Wind is ON.

I've gotten to kite the past 4 out of 6 days, I didn't go Saturday or Sunday due to the large crowds on any weekend, it blows. On Friday I was offered to fly a friends 12m Bow kite, now I know as much as any other kiter that my C kites are dinosaurs, but not having flown a bow in over six months I had begun to forget what I was missing out on. Well, the long and short of my Bow Kite experience was that it was suuupppperrr easy! I was up and riding rather quickly, I brought it to twelve to fall in and start back the other way when somehow I managed to loos my board and get lofted once, twice, make it three times. Body drag, body drag, body drag, and I've got my board back. I should note that I was really powered up, I think I would have been happy flying a 9m. Well, I got up back over to the middle of the sand bar where Ken was waiting for me to return his kite. More fun tomorrow, back to my C-kites, and saving some loot for my first bow.
be well, ride charged!

Just to post.

Haven't done much but work skate and work for some time now. So I'm posting just for sake of it.

Here's a picture that makes me smile...






hehe, lil' Bounce wasn't thrilled I woke him from a nap...

Got Wind?

Of course on my first day at a new job, it's 9 meter wind. Bahh Humbug...

Got wind!

And was laid out, again, and again, and again..then I chilled out, and caught some decent rides, set an edge, and even made it upwind a bit. I remember learning the basics of windsurfing, that came much more naturally to me than kiting(so far)... If I had video/pictures of some of my face-plants(was low tide, and the seaweed had some funky algea on it) I would have a more popular blog.. ie: My kiteboarding session often led me to having a great resemblance to swamp thing... Oh, and the fun is just starting as the next week brings much wind!

Got bored! So bored, I found myself making a board!

Last night I became a happy lil' wood-shop elf and made myself a drop-through carve board. An old pair of Randal II's and some very old street G's keep this puppy planted! The construction is about as basic as it gets, a 3/4" x 3" spine, with a 6 3/4" wide deck, overall length is 30" reinforced the platform with epoxy and a denim/epoxy layer. (yes, a lil' redneck engineering). Pros: steers well, short wheel base is great for pumping and tight turns, did I mention I made it in 5 hours? drawbacks: the deck flexes on the rails, absorbing much of the weight input for steering, this sucks, as I don't want to add to the board to get it carving more easily but it seems I'll have to. The cure: 1. Adding a sheet of fiberglass/epoxy to the top of the deck then re-applying grip tape 2. Replacing the yellow(medium/hard) bushings with some Khiro whites, oranges or blues, but more more than likely a combination of white and orange will get it carving nice and loose! Going to have to do both... This is going to make a nice garage racer when I buy some good bearings and bigger wheels, and knock out the other mods previously mentioned..Next deck is going to be an experiment in lamination, so I'll be building a steam box, a jig, and setting up a vacuum bag for more efficient epoxy work....Some pics of the quiver..

Scotch, lean pockets, and all topics of conversation...

Have to say, this was one of the funniest evenings I've experienced in some time. Started at Starbucks(as so many great evenings do), then the pool table was put to use, as bottles were tapped and spirits poured. I quickly dispelled anyone's inkling that I could be beat on the pool table only to find myself teaching trombone, and generally having a good time. Shortly there after, we sat down to an epic conversation covering all aspects of life. From rock climbing to rock throwing, dog senses to doggy style, much of the nitty-gritty that makes humans so intriguing. Politics, the war, sex, and psychology. Ehh, here's whats funny for you. My good pal was tossed/hungry enough to have a lean pocket.....

and scotch...

Fishy Photography Fun

Playing with my digital camera, acclimating myself to the multitude of shooting styles. Subject matter: Oceanic Aqua Scape. Models : SnowFlake Eel and Broomtail Wrasse.

Locks of love.

After nearly two years, I've finally cut my mop. It will be sent out to Locks of Love shortly. In the mean time get a laugh at my goofy mug with these fun before and after pictures! Also note my favorite shirt to wear when I go kiting!!(thanks brother)..

Thursday night Gables Garage session...

Skating again?! Right-o my lovely readers.. Went to a nice lil' private garage last night with a rookie skater, who just so happened to have video recording capabilities on his cell. So without further adieu:


This has gotten me completely pumped for a whole new level of fun at other garages!
BTW if your thinking about getting into longboarding. Ride a loaded board. No other board begins to compare!

Kiting Sunny Miami in the Summer...(some know it as waiting for wind)..

