07JUL2018 OKA/La Crête MEQ2 + SPF 8.5 NW 20 kph = 7 outta 10
Was thinking of giving 8 outta 10, but the wind was really lacking and the motor boats kicked up what i call "dirty water" i.e. random waves. One boat generated 3 foot waves. Marc was there - camping and said I went too downwind. He was right - i was trying to gain speed that way and originally had the mast base back - moved it up and it was better. Had a couple of okay runs and that was about it. Wifey gone to States and so I go daily ... Even the kites had issues today
Marc spoke about yesterday - he was out with a 5.5 and 104 liter board using 34 cm fin. Says he smoked a few other windsurfers and says benwindy had issues climbing upwind ???
FRI 06JUL2018 went to AAO to check it out since I had been chatting with Franco recently. He went there yesterday and did not like his experience either ... Today was sure of at least 20-40 NW winds and brought JP SLW92 and the AHD SL1 with NS Duke 6.9 and HSM SPF 8.5. It was too much. There were white caps and people were flying. The kites on land were all 10 m² which means sails of around 5 meters for PAV/windsurfing. Oh well, went home and took a nap. Enjoy that just as much as windsurfing !!
Oh yeah, I do NOT like AAO. There is hardly any grass, it is all gravel and sand. The kiters take over the area at the end and with the NW people are all competing for their slice of the bay. No-one goes further out ... Okay for learning, but that is about it ...
This graph from wunderground suggests winds of 20-30 mph when i was there !!
 |
| Clique to enlarge |
They were announcing 20-40 kph across the board and so , did not bring the MEQ. BIG mistake. Winds were VERY light and it was HOT. Feels like 115 F or 45 degrees C. The AHD SL1 140 can be uphauled no problem - which was something i had issues with using the SB iS 117W and the AHD SL2 132. Winds were not strong enough to practice shallow water starts. Board kept turning upwind and because it was so close to planing , am wondering if it prefers longer fins. Will do some reading. The rating of the day is due to lack of winds and not the equipment ...
For the heading upwind... they suggest moving mast base up - i did the inverse
they suggest moving the boom down - i did the inverse
also suggested is making sure feet are NOT on the side of the board - stay in middle
THAT sounds like it was the issue more than anything cuz once i got going, it all seemed fine
that day the transmission on the van slipped more than ever - probably due to the HEAT $%^&*
WED 04JUL2018 up north SL200 with GA Flow 3x -oh in light winds = 7.5 outta 10
was mostly setting up stuff and testing the camera
put on uphaul cord and harness lines
since I just picked up the AHD SL1 140, this board felt really heavy
also, it looks like there was once a gasket on the bottom !!
tested the camera .. uncensored footage i.e. not edited ...
TUES 03JUL2018 went to auventfou and ...
picked up the 2011 AHD SL1 140 slalom/race board ...
I have tried the StarBorg iSonic 117W and the AHD SL2 132 which are both race/slalom boards. The iSonic is really a rocket in all senses of the word. The AHD was a little tamer, but I felt the nose went down too easily. Fellow in Australia sold his -- he is saying there was no way it was 132 liters - he felt it was less. Personally think it may just be that the balance point was a little off to what we are used to. This SL1 140 has a few more liters, a few more centimeters in length and also, the balance point is just aft of the 135 cm mark. Should be great. BENF informs me that he had a board like this and it was a great light wind board too - planing in around 10 knots of wind !!! Maybe sell the JP SLW92 after ?? board is 240 x 81 with OFO of 56.6 cm - can take up to 60 cm fin then !!
This is the plan - of what to use in which winds - board and sail combos ...
Unfortunately there were some minor repairs under the board that needed touch up ...
with this result using MarineTex
MON 02JUL2018 La Crête/OKA 20-50 kph SW MEQ2 HSM SPF 8.5 = 8 outta 10 !!
hotter in Montreal than Toronto, NY, Florida and Georgia
since winds were to be SW 20-40 , I went fully loaded - MEQ2, SLW and Shark
with sails 8.5 and 7-oh
was light when I got there and so 8.5 loose on the MEQ
had to tighten sail cuz it kicked !!!
hit rock again , catapulted and chipped slalom Curtis 47 cm fin
next beach start had a cramp in other calf %^&*(
managed to RIP quite a few times
fellow was out on a Fanatic Falcon and Retro 6-oh - flew and came in when i did - dropped wind
BenWindy was out on Ray 145 with Ezzy Lion 8.5 2 cambered sail and RDM mast ...
