Bumbling Around the Bay

Everybody was waiting for me. It was time for me to leave for my first windsurfing trip to Corpus Christi, and by the time I’d shaken off my deadline, the whole car was packed and ready to go, with the boards atop the Volvo hatchback and booms and sails running the whole length of the interior.

My friends Mo, Jason, and I planned to meet up in Corpus with John M. P. Knox, a windsurfng devotee who blogs about windsurfing. I won’t lie, I was intimidated by the passion and skill of these guys – my friends and Knox alike. Thank goodness for Julie Rosser, the other beginner that rounded out our foursome for the drive. 

© Janet Jay / RumBum.comOur experts assured us that the best way to windsurf in Corpus is to know and love Worldwinds, a business on the beach that rents and sells equipment as well as offers great windsurfing classes. Worldwinds is located in the Padre Island National Seashore at Bird Island Basin. Because the water is unusually calm here, this half-mile stretch of beach is known world-wide as one of the best spots to windsurf in the country. No matter how great the spot, though, you always have to check the current wind speed and the forecast. Everything depends on the wind: how difficult it will be to windsurf, what kind of equipment to use, and the height and amount of the waves. It doesn’t matter how talented you are if the wind is dead or blowing hard enough to rip the sail from your hands.

“Windsurfing gives me two extremes of the same experience: what it feels like to be dominated by nature, and what it feels like (for just a few brief moments) to harness and control nature,” Mo said. “I’ve finally started to feel like I have enough intuition to guide the rig in a way that is harmonious with the wind.”

As the boys unloaded and assembled their gear, Julie and I gathered our windsurfing essentials: aqua socks, sunscreen, towels, and huge amounts of water. There’s no running water at the beach, and we were grateful for every drop we brought. Although there are restrooms, I won't profess to their cleanliness – a grizzled old windsurfer helpfully butted into our conversation to sagely observe that “there’s a difference between a restroom and a shit-hole.” Touché, old man, touché.

The boys were already zipping around when Julie and I dragged our beginners’ equipment--big board, small sail – into the bay. Corpus is a great place for beginners because the beach is sandy and the water is only about knee-high, making the inevitable beginners’ wipeouts much easier to recover from.

I was finally on the water and ready to kick some ass. Windsurfing is daunting because of the sheer number of variables you have to keep in mind:  the sail tilts forward, backward, side-to-side, and all the way around, and the board itself can tilt and spin in the water. We beginners learned, and fell, and learned, and fell, and fell, and fell, and learned.

“Everyone kept falling into the water, and the boards are going every which way,” Knox said of his first windsurfing class. “It reminds me of puppies trying to learn how to walk – we were having a great time falling down. You might think that sounds discouraging, but I thought it was amazing. After ten minutes in the class, we were all moving under wind power. It felt like magic.”

On the first day, we learned how to stand on the board, uphaul the sail (lift it from the water), move and steer the board, and tack (turning the board by facing into the wind). They also taught us to avoid being dumped in the water (hint: don't stand off-center or tilt the sail side-to-side) and the best ways to speed up, slow down, and turn.

“The real reason to make the drive to Worldwinds is the perfect environment for learning: consistent, predictable wind, shallow water (you can always jump off the board and walk back), tiny sails that are easy to manage, wide boards that are very resistant to tipping over, no waves or speedboat wakes to make balancing even harder, and the familiar crew of windsurfing experts who are fun to consult for tips, and even more fun to watch,” Jason said.

© Janet Jay / RumBum.comFor the rest of the day Julie and I bumbled around the bay, slowly and surely getting smoother and more confident with our starts and tacks. Things I had struggled with at the beginning (namely, everything) became easier, and when I was finally able to sail the length of the beach, tack, sail back and tack again I felt triumphant.

“The accomplishment itself is inherently not useful (like, when would a carve jibe ever matter in my non-windsurfing life?), but nailing it in front of others makes you want to backflip off your board,” Mo said. “That’s something you can’t buy in stores.”

When Jason said, “We’re going to go eat ghetto sushi tonight!” my response was, “Do we have to?” But the boys were right: Ichiban Japanese Seafood was a perfect place to stuff ourselves after a long and tiring day. (Knox put it best: “Ichiban should probably change its name to ‘Giant Buffet That Had Sushi Until Very Recently When I Filled My Plate.’”) When we were sated we picked up Jack Daniels and Macallan 12-year and headed back to the Motel 6 we were staying at. For various reasons – bugs, itty-bitty rooms and astoundingly incompetent staff – you should sleep in another of the many hotels in town. Nonetheless, it was nice to end the day with scotch and stories.

“At the end of the first day I felt like I wanted to go faster!” Julie said. “I was comfortable on the board and could turn pretty consistently, so the next day I moved to more advanced equipment - a smaller board and larger sail.  Those changes made the second day much tougher and more tiring, but I definitely felt myself improving as the day went on.  Having experienced surfers around was helpful to get encouragement and alternate descriptions of the maneuvers.”

Why windsurf? Because it looked fun. As beginners, Julie and I merely thought “Whoa! I wanna try that!” Of course, the experienced windsurfers have their own reasons for loving it, and the boys’ enthusiasm made Julie and I even more motivated to do well. In addition to the thrill and the physical demands of the sport, all three of our experienced windsurfers enjoyed windsurfing for more personal (and almost zen-like) reasons.

“There’s a deep sense of unity when you’re able to read and feel the wind through your body. I don’t meditate, but for me, coming off the water after a great session induces similar feelings of clarity and relaxation,” said Mo. “I would describe the feeling of giving and getting from the rig as a dance with the wind."