Sport Today

> Notice the forecast from Sunday night:
> http://www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl/pages/SRF.php
>  700 PM HST SUN FEB 5 2006
> A HIGH SURF WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES
> Surf along north facing shores will decline overnight to heights of 20
> to 25 feet Monday.
> Note the report says -- decline to 20 to 25 feet. It was maybe 30 feet
> at Spartan reef on Sunday. I took a big wave, first of the day. I rode
> it for a while, and then it closed out. I tried to outrun it, but it
> caught me and ripped my gear away. I'm about a mile from shore.

> I come out of the spin cycle and I see my board pop up 20 feet
> downwind. And I notice that there is no sail!  Yikes! I was planning to
> get my new equipment a few months earlier and I knew my universal was
> worn. I think "so what, I planned to get a new rig next week; the rig
> is at the bottom of the sea. I got to get my new board to make it to
> shore! Oh, if I had only replaced my worn universal."

> I start swimming for the board. I've never had the sail detach, so I
> didn't know how fast the board could get away from me. Another wave
> came crashing down on me, and my board pops up farther away. Ok, I've
> got to swim fast for the board, or I'm in real deep shit. Another wave
> comes, and when I come up, I can't see my board. I'm thinking "Ok,
> don't panic. You swim in the ocean all the time. The ocean is your
> friend." There are no other windsurfers or anybody in the whole ocean
> as I can tell! Igor was with me, but he ended going in, maybe because
> the wind was light. Nobody can hear me scream, and nobody can see me. I
> swim for the shore. I'm aware that if I swim against a current, I could
> tire myself out and drown. But I'm so far from shore I can't tell if a
> rip is pulling me away from shore, and there are 30 foot waves breaking
> a 100 yards out in deeper water. I start swimming for baby beach, but
> it seems that I'm not making progress. So I swim toward Sugar Cove,
> which is much farther. I really thinking that there is a chance I won't
> be able to swim to shore. I start wondering how long I can stay out in
> the ocean, especially with the waves and currents. I try to stay calm
> and keep swimming. Eventually, I see a lone windsurfer downwind off of
> the Spreckelsville launch, maybe 500 yards downwind and toward the
> beach from me. Luckily, the guy sees me. At this point, I'm maybe 300
> yards from shore. I could probably have swam the rest, but I was so
> happy to touch that sailboard and know that I wouldn't die today. The
> guy, an intermediate from Holland, tried to tow me. He had difficulty,
> so I offered to tow him. I sailed the two of us most of the way to
> shore, and then traded with the other guy. I was really tired at this
> point. We soon landed on the beach. I was so happy to be alive.

> I walked up the beach, and flagged down Igor, who went back out
> sailing. If Igor had not went into the beach at the time I was drifting
> back, he probably would have seen me. I then ran into Tom Cherry, who
> advised me to drive to Camp One and Kanaha looking for the board.

> Igor told me that he never saw me go down, and that he thought I was
> still out at the upper reef, when in fact somebody else had launched.

> After a hot shower, I jumped in my truck. No luck when I drove up to
> Camp One. I then got to Kanaha at about 6pm, at the lower reef parking
> lot by the lifeguard tower. The first guy I asked about a lost
> sailboard hadn't heard anything. I then asked the next guy (I believe
> Dave Ezzy) and he said "Yeah, some board washed up on the beach 30
> minutes ago." I ran down to the beach, and to my pleasant surprise,
> there was my new Mistral Beast, which was pulled in from the lineup at
> Kanaha at about 5:30pm, about 2 and a half hours after I lost the
> board.

> A guy named Axel towed it in. I then talked to Glenn Hasseldorf from
> Hot sails. He told me that they were wondering if they should call the
> coast guard if nobody showed up for the board by sunset.

> Boy, did I feel luck today.

> I'm definitely going to do the following:

> 1. Put my name on my equipment, in case it washes up. That way, the
> guys that found my board could have called me before calling the coast
> guard.

> 2. Maybe get  a  marine radio, and flares, if I'm going to sail at
> Spartan when it's big. Just having a friend sail with you isn't good
> enough.

> I guess I proved that I  can  swim to shore for two hours, but I never
> want to that again!

> The next day, I chatted with the lifeguards at Baldwin. If an accident
> ever happens at outer sprecks, a sailor can sail into Baldwin, and the
> lifeguards will take out the ski to help a distressed sailor.

