maui monthly no.79. november 2011

November 2011, Maui, Hawaii

#79

www.mauisails.com/2012

pick the one that fits the Best foR You

Spent some timein PORTUGALand had a quick visit on Maui

Photo : Bogo

Maui Monthly no.79. November ’11.4

As head race tester for Fanatic my priority in November was working on the Falcon Slalom boards and test riding boards for 2013 already. Therefore I visited Portugal where shaper Sebastian Wenzel lives, we got to work on development and he also took me surfing down by the beach of Guincho while there was a massive swell. We found decent slalom conditions by the harbour in Cascais, and as Sebastian hadn’t sailed in a while he was happy to have in his hands my fine tuned TR-7 7.6 while I used slightly bigger 8.4 for comparison. We could quickly see how to proceed, the advantage of testing close to the workshop is off course changes can be made straight away, and especially with the designer himself its easier to bring the feedback across. Something that also worked well in the past with Art.

At the end of the month I paid Maui a quick visit; took a while to get car up and running it needed a new windscreen, insurance, registration and safety but got that sorted in a few days. I sailed Hookipa twice during thanksgiving there was good waves to be had with very few people out - lucky not to have any family obligations.

Sailed at Maalaea mudflats a couple times too and surfed Honolua bay. Got to see Barry, Art and Caroline at the loft after thanks giving weekend and it was nice to catch up. Phil had already left to Australia, but I was happy to learn from Art that my past feedback had been taken to good use and also that sales have increased, so I could conclude its been a pretty good year. Didn’t get to try the new TR-8 though but I heard they’re sick.

AlohaPeter Volwater

Maui MonthlyOur Experience, Your Reward .5

WWW.MAUISAILS.COM/TR-8

Photo : Vinnie Armato

Que tal Amigos y amigas :)

Pretty much this month hase been a really fast one for me. Just yesterday I felt like writing the October report. Now i have to do the November one ALREADY !!.

I’ve been trying to find out what to improve on the Loco’s and it’s quite hard to do changes as they are good already. Like they said, it’s not good until you are totally satisfied but once your are satisfied, you want to be more satisfied. It’s a never ending process. Interesting huh?

The Loco 4.0, 4.8, and 5.6 are my best sizes, so my mission is the improvement of the 4.4 and 5.2. So far I have been emailing Barry and Art and also visa versa, to get them to work on a new 5.2 prototype for me to test and from then we move to the next one.

Sailing on Bonaire been really on/off. This is the time of the year where we get a lot of rain and in between that rain we get 30 minutes of really strong 25-30 knots wind and it’s good to be on the beach when that comes along so you can sail at least the amount of time that there’s wind.

A month to the end of 2011 and the beginning of another excited year to come. The 2012 PWA Calendar is not yet done, but it would be the same events as this year, so sure it’s going to be a lot of traveling. KLM just sent me the "Gold" flying blue card, as I did a certain amount of traveling that required them to raise my miles level from a Silver to Gold, pretty awesome :)

Overall I am doing fine, and I can’t wait to start traveling again.

Ayooo,Taty Frans NB-9

How to improve

LOCOs


Photos : Bogo


It’s hard to complain when you’re on Maui. Sure, it’s November here just like anywhere else, and as such it’s starting to get a little cooler and a little rainier, but we’re still talking about wearing boardshorts on the regular, I mean come on! And most importantly, the wind refused to go away, I sailed everyday in November except the 30th, almost a perfect record for the month!

Wind Everyday in

November on Maui!

November started off with classic N-NW fall swells and moderate side-side off winds, making for some pretty insane days up the coast. Depending on the crowd/wind/waves combo, I like to head to either Hookipa or Kuau. No explanation needed for how epic Hookipa is, but often times the crowds really get to me, and I prefer heading down to Kuau. My Kuau friends might kill me for saying this, but few people know how good it can really get down there. Between the bowl at Mama’s, main reef at Kuau, and the Nori’s point all the way into Tavares bay, Kuau can deliver some of the gnarliest, longest rides the north shore has to offer.

When Paia could not escape the cloud cover or the waves decided to take a rest, the winds down the coast refused to let down, and I found myself switching gears to freestyle and slalom.

Always stoked to change up the pace, I had a blast with my 4.5 Ghost for freestyle. The more time I spend on the 4.5 Ghost, the more I fall in love with it. Rigged to spec the sail is perfect for wavesailing and jumping, and for freestyle I back off the downhaul about 1.5 cm and the sail still feels incredibly light and well balanced, and super stable, ducking like a freestyle sail, the Ghost really is the one sail that can do it all!