Got a kite session(and a half) in this week, made decent riding progress(I still suck) before my kite became inverted and dropped/spun into "fifth-line hell"(that extra line is for safety right?), forcing my trudge back to the beach to return the lines to proper working order. I digress, I did manage to "get-up" and ride for a few minutes both goofy and switch(I'm a goofy-footed rider) but was unable to set an edge; ergo no upwind riding, yet. Yesterday the good folks at Ikitesurf.com predicted a 12-14mph afternoon at my local spot so I loaded up and hit the beach! pumped up my big Vegas kite and I managed my first self launch! One quick ride later and I found myself relaunching my very wet 18m kite only to have it invert(seeing a pattern yet?) and loop/roll into "fifth-line hell." well the wind was light enough to just haul the monster back to the beach, followed by the now customary re-rig. I just knew the wind was enough to get out there, or so I thought. Some pedestrians helped with the launch on this attempt, but once again the wind let up, the kite crashed from twelve o'clock landing just a few feet in front of me. It was time to give up; so head down, tail between my legs and kite becoming more frustration than fun I made my way to shore and set the kite to dry. As I coiled down my lines I heard a fire-cracker like pop as my center strut bladder had just popped. Great. One more reason I probably should have not bothered with yesterday. I've got to go fix that bladder, maybe there will be some wind next week. Tomorrow looks like flats fishing as the forecast is for 1-2 mph of wind, but of course I'll get out on the canoe only to have it be better weather for kiting than fly fishing.

My bucket list.....

1. Catch Bonefish in Hawaii
2. Sail to Fiji
3. Longboard the roads of the Swiss Alps.
4. Learn 4 more languages
5. Teach a blind person to Fly fish
6. Own a 1970 Camaro
7. Own a 56' Chevy Nomad
8. Go to Alaska
9. Look down on the world from the Eiffel Tower
10. Pyramids of Egypt
11. Set a world fishing record on Fly
12. Drive across America
13. Fly a glider
14. Change a bad law/ordinance(I could name a few)
15. Kite-Surf every chance I get, everywhere I go
16. Mud-fest
17. See my friends attain their dreams
18. Train/own a S.A.R.S. dog
20. Train/own a Perigrine Falcon
21. Stop a Panic

More to come, I'm going to go knock out # 21.

Garage Sessions..

Ever ridden a skateboard down a big hill? How about a parking garage? Well if you haven't surfed "the concrete wave," go ahead and put it on your list. Carving pavement and whirling slides(gloves recomended) make for an excellent event. Cruising and carving, or as-fast-as-you-can bombing; downhill long-boarding has seen a country wide surge in popularity. I'm stoked that the police don't seem to mind our late night antics! Unlike "aggressive" skaters who sometimes damage the obstacles they ride on, long-boarders like their spots, we even clean up a little. (On that I have to rant about picking up some random a-holes trash, STOP LITTERING YOU IDIOTS!) I've even read of some guys who called the cops when they saw some thugs tagging the walls of a favorite Miami garage! The biggest fear with new riders are high-speeds, the "wobbles," and learning how to stop quickly. Before you go, consider at least a set of slide gloves(homemade instructions are easily found online, several companies also produce them) a helmet and whatever other safety equipment you need to ride confidently. So next time your sitting around wonder just what you should do with yourself, grab a board, head to the nearest empty(or not) garage and give a go!

Bonefish Sunday

went on the flats on the canoe Sunday, got a late start! (on the water @ 7:30) caught the last of a falling tide, had two great shots at some smaller schools, missed the hook set on both. So now it was Sonny's turn. After about half hour of not really seeing fish, the tide kicked around and started flowing across the flats, and up came the Bones, within 5 minutes we had stalked down two groups of fish that seemed to be working a 50m x 50m area, Sonny(David East) made two or three false casts (in order to load enough line to reach the fish) then dropped his fly right on their noses. Now unlike my attempts there was no hesitation, and Dave hooked a massive Bonefish. The line screaming off his reel as canoe began to swing around as it was being towed by the fish, straight towards a crab trap. At the trap the fish immediately turned to right around it, causing much friction on the line, pole in hand I stood up and propelled us to the crab traps float as quickly as possible. Sonny quickly dipped his rod tip in the water and brought it up clear, with good tension on the fish. The Bone' made one or two more small runs before it was landed, photographed and released. Called it a day as it was now 11:00 am and I had to return home(dog-duty). Fishing in Biscayne bay from my Canoe, a time to remember.