Closing time

It's officially chilly out although I think I knew it a few weeks ago when I unrolled my sails in the middle of the living room and wiped them down for the last time and dug my soccer flats and shinguards out of the bottom of my closet. Putting away my summer play things and bringing out my fall ones signal the passing of a season which always makes me both a little introspective and retrospective.

This is a picture of EH on one of our last windsurfing days before the end of the season.

As I wiped down my 4.5 and 5.5 sails, cleaned off my carbon masts, dried off my boom, emptied the sand out of my quiver bag, and rinsed off my wetsuit and booties, I thought about the end of the season. Another summer. My goals going into the summer were to learn to rig my own equipment, beach and water start, jibe and plane. How much of it did I get done?

Am I happy with the speed at which I've been progressing? What should my goals be for the next season? What are the things I can do in my off season to make it easier for me to move to the next level next season?

I've been windsurfing for a little over 12 months, and since I live in the Northeast, that effectively means the amount of time actually spent on the water is more like 5 months. In that time, I have learned to consistently beach start, plane and rig my own sails (albeit slowly), as I own two of them (plus a roofrack for the Puny Pony and a plethora of extraneous equipment such as beach chairs, board shorts, rash guards, beach hats, a dozen bottles of sunblock, etc.).

While I'm no prodigy, I'm not unhappy with my progress. I definitely could have worked harder, but I didn't get out on the water until August so I didn't have as much time to practice as I would have liked. And, while I wish I have the skills to be a pro-windsurfer, I don't, so there's no need or pressure to progress at the speed of light. The most important thing is that I'm learning (not just the moves, but about myself) and having fun, both of which I do every time I step on the water.

Next year, I would like to own my own board, learn to jibe and beach start. In the meantime, I'll work on core strength, getting lean and balance. Here comes fall. Bring it on.