Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Maui Vmax 2009 Speed Meeting 2 July 26th
After a few days of light winds the speed gods blessed us with some nice moderate 25 knot tradewinds. As usual the wind was inconsistent coming and going as it pleased promptly dropping as soon as the course opened. The Iwindsurf site showed a couple of gusts over 30 mph, but these were not to be found on the speed course. Most sailors rigged something close to 6.5. Unfortunately at the most advantageous tide the wind was not co-cooperating and when it did finally fill in the tide had come up and the course started to get bumpy. The trick at that point was to find a stretch of flat water in amongst the lumps.
Image Courtesy of Iwindsurf.com
35 knots seemed to be the number of the day but then Erik Beale came in with a good run (wanting to get it logged in just in case of mishaps later). Eric's 37 knoter motivated the boys to get back out there and try a little harder. By 3:30pm the chop was getting quite bad and it seemed clear the best runs of the day were behind us. When Alex discovered Peter John had just beaten him by 1/10th of a knot he headed back to the water in a last ditch attempt to find a puff and velvet before the course closed at 4pm. Alex was unable to overcome the rough water and had to settle for his earlier 38.2 knot 100m run behind Peter John's 38.3 knot run despite having the highest peak speed of the day of 39.1. Erik held on to 3rd followed by John Smalley with another 0.1 knot margin over Tom Hammerton.
This was a very impressive day with the highest speeds of the year in all divisions. Carl Grundy put in an impressive 30.7 knots in the wave division and Tracey Harrap - the only women's competitor so far - just snuck over 30 with a 30.1 on some gear borrowed from Terry Alkemade. Chris Freeman competing in his first GPS contest in the wave division rewarded himself with a forward loop at the end of every run when he went faster. A good time was definitely had by all. Unfortunately everyone was having so much fun we forgot to take photos!
It was a very international fleet with visiting sailors from the Southern Hemisphere Chris Adamson (AUS) and Terry Alkemade (NZ) as well as fellow Kiwi transplants Tracey Harrap and Peter John. The UK was well represented with 5 sailors, Erik Beale, Carl Grundy, Chris Freeman, Tom Hammerton and John Smalley. Olaf Sutor was the lone European competitor waving the flag for Germany. The fleet was completed with the two American sailors Matt Daniels and Alex "wear-a-hole-in-the-ocean" Aguera. Thanks to everyone for coming down and making it such a successful fun day.
For full results go to Results
Peter and Alex move to the top of the speed ladder bumping Pieter Bijl down to third in Open with Carl Grundy moving to the top of Wave: Speed Ladder
Thanks to Dain, Marc, Ayesha, Chris, Liz and Anne for keeping an eye on things.
Image Courtesy of Iwindsurf.com
35 knots seemed to be the number of the day but then Erik Beale came in with a good run (wanting to get it logged in just in case of mishaps later). Eric's 37 knoter motivated the boys to get back out there and try a little harder. By 3:30pm the chop was getting quite bad and it seemed clear the best runs of the day were behind us. When Alex discovered Peter John had just beaten him by 1/10th of a knot he headed back to the water in a last ditch attempt to find a puff and velvet before the course closed at 4pm. Alex was unable to overcome the rough water and had to settle for his earlier 38.2 knot 100m run behind Peter John's 38.3 knot run despite having the highest peak speed of the day of 39.1. Erik held on to 3rd followed by John Smalley with another 0.1 knot margin over Tom Hammerton.
This was a very impressive day with the highest speeds of the year in all divisions. Carl Grundy put in an impressive 30.7 knots in the wave division and Tracey Harrap - the only women's competitor so far - just snuck over 30 with a 30.1 on some gear borrowed from Terry Alkemade. Chris Freeman competing in his first GPS contest in the wave division rewarded himself with a forward loop at the end of every run when he went faster. A good time was definitely had by all. Unfortunately everyone was having so much fun we forgot to take photos!
It was a very international fleet with visiting sailors from the Southern Hemisphere Chris Adamson (AUS) and Terry Alkemade (NZ) as well as fellow Kiwi transplants Tracey Harrap and Peter John. The UK was well represented with 5 sailors, Erik Beale, Carl Grundy, Chris Freeman, Tom Hammerton and John Smalley. Olaf Sutor was the lone European competitor waving the flag for Germany. The fleet was completed with the two American sailors Matt Daniels and Alex "wear-a-hole-in-the-ocean" Aguera. Thanks to everyone for coming down and making it such a successful fun day.
For full results go to Results
Peter and Alex move to the top of the speed ladder bumping Pieter Bijl down to third in Open with Carl Grundy moving to the top of Wave: Speed Ladder
Thanks to Dain, Marc, Ayesha, Chris, Liz and Anne for keeping an eye on things.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Weather Forecast For Maui Vmax Speed Meeting July 26th 2009
Although trade winds are temporarily diminished for the next couple of days they are expected to strengthen through the weekend.
Image Courtesy of Iwindsurf.com, used with permission.
