You can wrap up the summer season in the Gorge in one word: WINDY! We returned to the Gorge in April and were welcomed with the typical cool, wet, and windy spring weather. However after Windfest the first week of July, it warmed up and the winds kicked in through September. Even the typical windless hot spells were short lived; and it seemed that the Hatchery/Swell stretch of the river had at least slalom conditions during those days. And talk about the Hatchery…big swells and strong winds dominated the season there. The warm, dry weather pattern has continued into October, and this past week we saw the first of the strong east winds from Stevenson to Rooster Rock.
Sven Esslinger’s signature move (Trudy’s pic)
I met a local sailor, Trudy Lary at one of the demo days at the Hatchery. She’s an excellent sailor and photographer when not on the water. Check out her albums on Facebook for a taste of her passion for windsurfing the Gorge and Oregon Coast. http://www.fpc.org/tempgraphsnet/NETFullYear_tempgraph.aspx
Here are some of her shots of Ezzy sailors ripping it at Doug’s Beach and The Hatchery. Thanks Trudy for sharing!
Doug’s Beach Aug. 12
Doug’s Beach Aug. 12
Sven at Doug’s – Aug. 12
The Elite Arrives
It wasn’t a secret this summer that David had been working on a four batten sail since last winter. The chatter on the beach centered on the question: would a four batten sail be a good fit for the Gorge? Finally in mid August the first 2013 Panther Elite arrived in Hood River and I headed to the Hatchery for a quick answer to the question. Sven, Seth and Karen jumped at the chance to take the Elite for a test in the swells and 4.7 conditions. If first impressions are an indication of how the sail will perform in Gorge conditions, then the answer is a solid YES from everyone!
Sven was nailing his moves on the Elite with ease.
Karen (4.2) and Seth on the 4.7, loved the Elites.
I’m just finishing a video featuring a test and review by Dave Nunn, owner of Windance in Hood River. I’ll post it in a few days, but I will say that David Ezzy has done it again and the Elite is a winner.
We’re heading south this week and will be in Baja with the Elites and Tigers for everyone to demo. See ya on the beach in La Ventana, Gary
