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Blowout Saturday August 16th 2014
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Post new topic   Reply to topic    Northwest Kiteboarding -> Gorge / Portland / Oregon Coast
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tonyb

Since 09 Oct 2006
973 Posts
Stevenson in the summer & SPI in the winter
Bolstad Clan



PostFri Aug 08, 14 9:20 am    Blowout Saturday August 16th 2014 Reply with quote

BOTG Pro-Am Blowout Race August 16th

- Registration opens at 10 am
- Riders meeting at 11:30
- Team formation at 11:45
- Teams are a RANDOM draw from the pot. (you don't get to form your own)
- Teams will consist of one Pro Rider or local legend (Bison, Roesler, Gordon, Solbach, etc...) and two to five amateur riders (all depends on who shows up) and maybe a windsurfer if there is enough wind for them to participate.
- Team strategy session at 12:30 (do you all run it together, buddy system, everyone for themselves, etc...), set your launching order
- Launching will begin at least 45 minutes prior to race start
- Launching will be done from the grass by the tree. No aquadocks this year.
- First possible start 1:30 pm
- Start will be jack rabbit style start behind the chase boat or Corey. We'll decide at the meeting.
- 5 minute count down for start
- Finish will be at the end of sand bar in Hood River
- Lowest combined team finishing order will determine 1st, 2nd, 3rd places
- Gift Certificates and lots of schwag will be given out as prizes

- Crash pickups between Stevie and Home Valley will be dropped at Home Valley
- Crash pickups between Home Valley and Viento will be dropped at Viento
- Crash pickups between Viento and Hood River will be dropped at the Sand Bar

As in years past this is NOT a race for beginner kiters or for someone who has never done the downwind run from Stevenson to Hood River. Heck, it's sometimes not a race for experienced riders! The corridor is unpredictable and gusty. You might start in Stevenson on a 12 and wish that you were on a 6 by the time you get to the Hatchery.

If you've never launched at Stevenson I suggest you get some practice in before the event. If you don't have your stuff together at the launch and have tangles you will be pulled off the hill and put to the back of the line. Basically you have about one minute to step in to the pool and get your kite in the air. This will be an assembly line style launch process.

Tony

Last edited by tonyb on Thu Aug 14, 14 12:28 pm; edited 1 time in total

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tonyb

Since 09 Oct 2006
973 Posts
Stevenson in the summer & SPI in the winter
Bolstad Clan



PostFri Aug 08, 14 9:22 am     Reply with quote

With this year's Blowout again being organized as a team event with one Pro level or local Gorge legend rider and three to four amateur riders and hopefully one Windsurfer per team we've come up with a scoring system that will provide an incentive for the teams to work together and add some strategy to the race.

Basically, the closer together your team finishes the more bonus points are awarded (deducted from the total score). Bonus system:

Straight Flush (team finishing together in order): -10 points each, -40 for the team

Full House (2 or 3 together, other rider or pair not more than two places apart) - 9 each, -36 for the team

Three of a Kind (3 finish in order): -11 each, -33 for the team

Two Pair (two pairs of riders finishing in order): -7 each, -28 for the team

Pair (one pair of riders finishing in order): -12 each, -24 for the team


It goes something like this:

Each rider receives a score for the place they finish in. i.e., first place gets one point, second place gets two points, etc... So, say that team Bison has four riders, one of whom places 1st, another in 6th, one in 10th and one in 17th. The total score for the team would be 34. Then there is team Reinstra and they finish 7th, 8th, 12th & 13th. Their team score is 40. Looks like team Bison has won, but wait, the bonus points kick in:

Team Reinstra finished with Two Pair (7th & 8th, 12th & 13th), which gives them a total deduct of 28 points making their total score 12. The buddy system pays off!

Of course there are multiple ways this could work out or possibly fail completely but it worked last year and was a lot of fun. I've run a few random simulations and it appears to work. I think we'll see a few single Pairs or maybe a team getting Two Pair but achieving any of the other combos will be pretty tough. But it could be done. It will be up to each team to decide how to approach the race, stick together, one rabbit, two pairs, etc...