Ray 145 is 235 cm x 81 cm and obviously 145 liters
should i have been out on the JP SLW92 ??
think it would have been too wide ...
what about an AHD SL1 140 ?? 240 x 81 and can handle 8.x sails ...
i want this board to push me forward in windsurfing !!!
tried new SJ4000 camera, but not on the board ...
here's another little clip - on my way out ...
WED 20JUN2018 OKA La Crête
Winds were steady ALL day SW 17-22 knots = fantastic
Apparently Russian fellow with 9.5, Force5/Richard, Vincent of 2-rad and Tom a team rider of Fanatic, NS were all there.
Then it rained ...
Apparently after that it was NW with 20 kph winds and no-one on the water...
I would have gone with the MEQ2 and SPF 8.5 and probably had a blast
Probably would even have rated it an 8 outta 10 !!
TUES 19JUL2018 went to 2-rad to look at SB Futura 144
Was thinking it could replace the Shark 145 and perhaps even the JP SLW92. It was expensive for me at $1675. Bruno barely looked at me when I was there and Vincent, who served me, kept pushing me towards a Fanantic Blast - 130 or 145 .... This convinced me - to leave well enough alone. Would have liked to try the board since it is a well known free-race and longer that those I tried ...
The chart shows that the slalom boards were too short for me. The Futura was of the old school and longer. If Bruno would have given it the nod, the deposit would already have been made ...
SUN 17JUN2018 La Crête with Pradeep - MEQ2/Shark145 c/ SPF8.5/WW4,7 15+ SW = 6 outta 10
Wind was SO up n down that Sylvain had to be rescued with his kitefoil and 20 m² sail AGAIN.
When I commented about it, a lady said - you came back by car last time - oops ...
was really warm and a please to be on the water
Pradeep did well for his first day - he seemed keen to go back again ...
TUES 12JUN2018 OKA La Crête SHARK 145 NS Duke 6.9 SW 20-40 = 7 outta 10
managed to leave work at 15h30
on water around 18h00 for an hour or so
parking lot was full and some trees need to be cut to get to water
wind seemed STRONG
kites were downsizing from 11 to 9 meters
windsurf s/b around 5 meters then and i had only the Duke 6.9
oh well, at least it is on-shore = NO danger
met the fellow who saw me last time on the Shark too
he was going on his AHD FF 117 and 5.5 sail - told me later it was GREAT day for him
wind was gusty and not consistent across the stretch
i started with full downhaul and outhaul with the mast at 135
this just was not working for me
put mast at 140 and released some outhaul
this was much better and did manage to plane a few times
managed many water starts
oh yeah - was with my 40 cm repaired Select fin ...
George says this was one of his best days ever - jumped over 30 feet with his kite - for 10 secs
at the end saw three sailors take off with NS Warp sails and orange boards
Force10/Richard told me it was Vincent of 2-rad and others on demo equipment
slalom boards/Falcons - went over to see and there was even a Falcon with Horue foil
i never met Vincent before - think he set up Helmut's new Gecko
when packing it in met the Russian fellow - guess I should get his name ...
he was out on a 109 liter board with a SW Retro 6-oh !!
says he was over at times - then again he was there since 16h00
and i only arrived at 18h00
FRI 08JUN2018 Rosemere MEQ2 HSM SPF8.5 SW 20+ kph = 7 outta 10
too difficult to get upwind with such inconsistent wind, boats out and small current
snagged one of those homey buoys
dropped it off on the other side ...
not sure i wanna go here again - am getting fussy %^&*(
THURS 07JUN2018 - too bad i am home and sick - seems like a good day to go out...
heard mixed reports from OKA - wind too up n down ...
Seems George was out with a 15 m kite sail and LARGE kite board - fins all on one side
Benleau was out with his iSonic 117W and a GA 7
Benwindy also out with a 7-oh - on his 135 or ??
Guess if i went it would be MEQ2 with the Duke 6.9 rigged loose and never get a rating over 7.5
Sunday 20MAY 2018 i had the chance to try it on Lake of Two Mountains in NW 20+ kph winds. The board went fine and i was considering going to the other side of the lake before tacking in case anything went went wrong ... Ah, what can go wrong ... It was a little tricky to tack and on the second attempt, the sail and board separated with the sail in my hands ...
Managed to get the board and when i turned towards the sail, the board slipped out of my hands ...
This board seems to float high in the water and with the wind and waves, it was moving ...
do i abandon the sail and go for the board again ??
what if i don't get the board then i have nothing $%^&*
stayed with the sail ...
So .. that brings my number of boards down to six ...
