Summertime Sailing VideoThursday, August 28, 2008 at 8:30 am HSTGP posted a great little point of view windsurfing video the other day on his blog (mauisurfreport.blogspot.com), with him following Hot Sails Maui's Jeff Henderson around at Uppers Kanaha on a typical small wind swell day in the summertime. If you've never been to Maui and wondered what I mean when I say it's been typical Uppers backside riding wind swell, check this out. This is very typical Uppers Kanaha in the summertime. The wind swell can often get bigger than what's shown here, but the video does a really nice job of vicariously putting you in the footstraps, blasting around Uppers and Camp One. Great job GP! |
Maui Wind Needs a RebootWednesday, August 27, 2008 at 9:30 am HSTMaui winds have been more erratic than a presidential candidate's stance on issues the last few days. From light winds on Saturday we went to cranking winds, wound up on my 4.2 with power to spare on Sunday. That was followed by light 5.3 wind on Monday, followed by wind that was all over the charts from light to lighter yesterday and from a half a dozen different directions. Like an old computer, furiously spinning its hard drive in some useless operation, sometimes the best solution is just to power down and reboot. How about a wind reset button? I think we need a good cold front to come through and clear everything out and then set up a new high pressure center to the north to get things back on the right track. Doesn't look like that's in the cards though. Looks to me like light trade winds will continue but with an unstable and moist atmosphere, it will probably continue to be a bit up and down. |
Kanaha FreestyleSunday, August 24, 2008 at 9:00 am HSTAnother funky day at Kanaha yesterday. Several days in a row now where the wind has dropped around 2:00. Not enough for me with my 5.3 so I opted to snap some photos of some visiting tourists trying freestyle - some old school, some new. Later in the afternoon, like around 4:00, the wind kicked in seriously again. Don't know what the deal is but we're in a pattern where it blows ok early, then drops. Not typical of Maui. 
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More August TradesSaturday, August 23, 2008 at 8:30 am HSTStill basically windy here the last few days although the wind has been kind of funky at times. I opted out of sailing Wednesday and Thursday but got reports of 5.0ish conditions for most guys and flat conditions. Yesterday was setting up to be a near carbon copy of the previous two days but with the addition of a very tiny north swell. Wind ended up being very frustratingly light and onshore, had to really work the 5.3 to get planing and couldn't make it up to Uppers where there were some small, but clean waist-high waves. If you were a smaller guy and had a 5.8 you were scoring the small swell. Looks like favorable set up for trade winds to dominate over the next several days. Not even any of our normal August tropical storms in the picture. Somewhat of a happy ending on the lost gear mentioned in the last post. Board, boom and half a mast washed into the harbor and were reunited with the owner. The sail apparently sunk at some point during the self-rescue. A lesson to be learned here is to write your name and phone number on your gear. I've heard of several lost board episodes on the north shore over the last few years here. In each case, the board has drifted down wind and ended up at Kahului harbor where a harbor worker or fisherman or boater finds it. If it's got your name and number on it, chances are good you'll be reunited with it. |
August TradesTuesday, August 19, 2008 at 9:15 am HSTTrade winds are still blowing strong here on Maui. Saturday was a little lighter than Friday and with the out of season north swell still running, both Uppers and Kanaha and Hookipa were packed with eager windsurfers. By Sunday, the north swell was pretty much gone and we were back to a confused, jumbled wind swell with bumpy gusty conditions. 4.5 for me in the early session. Gustiness continued yesterday, at least in the late afternoon session where my 5.0 was about a meter too big at times. Public service announcement time. Lost Gear at Kanaha Maui 8-17 On Sunday one of the local sailors here had a gear malfunction. After spending three hours in the water trying to self-rescue, she was picked up by a helicopter search and rescue, but in the process had to abandon her gear. So, there's a bundle of gear out there somewhere: 2006? JP radical wave 69 Reward for return. If anyone here has seen the gear or heard of it, drop me a comment with info about how to get ahold of you and I'll pass it on to the owner. Or, call the number on the bottom of the board. |
