Help in the SF Bay Area?
HanT
on several occasions but would not consider myself experienced by anyone's
standards. I'd like to learn from a pro but I don't exactly know where to
look. Also, where are the best, safest places to windsurf in the Bay Area?
Inexpensive gear? Anyone interested in selling?
Jaime Cordera
Spinnaker sailing at Shoreline Park in Mountain View (Peninsula,South Bay)
Lake Merced (forgot the name), near San Francisco
Lake Del Valle (forgot the name) East Bay, Contra Costa
All are completely enclosed, small lake type sites. All have onsite
teaching programs(beginner/intermediate), and rental programs.
For look at Bay sailing, try Coyote Point in San Mateo, although
Alameda Beach (in Alameda) is probably a better call for your
first Bay sailing experience. It is side on-shore: if you screw up
or get tired, you get blown back to the beach. It's also relatively
shallow for a long way, so you can just stand up and walk back if needed.
What you really want is a book called the "Windfinder", which is a
guide to Bay Area sailing sites. First edition is out-of-print, the
second edition is waiting until the author finishes dealing with
his house or otherwise gets around to publishing it. It may be out
by now. Second best is California Boardsailor's Bay Guide, which
covers most of the same sailing sites, but not in nearly as much detail.
You might be able to get the Bay Guide from Windsurf Warehouse, in
South San Francisco. Call phone info and call them before
making the trip (and get directions, it's a little funky to get there).
Some local weather pattern info that may be handy:
Generally, the bay only gets windy in the afternoon, say starting at
noon or so. Armed with that knowledge, you can decide when to begin
sailing to get the right amount of wind for your comfort level.
When I used to teach at Shoreline, we taught in the morning to early
afternoon: 9-10 class time, 10:30-1:00 water time. It's probably windiest
in the 3:00-4:00 time frame, although, naturally (:-)) it varies.
Swap meets are definitely the way to go, and the spring is the season
for them. If you want to pick up some NEW gear at a good price, wait
till the fall, when the retail shops dump their stuff to make way for
skis, or bicycles, or whatever the sell in the winter.
Before buying stuff, I would review the recent discussion here regarding
"transition board vs Giant slalom board". This is basically a discussion
of what is the right board for a first time purchase, which seems to
be very appropriate for you.
Good luck,
Jaime
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jaime Cordera
ja...@synopsys.com
<.signature under construction>
Kirk Lindstrom
WINDSURFING SHOPS:
==================
North Bay:
San Rafael *Windsports on E. Francisco Drive, small store
Corte Madera *Any Mountain, small store
Sausilito *Sausilito Sailboards on Bridgeway, small store
San Francisco:
*City Front Sailboard on Lyon Street, small store
Large selection of good equipment for rent
East Bay:
Berkeley *California Surf & Ski on Gillman, large store
*Large selection of all types of equipment for rent
*Berkeley Windsurfing. 1411 San Pablo Ave.
Berkeley, CA. 94710 (510) 527-WAVE
Peninsula & South Bay:
*ASD up the beach at Coyote Pt. Under the Towers.
302 Lang Road, Burlingame CA 94010
Full service store, specializes in ASD custom boards,
Sailworks, North and Hawaii Hot Line sails, Fiberspar
masts and booms. Rentals & lessons - can walk to launch.
415) 348-8485 Tell'em Kirk from "Internet" sent ya!
South S.F. *Windsurf-Bicycle Warehouse 428 South Airport Blvd.
South San Francisco, CA, 94080 (415) 588-1714
Full service store and good prices.
San Mateo *Helm of Sun Valley on Amphlett
Lessons and rentals, some consignment
Often has good deals on older sails
415)344-2711
Redwood City *B&D Sports on Roosevelt: Not sure how big they are
this year. 415)364-5995
*Any Mountain - adding windsurfing this season ('93)
Mountain View *Spinnaker Sailing 3160 N. Shoreline Blvd.
Mountain View, CA 94039 (415) 965-7474
Mistral + Gaastra Demo and test center. Lessons
/rentals/demos/weekly races/free clinics showers and
lockers/Grass rigging area. BTW - cost $4 to sail at
shoreline. free to enter Shoreline park. PFD required
Cupertino *Any Mountain, good sized store "in season" some gear
available in "off season". Good boards can be "demo'd.
Sponcers several Speed Checks 408)255-6162
Santa Cruz: *Ski Shop Santa CRuz for a decent line in production
boards, sails, and accessories.
*Haut Surfboards on Swift Street sells Haut Custom
Boards and have a deservedly good reputation for their
'Chophopper'.
*Freeline Design on 41st Ave offers some good deals on
used sailboards and will build good quality custom
boards for local conditions.
*Fiberglass Santa CRuz on Capitola Ave offers North Sails
and extremely low-cost custom glass boards. Brand new
8'8" boards for as low as $399.
