Bummer!

Friday, August 31, 2007 at 7:10 pm HST

The Bummer twins, Disappointment and Frustration came to Maui today. After yesterday, I thought it was safe to assume that the trades were back into the moderate range. Winds started light today, like they have for the past week or more. I had a 1:00 meeting to attend and stopped by Kanaha around 12:30 to find solid 5.3 conditions, much like yesterday. I was a bit bummed that I had to leave and head to a 2 hour meeting, but I figured I could still catch a nice late afternoon session afterwards. But no, the Bummer twins had something else in mind. I got back to Kanaha around 3:30 to find that the wind had pretty much died, barely even whitecapping. What a letdown! Hung around for a bit, but things were looking pretty bleak. There was a brief window of opportunity and work got in the way of play. Bummer!

Finally!

Thursday, August 30, 2007 at 6:10 pm HST

Finally, winds picked up into the moderate range today, enough to get me nicely powered on 5.3. Venue of choice for me was Sugar Cove. Pretty nice day. Wind was pretty steady. Felt fantastic to get out on the water again and be powered.

Yesterday was another frustrating day, with wind on the north shore just teasing in the mid-teens. Kihei was the place to be again for wind. I actually condidered going to Kihei as there was supposed to be a south swell. But I heard that it never really materialized or was very sketchy and inconsistent.

Just got in some helmet-cam video from Sergey. Looks like this was shot at Sprecks/Camp One and also at Kanaha. Not sure when it was shot, but judging from the number of people powered up and the lack of clouds I think it has to have been over a week ago. Anyway, here's a link to Sergey's site with the helmet cam video. Thanks for sharing Sergey!

Light Trades

Wednesday, August 29, 2007 at 11:30 am HST

Light trades have returned, but so far they're just a bit too light for me and my biggest gear, 5.7/90L - at least on the north shore. I stopped by Kanaha yesterday afternoon hoping it would be enough. Winds were straight onshore and there were people out sailing. Looked to me like if I had a 6.2 - 6.5 I could probably get planing, but the 5.7 was doubtful.

I think the place to be yesterday was Kihei. Looked like it was probably blowing in the 5.0 range from what I can tell from the graph.

Things are looking somewhat similar today. I'm hoping for a little more wind on the north shore than what we saw yesterday, but it's only showing about 15 so far this morning and onshore. Even Kihei doesn't quite look sailable yet.

For those of you following the Maui north shore vacation rental issue, here's some links to some editorials in the Maui News.

Former Mayor Alan Arakawa weighs in on the issue

Letters to the editor

Light Trades Returning

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 at 7.00 am HST

Wind has remained pretty light Sunday and Monday. Still doable for those with jumbo gear but still too light for those of us with just standard wave gear. Or for those willing to sail Kihei, it looks like it got windy enough late in the afternoon to sail there. Things look like they may start turning around though. The upper level low responsbile for ousting our trade winds has left and light trades are slowly coming back online. Problem is, they look like they might still be pretty weak. I'm cautiously optimistic that Maui will work it's magic and I think we may see 6.0ish winds this afternoon and still a little stronger on Wednesday. The fact that it blew in Kihei late yesterday is a good sign.

Switching gears now, there's some new used gear available for sail in the Gear For Sale section. Just bought myself a new wave board for the upcoming season so my old board is up for sale. It's a 2005 Tabou Da Curve 85. Sweet wave board in pretty good condition - just some minor ding stick repairs on the nose. Get more details and photos on this board here.

I also recently bought a new Maui Sails carbon boom (hands down the best boom I've ever used) so my used Chinook carbon wave boom is also up for sale. Still solid and the grip is even still in pretty good shape. More details on the boom here.

Sorry about the site being down a bit yesterday. Looks like there was a server issue at the web host that took awhile to get resolved.

Still No Wind

Saturday, August 25, 2007 at 9:50 am HST

Still no wind to speak of. Had dinner at Jacques last night (love that Black Butte Porter on tap) and ran into Capt. Greg. He had heard from fellow racer Todd that there were a few people out on big-ass formula gear at Kanaha yesterday, but we're talking double-digit sails and boards wider than my van. Wind is even lighter this morning. You know it's light when the water is so glassy you can see the reflections of the puffy clouds. The forecasters are saying that the upper level low responsible for these doldrums should kick out of here after Sunday, letting light trades return. I still think it's going to be too light for most of us to sail on sub 6.0 meter sails, but I'd love to proven wrong.

