Editor's Puffs:   by Roy Tansill
Another August in the books.... that reality use to really ruin my mood when it also meant school was reopening and the focus of my ‘job’ was shifting from playing to studying.  Different times in a different location and September to me is now little more than extended August.  Its a time when I’ve gotten use to taking the longboard off the garage wall and putting it on the trailer.  Long cruises are a great way to enjoy  not-enuf-wind hot late summer days.  In Texas, that requires carrying a hydration supply. While not as hard as two-a-day football practices, a long cruise on a sunny day will leave you just as dehydrated.  After reading the sports page news of dehydration deaths, I began looking for solutions.  I even put in a stock of Gator Aid,  now there’s an improved product- the original version tasted like rubber bands.  That reminded me of my initial experiences with onboard hydration. 
     I tried a Camelbak when they first came out- the hardly refreshing liquid that dribbled from the tube tasted like rubber band tea (regardless what you filled it with!).  That device quickly found a niche in the basement into which all minor mistakes ‘still like new’ were consigned.  I next tried a bandoleer able to hold a 6-pack of cans and ice.  Ever had someone drip ice water onto the back of your legs for an extended time? It found a home right on top of the CamelBak in the basement.  I could get away with hour-long nonstop cruises without thirst using the preload strategy (this is not recommended in wet suit weather).  Double that using one of those little pump breath sprays- they make you salivate like one of Pavlov's dogs.  Things improve in time, even Gatorade. 
     I figured it was time to revisit onboard hydration  and see if there was anything better than the 2 Bud can baseball cap available now.  Academy had a variety of bike backpacks with  hydration schemes but none built for water activity.  They ranged in price from $9.95 to $24.95  and liquid storage from 50 to 96 ml.  These were not genuine Camelbaks so my search continued.  I found a Camelbak dealer via their website; it is the Schwinn Bicycle shop on the 358 Airline off ramp.  Their 1.5 liter ‘Hydrobak’ model seemed just right.  Its insulated with closed cell foam which adds a bit to floatation and keeps drink temperature well either hot or cold.  The liquid container has a full sized screw on cap making it easy to put ice cubes in with the liquid.  The only hassle was the ‘improved’ bite valve which the instructions failed to explain.  Since I just purchased the nifty light weight backpack today, I’ve yet to see what it will do to a liter of Gatorade. It couldn’t make the improved Gator Aid taste as bad as the original and now it will be cold as well.  You have to admit the prospect of a gulp of hot coffee would sure be great while winter sailing.  I wonder how it would feel inside your wetsuit...  There is even an adjustable bungee chord webbing on the back to hold your other goodies you just can’t sail without (spare line, signal device, pager, all that stuff).  I’ll let you know how it works after rigorous testing is completed. 
Trial Outcome in Boat-Board Collision
     The trial for the San Antonio boater who collided with CCWA member Don Cryer out at Bird last April was held in July.  The DUI Charge was dropped by the prosecutor because the evidence was insufficient.  The boater was found guilty of reckless operation of a water craft, fined $130, given six months probation, and required to complete a USCG Auxiliary safe boating course.  The boater’s insurance company settled the claim with Don for replacement of his destroyed Roberts board well before the trial 
     A lot of folks dodged a bullet in this incident.  Don wasn’t hurt at least nothing that lasted more than a day or two.  That boater was probably closer to jail than he had ever been in his life.  The officials who could have been held liable for not providing a safer environment on the water: all were lucky this time.  Hopefully this will be a wakeup call to all parties out there on the water.  How different this all could have been if  that collision was a T-bone job and resulted in severe injury.... or worse. 
     If anyone has a transition board (10 to 11.5 feet in length w/ small center board) that’s not seeing any use, I know of someone who wants one badly enough to pay a small pittance for it.  Please give me a call  (at 949-1982) if you have one or know of one available nearby.  Here’s your chance to gain a few dollars and get rid of that old Pandera thereby freeing up enough garage space so you can store that new potato chip race board you know you want. 

Guy Racette has penned a series of articles for the next several issues about the new REALLY wide boards and what they’ll do and how to make them do it.  After reading all three, I’m feeling an urge to go get one of those wide critters.  Don’t miss the  enlightening series- the first is in this issue.