Rio Vista: *Windcraft of Rio Vista
707)374-2744
*River Run Sailboards - in the pretty town of Isleton
past Rio Vista. Seeing Isleton is worth doing when the
wind isn't blowing mid-day. Hwy 160 and 2nd St,
Isleton, CA 95641 (916) 777-6775
*Delta Windsurf Company - 3729 W. Sherman Island Road
(916) 777-2299 High Wind Test Center for: Seatrend,
GEM, Tiga, Neil Pryde, Windwing Full retail sales,
lessons, rentals/demos. Right off Hwy 160 near the west
end of Sherman Island.
*Windsurf Diablo - 401 Sunset Drive, Suite L Antioch, CA
(510) 778-6350 Lessons at Contra Loma
Reservior/rentals carries among others: Windwing,
Seatrend, Strech, O'brien, Visual Speed Fiberspar,
Simmer Style, Fleetwood, NoLimitz, True Ames Hillcrest
exit off Hwy 4, north on Sunset Drive.
SAILING SITES:
==============
Crissy Field -- advanced to expert sailing on the bay, moderate to high
winds, medium to large chop, strong tides,
spectacular views of S.F. and Golden Gate Bridge,
lots of boat/ship traffic. Closest shop is City
Front, about 1 mile away. Full wetsuit or drysuit
required. Free access. Coast Guard rescues available
but it could cost ya $1500 or more..... and they
won't take your gear into the helicopter. Can be more
Coyote Point - intermediate to expert sailing in the bay, moderate to high
winds, medium to large chop. Closest shop is ASD just up wind - out
of the park. Shorty to full wetsuit required. VERY difficult on
strong floods with wind above 20 knots due to legendary voodo chop!
Very crowded on weekends and many don't seem to follow the
right-of-way rules. We watched a 2 foot shark in the small surf
5/6/93 as it tried to evade the birds. BIG wind shadow - often a
full meter less sail needed 400 yds off the beach. Ask a regular
what to rig if you are sailing for the first time. See many "kooks"
rig their 5.0's and explode when they hit the 35 knot wind/gust line
on a big day (funny unless you are sailing beside them). $4.00
Admission Fee. 3rd or Candlestick are better "first time on the
Bay sites" since they are easier and free.
Berkeley Marina -- beginner to advanced sailing in the bay, moderate winds,
small to medium chop. Rentals available on site, closest shop is
California Surf & Ski, about 3 miles away. Shorty to full wetsuit
required. Free acces
Alameda -- beginner to intermediate sailing in the bay, light to moderate winds,
flat water to small chop. Nice long sandy beach, warm water.
Rentals available on site, nearest shop is Alameda Sailboard
Exchange, I dunno where it is. Wetsuit not neccessary, though some
might want to wear a shorty.
Candlestick -- Intermediate to advanced sailing in the bay in strong, often
gusty, offshore winds. Flat water speed sailing and you don't have
to worry about flood tides. Closest shop is Windsurf Warehouse,
maybe 4-5 miles away. Shorty to full wetsuit required. There is a
truck with rental gear there often - Decent gear too. probably your
best bet if you are only in the area for a few days. .
Oyster Point - Advanced to expert Bay sailing in offshore winds. Requires
sailing by a big wind shadow and then sail behind Flying Tigers in
some of the best wind on the Bay on flat water similar to
Candlestick. Launch is moderately difficult with lots of rocks.
Ocean Beach -- advanced to expert sailing in waves, onshore winds. Full
wetsuit or drysuit required. I dunno what the closest shop is, I
think there's something closer than City Front. Free access.
Lake Merced - San Friancisco: Beginner to intermediate lake with rentals
available.
Palo Alto -- intermediate to advanced sailing in the bay, moderate wind,
moderate chop. Getting to the water at low-tide is just about
impossible as a slog through knee deep mud is required. Closest
shop is ASD and Spinnaker Sailing. Full wetsuit advisable. New
ramp, but is well downwind. Skip it.
Shoreline Park -- beginner to intermediate sailing on a small man-made lake.
Rentals available on site at Spinnaker Sailing. Shorty to full
wetsuit required. PFDs mandatory. $4 launching fee. Annual Pass
available.
3rd Ave - Intermediate to expert site. Good wave/swell sailing on ebb tides.
Watch for rocks at low tides (one broke my leg). Good for learning
waterstarts on medium tides. Difficult launch over rif-raf. New
ramps added, but still difficult to get in except at "beginner
launch". Nearest shop: Helm and ASD
Larkspur -- intermediate sailing in the bay, moderate wind, flat to small chop.
Sail in the shadows of San Quentin Prison! To get to the water you
have to carry your equipment down a steep and narrow trail (not
worth it!). Closest shop is Windsports. Shorty to full wetsuit
required.
