The Chilly But Smokin Spring and Summer Gorge Report

[PonoBill]

That would be nice, but I don't think so. Nice camera angle? Shirt color? Perhaps lime green is the new black.

[headmount]

In any case, those are some deep troughs.  Nice pics.  Is Rod falling or doing a long board cut-back on that one pic?

[PonoBill]

As usual, they're a lot deeper than they look in the pictures. Some of the troughs a windsurfer can hide in and all you see is the top third of the sail. The kiters are invisible except for string. 

I'm not sure, I'd give a 50-50 chance he's falling, but that's the kind of turn you have to make to get long rides. The steep swells run off at a 45 degree angle in both directions, though one direction is usually a lot bigger. With the F16 you can rudder into a deep swell and get caught in the trough. The water is running up the face like it does on a critical wave, so the board gets kind of parked, like a standing wave. Hard to exit without falling.

[starman]

It was 5min into today's Viento run that I wanted to kick myself for not bringing a camera. I did see Mayor Bill take off with 2 other SUP's and a OC-1 (who launched 10 min later) but was unable to join them. Had to roll up the sails, have lunch and talk to wife into joining me. I don't know what conditions were like for Bill and company but by the time I returned to the beach it was smoking on the water. The gusts were making those patches of water spray like the start of a water spout. Spent the next 10 minutes convincing my wife that she would not wind up in Kansas and we took off. She stood up on her Bark, stuck the paddle in the air and was catching glides before I could put my paddle in the water.. It was pretty much that way all the way to the Hook. Great swells, long glides and just a few strokes to get into just about any swell that you wanted. We took a path that favored the Oregon side which I'm starting to think is better then any other when it's blowing. The swells great and I think the current is not as strong. Then you hit the section approaching Wells Island which I'm not calling "Bark Land". Catch a glide and crack open a beer because they just go on and on and on. So what's up with this place? It's an epic downwind day and just 5 of us were out enjoying it. I'm guessing that because there is no wind meter at Viento it's hard to get a complete picture of the run unless you see the water. Anyway, will try to hit it again tomorrow as the forecast seems favorable but I will NOT forget the camera! Oh and by the way the windier it gets on this river the EASIER it is to do this run.

[covesurfer]

Starman: We are going again at 130 tomorrow (Wed), leaving from Nichols parking area, just east of the Event Site. That will likely put us at Viento around 2. You should join us! 

I've probably done 40 or more Viento runs since my first one in May, which was with Bill, of course, and today was the best day I've had yet. I got more glides and longer surfing than on any other run and it was just continuous all the way. Some of the strongest wind was right around Wells Island. It was as you described, the glides were extremely cooperative today! I'm bringing a GoPro for sure tomorrow.

I've had other great runs with sections that were really nice with strong wind but nothing as steady and continuous as today. If downwinding wasn't so much fun, I might have even considered windsurfing today as it looked great. Funny, I did not wish I was out there on a sailboard or kite at all though, I was having waaay too much fun paddling into and sliding down all the waves!

[PonoBill]

Yeah, yesterday was pretty good, and today should be even better.

Karen Wrenn was the first person I heard question why we're the only folks doing this. It is odd. Other than a few serious addicts that make the drive from Seattle its a pretty tiny group. Certainly easier to get to than Maui, and it's a relatively safe run--I don't mind taking relative newbies on a good Viento run, if nothing else they can Pocahontas all the way and there's no concern about them winding up in Tahiti.

I think when the river is boiling with swells it look intimidating, and it's certainly not easy, but it's crazy fun. I've been trying to windsurf all summer and haven't made it out once. I've probably missed at most ten days of downwinding (other than when I was on the east coast) all spring and summer.

Dave Kalama's downwind class should be pretty interesting. If they get these kind of conditions folks will learn a lot in a short time. If nothing else they'll learn how much fun this is, and what a great place Hood River is for downwinding.

[headmount]

I went there to race wndsrfrs in the 80s and saw a guy surfing a standing wave way back then.  That was reasonably close to shore. I never could have imagined going out in trough land back then without a sail.

Relatively safe... except for barges. 

[covesurfer]

Darn it! 1:07pm. Wind is blowing. Gotta go again.

[ObviousSup]

How early in the day does it start blowing enough to do the Viento run? If we end up camping at Viento during the races I was wondering about coming up on my board so the family can have the truck during the day.

[PonoBill]

Man it was smokin' today. No idea what kind of time we did, maybe Greg has an idea. I'd guess under 1:30. Basically one continuous glide. I jumped the start and was out in the middle, playing on the swells and picking daisies when I realized Rod and Art had slipped by me on the inside closer to the Oregon shore. I don't know if they were pushing it, but I gave it everything I had and finished close to them. Rod is just plain fast, but Art is pretty quick on his 14' Bullet too. I kind of think I should have stayed outside, I was getting some screaming rides, but their line looked faster. Damn that competitive instinct, damn it to hell.