Let’s kick Some.... Sand   by   Guy Racette
     Having spent several hundred hours out there on (sometimes IN) the waters of Corpus Christi Bay, I’d like to share some thoughts. 
     First, it’s becoming the norm that on lighter days, kites outnumber sails at Oleander.  On the windier afternoons, the bump-n-jump crowd of windsurfers comes out and still outnumbers the kites. I like kites.  Not everyone does, but they’re great fun to watch, and I can usually keep out of their way.  Although I plan to do kiting some day, I don’t think it can supplant windsurfing - especially windsurfing competition - for me.
     Second, it’s a big surprise to me how in just one season I’ve almost completely reset my personal guidelines for how much sail goes with a given amount of wind.  Oh, sure if it’s peaking at 25+, I still enjoy the old wave board and our ancient (by windsurfing standards) ’93 Tri-Lites, but I’ve also learned it’s not much more trouble to hop on a 7.8 or even an 8.7 with a Formula board.  I’m not sure why.  Maybe it’s all that acreage upon which to stand, giving me the option to step out farther and apply more leverage against the sail.  However, there is that fear threshold of about 28 or 30 where I still struggle to get up the nerve to head off the wind.  See, you can still get smacked, but good!  But I’m having a blast learning.
     Third, and despite the big sails, fins and boards, it’s remarkable how much faster these new wide style boards go.  Not just upwind.  Not just in light air.  On every point of sail (with the possible exception of beam reach), they allow the use of bigger fins and bigger sails for greater speed with better control.  I know it sounds (and LOOKS!) impossibly clumsy but it’s really not.  The whole mess just floats up onto its own air pressure front and glides along, with mostly just the fin in the water.  A little front foot pressure keeps everything stable.  Chop that used to shake my fillings loose now just seems to disappear underneath the board unnoticed.
     Given all that, it amazes me to see how the contingent of local sailors participating in Organized Racing has dwindled. Sure, lots of folks have moved away, some have gotten into kite surfing, others have no time for on-the-water activity of any kind.    Still, I would have thought that a town like ours would support greater numbers of regular racing enthusiasts.  It gets kind of lonely out there.  Still, I’m out there working to get some exercise and to maintain and improve on my racing skills.  Even without a regular training partner, there’s much to learn. 
     I know the folks out there at Bird Island are racing each other all the time.  “Going for the Pass” I like to call it.  You line up your opponent, who hopefully doesn’t know he/she’s racing.  You turn just behind and upwind onto an intercept course, and bear away just enough to blow by. While it’s great fun, this type of opportunistic racing does little to improve the sailor’s overall skills.  It makes one faster on a flat water reach, and that’s about it.  (I’ve done enough of it myself over the years to know...)
     So what I’m hoping to do here is to write a series of articles that will encourage flat-water sailors who have avoided the bay so far to give it a try.  Of those sailors, (many of whom I feel are clearly ready to take their skills to the next level) I hope at least a few will consider racing.  Now that the Formula Rules have made it relatively affordable, it seems a shame to me if a windy town like Corpus Christi can’t field a great team of racers in every division.  Plus I’m sick of having those west coast bullies kick sand in our faces.
Biff

Board Stealing Dirtbags Nabbed- Commodore’s Board Returned
Received 08/31 @ 9:00 PM
At approximately 3:30 today, Cline St. received a phone call.The caller's number appeared on the Caller ID. The felon asked Oliver if he was interested in a used F2 Axxis wave board w/ a slight nose ding. Of course, Oliver was hip and played along. Police were notified of the callers intent. His identity matched that of a kid, who attends my church. The police were into laying a trap at Oliver's. He was willing to play along. The kid failed to show.  However, the the Caller ID revealed it to be the son of one of the deacons of the church. We put the squeeze to him and he sang like the proverbial canary. We went to one of the accomplice's home, found the board in his truck. The truck was immediately impounded.The dirtbag, faced w/ a felony burglary charge, turned stoolie and revealed the rest of his associates. The cops did the good cop, bad cop, angered and hostile owner routine and scared the living &*%@ out of the idiot. He's going to play along and the case of the Commodore Burglary is over. Special thanks to Oliver, who played his part to help me get my board back.
Chip Biery