> The lifeguard also said that they would immediately respond to a flare.

> QUESTION:
> Does anybody have any advice on purchasing either a marine radio or
> flares--what products and from where--and what is the best way to attch
> them to one's harness?

> Aloha,

> Justin

> Notice the forecast from Sunday night:
> http://www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl/pages/SRF.php
> 700 PM HST SUN FEB 5 2006
> A HIGH SURF WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES
> Surf along north facing shores will decline overnight to heights of 20
> to 25 feet Monday.
> Note the report says -- decline to 20 to 25 feet. It was maybe 30 feet
> at Spartan reef on Sunday. I took a big wave, first of the day. I rode
> it for a while, and then it closed out. I tried to outrun it, but it
> caught me and ripped my gear away. I'm about a mile from shore.

> I come out of the spin cycle and I see my board pop up 20 feet
> downwind. And I notice that there is no sail!  Yikes! I was planning to
> get my new equipment a few months earlier and I knew my universal was
> worn. I think "so what, I planned to get a new rig next week; the rig
> is at the bottom of the sea. I got to get my new board to make it to
> shore! Oh, if I had only replaced my worn universal."

> I start swimming for the board. I've never had the sail detach, so I
> didn't know how fast the board could get away from me. Another wave
> came crashing down on me, and my board pops up farther away. Ok, I've
> got to swim fast for the board, or I'm in real deep shit. Another wave
> comes, and when I come up, I can't see my board. I'm thinking "Ok,
> don't panic. You swim in the ocean all the time. The ocean is your
> friend." There are no other windsurfers or anybody in the whole ocean
> as I can tell! Igor was with me, but he ended going in, maybe because
> the wind was light. Nobody can hear me scream, and nobody can see me. I
> swim for the shore. I'm aware that if I swim against a current, I could
> tire myself out and drown. But I'm so far from shore I can't tell if a
> rip is pulling me away from shore, and there are 30 foot waves breaking
> a 100 yards out in deeper water. I start swimming for baby beach, but
> it seems that I'm not making progress. So I swim toward Sugar Cove,
> which is much farther. I really thinking that there is a chance I won't
> be able to swim to shore. I start wondering how long I can stay out in
> the ocean, especially with the waves and currents. I try to stay calm
> and keep swimming. Eventually, I see a lone windsurfer downwind off of
> the Spreckelsville launch, maybe 500 yards downwind and toward the
> beach from me. Luckily, the guy sees me. At this point, I'm maybe 300
> yards from shore. I could probably have swam the rest, but I was so
> happy to touch that sailboard and know that I wouldn't die today. The
> guy, an intermediate from Holland, tried to tow me. He had difficulty,
> so I offered to tow him. I sailed the two of us most of the way to
> shore, and then traded with the other guy. I was really tired at this
> point. We soon landed on the beach. I was so happy to be alive.

> I walked up the beach, and flagged down Igor, who went back out
> sailing. If Igor had not went into the beach at the time I was drifting
> back, he probably would have seen me. I then ran into Tom Cherry, who
> advised me to drive to Camp One and Kanaha looking for the board.

> Igor told me that he never saw me go down, and that he thought I was
> still out at the upper reef, when in fact somebody else had launched.

> After a hot shower, I jumped in my truck. No luck when I drove up to
> Camp One. I then got to Kanaha at about 6pm, at the lower reef parking
> lot by the lifeguard tower. The first guy I asked about a lost
> sailboard hadn't heard anything. I then asked the next guy (I believe
> Dave Ezzy) and he said "Yeah, some board washed up on the beach 30
> minutes ago." I ran down to the beach, and to my pleasant surprise,
> there was my new Mistral Beast, which was pulled in from the lineup at
> Kanaha at about 5:30pm, about 2 and a half hours after I lost the
> board.

> A guy named Axel towed it in. I then talked to Glenn Hasseldorf from
> Hot sails. He told me that they were wondering if they should call the
> coast guard if nobody showed up for the board by sunset.

> Boy, did I feel luck today.

> I'm definitely going to do the following:

> 1. Put my name on my equipment, in case it washes up. That way, the
> guys that found my board could have called me before calling the coast
> guard.

> 2. Maybe get  a  marine radio, and flares, if I'm going to sail at
> Spartan when it's big. Just having a friend sail with you isn't good
> enough.