Anyway, fun run. Big ass bumps and some nosebleed drops. the Wells express was a little weak, but still fast.

[covesurfer]

Yeah, you were cooking Bill, and not just on the inside line - I was almost even with you on the west side of Wells but by the time we were past the island, you were 1/4 mile or so ahead of me and pulling away. My time was 1:37 and you guys finished a couple of minutes in front of me at least. I'm guessing you were 1:32-1:33. Lots of fun - I stayed out in the middle and had a little race going with Karen until the Wells Island expressway. She pulled away from me there. But I felt good to have stayed close to her as long as I did, even if she was on a 12'6'.

Tomorrow is still forecast to be windy - gusts to 30 on NWS. Guess we'll have to do it again!

[PonoBill]

I was losing ground to Rod and Art just before Wells and my board wasn't steering well, so I jumped off and found about an eight foot streamer of weed. It didn't look like much, just a single strand, I thought I had a whole salad bar back there, but once I got rid of it my board started working again.

Kind of overcast this morning. If it doesn't burn off and get hot the wind might be further east. Might be a good day to go walkabout and see what the desert has to offer.

[starman]

Well that was an interesting run. I must have struck a nerve asking why there were not more SUP's doing the run when the conditions have been so good. Well the locals all came out and are a pretty serious group. They don't seem to want to wait for everyone to launch together. Instead it's as if someone had been trapping raccoons and wild cats in their backyard all week and was letting them out one the beach one cage at a time. Then they all paddle like this river owes them money because they are just beating it all 8 miles. Are you kidding me? Doesn't anyone catch a glide, pull the paddle out and enjoy the view. I don't think Karen who passed me far to the right ever skipped a beat. If we were on milk she was making butter. Meanwhile Bill who was well down wind in short order was doing his impression of the Quassimoto going right on some of the better swells. Didn't take long before they were all just specks on the river. Still a fun run but after three of these runs in four days plus the windsurfing I was just a kook doing a river run trying to keep pace with my buddy Wayne who was on an 11-6 Amundson and rips on that board out here. I did take a peek at the Hatch as it was pretty empty but for good reason as the swell and wind was on the sad side. Made my way back to Wells, met up with Jim (? I'm can be bad remembering names) who was doing the run on a vintage "Big Red". Woke up Wayne who was napping on Wells waiting for me and crawled out at the park to a cold Session. Great run, not as nearly as good as Tuesday but it's all relative on this river when the conditions are ripe. It's been a great 2 weeks in the Hood and got very lucky with the weather for sailing and SUP. Hope to be back next summer for more of the same. I'm also hoping the contest next weekend gets a dose of just how good this place can get on the right day. Attached is the only photo was was able to snap early in the run.

[covesurfer]

Star - good report! Thanks for the photo, although in my opinion, you'd have better subject material if you'd shot Karen instead of me! Our group was pretty charged up yesterday, my wife says we are all type A's so it's to be expected. Anyway, that was pretty much an undeclared race or at least a 'challenge paddle' we had going on. I know that was one of my fastest Viento paddles, and I'm one of the slower guys.

One thing I've noticed when its sort of a medium day like yesterday is that if you paddle hard, you can really string the glides together on the first 2/3 of the run. If I ease up, I end up working even harder to catch fewer rides that are short with real slow periods in between. That is my theory anyhow.

I'm using a new (for me) combination Ke Nalu paddle with a softer and shorter xtuff shaft and smaller Wiki blade and the thing is MAGIC on those downwinders. No pain and you can develop a really quick cadence that helps get you into the swells. The softer shaft feels lively and springy, almost like it's helping snap you forward. Pretty cool.

[PonoBill]

Well that was an interesting run. I must have struck a nerve asking why there were not more SUP's doing the run when the conditions have been so good. Well the locals all came out and are a pretty serious group. They don't seem to want to wait for everyone to launch together. Instead it's as if someone had been trapping raccoons and wild cats in their backyard all week and was letting them out one the beach one cage at a time. Then they all paddle like this river owes them money because they are just beating it all 8 miles.

Yeah, we're all a little nuts. I'm not one to point fingers. But. It's Karen's fault. We used to stop half way and have a cookout and break out the guitars, but then she started training for M20 and we couldn't let her just walk away from us. So no Kumbaya.

That was marginally locals--I'm a dilettante that never stays for winter, Greg and Rod are local, Art is from Seattle and Karen from PDX. Lazlo (also known as JIM -- where you got that I have no clue, though it sounds similar) is from White Salmon--I guess that counts.

Anyway, good talking to you, I'd say good paddling with you but we already covered that. The bumps in the middle were pretty cool, but I covered that too.

I'll tell you, all the folks on Maui seem really laid back until the boards hit the water--Maliko runs are pretty much like Viento runs. No one's racing, but it's very cool to be dressed and have your board on the car when other guys come in. The ultimate is to have already left for another run. But no one is racing...