Kitemares/Darwin Award Candidate
Reprinted from rec.windsurfing news group
     All day yesterday it was sunny and the wind was cranking.  Unfortunately I was at work.  As soon as I got off I raced down to the beach, set up, and waited for my newbie friend to show up so I could help him launch his new foil.  I got him set up and ready to launch, then I launched my 9.4 inflatable and was waiting for him to put his leash on so we could hit the water.  During our setup time, it had gone from sunny and nice, to cloudy and a little drizzle.....typical.
     Anyway, we were too excited for a little rain to stop us, so we proceeded as planned.  I decided to do a little beach jump just to test the wind.  I got about three feet off the sand, and when I came down I heard a weird snap.  I waited for the pain to start coming from the bottom of my foot because I figured I landed on a stick and broke it, but I felt nothing so I just shrugged it off.  A couple seconds later I wanted to do a big jump so I started running with my kite, switched the kite around, and got lifted about 8 feet off the beach.  When I came down, I landed on my right ankle and heard this sickening snap and for an instant I thought I shattered my ankle.  I took a couple steps and didn't feel any pain, and then I figured out what was going on.  As I was in the air, I was getting electrostatically charged, and as I hit the ground I would loose my charge back to the earth.  The snapping sound was sparks going from my foot to the wet sand.  I immediately downed my kite, yelled at my friend not to launch, and got the heck out of there. 
     In retrospect, the rain and forecasted isolated thunderstorms should have been big red flags when deciding to launch....but my enthusiasm got the best of me.  Luckily I learned that lesson without killing myself.  I just thought I'd pass this along and maybe keep someone else from flagrantly disregarding their common sense like I normally do.
Ed’s Note:  The above posting drew many responses from the news group readers one of whom recommended attaching the kiters car keys to their kite lines the next time this fellow decided to fly a kite near thunderstorms

