Change in seasons

So you are telling me it doesn't blow like stink here everyday all year round? What am I to do?

Luckily there are killer mountains just around the corner that got a total of 810" of snow last season, that's almost 70 feet. Squaw has already been hit with a couple small winter storms this year; I guess whenever it rains in San Fran it is snowing on the mountains.

Local San Franciscans have been getting themselves stoked for the season by checking out ski movie tours that bring a carnival of skiing and snowboarding to movie theaters everywhere they go. This is a new experience for me that I am starting to fall in love with. My past experience with ski movies was in college where we usually watched a DVD in a dark dank dorm room to get ourselves psyched for a weekend of skiing. Watching a ski movie on the big screen is a different experience all together. The biggest difference is the audience, it is way more exciting to watch a skier head towards an epic cliff when there are 100 other people building louder and louder, "Woahhhh," then erupting in a giant cheer when the skier sticks the landing or erupts into an epic yard sale. No one is more stoked than the kids that are standing in line for autographs, grabbing handfuls of stickers and bragging about there biggest hucks from last season. The feeling is contagious and you can't help but act like a kid while you are there.

Another bonus to the ski movies are the raffles but as my friend Jeremy learned you have to earn it. Congrats on your new pair of skis buddy.

In case you need to get pumped up for this season or just don't know how epic Squaw Valley is this video should do the trick. Just about all of the epic cliffs, steep terrain and tight chutes are accessible by lifts. Ridding a lift at squaw on a powder day is like being in the middle of a ski movie to your right and left you might see a pro skier or snowboarder ride an epic line or launch themselves off a cliff.
Warren Miller's Squaw Video

Rip Curl Pro Search comes to San Francisco

Pretty psyched to have a pro surfing competition right in my new backyard but I am not sure where I should surf this weekend. Yesterday Ocean beach dished out the usual currents and one pro surfer spotted a shark coming in mid heat. Check out the competition live!

Watch live streaming video from ripcurl at livestream.com

3rd Ave. That's the good stuff

Finally got a really good session in at 3rd Ave. as the season is winding down.  For some reason the wind sensor in the channel went offline right when the wind peak but I was sailing right next to it and was completely lit on my 5.8 100L board setup.  When I first went out I was perfect but man did the wind freshened up.  Rather than rigging another sail I de-powered the 5.8 as much as possible and hung on.  The best combo for the day once the wind picked up probably would have been 5.0 85L but I didn't bring a smaller board and wanted to maximize my time on the water.  Of course today I brought the small board and the wind didn't come in at all... why do the wind gods always play these cruel and unusual tricks on us?

3rd Ave. is an amazing spot that creates a natural playground whether you or using a kite or sail.  Near the shore there are some flat spots and plenty of small chop that is close together and better suited for kitting.  As you sail further out the wind really kicks up and the chop turns into swell that you can play around with.  At this point in the season the wind doesn't pick up until later in the day and I can only imagine what the swell is like during the peak of the season.

All of the technical details aside I was really happy to get a good day in the resembled the natural breeze of San Francisco Bay.  There was a moment when I was sailing that I finally felt like my ship had landed and I was no longer an east-coast transplant but someone who found themselves at home on the west coast.

My day wasn't as epic as this one but the video shows some of the best conditions you can get at "Turd".

AWT Maui Makani Classic

The American Windsurfing Tour (AWT) has evolved into something special this year. The tour was organized and supported by other windsurfers and kept the grass-root feel that windsurfing in America embodies. Choosing spots like Waddell CA, Pistol River OR and Cape Hatteras NC the tour showed that North America has some of the best conditions the world has to offer. The AWT has exposed many shortcomings of the PWA tour that has a European focus. The AWT has brought back a feeling of pride to the North American windsurfer and has squashed the idea that Europe has the best conditions and sailors.

The last stop on the AWT is Hawaii which makes perfect sense. I think the last windsurfing competition in Hawaii was in 2006. Why the windsurfing mecca has not had a windsurfing competition in 5 years is a mystery to me. Even though most windsurfers in America probably don't relish at the idea of organized competition I think this is a great step for the sport and something all windsurfers in America should embrace.