Still have NOT recovered it many weeks later and Eric is suggesting I resort to options a little more out of the bag - for me it is a $200 board - for Eric it was a board found and fixed and part of a D2 revival - sorry Eric ...
12MAY2018 beautiful day and I am driving to the Quebec City Aquarium ... alone ...
Now, WHY would I do that ??
Sold my AHD SL2 132 to Louis Leclerc of Rimouski who is getting back into windsurfing ...
For me, it is a board I did not get to use it to its full potential ...
Needed more time with water starting , tacking, gybing and obviously foot straps ...
Helmut asked "WHY did you sell it ? You are still buying old stuff !!"
This year purchased a D2 REIX longboard.
Told Helmut I was preparing for the races in Trois Rivières and Kingston :-)
Trois Rivières is FRI AUG 3 - SUN AUG 6 ...
Kingston is AUG 11-13 ??
man that is close together !!
I would have liked to keep the board, but I had eight boards - now seven ...
Two at the chalet and the Mistral SLE is another sell potential ...
Here at home I now have FIVE boards
1) the D2 REIX
2) Mistral Equipe 2 XR - my most used board
3) JP SLW92 - my early planing machine - could sell this one easily - HIGH demand at the moment
4) Shark 145
5) BEE 124 LTD - my high wind board - with 6.3 - don't go smaller ...
If I don't use the JP SLW enough, I will sell it too ...
Was considering foiling with it ...
If I sell the SLW, I will also sell the TR-4 10 + 520/100 mast + HPL carbon boom
SAT 05MAY2018 OKA end of beach MEQ2 GA FLOW3X WNW 10-50 kph = 8 outta 10
yesterday was MAJOR wind in Hamilton, Toronto and Hamilton. Here is a snip-it from Toronto aeroport. realizing it is MPH !!!
Worked Fri night to Sat morning and had enough energy to go out. Just in case - took the MEQ2 and the smaller GA FLOW3X. The HSM SPF 8.5 is still at the in-law chalet. Gotta go get it SOON. There was a BIG wind shadow and there was period with almost NO wind and then a GREAT blast. If it would have stayed LOW it would have been 7 outta 10 !! windalert is free this week...
Forgot to mention:
the entrance via the camping section was closed due to high water
obviously means the water levels were high at the beach as well
la Crête was completely locked down
others made it there Wednesday and were told to leave the area when discovered
saw one dude head out on a bright sail that looked like S2Maui colours
did not see him again until i came in an hour later and winds were back up
may have been Charleau with his Blast 115 and SW Hucker 6.6
02MAY2018 did NOT rain today = finally and it seems many went on the water UNTIL they were overwhelmed by BIG gusts. It was SO warm that Yvente was out in a shortie ...
graphs are available on iwindsurf this week FREE
SUN 29APR2018 was hoping to go out today, but may have mixed up my days.
Yesterday was less rain. Now we are getting constant rain and flood warnings.
NOTHING like last year. Except Fredericton, NB is flooding almost as bad as 2008.
Picked up my REIX Competition from Eric Bouillet on South Shore.
He wants me to show up at Trois Rivières and Kingston with my D2 !!
Michael Hollow is selling his RSD2 out of Toronto, but asking $2499 !!
SUN 22APR2018 went up to the in-law/out-law chalet and carved a path to the lake through two feet of snow. The ice is starting to melt at the sides - barely. On top of the ice is just a thin layer of snow and then solid ice. There seemed to be some wind from NNW. With my re-done snow sled and the SW Retro 8-oh, it woudda bin a GO !!!
SAT 21APR2018 OKA main beach MEQ2 TR-6 8.4 WNW 20+ kph = 8 outta 10
Just last week I was considering going on the ice @ Vaudreuils. Now the water is open and there is little to no ice on the edges. Was hoping to use the HSM SPF 8.5, but it is at the in-law chalet. Forgot how heavy and how much work the race sails are. Had my new 5 mm semi-dry quicksilver boots, BARE two piece wetsuit and Dakine gloves. There was a windshadow at the shore, but good winds further out ... It was the sail that did me in AND the wetsuit. My forearms hurt, especially the right one. The good news is that I was NOT cold at all and the water is marked as 3 degrees C. It helps that it was a beautiful sunny day. Saw two kites further west, in the La Crête bay area ... musta started from the other side ... Had a power nap after.
ah yes, was wondering about foiling - André says 2 meter less of a sail required
means would have been out with a 6 to 7 square meter sail = much easier to handle ,,,
when i arrived, i realized that i had NOT checked my list - THE checklist !!
was NOT sure I had my sailing glasses, nor the pouch to put my car key ...
luckily the glasses were there and the key went in the harness pouch ...
also, when i undid the mast, i forgot to loosen bottom camber first :-(
rough start, but still an 8 outta 10 !!