A Flat water Geek from New Mexico Comments on the 2001 USWA Nationals - Hood River, OR.
     What wind? - Who would have guessed that the Gorge would only offer up enough wind for two days [Tu & Th] of racing, out of a possible five days. I heard the same thing just about happened during the '95 Nationals in HR.  Guess lightning can strike the same place twice... Good thing they ran us hard on the first day - five races with almost no breaks between races. On Thursday, the races were cancelled at 4:00 [lack of wind] and of course it started to blow thirty minutes later. Could have easily gotten in one or two races. At 4:00, the wind was slowly building and it was starting to cap at the Hatch. We could have also raced on Saturday, at the alternate Stevenson site, in east winds. I'm sure Darren [Rogers], our race director, got a bit of flack over those decisions. With the luxury of hindsight, It's easy for us to give him a load of shoulda. Here's one dose of shoulda - he should have taken off that Sailworks shirt and put on a Neil Pryde bull's-eye.  Makes it easier to ready, aim, fire...
     Prodigal Fun? - Out of thin air, the Mistral Prodigy class appeared at the Nationals. Something like 4 or 6 in the class. Just what we need - another exclusive Formula class to alienate the other manufacturers and stifle the small board builders. It [Prodigy] is probably a great [beginner and race] board, but the dwindling interest in Techno is the writing on the wall for exclusive model/manufacturer Formula class racing. Put some dimensional and weight limits on the boards, limit the number of sails and fins used, and keep it open to all manufacturers - regular F-31 racing. The guy that won the Formula Senior Masters was riding his own creation of sun curing resin and a hand shaped blank from Home Depot [his board cost less than $200 in materials]. These garage gurus are what spur board development. Long live the David's of the world and down with Goliath..
      I spy - although racing is the main attraction at the Nationals, there's a lot of other entertainment during the five days. Example: You have World Cupper [North  Sails] Micah Buzianis and caddy, giving fellow North team rider Steve Sylvester some rigging tips, while Mike Percy [Windwing sail development], and Bruce Peterson [Sailworks designer] listen intently while in the immediate area. Wish I could read lips. Barry Spannier [Gaastra designer] was also glancing at some non-Gaas sails, on his rambling walks through the gear compound. And then you have Phil McGain coming back almost everyday with a different set of modified battens to install in his sails. I even heard a rumor that he totally recut and restitched a sail overnight. Guess that's what it takes for Phil to win...
     Camless crusade - Bruce Peterson used camless Retros the whole time. One of the other pros [Vlad?] took one out for a spin and commented that he could never get the lower battens to unwrap from behind the mast to give a clean leading edge. Since Bruce didn't win, wonder if he is now rethinking his strategy. Funny how Alex Aguera, first place Open Master, and Rob Mulder used cammed Sailworks...
     Happy w/o more wind - There was one person that was happy that the wind never returned for the last two days of the event, Mike Percey. Mike bent over to downhaul his sail and had his shin 'pop'. For the following days of no wind, he could barely walk. Steve Sylvester, nipping at Mike's heels in fourth, was probably praying for wind to take over third from Mike. BTW, Mike got third Open Master.
     Best of Times - Starting on port and getting clean air. Uneventfully blasting downwind at a speed that you thought would cause serious injury to yourself and the gear. Sharing all the trivial experiences with your fellow racers over a beer.
     Worst of Times - having the best start of the entire week [on port] and then having a general recall. Half the starboard starters were over early but I still was about fifth or sixth at the start. Funny how we [lead pack] continue to sail for a bit as your brain casts off the denial and deals with reality...
     Worst of Times-II - looking down and seeing grass and bubbles trail off the tail of the board. There's poor success in maneuvering a meter wide board with a 70 cm fin to miss mats of floating grass. Tough call as to when to deal with it - drag it all the way across the river and back up during a tack to remove it, hope that the problem grass will shed by sailing on [it never did], or deal with it as soon as it happened. I usually chose the first option after running out of hope. 
     Need more - Oldest racer was 72. Not enough Juniors either, only three. And where were the women? A threesome. You don't have to be 'alien class' to race. Put a band-aid on the ego and join us next year...
     Port burn - Bunch of the fleet got 3rd degree burned during a port start of the last race. The port tack start pack had grown to about 15-20 over the course of the previous races. Darren had set us a nice and long line that usually favored a port start. Getting clean air [avoiding the starboard blob] and hooking into the upwind current sooner was the honey that caused the popularity increase for port. However, twenty seconds before the start of the last race, the wind clocked 20 degrees to the North and gave the Starboard pack a big advantage. For us poor port tackers, in addition to getting a major header, the wind also vanished and left us in a vacuum for a minute or so. Most of us could not even make the start line, while pump, pump, pumping in a rage. That's racing...  Flip-flop frustration - In a building wind, grabbing a smaller sail, only to have the wind decrease. In a dropping wind, grabbing the big sail, only to have the wind increase. At least I explored the top end potential of my 9.5. I would not have guessed that a 9.5 was controllable [I didn't say easy and fun] in 22-24 knots of wind. That's what's cool about racing, you are forced to make a choice and cope in situations that are way outside one's usual comfort zone.
     Flap it - A lot of non-AVS boards were sporting a flap. At the suggestion of my board's designer, I glued one on the tail of my board. This almost totally eliminated spinout. It would still spinout, but usually you were given a tactile warning [you could feel it through the rear strap] to back off the fin, instead of being surprised and having the tail slide sideways.
     Stripes/concaves/cheaters - Quite a few of the boys riding Roberts boards with very dished out decks. When Rob [about 6'-5" and 200+ pounds] jumps on his board, the board deck almost flushes out level with the water. I like the concept of having as little volume as possible in the board. The width is the major contributor to current course racing design, not the volume. The concave deck also keep the nose from developing lift. The Roberts 'nosebleed' boards [slotted] are now passé. A fifth strap, centered between the two rear, 'cheater' strap is becoming a bit more popular. For most of the pro level [a.k.a. alien class] sailors it's rarely used, but sometimes it's better to finish a race w/o falling then to blaze and blowup on the downwind legs. Even Mike Zajicek [Mike's Lab builder] had one on his boards. Mike Zajicek [Mike's Lab] was giving Rob Mulder [Roberts] heck about the wide, black, racing stripes that some of the Roberts boards were sporting. The heat gain of the black areas on the board were pretty high - almost too hot to keep your hand on, while baking in the sun. And for those of you that don't believe in adjustable outhauls and harness lines, you would have been burned at the stake...
     Wrong priorities - I opted to free sail the two days before the event, instead of 'practicing' on a brand new board. I take racing seriously [placing 5th in Formula 39-44 year olds]. But being a wind starved New Mexican sailor, I could not let the best wind of the Summer [per the locals, it was best week of the season] go to waste on a raceboard. In essence, sailing a tiny board and sail [thanks for the loaner gear Windwing !!] IS practicing. Isn't it? By the start of the Nationals, all my upper body bone joints / tendons / ligaments were fried and bloodstream was well primed with Aleve and Motrin. At least I buckled down the day before racing started and got acquainted [a.k.a. pummeled] with 'The Beast' [to be named Blanca Grande, before the initial christening changed my idea of a more appropriate name]. There has got to be a more pleasant way to clean out the sinuses.  Doubling the size of the sail and riding a board that has twice the volume, sure is a shock...
     Thanks Grande - to the CGWA and USWA for putting on a great event. I also have to personally thank the folks at Windwing... Bill, Amy, Bob, Mark, Terry, Sonya (sp?) for all the support - having access to the store to work on my board, those hand delivered El Rinconcito [awesome!] burritos by Sonya and the daily loading of the cooler, sail mods and gear storage, shelter's shade sure was nice on those windless, sunny days, awesome Windwing pullover and t-shirt, yada, yada, yada... And also thanks to John and Marie Steward and Chris McNail for a place to bunk.      Barry Ritchey