Check out the competition live!

Competition over live feed deleted to avoid annoying ads.

That was a crazy trip!

Let me tell you about a crazy trip.  Initially the plan was to move out of apartment and drive cross country to San Francisco the last week of August but because of Irene and the fact our apartment was a foot above sea level and only a few steps away from the water at high tide we had to get out of there a week early.  Of course we couldn't get the U-haul a week early so we had to be a little creative and use my trailer to get everything out in time.

After stuffing everything into a garage we survived the hurricane and now had to figure out how to get everything into a U-haul.  Of course now we had no power which meant no way to do laundry, take showers and when the sun went down we were packing in the dark.  So when everything was ready to go we were already looking worse for the wear before we even got out of Connecticut but away we went.

First stop was Chicago (my home town) where we stayed with friends and got a chance to see my old house and school.  When I was growing my parents painted the house a color they called "Red Wine" but it instantly faded into a color that me and my friends would call pink.

After doing a drive by tour of my childhood we set out west of Chicago, an area we knew nothing about. Iowa was filled with nothing but flat corn fields for as far as the eye can see as well as some of the craziest rain storms I have ever experienced.

If you ever drive cross country via I-80 it is important to know you basically have to stay in North Platte, NE.  The book On The Road mentions that eventually civilization appears to end and the only place you can find a bed for a night is North Platte.  The town is so proud of the fact they are in the middle of no where it is more or less their motto.

After driving through Iowa and Nebraska I now realize how vast the US is and what they mean by "Bread Basket".  Wyoming is where I think the "Big Country" begins.  Cattle and prairies with occasional mountains that you could see in the distance.  Amazingly despite the fact the land was mostly flat our elevation was around 8,000 feet.

The land starts to transform as you approach Utah.  The prairies disappear and you are surrounded by beautiful red canyons.  We drove through the canyons and Park City as the sun was setting.

All for now but there is still a sunset drive into Salt Lake City, making it through the salt flats, Burning Man and Lake Tahoe.

Surprise Post-Work Session to End The Summer

From Cape Cod to New York City this has been the worst summer in my memory for wind.  All of us wind-kooks have been going through phases of giving up all hope and going insane thinking its blowing 30knts whenever a truck goes by and blows around a nearby tree.  I don't think anyone saw it coming when a meager forecast turned into a great day on August 24th.  It was a great way to bid farewell to the east-coast and the sailors I have met while living in and around New York City before heading west for San Francisco.

The conditions weren't epic but it was a good day and despite it being a workday everyone seemed to make it out for a solid post-work sunset session.  I was a little underpowered on a 5.8 and 100L board at times but after sailing way out I got some sweet rides.  I unfortunately didn't start using the camera until after 2 hours of sailing at which point I will admit I was getting tired after sailing around Beach Island and finding some big breeze and small breaking waves.

Since the end of August I had to evacuate my apartment for Hurricane Irene and drove cross-country to San Francisco.  I promise to post some pics soon.  I am now back on the east-coast for work but hope to get back west soon. Fortunately, I was able to piece together a small quiver that  I can keep on the east coast so I don't miss any good days when I am back as I probably will be often.

Jason Polakow windsurfing at Jaws – Podcast 1

The pros are good

First off, I have added Gran Canaria to my wish list of places to go before I kick the bucket.  The pros sailing on the PWA tour make it look so easy.  Watching them sail in 3.2 conditions in Pozo you realize windsurfing has very little to do with brute strength and everything to do with technique.  Amateur sailors forget about this whenever we are in crazy condition.  Next time I go out in 20+ knots I will think of this video of Phillip Koster and how he never fought the rig and board despite throwing huge airs and turns.

Live streaming of the next event in Tenerife.

Think back to windier times

Here are some shots from Cape Hatteras.  Since we are all going insane in the northeast I thought I might as well think back to windier times.  This particular day the wind picked up to 25+ as the sunset.  I was on a 4.5 and trying out a 95L Fanatic free-wave.

Graphics on the Fanatic boards are sweet

Best Sunset Session Ever

The trip to Hatteras has come and gone.  It was nothing short of epic.  The trip started off mellow with no breeze and some small waves left over to get some SUP rides on.  It was a refreshing chance to get away from it all and appreciate everything Hatteras had to offer. 