We're aiming for as many 4 person teams as we can get. If we end up with one or two odd teams of 5 then we will probably allow the team to throw out their lowest score or use the four best finish combo's to create the best hand for the deduct.

There will also be prizes for the top five finishers in addition to the team prizes.

Tony

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tonyb

Since 09 Oct 2006
973 Posts
Stevenson in the summer & SPI in the winter
Bolstad Clan



PostFri Aug 08, 14 9:23 am     Reply with quote

Some general tips (learned the hard way) for practice runs and the race:

- Leave Stevenson no later than 4 pm. Before 3 is even better, between 1 and 2 is best.
- Check the wind at both locations before leaving to make sure it's blowing. Even better is to drop a car in HR then drive back up the WA side and make sure you see whitecaps all the way.
- Generally HR blows 5 to 10 mph stronger than Stevie. Rig for HR winds if you can. For the actual race we generally rig for Stevie to Home Valley winds then hang on for the wild ride from Viento to HR.
- Probably best not to go if you're having to ride a 12m or 13m kite at Stevenson. Same for if you are on a 5m.
- Surfboards are a blast for the downwinder and work best in the chop. Twin Tips work as well and are easier to switch up your stance and rest your legs but they are harder to ride straight down wind.
- Get a carabiner and clip some flip flops to your harness in case you need to walk out somewhere along the way.
- If you have a dry bag for a cell phone bring it.
- Bring some cash in case you need to hitch a ride.
- Dress warm. You might be riding Stevie or HR without a wetsuit but wear at least a shorty or more for the down winder. You might be swimming a long way.
- Leave some dry clothes and a sweatshirt in HR.
- After Home Valley it's generally easier to get out on the WA side and get up to the road, even if it means a longer swim.
- First get out is Home Valley. If you don't see rollers and white caps down wind of HV think very hard about taking the next leg. If you aren't past HV by 4:30 or so probably best to get out. If it takes you more than 40 minutes to get from Stevenson to HV you should probably call it quits until you can ride down wind better.
- After HV most of the WA side is a pretty easy get out and easy hike to Hwy 14. Oregon side has more bushes and trees to get through and some bigger hills to get up to I-84.
- Viento is an OK get out.
- Watch out for the windsurfers when going past The Hatch! Stay well out in the channel and don't hug the WA shoreline.
- After the Hatch head towards the White Salmon bridge and stay out of the Wells Island wind shadow. Especially late in the day.
- Watch out for barge traffic, especially if the wind is getting iffy. If you're going to drop the kite try not to do it in the main traffic lane!
- If the wind starts to get light work nearer the shorelines more so than the middle (don't fight the current).
- When in doubt there is generally more wind in the center of the river. But sometimes you need to work one side or the other. If you're kiting along and all of a sudden it feels like the wind is dying make an immediate turn towards the shore. Sometimes just backing up wind 50 or a 100 yards can get you back in to wind and make it easier to pull the plug or switch to the other side of the river.
- Wind flows around the outside bend of a curve in the river faster than the inside bend. Keep that in mind when things get iffy.
- If the kiter in front of you suddenly has his kite fall out of the sky due to lack of wind change direction immediately! There are dead zones out there that will suck you in. Nice thing is they also go away after a short time.
- Watch out for the devil winds just past Wind Mountain. Direction can change 90 degrees in an instant. Try not to be too close to WA at this point.

For those of you who have never done this downwinder it is one of the most beautiful trips you can ever take. Simply amazing scenery and a fun challenge with all of the different wind and water conditions. You'll find smooth steady winds, gusty, punchy, swirly winds, light wind and nuking wind; you'll find smooth water, chop, and waist high rollers, sometimes all within a 1/2 mile stretch.

For those who want to do the Blowout race you need to have done this downwinder at least once and preferably a couple of times on your own prior to the race. You also need to be able to get from Stevenson to Hood River in under two hours. The top racers will be finishing in less than 50 minutes. Middle of the pack is an hour fifteen. Late pack is an hour forty to two hours.

Besides all the precautions and wild stories we've all told about this run it really is pretty fun and any intermediate level kiter who is ok at riding down wind can make the run. We've even done it a couple of times completely impromptu, arranged while we are out on the water goofing around. We've also had to swim a few times after careful planning and checking. Our success rate for practice runs is about 7 out of 10. Your mileage may vary.