> I guess I proved that I  can  swim to shore for two hours, but I never
> want to that again!

> The next day, I chatted with the lifeguards at Baldwin. If an accident
> ever happens at outer sprecks, a sailor can sail into Baldwin, and the
> lifeguards will take out the ski to help a distressed sailor.

> The lifeguard also said that they would immediately respond to a flare.

> QUESTION:
> Does anybody have any advice on purchasing either a marine radio or
> flares--what products and from where--and what is the best way to attch
> them to one's harness?

> Aloha,

> Justin

> they made ( well requested )him pay 40 bucks for the second one he
> broke i wont say who,........... even with insurance. gosh darn salt
> water and aluminum.
> Shred

> Alan

> --
> Windsurfing Club: http://www.ibscc.org

>>     Wow   a timely topic. my buddy and me are going to maui in april
>>and i was thinking about how to sail more safely, when i go .
>>  Reason,  he told me a story of his last visit, sailing well outside
>>the reef at kanaha, he  hits a big swell comes down with rig and board
>>separated . Single pin mastbase parted ways with the board .
>>Now  this guy he checks his kit over big time so simple issue of
>>somehow the base spinning off becomes big trouble.
>>   So there he is bobbing in the drink , no PFT in blue water way out
>>with his rig ,the board is gonzo. I think he ditched the rig and tried
>>swimming for  the board and may have lost both i dunno . he didnt want
>>to talk about it much.
>>   Point is he is way outside and its the end of the day.
>>  After swimming for awhile getting fatigued and thinking that this is
>>it, some woman sails up ( god bless the sailing wahines)gets the
>>lifeguard and jetski.
>> This was 2 years ago, and he never told me till a few months ago it
>>shook him up that much..
>> so i am going to buy flares when i get to maui and attach them to my
>>harness and or wear and old mistral chest harness i have that has a
>>mesh bag on the back and put them in there . Check my gear like crazy,
>>freqeuntly while coming in for breaks. And use a twin pin mast base .
>>I am trying to take less chances. Going out on the the ocean there is
>>always a "chance" things will happen no matter what you do.
>> sailing kihei years back between me and a buddy ( another bloke) we
>>broke three alloy booms in a single day just blasting around , no
>>jumping. We are both about 190 lbs and it was blowing. All breakages
>>way out side , half way to Maalaea harbour.  We declined mother natures
>> free trip to Tahiti passing including tin the package a  molokini and
>>Kahoolawee scenic float by tour and were , luckily,  able to flip the
>>rigs over and sail back with half a boom, can be done....... thank God.

>>they made ( well requested )him pay 40 bucks for the second one he
>>broke i wont say who,........... even with insurance. gosh darn salt
>>water and aluminum.
>>Shred

> they made ( well requested )him pay 40 bucks for the second one he
> broke i wont say who,........... even with insurance. gosh darn salt
> water and aluminum.
> Shred

> A couple of things:
> 1) Make sure you buy a radio that is rated "submersible."
> 2) Make sure you buy a waterproof pouch for the radio.  The West
> Marine case is garbage.  There is a british company called Aquapac
> that make the best cases and you don't have to take the radio out of
> the pouch to talk. 3) If you feel like spending a little more, they
> make a small submersible that is like the size of a pack of cigarettes.
> 4) I keep the radio around my neck under my wetsuit, which is probably
> not feasbile in Hawaii.  DaKine and Windsurfing Hawaii both make
> safety pouches that can attach to your harness.

> Hope that helps.  Say hi to Igor.  He hasn't been missing much in
> Tahoe this year.

> CHris

> brad

>>West Marine is a good place to buy a marine radio.They warrant the
>>things for three years, which you will use.

>>A couple of things:
>>1) Make sure you buy a radio that is rated "submersible."
>>2) Make sure you buy a waterproof pouch for the radio.  The West
>>Marine case is garbage.  There is a british company called Aquapac
>>that make the best cases and you don't have to take the radio out of
>>the pouch to talk. 3) If you feel like spending a little more, they
>>make a small submersible that is like the size of a pack of cigarettes.
>>4) I keep the radio around my neck under my wetsuit, which is probably
>>not feasbile in Hawaii.  DaKine and Windsurfing Hawaii both make
>>safety pouches that can attach to your harness.

>>Hope that helps.  Say hi to Igor.  He hasn't been missing much in
>>Tahoe this year.

>>CHris