December Winds Finally Arrive – December 11, 2008

After being treated to unusual great winds in October, Mother Nature was stingy with good winds for sailing in November.  Big sails and kites were the call for wind sports, so if you didn’t bring down a 6+ meter sail and 100+ liter board you were searching for alternative activities…which are not hard to find here in southern Baja.  There were few days for sailing on typical Baja sized gear, but since most sailors are here for a month or the entire winter, the warm weather and sunshine beats the change to winter north of us.  Besides the prime season here is December through March.

 First day of the Norte brings out the fleet!

A hint of change arrived Tuesday afternoon, as the north swells and winds increased signaling a more typical El Norte pattern.  Today is the third day of stronger winds so everyone is stoked to be back on the water.  One thing that really stands out with the new Panther is the range of the sail.  When I got to the beach on Tuesday afternoon, most guys were fully powered on 4.2’s.  Since the first day of a Norte can be a little gusty, I went with a 4.5 downhauled and outhauled to the maximum settings.  Even though I weigh 160 lbs., the sail remained stable and balanced in the gusts (no pull on the back hand), even though I was thinking a 4.5 would be too big…amazing range! 

Prime real estate on the beach in La Ventana.

If you will be in La Ventana over the holidays, I will be doing an Ezzy rigging clinic…for all years of Ezzy sails.  And, I have the 2009 Panthers for demo at the RV Park, so you are invited to try Dave’s newest sail while you are here.  I’ll post the time and date for the clinic on the Ezzy website, and on iwindsurf.  But you are welcome to demo the sails on windy days until the end of March.  We’ll be at the park from 1 to 4 every windy afternoon.  You can find us at our fellow Ezzy sailors Dan and Val’s site on the front row at the south end of the park…just ask anyone for directions, or look for our yellow Suzuki Samari Jeep (the only one in La Ventana) parked behind their trailer.  And please don’t hesitate to ask for help with rigging any Ezzy sail, we’re more than happy to help you get the most from your sails.

Ezzy sailor Gordy Ross from Manitoba holds Nancy’s Wahoo…her idea of a “no wind day” in Baja.

We’ll also be heading to North Beach in Los Barriles to demo the new Panthers…we’ll post the time and dates.  It’s time to get to the beach, see you on the water.  Gary & Nancy