August North SwellSaturday, August 16, 2008 at 9:50 am HSTCatching up with the wind report from the last few days, on Wednesday we saw pretty light winds all around Maui as the trade winds took a day off. Despite predictions for more light wind on Thursday, Maui was able to kick it up a notch to sailable conditions. Yesterday we got a rare August treat as an out of season north swell hit the north shore. Granted it was pretty small and sporadic by winter standards, but it was a nice treat nonetheless. Waves at Uppers Kanaha were generally in the waist- to shoulder-high range and pretty sloppy, but there were some occasional sets that were pretty nice. The swell wasn't big enough to generate much at Lowers. It was probably shin- to knee-high at best at Lowers. Personally, I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time to get a beautiful, smooth head-high set all to myself for a nice ride with 3+ turns. Woo hoo! That one wave made the day for me. Oh yea, sail size - 4.5 was perfect for me until later in the afternoon when the wind dropped about a sail size. I heard from a few folks that stopped by Hookipa to check it out that it was setting up pretty nice with shoulder- to head-high sets, but that it was a crowded zoo with 30 - 50 sailors vying for the wave, along with surfers. I thought about heading up there to shoot some photos and video, but by the time I was done at Kanaha at 4:00, I just didn't have the motivation. This morning it looks like there may be a little leftover swell still, though it is supposed to be declining and it looks like it should be plenty windy again. |
Fresh PhotosTuesday, August 12, 2008 at 7:45 pm HSTBeen awhile since I snapped any new photos, so after getting a nice 2 hour session on my new Gaastra Manic 5.0 (sweet, sweet sail!), I thought I'd see what I could capture at Kanaha.
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Maui Windsurfing Calendar Poll - Final ResultsMonday, August 11, 2008 at 7:10 pm HSTHere's the final results in the 2009 Maui Windsurfing Calendar poll...
The last two photos are great shots, but possibly a bit blurry for printing. I'm going to have to print those two out to make sure they'll be sharp enough. If not, they'll be replaced by alternates. Yet another windy day on Maui today, though lighter than the last several. With average wind speeds in the mid-20s, sail sizes today were half to 3/4 meter bigger than the last few. Comments:Hey where did all those great wave shots go? Check the IP addresses of all voters! Who cares as I'll see you all soon in person... mid-sept. to be exact. Great idea tho' - I had fun with my daughter picking what we thought to be the best shots ;-( I do hope by mid-september the twinsers are still 'in style'... first the photos we picked were not popular and then if my new board is obsolete before it gets wet...well, I'll never come to Maui again!!) I was a bit surprised too to see how many votes the slalom photos got. Just goes to show that Maui isn't only about waves. There's a big contingent of hard core slalom sailors here. You should be safe with your new twinser. They're still very much in vogue. The funny thing is, I've actually seen people rent them for back and forth sailing at Kanaha this summer. |
4.2, 4.2, 4.2Sunday, August 10, 2008 at 6:00 pm HSTPlenty of wind to go around the last several days - at least 4.2 every day for most guys and 3.7 or smaller for the ladies. Along with the wind, some fun backside riding wind swell at Uppers and Camp One. Lots of folks out on the water at Kanaha making the most of the conditions. Looks like wind might back off a tad starting tomorrow or Tuesday. Also in the forecast, a possible small north swell next weekend! It's a bit soon to get our hopes up too much but the surf forecast out of the national weather service is saying: "IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE...LOW-END GALES ASSOCIATED WITH THE Polling for the 2009 Maui Windsurfing calendar is now closed. Thanks to everyone who voted for participating. I'll post the full set of winners soon. |
Maui Windsurfing 2009 Calendar Poll - Second EliminationFriday, August 8, 2008 at 9:10 am HSTHere's the second round elimination for the 2009 Maui Windsurfing calendar. The first five are from the original set of 24. The last 3 are submissions from Maui windsurfer and occasional photographer, Jazz Glickenhaus (also starring in the nice little aerial in the second photo below). Voting is now closed.