Never regret my windsurf sessions ...
THURS 12APR2018 Vaudreils
SAT 07APR2018 checked OKA Parc and the winter season is OVER !!
wind was howling in the morning and so, went and checked a little later
even gtj was saying wind was too big for windskate ...
looks like the ice cracks got larger and the wind blew the pieces about
creating the ice piles i was so used on Lake Simcoe when i was young
nice photo op !!
MON 02APR2018 ice sled OKA HSM Fire 6.3 WSW 20+ kph = 9 outta 10 !!
So far this winter I have been out about five(5) times and none of them were memorable ...
We got back from the States a little bit early (Easter weekend) and nights are back to being a little colder.
Winds to start later in the day and I arrived at OKA Parc at around 11h00..
Ice was hard with NO snow on it, but it was rough. This means NO spinout, but don't fall ...
Was going to put the 7.0 meter sail, but put the 6.3 just in case ... NOT going for speed ...
There were brown spots on the ice to the east and so stayed further west and not too far out ...
Went in the harness a couple of times, but it was not needed.
Met Sylvain the kite foiler on my way out. Said he went yesterday, but it was slushy and he water skied over a two(2) foot crack with water - NOT what I saw and so am glad I stayed in the area that i did. Gave it such a high rating because it had to be the best of the season and perhaps the last ...
SAT 17MAR2018 Vaudreuils NW 30-50 kph snow sled GA Flow3 = 5 outta 10 :-(
Since it was NW was not sure I wanted to do the BIG walk on the ice like last week. Took the Subaru with both sleds on the roof and all three sails inside (6.3, 7.0 and 8.0). When I got there, there was no-one. That's a bad start. Walked down for first check and for sure need the snow sled. Even at that did not like the amount of snow. The wind was quite strong and solid and so opted for the 7-oh. Sure enough the issue was the snow. Also, one of the skis has the metal loose underneath which is not perfect. Could get it going, but was rough over the snow and the wind was strong and so hard to go from nothing. Perhaps should have tried a "water start" - get into postion sitting down and let wind pull me up n forward ... Since it was colder than usual and I was not having fun, decided to call it a failure. Have to rate it since i did go out and so, gave it a fiver. This is because no-one got hurt and nothing broke. The wind was actually good. What I really wonder is, how would this work with a deeper snow sled ? wind was strong !! the image is still in POC mode/proof of concept i.e. not assembled
Used to say that the snow sled was good in 3 to 4 inches. After today I would say more like 2-3 inches...
SAT 10MAR2018 OKA 20-40 kph NW snow-sled SW Retro 8.0 => 8 outta 10
wet snow on the ice from Thursday and wind shadow from the NW
met Mannie from previous job, Bomardier Aerospace in the parking lot
tried the ice sled first, but was pushing snow - conditions were about 6 outta 10
took out the snow sled and put a larger sail - to overcome drag - the patched SW Retro 8.0wet snow on the ice from Thursday and wind shadow from the NW
met Mannie from previous job, Bomardier Aerospace in the parking lot
tried the ice sled first, but was pushing snow - conditions were about 6 outta 10
fellow from VoilOka came out on his skis - wanted to know who is windsurfing in the winter
thought he said his name was Mark, but website says Jason ...
he tried it and was VERY interested
his buddy is building a sled with a raised platform too !!!
he too remarked that we were in a windshadow - we could see 2 kites further out ...
the wind where we were just was not enough - another bare 6 outta 10
as i was going out past the windshadow i spoke with a fellow kite skiing
lo and behold, it was ski-Guy :-) with an Ozone kite that has chambers - cannot be used in water
he also has paraski sails ...
once i got past the windshadow I was good to go ... now the real fun started
after about 45 minutes I was burnt - i had done too many attempts in the lighter wind section...
my right forearm was TIGHT
also adjusted the harness lines a few times - that helped, but it was too late.
walked the board in , but was not ashamed
i managed once again to windsurf on the ice n snow !!
the sled is the same as this one - but without the additional blue extension
and as discussed the sail was my old SW Retro 8.0
On the quebecwind forum, where I wrote the French version of this outing,
they commented on the green grass under the sail (obviously an old photo)
and so ... i put this photo :-)
Forgot to mention ...the local river, Rivière Milles Isles, is FINISHED
i.e. TOO dangerous to even try and windsurf on
tested it last week near Parc Charboneau and was ok
the section near the bridge is OPEN i.e. finished !!
unfortunately NOT open enough to windsurf on the water either
wonder how Lac St-Louis is doing then ??
should have checked Sunday when I visited my mother on West Island :-(
There was some wet snow on top of the ice, but ok after freezing temperatures over night. Gave the ice about a seven out of 10. Was going to give the wind the same, but it did pick up and thus 7.5 out of ten. Since I did manage to go out and no animals were hurt in the process, i am giving it an 8 outta 10 session. The animals are myself and the kit...