Trade Winds Take a Vacation

Thursday, August 23, 2007 at 5:50 pm HST

After two + months without a day off, our trade winds just couldn't muster the strength to blow today. So, they called in some long overdue vacation time, packed their bags and caught the next flight out of Maui. Where have they gone? Nobody knows for sure. One rumor has it that they've checked into an all-inclusive, posh spa in northern Califonia. When will they return? That's hard to say for sure. My guess is that after a week or so of mud baths, massages and assorted detox regimens, they'll be ready to return.

In the meantime, we'll have to get by with their associate, Mr. Sea Breeze. Mr. Sea Breeze is pretty much the lazy slacker in the wind department. We can expect some pretty hot and muggy conditions over the next several days. If we're really lucky, we might see a less-than-refreshed trade winds return early next week, but I doubt they'll have recovered enough to blow much then if they do return. In the meantime, it's time to do some long overdue maintenance on all the windsurfing gear; clean the sails, tighten footstraps, replace downhaul and outhaul lines, sand the nicks out of those fins....

Get it while you can

Wednesday, August 22, 2007 at 10:00 am HST

Though Monday's winds were super gusty and erratic, yesterday turned out to be a pretty steady and consistent day - nicely powered 5.0 most of the time. Not much in the way of waves. Stopped by Hookipa for a few minutes and snapped some photos of a few people out. Even Hookipa was really small, mostly about knee-high. Here's a few photos of the action:

Looks like our long streak of trade winds is about to end soon. All the forecasters are predicting that we'll be getting our first long stretch of light or no trade winds starting possibly tomorrow, but definitely by Friday. An upper level low is taking up residence and that will cut off the trades. Looks like we may go several days, maybe even a week before we see a return of moderate trades. So, looks like today may be the last shot at decent wind in awhile. Get it while you can.

Wacked Wind

Tuesday, August 21, 2007 at 7:40 am HST

Yesterday at Kanaha was some of the gustiest, shiftiest wind I've sailed in quite awhile. Conditions from the beach often looked stellar, but out on the water was a different story. Winds were pretty light inside due to offshore component. I initally started on 5.3 and 90 liter wave board, but when I hit the wind line I wanted to shed a half meter of sail and 5+ liters of board. So, back in to rig 4.7 and get the smaller board. Tried that, but then it was too light. Tried the 5.3/small board combo and that was a bit better, but still couldn't get dialed. The best combo ended up being what I started with.

Looks like we have some weather changes in store starting in a few days. Wind today and tomorrow is forecast to lighten up a bit due to a weakening pressure gradient. Starting tomorrow or Thursday it looks like we'll be getting an upper level low crashing our summer trade wind party. This usually means increased instability, i.e. gustiness and showers. The forecasters are even predicting that winds will go so light starting Friday that we'll see land and sea breezes setting up. Not good news for anyone wanted to plane on gear smaller than sails in the double digits and boards in the triple digits.

Finding My Way Back Home

Sunday, August 19, 2007 at 5:00 pm HST

Hey everyone, sorry about the lack of updates this last week. I've been off-island, traveling on the mainland. From what I hear, the trade winds have continued to blow over the last several days.

Just got back this afternoon. After 4 days of arid, desert conditions far from ocean, I couldn't wait to get on and in Maui's warm waters again. Landed on Maui today at 12:30 and went straight to the beach. On the water on my 5.0 by 1:30. Wind had just shut down but I had to get on the water and get wet. Slogged and worked my way upwind and then the wind kicked back in. Sailed Uppers and Camp One, playing in the wind swell outside the break and got some nice backside riding and turns in the surf at Camp One. Just what I needed to wash away the residue of fast-paced mainland life.