A weak low pressure disturbance is expected to develop west of the islands and may shift the winds to an easterly or south-easterly direction. This is caused by some locally strong upper level winds not associated with the main jet-stream and should dissipate quickly. Worryingly this is a similar pattern to the one seen in the spring that killed the trades for an extended period of time. The good news is that the overall trade flow remains strong and the air should be dry and stable on Sunday. Given this I have to be optimistic and say there is a good chance of some decent trades in the 20-25 knot range assuming the flow does not become too easterly.
The tide looks favorable with a low at 11:04 in the morning slowly rising to an afternoon high just over 2 feet at 5:24pm. Most rocks will be covered by a good fin length's worth of water by the time the course opens. A small 2 foot NW swell is showing up on the models which would be ideal if it shows up.
Image Courtesy of Iwindsurf.com, used with permission.
We will meet at Sprecks on Sunday no matter what the forecast. Please assume racing will begin at 12 noon. If the conditions prove unsuitable this Speed Meeting will be postponed 2 weeks to August 9th.
Image Courtesy of Iwindsurf.com, used with permission.
A weak low pressure disturbance is expected to develop west of the islands and may shift the winds to an easterly or south-easterly direction. This is caused by some locally strong upper level winds not associated with the main jet-stream and should dissipate quickly. Worryingly this is a similar pattern to the one seen in the spring that killed the trades for an extended period of time. The good news is that the overall trade flow remains strong and the air should be dry and stable on Sunday. Given this I have to be optimistic and say there is a good chance of some decent trades in the 20-25 knot range assuming the flow does not become too easterly.
The tide looks favorable with a low at 11:04 in the morning slowly rising to an afternoon high just over 2 feet at 5:24pm. Most rocks will be covered by a good fin length's worth of water by the time the course opens. A small 2 foot NW swell is showing up on the models which would be ideal if it shows up.
Image Courtesy of Iwindsurf.com, used with permission.
We will meet at Sprecks on Sunday no matter what the forecast. Please assume racing will begin at 12 noon. If the conditions prove unsuitable this Speed Meeting will be postponed 2 weeks to August 9th.
Friday, July 17, 2009
HAM (Hawaii AMerica) Speed Challenge
HAM (Hawaii AMerica) Speed Challenge
In the great tradition of the America's Cup, The Army/Navy game and the July 4th hot dog eating contest comes the HAM Speed Challenge. A fight to the death, dog eat dog, gloves off challenge of epic proportions to settle the age old question, does Maui or the Gorge have the fastest windsurfers in the country? In the far west corner drifting off the US Pacific coast you have the Big Wave boys of Maui who brave monster swells and fin eating coral reefs to lay claim to fastest windsurfer over 100 meters. Lurking up in the top left corner of the continental US are the Big Wind warriors of The Gorge, legends in their own lunchtime, but holders of the current 100 meter record of 44.5 knots.
The challenge is simple, from July 1st to December 31st, the 5 fastest 100m GPS speeds from Maui and the 5 fastest 100m GPS speeds from the Gorge will be posted to see who really is the fastest.
The prize: bragging rights and the ability to thumb your nose at the losers knowing you are the fastest windsurfers in the country.....oh, and a nice little trophy!
KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) rules apply:
Best 5 100 m. windsurfing GPS speeds from 5 different sailors for each team
Average of 5 best 100 m. speeds wins.
Speeds for Maui team can be anywhere in Hawaii.
Speeds for Gorge team anywhere on the Columbia River.
Speeds in doppler from GT-11 or GT-31 GPS units.
All GPS tracks posted to the Speedreader at WWW.KA72.COM and details of run sent to the timekeepers for each team, Tom Hammerton tom@ocean7design.com in Maui and Roo in The Gorge roo@speedsailor.com
Results and details at www.gps-speedsailing.com & http://www.mauivmax.com/
Open to any windsurfers, pro...amateur...current & ex world record holders...any nationality...any sex...any colour...any weight...any height...any speed!
In the great tradition of the America's Cup, The Army/Navy game and the July 4th hot dog eating contest comes the HAM Speed Challenge. A fight to the death, dog eat dog, gloves off challenge of epic proportions to settle the age old question, does Maui or the Gorge have the fastest windsurfers in the country? In the far west corner drifting off the US Pacific coast you have the Big Wave boys of Maui who brave monster swells and fin eating coral reefs to lay claim to fastest windsurfer over 100 meters. Lurking up in the top left corner of the continental US are the Big Wind warriors of The Gorge, legends in their own lunchtime, but holders of the current 100 meter record of 44.5 knots.
The challenge is simple, from July 1st to December 31st, the 5 fastest 100m GPS speeds from Maui and the 5 fastest 100m GPS speeds from the Gorge will be posted to see who really is the fastest.
The prize: bragging rights and the ability to thumb your nose at the losers knowing you are the fastest windsurfers in the country.....oh, and a nice little trophy!
KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) rules apply:
Best 5 100 m. windsurfing GPS speeds from 5 different sailors for each team
Average of 5 best 100 m. speeds wins.
Speeds for Maui team can be anywhere in Hawaii.
Speeds for Gorge team anywhere on the Columbia River.
Speeds in doppler from GT-11 or GT-31 GPS units.
All GPS tracks posted to the Speedreader at WWW.KA72.COM and details of run sent to the timekeepers for each team, Tom Hammerton tom@ocean7design.com in Maui and Roo in The Gorge roo@speedsailor.com
Results and details at www.gps-speedsailing.com & http://www.mauivmax.com/
Open to any windsurfers, pro...amateur...current & ex world record holders...any nationality...any sex...any colour...any weight...any height...any speed!
Monday, June 15, 2009
Maui Vmax 2009 Speed Meeting 1, June 14th
Hanging out on the beach waiting for wind. Sound like a windsurf contest?
After what seemed like an eternity the trade winds finally returned to Maui just in time for the first race in the Maui Race Series. It all looked very promising for the first speed meeting scheduled a week later. Indeed the trades did blow all week and some very good sailing was had. Sunday however proved the wind to be very fickle.
Peter John - photo Bob Gilbert
The light and patchy winds proved to be a bit of a spoiler with many sailors who had intended to compete deciding otherwise. The field then was a small band of speed enthusiasts determined to enjoy the day no matter what the weather did.
Tom Hammerton - photo Bob Gilbert
At 11am things looked quite promising and many sailors rigged with the idea that things would pick up and fill in later. The first two hours produced the most productive winds with gusts up to 20 knots. Huge holes kept everyone on big boards and the event became more of a wind hunt than anything else. Competitors sailed everywhere in sight trying to find the elusive wind. There was more wind further out but the water was rougher making it a bigger challenge to find speed. In the end the lower reef proved to be the fastest, and those he found a good gust went fastest.
Wind Graph July 14 courtesy of Iwindsurf.com
Once more Alex Aguera proved to be the fastest after putting in a long day with many runs. His top 100m speed of 34.08 knots was very impressive given the conditions. Nipping at his heels was Tom Hammerton with 33.92 knots set in the same spot just 89 seconds after Alex’s winning speed.
Alex Aguera - photo Bob Gilbert
Mark Nelson - photo Bob Gilbert
The conditions waned somewhat after that, but kept teasing the sailors back on the water with each gust that passed through. A very determined effort from Peter John secured 3rd place with 33.05 knots. Jacque was struggling with his biggest sail, a 5.8 which clearly was far too small for the conditions. Very gamely he gave it a try and appeared to find a few puffs and some good speed. We thought he had a 32 knot run, but he left before the end of the meeting and timekeeper Tom Hammerton was missing in action and did not record his speeds. Eventually we got hold of Jacques tracks, and after deleting the 47 knot runs he did in his truck he placed 4th with a 31.56 knot run.
Kai Hopf decided late in the day that he might as well get wet and took to the water with a 122 litre board and a 9.0 freerace sail. We managed to stick a GPS on him just to see how fast he could get this monstrous gear moving. In the end he hit a peak speed of 29.01 knots. Not quite the 31.77 knots fellow North Sails rider Mark Nelson got out of his 7.0, but impressive nonetheless.
Thanks to Bob for coming down to shoot some pictures for us. Unfortunately we did not provide much action for him. Next time I promise!
Results Maui Vmax 2009 Speed Meeting 1, June 14th
Video from the Speed day.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Weather looks Good For Speed meeting 1!
Today, Saturday the wind blew all day. If we have the same again tomorrow we should have a good competition.
This is the wind today courtesy of Iwindsurf.com (used with permission)
The tide should be perfect for the Speed meeting, although with no real swell it may have little effect on the chop.
This is the tide for tomorrow courtesy of Iwindsurf.com (used with permission)
This is the wind today courtesy of Iwindsurf.com (used with permission)
The tide should be perfect for the Speed meeting, although with no real swell it may have little effect on the chop.
This is the tide for tomorrow courtesy of Iwindsurf.com (used with permission)
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tradewinds forecasted for the weekend
Sunday June 14th forecast
It finally looks like we we be back in a proper tradewind pattern. The forecast looks very promising for the first speed meeting of 2009.
See you at Sprecks!
See you at Sprecks!
Welcome to the Maui VMax blog!
Aloha everyone and welcome to the blog. This is where we'll post news. results, pictures. stories, questions, and discussions related to the Maui VMax speed sailing competition and GPS speed sailing in general.
We welcome written and photo contributions from speed sailors around the world. If you've got something interesting, send it to speed@mauivmax.com and we'll post it and credit you.
Also check out www.mauivmax.com for contest rules, dates, and information. See you on the water!
We welcome written and photo contributions from speed sailors around the world. If you've got something interesting, send it to speed@mauivmax.com and we'll post it and credit you.
Also check out www.mauivmax.com for contest rules, dates, and information. See you on the water!
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