2002 PWA Freestyle Qualifier King of the Cape Day 1

Well, Kevin Pritchard's [Bic Sport/Gaastra] recent article in Windsurfing Magazine discussed a funny scenario, what if the winds at a particular event site are unfavorable.. do you move to another?? Well, since today was set up and Meet the Pros we really couldn't move the event with the offshore winds blowing. While the set up crew prepared the beach, most everyone headed to where the NE winds HOWLED, Bayview Beach on Dennis's northern shoreline on Cape Cod Bay (6 miles from the event site).

The day was very similar to a November Bayview sesh for many of us. A dreary rain descended from the dark sky. Seasoned Cape Codders had hoods and dry suits but the Bonaire Sailing Team came in surf shorts and t shirts. That changed quickly as the bitter cold winds blew through the rigging scene. Some had their own 3/2 wetsuits but most borrowed dive suits from a Bonairean dive shop.. the bright lime green legs and sleeves brought back memories of the Day Glo Days...

The average sail size was a 4.7 and the winds did howl. The water was actually warmer than the air so missing jibes wasn't too painful.

The best part of the day was the Loopatorium. Matt Pritchard [AHD/Gaastra] from Maui showed his stuff while Jerry Evans, Jim Canniff and Fred Vetterlein were amongst the many locals chucking forwards and pulling other aerial maneuvers.. By far the cleanest and highest were often seen by Bonaire superstar Tonky Frans [AHD/Gaastra]. His brother Tati [AHD/Gaastra] was not far behind and 16 year old Javier Sint Jago from Aruba threw a few wowing the small crowd braving the elements for this show.

The rock star Goddesses, Colette Guadagnino [JP/Neil Pryde], Nori Hubbs and Karin Jaggi [F2/Arrows] made an appearance with Nori and Karin deciding to make it happen. They made the best of the onshore backside wave sailing, pulling off some pretty impressive maneuvers.

Our registration party was like out of a windsurf mag..pros from the Caribbean, Europe, Maui and Canada were on hand. Jace Panebianco [RRD] had a contingent from Long Island. These youths had high energy and enthusiasm. Peter Hart entertained us with his stories and wit. The food was super and the drinks flowed thanks to Red Bull.

Saturday promises warmer and sunnier condition, but lighter winds, SE 10-15. Sunday is forecasted so far to be the windiest of the weekend with SW winds 15-20.