In an effort to bring some kind of organization to the chaos of these pages, I've created an index for easy access to most of the photos on this site. The photo gallery can be found here.
December 9th...headed out to Half Moon Bay with Steve hoping to get some storm shots from inside the harbor.
As we drove up Hwy 1 the ocean looked like victory at sea. The swell at Princeton Harbor was pounding over the breakwater and spray was exploding horizontally, drenching the access path to the launch and everyone on it. In the distance Mavericks was going off big time. The handful of kites flying in the harbor were getting yanked in the 35+ kt gusts. The water just inside the jetty looked like butter.
I settled in behind a small sand berm trying to get some shelter from the gusts and pelting sand and spray. The air temp was mild but the sandblasting was relentless. Unfortunately my location had me shooting towards the breakwater (the boys love butter) into the overcast sunlight at mid-day...most of the shots are very backlit.
Join us on October 14th at the St. Francis Yacht Club for a killer end of season party. We will be celebrating the 20th Anniversay of the San Francisco Boardsailing Association and racers will present the Cabrinha Kite & Windsurf Awards. The party runs from 7 pm to midnight with FREE admission, live music, and refreshments (come early). The music will be retroactive rock and roll by Seventh Son. We hope you will take this opportunity to renew your SFBA membership or join up if you've never been a member.
In case you missed it...
Cabrinha’s Kafka Captures Ronstan Bridge 2 Bridge
Who can go downwind the fastest? A windsurfer on a formula board, an Aussie 18 sailboat, or a kiter? This year it was a kiter, Cabrinha’s Jeff Kafka, from Pacifica, Calif. He dominated the field of 40 boats in the 9th annual Ronstan event. Kafka used his 14m Cabrinha Contra and his custom “prisoner of wind” quad fin kite/surf board to capture the 2006 title. The race start is at the scenic Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco with the finish at the Bay Bridge; a distance of 5+ miles as the crow flies. Although the winds were a bit light, 15-18, Kafka won by one of the largest margins in race history. The race record of 16:23 is held by world champion windsurfer, Micah Buzianis.
The season seems to be winding down...but the kiters are still wound up in a lot of ways. Sonny got tangled in fishing lines and Kevin and Vince...are just wound
Be sure to pick up the latest (November '06) issue of kiteboarding magazine and read Cimeron Morrissey'sarticle, Power Launch.
Now, I don't usually read the kite rags (that's Steve's job) unless they're strategically abandoned in my personal "library" as this one was. What initially caught my eye was the legible text. Holy crap (unabashedly appropriate for the moment), I didn't need my high-powered reading glasses just to decipher the TOC. As I thumbed through the pages scanning the pics and headlines I suddenly realized that someone put time and talent into the layout of this thing and lo and behold, it even had respectable content. So I turned to Cimeron's article.
I was aware that she wrote a piece for the mag but assumed it would be editorially mangled, cut, hacked, sliced, diced and possibly not even resemble her actual submission. Fortunately for all you kiteboarding readers out there, her story about the Bay Area's rich and famous rocks! Quite the wordsmith Ms. Cimeron is.
So go on out and snag a copy of the November issue of kiteboarding for your "library." You won't be dissapointed.
Think I'll go shoppin'...now where's that credit card???
September 15th...after ripping up the race course on the final night of the Cabrinha Race Series at the St. Francis YC, Shawn and Jesse Richman lit up 3rd. Ave.
Safety Day – August 20th at Coyote Point Yacht Club
SFBA’s Safety Day presentation will be at the Coyote Point Yacht Club on Sunday, August 20th from 10:30 a.m. (thanks to the generosity of Coyote Point Yacht Club). A raffle will be held with prizes from sponsors West Marine, ASD Windsurfing/Kitesurfing and Helm of Sun Valley. The prizes include two Icom VHF M72 radios (submersible plus rated) and 2 Firefly strobes donated by West Marine. The event will include a general safety presentation followed by working groups on windsurf self rescue, kitesurf safety, and VHF radio use. A top communications expert from the Coast Guard Auxiliary will be on hand to give advice and information on carrying a VHF radio for emergency use. Please encourage people to attend. Coffee and bagels/donuts will be provided.
July 24, 2006...3rd Ave. Some snaps from the bench on a light wind afternoon.
Kevin's kite goin' for a spin
Congrats to Eva and Jonathan and welcome to a new kite baby!...The newest member of the 3rd Avenue community has arrived! Eva gave birth to Kenneth Cooper Strausburg on Saturday the 22nd at 9:11pm. He’s 6 pounds 8 ounces. Both Eva and Baby are doing great!
Our thoughts and best wishes for a speedy recovery go out to Chuck Hamilton as he recovers from open heart surgery. Hope to see him back on the beach very soon!
