Received: from opus.hpl.hp.com (opus-fddi.hpl.hp.com) by jr.hpl.hp.com with ESMTP (1.37.109.24/15.5+ECS 3.3+HPL1.1) id AA214841854; Mon, 8 Feb 1999 19:44:22 -0800 Return-Path: <kasplash@crl.com-DeleteThis> Received: from hplms26.hpl.hp.com by opus.hpl.hp.com with ESMTP (1.37.109.24/15.5+ECS 3.3+HPL1.1) id AA090661844; Mon, 8 Feb 1999 19:44:04 -0800 Received: from mail.crl.com (mail.crl.com [165.113.1.22]) by hplms26.hpl.hp.com (8.9.1a/HPL-PA Relay) with ESMTP id TAA18222 for <wind_talk@opus.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis>; Mon, 8 Feb 1999 19:44:03 -0800 (PST) Received: from crl3.crl.com (crl3.crl.com [165.113.1.14]) by mail.crl.com (8.8.8/) via SMTP id TAA22829; Mon, 8 Feb 1999 19:40:04 -0800 (PST) env-from (kasplash@crl.com-DeleteThis) Received: by crl3.crl.com id AA10853 (5.65c/IDA-1.5); Mon, 8 Feb 1999 19:28:14 -0800 Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 19:28:14 -0800 (PST) From: Bob Galvan <kasplash@crl.com-DeleteThis> To: Wind Talkers <wind_talk@opus.hpl.hp.com-DeleteThis> Cc: snaiken@aol.com-DeleteThis, Jonah Lepak <jonah@sobekmedical.com-DeleteThis>, Lisa Bauer <recycqueen@aol.com-DeleteThis> Subject: Dillonic Saturday Message-Id: <Pine.SUN.3.91.990208192225.10718A-100000@crl3.crl.com-DeleteThis> Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII
Southerlies at Dillon
Feb 6 1999
I'd had my eye on on this setup for 2 years. Now the sea, the sky, and the
soul converged and it was time to go. NWS was right on the money with
their forecast for 20-25mph southerlies on saturday. My calendar was clear,
my intention focused. Time for another pioneering exploration.
Dillon Beach is at the mouth of Tomales Bay. It curves through ninety
degrees to face due north at the channel and due west at the mainland side.
Southerlies blow straight offshore, side-off, and straight sideshore
depending on what part of the beach you pick. Waves arrive from the north
through the west, the directions of power. During a southerly there is
virtually NO wind chop because there is no fetch. There are high ridges on
both sides of the bay so the wind could be venturied or gustified depending
on subtleties of direction. Sailing out through the surf will be port
tack, a situation I have little experience with, but comming in I'll be
going left and facing the wave, a rare treat for these goofy feet in the
northern hemisphere.
Saturday dawned pouring down rain. Remote sensors indicated building south
winds from the bouys to the bay. I made a couple phone calls, loaded the
van, and was rolling by 9:30. Questions arose and subsided like koi in a
pond. Would the wind be steady enough? Strong enough? Waves too big?
Too gnarly? Closed out? I didn't care. I just had to go and see for
myself.
At 11 I was parked at a paved overlook above the beach. Spray was blowing
sideways off the wave crests, the waves looked evenly spaced and beautiful,
not too big, and the water was smooooth! Steady rain. I put on my foulies
and walked down the muddy trail to the beach to feel the wind at sea level
and get another perspective on the surf. Wind felt smooth and steady, 4.7
and the little board!
Two more trips up and down, change soots, make a couple calls, chat with
some other surfcheckers, and I launch off the sandy beach... only to
flounder in that zone where "overpowered" intersects with "out-of-shape"
and "new to this spot". I barely got up and hooked in, mostly got the boom
ripped from my grip. Another trip up and down, re-rig and rest. I'm too
warm in my many layers of neoprene, and my tummy is too full of roast beef
samich. Need to cool down.
Round two is much better. I pump it up and bear off for power, bang a
couple curbs of white water, catch a little air, go down, say a few "oh
shit"s, get up, and get outside. Now I can cruise and catch my breath.
I'm hooked in and zooming over the 6" chop and the 6' swells. I look back
at the shore and can barely see it through the rain. This is not the time
to be doing distance runs, jibe ho! I'm on a big rolling swell right
quick, and the spray blowing off the one ahead of me is impressive...ok,
it's downright intimidating. This is one wave I'm NOT going to shred, I'm
in cautious exploration mode...I jam down the face and outrun this thick
sand-sucking monster. whew...I made it, but I'm getting a message from my
body: "You're not in shape for this, Galvan!" The surf is bigger, thicker,
more powerful than I had expected, and I hardly sailed at all last year.
Time to quit while I'm ahead. So I come to a huge inside arena of smooth
water, wind just blasting, and I can't resist a long drawn out arcing jibe,
sooooo sweet. Then I'm pointing back out into the surf of course, and I
eat it at the first wave, lose my gear and start swimming. No rocks, no
serious current, just a real clear sign that it's quittin' time.
So the place works. Bodies and gear need to be in top shape, small swell
would be nice. Bouys were reporting 10-12 feet from the west that day.
Oh yes, this is one of the sharkiest places in the whole damn Pacific
Ocean! Enter the food chain at your own risk...
kasplash@crl.com-DeleteThis
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