Got some comments the last few days:

Sherif wrote:

Forwards are really easy. The problem is that all advice and explanations focus too much on sail technique. When I was learning them, I never got around. Tried hundreds of time. Till one friend gave me a crucial tip: Forget about the sail and looking back etc....simply imagine you want to do a grubby....lift off small chop and kick away the nose of the board. Focus on nothing, but to get the nose of the board as downwind as possible. You will have completed your first forward in less than 5 attempts. They are not dangerous at all. And let me tell you...they are a thrill. Its a great feeling every time over again..... Just throw the nose of the board downwind and hold on !!!! Give it a try…and let me know what you think. If it works, and it will, the next forward clinic will be done by you….spread the word. Thank you for your cool blog. And don’t forget…think…grubby…grubby….grubby.

Makani replied:

Thanks, but now I gotta figure out what a grubby is.

John wrote:

I'm here on Maui for a couple weeks - wondering if you still have the HP Carbon Wave Boom?

Makani replied:

Still available. Call the number listed on the for sale page and we can connect.

George wrote:

Dear fellows, I would like to know if shaper Richard Greene has a site, and if so, could you provide me with info. I have another question: In one of yor racing videos, Greg Thomas (US-808) is using a wide red board. Who makes this board? Thank you in advance, George.

Makani replied:

I don't know if Richard Green has a website or not. I'll ask around. I know there's at least one owner of a custom Richard Green board that reads this site. Speedy, if you know, let me know and I'll post it. As for Greg's red board, that is a custom Mark Nelson board. Mark is the shaper for Mistral and has a shop here on Maui in Haiku.

Flossie Fizzles

Wednesday, August 15, 2007 at 7:30 am HST

Hurricane Flossie was the center of most of the attention around the islands the last few days but Flossie finally fizzled last night, weakening into a tropical storm. The Big Island received high surf and rain, but here on Maui the main effect yesterday was to bring cloudy skies and squally conditions to the north shore.

I went to Kanaha yesterday hoping to sail, but on arriving found that the wind had just died with a passing squall and several people were slogging, trying to make it back in. Wind was up and down throughout the day as squalls continued. Not exactly the picture-perfect windsurfing conditions people expect on Maui.

As Flossie continues to weaken and head to the west we should see a return of more normal summer trade winds.

Living on the Edge of a Hurricane

Tuesday, August 14, 2007 at 8:45 am HST

Moe Dixon's classic Gorge song, "Living on the Edge of a Hurricane" seems to sum up our status with Flossie right now. As I write this, Flossie is hitting the Big Island and the outer bands of clouds are encroaching upon Maui. It looks like on Maui we'll escape most of the worst of Flossie. Currently, Flossie is a category 2 hurricane and is weakening and is forecast to maintain a track south and parallel to the Hawaiian islands with the edge skimming along and brushing the islands. Here on Maui it looks like we'll see an increase in wind - from the increasing pressure gradient, not the actual storm winds - and it looks like we should see cloudy skies and rain starting some time today.

As for conditions yesterday, I have to rely on reports from friends. My body put in a request for a day off so I obliged. Unfortunately it sounds like I missed some pretty decent waves at Uppers and Hookipa. I got 2 reports, one from Kanaha, one from Hookipa that wind and waves both were pretty damn nice from about 2:00 to 3:00, but the wind apparently died later in the afternoon. In fact, I think the wind was pretty up and down due to squalls most of the day so timing was probably key in whether or not you had an epic session yesterday or a crappy one.

Flossie

Monday, August 13, 2007 at 8:45 am HST

Yesterday was the first day in what seemed like weeks that I used a sail other than my 5.0. Sailed my 4.5 very powered up. Some fun rollers outside the break and some occasional fun wind swell breaking. Aside from still being tired from flinging myself about in loop attempts on Saturday it was a pretty fun day.

All eyes in Hawaii now are focused on Hurricane Flossie as she approaches from the east. Current forcast is that Flossie, which is currently a very strong category 4 hurricane, will pass about 100 miles south of the Big Island tomorrow. It's track is forecast to stay south of the islands but it looks like we'll all see some effects from Flossie.