Inland:
Lake Del Valle -- beginner to intermediate sailing in a reservoir. Rentals and
lessons available on site. Warm, flat water. Light (morning) to
moderate winds. Scenic setting. No wetsuit necessary in the
summer. Fishing.
Rio Vista --*Intermediate to expert conditions. Glass Beach is a good choice
for first time Delta sailors. Shorty to full wetsuit required.
*Sherman Island - Big tides and their effects here. Can be Gorge like on big
days with a strong ebb. Great advanced to expert sailing with very
difficult launching. Water egress and ingress can be up to 20 minutes
in line at the sand bagged locations (easy to loose leg skin, fins and
board finish on rocks while waiting. Best to be able to sail way
overpowered to underpowerd to minimize time in line.)
*Glass Beach, Sandy Beach, the New Windsurfing Park and other sites better for
beginners and intermediates
San Luis Res'r -- Intermediate to expert speed sailing conditions. Most sailing
is done on the O'Neil Forebay. Wind can vary from 70 to 0 in a
single day. Full wetsuit required as the water comes from the
bottom of the Reservoir. Temp > 100F common in the summer at
mid-day. $11/day to camp. Carry Flares to sail main Res'r.
Central Calif. Coast
NOTE:
-Sailing the coast without using the buddy system is like sky diving
without a back-up parachute. If you don't have it when you need it,
you will probably die. If you must sail alone, at least go where other
windsurfers are.
-Swimming is DANGEROUS. Watch for rip tides. Be careful climbing rocks
and tidepools as we lose a few people every year to those freak big
waves.
-Great White Sharks on the coast add to the danger/fun. "They" say that
you have a very good chance of surviving a shark attack if you have a
buddy to save you (stop the blood flow, then get help).
-The scenery olong HWY 1 is gorgeous either N or S of San Francisco.
-Due to upwelling in the summer, the water is colder in the summer than
in the winter. I am quite comfortable in a full 4/3 steamer in Dec.
at Pillar Point while I've been cold the one nice day I sailed the
waves in August!
Pillar Point -- Harbor in Half Moon Bay. Wave sailing outside
breakwater. Advanced speed sailing inside breakwater
during winter storms where 30-40 Knot winds are
common (I love it!) Watch out for boats, moorings,
lines etc. Full wetsuit or dry suit required.
Bodega Bay -- BIG wind, nice camping, advanced sailing
Santa Cruz -- Good int to expert wave sailing. Check with Haut or the
ski shop for where to sail to match ability with
conditions.
ITs Beach Just arount the corner from the lighthouse at Steamer Lane.
Good slalom sailing with some ocean chop. Oftem a killer
beach break to braek your gear.
Cowell Beach - Next to warf in front of Dream Inn. Beginner and
intermediate protected site. Small surf. Rentals available in
summer months (transition and larger boards). Wonderful
family place with lots of rides/food/etc. to take money
almost as fast as a windsurf shop.
Natural Bridges (NB's) At the end of West Cliff Dr, this State Beach
offers good sailing which averages 4.7 conditions. Easier
launch than ITs, but it costs to go in.
Davenport Landing Just NOrth of Davenport, this 'secret' spot is now
notorious for shark attacks. Nevertheless, the sailing is
great with both slalom and wave conditions.
Scotts Creek A few miles north of Davenport, the scene of the latest
shark attack. Good wave sailing, not much parking. FRee.
Waddel Creek - Legendary wave sailing conditions. Good parking and
rigging area operated by State Park System. Often has
strong winds and big waves. A good Bay Sailor sould give it
a try, its good fun when conditions are not 'epic'. Parking
is $5!!!
If I was going to visit the area for a few months and was expecting to
sail for a dozen or more days, I would probably buy a used shortboard &
mast for $400-$600 total, and bring along a couple sails and booms.
Before I left I would sell the board and mast. I think this would cost
a lot less than renting. The consignment areas at many shops make this
easy to do (i.e. buy a used board at shop A and sell it again at shop
B).
Lee T. Lau
posted an incredibly useful article
One question, where do I get tide-tables from. Since I'll be in SF for two
weeks in late August, I won't need it till then.
Again, thanks for this usefull information.
----------------
Lee T. Lau (l...@acs.ucalgary.ca)
Bob Galvan
There is now a shop in Davenport, near Waddell, Scott's, and Davenport
Landing.
The Toll Booth is gone from Waddell. Parking is free, at least for now,
April, 1994.
Larkspur can be excellent fun if you catch it windy. You can ride ferry
wakes for half a mile - room for all! Windsight now has a sensor there.
Bob Galvan
kasp...@crl.com
Kirk Lindstrom
even more if ya want current vs time though these are pretty rare.
Kirk out