The folks at 3rd Ave intend to memorialize Jay in some manner - possibly with a bench that is dedicated to him, a rescue craft, and/or other ideas that have been proposed.
The SFBA has provided a PayPal link that allows us to donate to this memorial.
If you choose to contribute to Jay's memorial, it will be appreciated.
The family also asks that contributions in Runge's honor be sent to
the Homeless Cat Network .
To read many of the moving tributes to Jay, join the Yahoo 3rdAve group."
June 21...Sadly, 3rd Ave.'s windsurfing and kiting community has lost one of our own. Today our hearts are heavy. Words from Cimeron Morrissey;
"I'm so sad that Jay passed away. It's just so surreal - I don't want it to be true. Today has been an incredibly tough day for all of us. But at least we have the relief that comes with having found his body.
I want to say a special thanks to Chris Moore for spearheading the effort to find Jay. Chris has been truly amazing and handled this with incredible professionalism and determination. He went to Jay's house and talked with neighbors, filed the missing person's report, worked with police, Coast Guard, Fire Departments, and Sheriffs, and took the initiative to conduct a search of the bay using Helm's Jetski (thanks for letting us use it, Gary). If it weren't for Chris, Jay would likely have never been found since there weren't any agencies able to conduct the search throughout the bay. Chris also took it upon himself to inform Paul, Jay's brother, of what transpired today, which had to have been tough for both men. Chris -words can't describe how thankful we all are for you and your efforts. We are so lucky to have a friend like you.
Also, special thanks to the Menlo Park Fire Department for handling the recovery effort. After we found Jay, one agency asked us to recover Jay's body ourselves (you can imagine our reaction - you should have seen the look on Chris' face). The Menlo Park Fire Department came to the rescue by launching an air boat and support boat. There were 11 people out there to help recover Jay, and all were very kind and shared our sorrow. If you can, please send them a thank you note for their efforts - they were wonderful and deserve our thanks.
Even though I saw Jay myself and know it was him, I'm still finding
it hard to believe he's gone.
You will be missed, Jay.
Cimeron"
Here are few shots fromKiteXPO at Pismo Beach...the wind forecast was pretty bleak but a few folks got on the water Friday afternoon as a front passed through. Saturday's weather was beautiful except for no wind. Sunday was a washout.
Saturday night, Sonny and Jane Swords...threw a big aloha "C-ya-later-bye" bash for Phil and Angela who are movin' on up to Maui where Phil will be associated with NeilPryde Maui.
As always, Sonny and Jane generously opened their home, kitchen and bar-b-que to celebrate a 3rd Ave family event. The place was packed to the rafters with well-wishers wanting to give Phil and Angela a big send-off.
To mark the event, Clark Beckstead...artfully assembled a video montage from photos he and Gayle Null have taken over the past 4 years at 3rd and beyond. It's an impressive compilation of the many faces at their favorite kiting spot.
Clark gifted everyone at the party with a DVD of the slideshow.
Third Avenue Update:
Net to be Raised After two years of wrangling between the Mariner’s Point Golf Course, Foster City and the San Francisco Boardsailing Association (SFBA), it looks like the safety nets will be raised to 100' along the back of the driving range and along the entry roadway...read more
Crissy Field Swap Meet... Saturday April 01, 2006
This is the 4th Annual Crissy Field Swap Meet.
8am 'til the wind blows on Saturday April 1, 2006. Located in the lot just west
of the bathrooms at Crissy Field. It always blows hard so don't forget your wetsuit and gear.
Helm Swap... April 15th and the 3rd Sat of each month thru September.
*SFBA SITE STEWARDS PROGRAM LAUNCHED!*...
WHO are we? Local windsurfers and kitesurfers who want to protect
access to our local spots for the long term... read more
King of the Bay 6 is set for June 23, 24 and 25 at 3rd Ave. For details (coming soon) check the KOTB website.
Steve finally put together some action from the 2005 King of the
Bay...footage is old but so is Steve!
Enjoy...rumor has it that King of the Bay is ON for 2006.
Cabrinha kite chicks... shakin' their tail feathers. Cimeron, a writer in real life, has been dancing for a few years, while this is Annick's (a teacher) first performance.
The show was at Central Park in San Mateo, CA. Thanks to Cimeron's husband John who provided the video.
Cimeron's solo(14.8MB Quicktime) It's a big file but worth it!
Check out helmetcameracentral for some interesting POV videos including kitesurfing, windsurfing, street luge, powerboarding etc.
...and here for a little snow kiting video
Enjoy...life is short!
Something new for 2006…KIDS DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME…a video by Maui Sports Net (WMV) of Jesse Richman doing stoopid kite tricks. Team Coyote neither endorses nor encourages this kind of behavior…but it is entertaining. ;-)