To top it off this month with the triple-threat of windsurfing disciplines, I even got a few sessions slalom sailing down at Kanaha. Every time I slalom sail it reminds me of growing up and spending time with my parents, learning how to windsurf. My dad has been using Barry’s race sails since before I was born, I didn’t even know sails DIDN’T have cams in them for my first few years windsurfing! Learning how to waterstart with an


8-cam 5.5 VX2 at 110lbs was not exactly enjoyable, but I smile whenever I rig for slalom, remembering those good times with my parents, and my first great memories windsurfing. My first session this month was with Phil and Art, where I got the chance to try out the new TR-8s. Words cannot express how ridiculously awesome the new TR-8s are. I tried the 5.9 absolutely lit, and found the sail so fast, manageable, and light, that I just found myself scratching my head in astonishment. Needless to say I can’t wait to get my TR-8s for next season racing in the Gorge Cup!

Cya on the water,Casey HauserUS-634

Photo : aMORPHia.Photography


WAVE season

IS BACK on Maui


Photo : Bogo


It’s great to be back in the wave season here on Maui. Though we had some periods with fairly small surf we still had plenty of good days with solid northerly swells and light to moderate side-offshore wind. A couple of the good days, the swell came in from a more North to North-East direction creating more of a point break set up than the usual North-Westerlies. We even had one giant “victory at sea” type day with double mast high closeout sets keeping Hookipa deserted despite solid sideshore trades. I was lucky enough to sneak out for a solo session at a nearby spot and catch a few bombs while fortunately avoiding getting munched. Those days definitely make you contemplate the power of the ocean when the big sets start jacking up a mile out to sea and you can see the same wave line up from Hookipa to Paia. Definitely exciting.

On the big and gnarly days you really start appreciating a sails range and it can make the difference between getting out and getting some good waves or getting pounded on the inside and having to swim in. With side-offshore winds, the inside can be super light and holey with zero to ten knots of wind while outside and on the wave face it may be blowing 25-30 knots, not even taking into account the apparent wind. On big days, you need the sail to have good power and a “springy” pumping ability in order to get maximum acceleration and take full advantage of the, sometimes rare, opportunities to sneak out between sets.


Photo : Bogo

On the other end of the spectrum once you catch a big one, not only is the true wind much stronger outside, but the apparent wind generated as you sprint down the line, trying to keep up with the huge mound of water can be huge. At this point the top end of the sail gets tested and it needs to stay stable and light in the hands to give you the ability to commit to a powerful bottom turn and then release all that power as you crank a turn off the top while a 30 knot gust is blowing straight up the face. These are the days then the Ghost-Xt and the Legend shine. They are fine tuned and tested on a daily basis to have that perfect combination of low end power and soft feel together with light feel and smooth release, even when seriously over-powered. The positive characteristics of this excellent wind range clearly extend far beyond the big days and we keep receiving more and more positive comments from customers about how much they appreciate them in a variety of high wind conditions.

Aloha,Artur Szpunar


I don’t know what it is about November just sort of slipping away. In our world there is so much going on at this time of year I guess it’s hard to pay attention to the days drifting by. With the accelerated schedule for PWA sail registration, the last days of October were tight and busy. Art got everything done and then it started blowing almost every day. Emphasis then shifted to the new recreational designs for 2012. Titan GS needed tuneups and some continued adjustments and there was the work on the new Blaze, a conic sleeve version to suit demand from some areas that still want a cam sail with narrow sleeves. The refinement of the Titans with the the narrow sleeve made a cam sail that jibed almost llike an RAF so we felt there was definitely a place for this type and did the work.

November slipped away again


Art and I have been collaborating on a couple of new things in the wave sails that should turn heads when they are finally put together. We now have samples of the new lightweight material with the interesting color use, and are on time for it to be in early samples that should begin to show up when he gets back from a well deserved family snow trip later in December. We are excited to be able to have a good handle on wave sail development so early, thanks to the early PWA deadline. This will allow a full wave season of testing on 2013 ideas, and should make the more radical new thing easier to be right on time.

There will be rumors soon about someone new taking on the TR-8s for next season, but no official news until next month. Have fun with that, but we won’t tell:)

November is usually the time for my mom, Cornelia, to get to Hawaii for our Thanksgiving holiday. I don’t know how she does it, maybe some of those batteries that just keep running... and running... She’s not going to stop according to her, so at 96 she still climbs aboard her namesake, Cornelia, and we go sailing and have time on the water for her. She tells me the ocean is her inspiration, and when she’s floating, she is the most happy.

I am lucky and happy to have such a vibrant and active elder in my life. Having her around is a constant reminder that it’s possible to have a good life for another thirty years, and she is my example. Her bones are getting old, things are simply wearing down, but there is an ironlike determination to draw out every ounce of living. We should all be so lucky.

AlohaBarry Spanier


Busy month chasing wind to finalize the testing on the TR8. We had some light wind days and some windy days which enabled us to get on all the sizes just in time for the PWA registration at the end of October. Got some photo’s and video done as well, so we should be all set for promotion and marketing. We registered 4.7m to 9.2m for the PWA sail registration this year. We are pleased with the designs and will be looking forward to customers receiving the new sails early in 2012.

Aloha,Phil McGain

Finalize&test


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maui monthly no.79. november 2011

Documents

pretty good year

good use

good waves

new tr

excited year

quick visit

month hase

new windscreen