Wakeboarding an Original Windsurfer

Several years ago while moored off the coast of Catalina Island, Daniel and Elizabeth buzzed by us and asked if I wanted to go wakeboarding. " SURE! " I yelled as they passed our stern in their dinghy. 

Daniel is a surfer and always had his surfboard on their boat, it was about a 6' 0" so we used his board.  It was challenging to get up from lying down on the board to standing up while being pulled and timing it just right to coincide with accelerating to a plane. It took talent and energy to get up but it was well worth the effort. The surfboard carved easily but didn't allow for any mistakes and we both ended up having some good wipe-outs.

Wakeboarding on a short board, Catalina Island.

Fast forward to last summer. It's the end of another perfect day in Northern Michigan. The wind died hours ago and the sun is positioning itself for a spectacular set.  I am restless to get some sports in, to squeeze just one last ounce out of the day. I grab some line, peal on a wetsuit and I paddle out —this time on my 12' Original Windsurfer— and wait for Brad to meet me beyond the harbor. Brad maneuvers the boat slowly past me and tosses the line.  Once the slack in the line is gone,  I casually stand up. I give Brad the "Thumbs up" and as he throttles-up a wake forms behind the boat. I slip into the wake and begin walking around the Windsurfer board like I am the only person on a dance floor and I have it all to myself.

Original Windsurfer Wakeboarding, stepping forward...

The board is stable, and I realize quickly that we could be dance partners. I am not a cowboy breaking-in a wild horse. No, we are working together. I step towards the tail, moving my weight towards the inside rail to carve a turn, then several steps forward to keep the board in the wake, then a few steps back to enjoy the ride. Brad accelerated more and the wake gets larger and the board glides into a sweet spot. We are one and I am not getting bucked off for some time.

Constantly making adjustments —and playing with the wave— on a long ride.

Wakeboarding the Windsurfer reminded me of longboarding a point break. Relaxed, time to really enjoy the ride and loads of places to move your weight around to work with the board to play in the wave. Constantly making adjustments —and playing with the wave— on a long ride. 

I've described the Original Windsurfer as a surfboard and I guess this is just one more way that it is. I was stoked to squeeze that last ounce out of the day!

Summer Regatta Series #4

Original Windsurfer Summer Series Regatta #4  July 30, 2011

The regatta site has a large grassy area for rigging and a beautiful sandy beach.

Original Windsurfers were supplied for all sailors along with regatta t-shirt, lunch provided by the Boathouse Restaurant, a BBQ dinner and wine supplied by J Henry Vineyards.

Randy returning to beach.

Stephen watches a sea plane take off.

The morning was calm so several people went SUPing on Original Windsurfer boards.

No harnesses, not even with 18 knot gusts.

After lunch the wind picked up to 6-9 knots and then increased to 15 knots with gusts to 18 knots!



Of course no one was taking pictures when the wind picked up because everyone was having too much fun sailing!

Randy having some fun mastering the agile Windsurfer and entering a power jibe.

The first 2 races were moderate wind and once the wind really picked up the guys in the group declined to use harnesses and decided to hang tight and go “iron-man”.

The race committee counted down to the start so everyone could improve their timing at the starts and boat handling.

Six races were held on a triangle course; a long upwind to the weather mark and 2 reaches back to start/finish line. There were some excellent swells and chop to surf on. The light weight sail makes it easy for steering to catch a wave. And the maneuverable board also helps positioning on a run or reach to catch swells.

Alison hanging on, big smile.

Leading the fleet.

By the sixth race all sailors had improved their start, upwind boat speed, tacks, jibes and mark rounding ability.

Alison at start mark

For some it was their first time on an Original Windsurfer or was their first time in 15 years. No one missed a beat. I guess it's like riding a bicycle, you never forget.

Stephen at finish line.

After the races, we had a BBQ on the beach and trophies were awarded.

Standing left to right: Randy Bass 1st place medium weights; Alison Rowe 1st place light weight; Paul Sandstrom 1st place heavy weights. Below: Dave Dalquist 3rd place medium weights; "Roscoe" and Ted Schweitzer 2nd place medium weights. Not pictured: Gary Kosch 3rd place heavy weights; Stephen Wiele 1st place B fleet/Sport fleet.

Grosse Pointe Regatta

Patterson Park Regatta, Grosse Pointe, Michigan
The Grosse Pointe Windsurfing Club hosted this 12th annual regatta at Patterson Park on Saturday June 18th.  There was a spectator boat for those who wanted to get an up-close look at the on-the-water strategy.  There were 5 races in moderate to light wind.  This is a well run event and was well attended with some competitors coming from as far away as Toronto. For regatta report visit MOWIND.

A local sailor named Bruce decided to join me on an Original Windsurfer for the race. There was a nice breeze in the morning. Bruce hadn't been on an Original Windsurfer is many years, if ever.  After reading about it's agility and light weight rig he wanted to experience it.  The first race of the day were his first minutes on the board and he had no problems, in fact he sailed it all day!

Preparing for start.

This event has a strong One Design fleet. Nice breeze.

The Windsurfer board gliding thru the water.

Keeping the spectators entertained

Downwind leg, later in the day the wind lightened up.

Battling it out to reach windward mark.

The Friday afternoon before the race I met up with a local gal Lauren to go sailing but the wind died on us, so we ended up removing the rigs and going for a SUP instead.

Here we are goofing around while there was wind. When we launched the wind died, go figure.

The sign in the back reads, "Windsurfing Only" !

Lauren sailing to shore after wind died to remove sail rig and grab a paddle.

no wind? no problem!

Windsurfer One Design Slalom & Freestyle Cup, Miami Beach, Nov 2010

The Windsurfer One Design International Slalom & Freestyle Cup was held at the Miami Yacht Club in conjunction with the 2010 Kona Windsurf World Championships.

Racing to jibe mark

The wind was light to moderate on a fast slalom course which meant the start, each tack, and each jibe were critical.

The competitors did a good job of maintaining their boat speed while rounding the jibe marks downwind.  One slip up and the competitor behind you was sure to overtake you! 

Slalom races maneuvering through slalom course with skill

Several sailors passed their competitors while rounding the marks.  It was very exciting to be in the competition and exciting to watch the competition!


Greg Johns from Australia ran the Slalom races, he started and recorded the finishes of all the Slalom heats.  THANKS GREG!!!

Slalom Results (top 5 out of 16):
1st place: Peter Jacobson, S. Africa/USA
2nd place: Bjorn Holm, Denmark
3rd place: Andrew Divola, Australia
4th place: Ted Schweitzer, USA
5th place: Stuart Gilbert, Australia


I didn't have an opportunity to take any Freestyle pictures because Greg Johns and myself were judging the Freestyle competition.... there are Freestyle photos from the event that you can view that have been posted on the Original Windsurfer FaceBook page.


Freestyle Results:
1st place: Dennis Winstanley, Australia
2nd place: Stuart Gilbert, Australia
3rd place: Taun Masterson, S. Africa/USA
4th place: Pierre Coupal, Canada
5th place: Denis Dagenais, Canada

Here's a picture of the event shirt, designed by Florencia Barletta from Miami Yacht Club. Thanks Flor for ALL your help!

And there's now a new Windsurfer One Design in Miami thanks to Tomas --who runs the Junior Program at the yacht club -- who bought a Windsurfer One Design.

I hope to make it back to Miami again!