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Windsurfing Calendar Poll - First Round ResultsWednesday, August 6, 2008 at 6:30 pm HSTThanks to everyone who has voted so far in the 2009 Maui Windsurfing Wall Calendar Poll. The single eliminations are complete and the top six are moving through into this year's calendar. The top six include Jason Polakow, Kevin Pritchard and Kauli Seadi throwing some spray off the top, Ross Williams with a nice floaty Kona Lanes aerial, Jimmy Diaz and Matt Pritchard jibing around the inside mark at Kanaha, and Mark Angulo mid-goiter (I think).
The top six were clear winners, with a big spread in votes over the rest of the pack. Because of tight voting in the next six - eight photos, as well as a couple of late photo submissions from a viewer, the final six spots will go through a second elimination round. I expect to have that ready for voting in the next day or two. Wind report. Pretty windy again yesterday, much like Monday, very strong winds. I attempted to sail Sugar Cove today but it went sour. Not sure about Kanaha and Hookipa but Sugar Cove was the king of suck today. Super light and flukey and offshore. Judging from the number of Kanaha regulars I saw at Costco and on the road this afternoon, I'm guessing Kanaha might have sucked too. It's usually a tell-tale sign that the wind is bad when you see all the regulars at Costco. |
Maui Windsurfing 2009 Calendar PollMonday, August 4, 2008 at 9:30 am HSTThe Maui Windsurfing 2008 Wall Calendar has been by far the best seller in the Maui Windsurfing store and I'm getting ready to create the 2009 calendar. Here's your chance to vote on the 12 photos you'd like to see in the 2009 calendar. I've narrowed the field down to 24 contenders. Look through the photos below (click on a thumbnail to see a larger version) and click the yes button if you think the photo should be in next year's calendar. Don't worry about limiting it to 12. Click on as many as you like. I'll tally up the twelve photos that get the top votes and those will make it into the calendar. Vote early. Vote often. The 2009 Maui Windsurfing Calendar will be available through the Maui Windsurfing CafePress shop some time in September. First Round Voting Is Now Closed
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Weekend Weakened Wind ReportSunday, August 3, 2008 at 4:30 pm HSTStarting on Friday, Maui's trade winds slacked off form the levels we've been having for the last few weeks. Light winds dominated the racing conditions at the 21st annual Hawaii State Windsurfing Championship at Kanaha. Weather today was heavily dominated by former tropical storm Genevieve which brought lots of clouds and rain to Maui and made for some gray up and down wind conditions. Not really post card perfect Maui windsurfing weather today. Things should start returning to more normal conditions tomorrow as the tropical system exits and high pressure rebuilds, which will allow the trades to build to normal levels. Forecasters are predicting strong trades by midweek. Time for the small sails again. In other Maui Windsurfing new, the Maui News just ran a story on Kanaha's own PWA rookie, Greg Thomas. Need a little motivation to pursue your windsurfing dream? Check out the article, and Greg's blog. Looks like the waves this coming fall and winter might be a little less crowded. The Maui News also reports today that tourism this summer has declined significantly and that expectations for this coming fall season are that there will be even less tourists visiting Maui and Hawaii. It'll be interesting to see if that actually carries over to visiting windsurfers. From my perspective, Kanaha this summer has still been pretty busy with vacationing windsurfers, although it seems like a higher proportion are from Europe vs U.S. and Canada than normal. |
July Wrap-upFriday, August 1, 2008 at 9:00 am HSTWe closed off the last week of July with continued trade winds and another surprise bout of north shore summer waves mid-week. The week started out with an up and down, squally day on Monday. I opted out of sailing on Monday and was told on Tuesday by more than one person that I made the right call. Guess the quality level was a bit low that day. Tuesday was a great day of sailing. Strong wind in the 4.5 - 4.7 range and another odd wave event at Uppers. I assume this was another wind swell event - head-high, short period waves, kinda mushy, not very peaky or powerful off the top, but a lot of fun for summer time sailing on the north shore of Maui. Opted out of sailing again on Wednesday but got the report from Speedy that it was pretty good 4.7 but that the waves from the day before had gone. Caught a short lunch session yesterday - nicely powered 5.0, but flat, flat, flat. Wind built later in the day. Today's looking a bit lighter. Forecast is calling for the trades to be on the light side today through Sunday then pick back up again on Monday. |