Taking words of advice from the local sailors we headed to Ocracoke Island for a day that was forecasted to be light.  To our amazement the ferry was free for both cars and passengers.  After a trip through a precarious channel we were dropped off on the corner of the island that is uninhabited.  We chose a random turn off to setup shop and catch some waves.  The conditions were perfect for some first time paddlers to try the waves.  After 3 hours on the beach we headed to the end of the island where there was a small town.  Taking advice from local sailors once again we tried of all things the local Thai restaurant for lunch.  Delicious and spicy.

The next 3 days were full of wind and heroics.  Many of us were taking kiteboarding lessons which meant getting up at sunrise to do as much windsurfing as possible before the lessons.  The only time we were able to all sail together was at sunset and we sailed hard.

During one epic sunset session I realized how many different ways there are to have fun on the water.  When you are around the water enough you look at everything differently Ken (from Ocean Air Sports) took out a Hobie Wave catamaran with a SUP board with the intention of getting someone skurfing behind the boat.

Not the windiest day we had but probably some of the best fun we had all trip.  Most of the time we were weaving in and out of each other: Garth-kiteboarding, Nat-windsurfing, David -windsurfing, Sarah Flow-windsurfing, Ken-Sailboat, Spike-SUP and all of the other sailors out there who had no idea what we were all doing.

3 ways to use the wind

Garth ripping

Easy airs all day on the inside

Lining up to buzz the boat

Special thanks to Ken and Sarah for sharing their stoke and local advice as well as the shops they work at Ocean Air Sports and WindNC.  I wish I could be there right now.  I think everyone in the Northeast has been watching the wind reports in Hatteras with envy.

Could the drought be over?

I think everyone on the East Coast has started to loose it. If you don't own a SUP board there wasn't much reason to make it out on the water this weekend. Even the lucky sailors who were able to find breeze were out on 6.5+ sails. Well step back from the ledge there is hope and the first sign of wind on the horizon.


I am heading to Hatteras Friday night and it looks like I might have to pack some wet gear.  I wouldn't have it any other way.  Hopefully all of the hot air we create from talking about the wind doesn't kill it.  So keep your fingers crossed, do a wind dance or whatever it is you do to get psyched and turn 15 knots into 20.  I know the Peconic crew will do their part (picture from Peconic Puffin).

Time to reflect during a break in the wind

It has been a great year so far. When the wind doesn't blow you realize how precious great days are when they come. While there have been some epic days so far this year the wind seemed to drop off once I started using the camera. As a result I was reluctant to use it a couple times when I was dialed in. Here are some shots I got before the wind died:
Day 1 I was on a 5.0-100L and Day 2 4.5-85L

Here is to no longer wearing gloves or a hood.  I can't wait to be in Cape Hatteras in a week to Windsurf, SUP and even try some kiteboarding.

For now the wind looks dead all over the east coast for the most part and the forecast doesn't look much better.  That said, the last awesome day I had the forecast wasn't good.  Hopefully this weekend shapes up there are tons of fronts heading for the northeast as we speak.

Decent March Windsurfing Session at Todd's Point

Sometimes you head to the beach knowing that you are going to rig your smallest sail and rip in incredible conditions.  You turn on your pump up mix as you get closer to the launch and your hair stands on end from the excitement.  However, there are the times you head to a nearby spot expecting to see the conditions aren't good and run some errands.  This was one of those days...but it turned into a good warm up session for the season.


I have seen so many people drive up to a windsurfing spot and turn around even when the conditions are good.  I guess we think that if we know the conditions aren't good doing errands etc... won't feel so bad.  On this day I showed up to Todd's point planning to turn around but was surprised by the 20knt puff that was there on my arrival.  Sailed a 5.8 - 120L.  Probably could have been on a 100L but didn't bring it, given how cold it was and how large holes were between gust the 120L helped maximize time and fun.  First time using the GoPro camera windsurfing and I mounted it on the most important part of the boom for maneuvers.  All and all a nice surprise session with first attempts at filming.