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Pretty exciting stuff here. Still baby steps, but steady movement forward none the less.
So over the past three years, my son Owen, and Joe’s grandson Vance have been windsurfing a handful of times in the shallows of Canandaigua Lake together. The days there normally involve plenty of candy and sweets, and a ton of good laughing. Oh, and the boys would windsurf till they crashed into shore in the 5-8 mph winds, and then do it again till they got tired. They even got featured on the front of the Messenger Post in a photo collage for their efforts.
This summer they really took off. Vance is now 12, and Owen is 10. They can both now sail solo.
Owen
Vance
The day started with some SUP, and progressed to Windsurfing. Owen is on the 2.7 blue sail, and Vance on the red 2.8. The most difficult thing for the boys in the freshened 13 mph breeze was staying up wind, so I took a cue from Pharma Bob M. and did what he did when he taught his kids to windsurf….tied a rope to their boards, and towed them for a bit. That did the trick in a heart beat. The boys figured out sail steering, and how to absorb a gust while only 10 feet from one of us adults on a board walking them through it. In the end Joe and I just sat by (as did a bunch of other impressed adults, and watched the boys jibe and tack back and forth. If they came in too close, they hopped off and moved back out themselves. The boys were having so much fun in the sun that they didn’t want to come off. It was amazing. Owen says he’s not done for the year and hopes to get a day or two more in a shorty wetsuit, unfortunately though Vance injured his arm and windsurfing season is over for him as he looks forward to ski season.
Sail Steering
Owen and Doug tacking in Georgian Bay
A happy future.
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