New Member
Mrs. Tansill and I have a new family member (and therefore a new CCWA member) who arrived as a birthday gift for me from Berniece.  The happy 7 Lb bundle of energy is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier puppy who is named Red Cloud (after the Sioux Chief).  The little guy will soon be pulling guard duty on my board trailer as soon as we are finished spoiling him.  I would also like to deny the rumor that I’m teaching him to eat kite strings- he’s already learned that on his own after training on every shoestring in our house. 

Maybe we could...
     Following an exchange of e-mails with a soon to be Corpus resident, I realized something the CCWA could do to further the sport here in Corpus.  The party I was exchanging e-mails with was hoping he could find a rather inexpensive (read old) transition board, something with a centerboard and footstraps.  Cline Street had nothing in that category for sale and Oliver would probably decline an offer to put one in his consignment fleet if he could avoid it- its just not what he sells.  Similarly there are not any old beginner boards lined up against the walls there since beginners are not often a part of Oliver's clientele.
    The thought crossed my mind that there are probably a bunch of those old longboards clogging up garage space all over town and many are in CCWA members’ garages.  Perhaps now is the time to plan a beginner equipment used gear sale.  With a few club members on hand to check the sea worthiness of gear to be sold and show buyers how to rig their new purchases and field the questions the perspective new sailors would have we could turn a bunch of wannabe sailors onto our sport.  At the very least we could clear some storage space in our garages and have a day long gathering in the process.  With a few public announcements in both the Caller Times and on TV and the right marketing (‘No boards over $100- get into sailing cheap’) we should be able to get the cobweb growing fleet of boards back out on the water with new folks happily on board.  We might also expand it to include some of those old short boards Oliver won’t accept too- there are more than a few local folks that might want a floaty shortboard if the price was right.  Cline Street is better than a swap meet but its closed a door to beginners and under-funded sailors who want to move on to shortboards.  I think we could both fill that void and gain some new members if we would organize a one shot garage cleaning sale. 
     Where to hold such an event would probably have a lot to do with how well it would be responded to by the buyers.  The Causeway offers nearby shallow water and plenty of exposure as well as lots of parking and display room.  Another option that might be interesting is the new beach at TAMUCC.  That location offers a built in cadre of potential buyers and also covers the shallow water/parking problems along with display area.  I’m sure we could count on one of the local teaching operations to provide brief introductory instruction as well ..... does anyone else out there think this might be worth one of their afternoons?
Roy Tansill 

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‘99 Fanatic Mega Shark 291 giant slalom board.  An early planer in excellent condition. 
Contact Dick Ward (361) 949-0232

‘93 Brand ’X’ slalom board  9’ 3” 103L  plenty of life left with straps, pads, and Tuttle fin,  $75 
Call Roy (361) 949-1982