The harness lines were adjusted more forward and everything was great ...
Am hoping for a session with great ice n wind though !!
SAT 03FEB2018 already FEB and had 2 rotten sessions so far :-(
went to local river (with my stuff) to check it out
van heater fan was not working again and ice/snow was so/so
wind was supposed to be WSW about 10 mph - yeah right
stayed around 4-6 mph - not even worth trying with the 8-oh $%^&*
next time go check first ?? not that far from home ...
still no sessions, but by end of FEB with all the thawing, rain and freezing the ice conditions were good... for me NO wind on weekends and/or busy with moving people. Buddy Georges does get out and calls Lake of Two Mountains a real skating rink = MY kinda conditions #$%^&*
IceKiting On The Lac / Come Fly With Me from Georges Kassir on Vimeo.
The above video disappeared and I asked George to put one back ...
Not sure this was the one, but in ay case ...
George's video was from 26FEB which was a Monday. Yes, a workday for most of us :-(
Well, I managed to get back from the States earlier than expected and managed to get out:
checked yesterday and looked ok, but no wind. Today it warmed up - over +4 degrees C ... The wind was good at 12 to 17 mph WSW. The temperature made the snow soft and there was water in some places. The snow was NOT conducive to a good ride on neither ice nor snow sleds. Giving the session a bear pass ... Need better base ...
from Eric Bouillet.
He is the international spokesperson for the DIV2 class !!
The board was found on the rocks and repaired. He managed to get original parts from France, but it has a BIC Sport fin in US slot. The mast base screws into the "holes" and twist tightens. A regular mast base can attach to that. It came with the REIX sail too and thus is practically DIV2 race ready.
There are NOT many pictures of this board on the internet. Did find this one as well. Will have correct that situation :-)
SAT 20JAN2018: another disappointing day :-(
after seeing George's video from OKA ...
https://www.facebook.com/georges.kassir/videos/951309231700259/after seeing George's video from OKA ...
thought those conditions looked ok and George confirmed it on the phone
BIG winds today and so brought the small sails and checked it out = NON
same as local river as far as i was concerned
slush and could NOT see where it stopped and 3-4 inches of wet snow
later went to Pte-Claire to look at houses & checked Lac St-Louis = MUCH BETTER
will have to keep an eye on that
ooops that video disappeared from vimeo
SAT 06JAN2018 today it was around -20 degrees C and windy ... Like yesterday ... Had to go to the local river and check the conditions. Yes, it is still frozen ... They have marked the ski trail on the south side with the XMAS trees. The conditions were ALL over the place - like never seen before !! There were perfect sections with some snow on the ice, there were others with deep snow on the ice, some sections had had the water blown over the snow and froze AND there were still sections with deeper snow, then water on the solid ice. The WORST conditions ever. NOT even going to work next week and the temps go up. May have to check Lac de Deux Montagnes after all ...
01JAN2018 The day started with a BANG. Fireworks on the lake up north @ 01012018 00h00. Next day snow looked like it did not sink much when others and the dogs went over it. It was confirmed the ice was good and there was not much snow. As usual, this means the wind was lacking and my stuff was elsewhere ...
Headed back home with the young Bee and left the wife up north with her family including her mum. The wind looked promising and so, packed the van with the 2 best sleds, 8-oh and 7-oh sails and all the rest of it. Barely out of the driveway and got upset. The fan for the front window was not starting. This has happened before in a winter and now we are having -20 days and even less at night. Oh well, if i am blinded by the sunlight and kill someone, at least i have an excuse - you got it - the sun !! Made it to the river, but already had a bad taste in my mouth. The river now had a wet layer on top also and saw water in the snow footprints. Am sure it was thick enough, but with those conditions and the lack of good wind... headed home with my tail between my legs. In the winter it can be more discouraging.
Buddies from NE states sending me this video from 29DEC2017 does NOT help !!
Then they got snow which ruined their ideal conditions too :-(
Luckily the next day the temperature went up considerably - to a whopping -16 degrees C and the fan in the van worked - no wind of course %^&*(
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