The Big Island has just been placed under a hurricane watch. The first effects we'll feel is 10 - 15 foot surf on east facing shores. Though the Big Island looks like it will take the biggest hit, all islands, including Maui will likely see an increase in winds and rain tomorrow and Wednesday. Here's the latest projected tracking map overlayed with satellite imagery. Pretty impressive looking storm! For more information from an actual weather guy, check out Glenn James' Hawaii Weather Today page.

Fear of Commitment

Sunday, August 12, 2007 at 8:45 am HST

Kanaha was the venue yesterday for probably one of the biggest loop clinics ever. Matt Pritchard teamed up with HST and Kanaha Kai for anyone who's had the itch to pitch themselves head over heals. The session started off with probably 50+ people seated on the grassy lawn at Kanaha as Matt discussed the finer points of looping. The crowd ranged from those who were merely curious, to those who were kind of thinking they'd like to loop, those who really want to but had never tried and those who had tried.

After a question and answer period, it was time to rig up and get ready. The next step weeded out the merely curious as ~30 of us lined up at the beach and practiced the basics by rolling around in the sand. Next step, grab your rigged sail and stand it up in ankle-deep water in the surf and practice the motions, sheeting in aggressively with the back hand, extending the front, and pitching yourself around the sail into the water. At times there were a dozen or more people standing on the shoreline practicing this.

Finally it was time to actually head out and face our fears and go for it. With the help of assitants, Jazz, Brad and Skyler, Matt went out and sailed with, ahead of and behind people coaxing us to go for it. A lot has been written in how-to articles about how to loop. But what it all seems to come down to once you know the steps is just committing to it. In my own experience, I've practiced the motions, my brain knows the steps. But when you find that ramp and hit it and think you're going to go do it, something primal seems to take over. I attempted several yesterday and each time I would launch and start to initiate the motions and then my brain would click and and go "Uh, uuuuuh! I'm not doing that!" The result every time was a spectacular wipe out. After witnessing a few of these, Matt's comment to me was, "you're not committing! You just need to commit!" So, in the end, it's all just a head game. Gotta figure out how to shut off the brain switch and just go for it 100%.

From what I heard there were one or two people who actually were fairly successful in committing and getting around. I'll speak for all of us who participated though and say that the clinic was still very successful, even if we all didn't loop by the end of the day. I'm somewhat satisfied that I at least attempted a few. A bit bummed that I didn't do better. But, though I'm a little bit sore this morning from my wipeouts, I learned that unsuccessful loop attempts aren't necessarily that bad. I know what I have to do, and I have an even stronger stubborn desire to get this loop monkey off my back.

Matt had a photographer/videographer there capturing some of it so when he sends some of that my way I'll post. Also, Giampaolo caught some of the action on video so keep an eye on his blog for some video.

Check out the new MauiWindcam

Friday, August 10, 2007 at 8:45 am HST

I rely pretty heavily on the MauiWindcam web page to determine conditions down on the north shore. I knew they were going to be adding a new camera and it looks like it's making it's debut today. There's the old camera looking up towards Camp One. Now there's also a new camera pointing down to Uppers at Kanaha. You can also get streaming video of both of them. Cool! Thanks to the folks at MauiWindcam for providing this resource!

Monday Tuesday

Tuesday, August 7, 2007 at 6:50 pm HST

Still windy. Looking at my sailing log, it looks like we've had 0-1 non-windy days since the beginning of June. The last few days have been mostly do-overs from what we've been seeing for the last week or two. My 5.0 is getting lots of use. Usually in summer it's my 4.5 that gets used the most, but the last few weeks it hasn't been as strong as we were seeing earlier this summer.

Not only are we getting plenty of wind we're also getting some better than normal wind swell. I hear Hookipa has had some pretty nice waves the last few days. Sounds like I need to go get some of the action there. I sailed Sugar Cove/Sprecks today and caught a few waves there too. From what I've read on the surf forecasts there've been some cold fronts generating some waves to our north east that have helped to amplify the normal easterly wind swell we get this time of year. Whatever the reason, most of are glad to get something to play on out there.

Forecast calls for continued trade winds with a boost in speed this weekend. This time of year is hurricane season and we normally get at least one tropical system in August that shuts down the trades for a few days or more. So far that's not looking like it will happen through the first half of August.

Sunday Sailing and North Shore Rentals

Monday, August 6, 2007 at 12:10 pm HST

Fun day of sailing yesterday at Kanaha. Wind was pretty steady most of the morning until I got there. Looke like good 4.7, but when I went out the wind dropped. Luckily it came back up after 15 minutes or so and the 4.7 was about right to blast around at Uppers. Some nice ramps. Some nice, though crowded backside riding at Camp One. Less crowds and better direction of small, mushy waves right offshore of the beginners area.

Here's an issue that I should report on for anyone planning to come to Maui on vacation and stay on the north shore. The county is cracking down on illegal vacation rentals, which means virtually anything on the north shore. Check out this Maui News article for details, or this thread on iWindsurf forum for more background and info. Currently I know places at Sprecks are still renting out as of this last weekend, but some may be shutting down. I'll try to keep an eye on this issue and update as I know more.

This just in, here's a letter to the editor of the Maui News from the Maui County Planning Director about it.

Sunday Morning Catch-up

Sunday, August 5, 2007 at 10:10 am HST

It's another postcard perfect morning here in paradise as I check the web and see that I haven't posted a blog article in a few days. Nothing too exciting to write about. Friday was very similar to Monday as lots of clouds and some showers kind of put a damper on sailing, at least on the north shore. Winds were pretty light and dead onshore when I stopped by Kanaha at lunch time. Those who had the time and/or patience to stick around until 3:00 playing the waiting game may have been rewarded. Aside from that Kihei was probably the best bet of the day.

Yesterday looked a bit more promising initially, but my early afternoon 5.0 session at Sugar Cove was gusty, cloudy and very offshore winds. Kanaha looked even more cloudy. I heard from wind girl Rebecca that she was overpowered there on her 4.2 though. Heard from Speedy who sailed his 5.9 race sail that Kanaha was mega-crowded - lots of locals and visiting Europeans, dozens of languages heard on the beach.

It's only 10am here so far and the wind is already showing promising signs with readings of 18 and 19 at Kanaha - usually a good sign that we'll see low - to mid-20s in the afternoon. The forecast is good for continued trades throughout the week. Wind should continue, just a matter of whether it blows 3.5 or 5.5 on any given day.

Sweet & Mellow

Thursday, August 2, 2007 at 7:00 pm HST

Nice mellow 5.0 sesh at Sugar Cove today. Gorgeous, gorgeous day, sunny skies extra clear blue water, the wind was pretty steady - this is the kind of day that most windsurfers dream of. No waves but really good wind, nice water, the kind of day one needs after a gusty day at Kanaha yesterday.

I caught the early afternoon shift and had Sugar Cove to myself for quite awhile. The wind was a bit onshore and filled in to the beach which is rare at Sugar Cove so I decided to take advantage and work on some new tricks. I'm working on the sail-body 360 that Matt Pritchard went over in one of the most recent Windsurfing Magazines. Almost getting them. They're pretty fun to try and seem to be pretty low risk for injuries. Perfect little trick to expand one's repartoire and keep things from getting boring or dull.

Comments:

Scorpionfish wrote:

get a video so we can all do it!

Showery and Gusty

Wednesday, August 1, 2007 at 6:40 pm HST

Monday and Tuesday brought showery conditions to most of the north shore. Monday was pretty light until the afternoon session when some of the showers finished up their business. Similar conditions Tuesday though things cleared out a bit earlier. I didn't bother sailing either of those two days since showery conditions usually make things pretty gusty.

Today dawned a lot nicer with no trace of showers. Got on the water at Kanaha a little after 1:00pm on 5.0. Wind was a bit light on the inside but stronger outside. Wind was also pretty gusty and shifty with what felt like 70 degree shifts in direction at times and ranging from 4.5 to 5.5 in strength. Still, there were periods when it held steady for a few minutes and it was kind of fun.

Trade winds are in the forecast for the next week or more, probably building in strength as we approach the weekend.

Any readers on Maui got any 6.0s or 6.5s sails for sale? I got a call from a guy on Oahu who's coming to Maui soon and looking for deals on some big sails. I don't have any in that range but if anyone here on island is looking to get rid of some big sails, drop me a comment and maybe I can hook up buyer and seller.