Tony

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pkh

Since 27 Feb 2005
6548 Posts
Couve / Hood
Site Lackey



PostSat Aug 09, 14 10:53 am     Reply with quote

Reverse blowout? Looks like easterlies Crying or Very sad

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BeerKite

Since 29 Mar 2011
471 Posts

Obsessed



PostSat Aug 09, 14 12:17 pm     Reply with quote

Would that be "Suck In" then?

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Melkite

Since 17 Jul 2014
15 Posts

 



PostSat Aug 09, 14 12:29 pm     Reply with quote

Yhea how about wind tomorrow ? could it be change for next week if wind is bad?

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Pepi

Since 16 Jun 2006
1831 Posts
Pure Stoke Sports
Shop Owner

CGKA Member


PostSat Aug 09, 14 6:00 pm     Reply with quote

Looks like they're still calling for westerlies in the upper teens tomorrow, but later in the day.

Murphy's law, you call the race and it blows, you hold the race, hmmm meh?

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Pure Stoke Sports
Hood River, OR
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hood-River-OR/2nd-Wind-Sports/35891485558?ref=mf
www.Purestokesports.com

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grom

Since 07 Aug 2006
167 Posts

Bolstad Clan



PostSat Aug 09, 14 6:32 pm    Blowout Update Reply with quote

So the update is: Blowout postponed until next Saturday (the 16th.) If it's not windy on Saturday (16th) then the next windy day we'll do it. Hopefully Sunday but maybe Monday or Tuesday. We want as many people as we can, but need wind to make a fun race.

Grom

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buttersmoothcarver

Since 08 Oct 2008
246 Posts

Stoked



PostSun Aug 10, 14 8:07 am     Reply with quote

Thanks for the update, we were joking how fun it would be to have a coastal version blowout. Yesterday at LC was 14 miles of wave slamming goodness. Today will be a repeat.
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Sent from phone, please excuse typos.

Brad Gordon

Thermal Foundation
www.snowkiteadventures.com
text 2063000450

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TonyROD

Since 30 Apr 2014
22 Posts

 



PostMon Aug 11, 14 7:27 am     Reply with quote

A Coastal Blowout would be insane. This is the best idea I've heard in a long time.
Especially this time of year when the forecast is a little more predictable for such a long stretch to kite (The north Coast)...

The wind was sick over the weekend. Tiny waves but that don't matter.
Ability of driving on beach will provide the best coverage and support.

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ldhr

Since 21 Jul 2009
1470 Posts
Hood River
XTreme Poster



PostMon Aug 11, 14 7:36 am     Reply with quote

Coastal blowout race sounds like an oxymoron.....
Why would you want to race downwind and miss out on all the great lip smacking?
Maybe if you could somehow factor in total time and number of bottom turns/off the lips....?

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Sasquatch

Since 09 Mar 2005
2053 Posts
PNW
Bigfoot



PostMon Aug 11, 14 11:02 am     Reply with quote

[quote="ldhr"]Coastal blowout race sounds like an oxymoron.....
Why would you want to race downwind and miss out on all the great lip smacking?
quote]

I agree about the waste of waves. Part of the challenge of the BOTG race is the varied conditions. I suppose you could have the coastal race from the south jetty and go all the way down to Seaside; that would create some varied conditions as it's almost always lighter down there vs the jetty and or it might not even blow down in Seaside.

If you ever do get a coastal race going, make sure to serve up jumbo shrimp at the finish.

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buttersmoothcarver

Since 08 Oct 2008
246 Posts

Stoked



PostMon Aug 11, 14 7:54 pm     Reply with quote

Saturday was devilish at RE, but clean up nicely down wind. Some over head sets down by Shark fin rock. Sunday was classic 6-7m head high and wind ripple clean past the canyons. So stoked to be out on 015 Airush Wave, seriously the kite just makes riding waves alot easier. Tis the season for ground swell, my favorite time of the kite season is almost upon us!
_________________
Sent from phone, please excuse typos.

Brad Gordon

Thermal Foundation
www.snowkiteadventures.com
text 2063000450

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buttersmoothcarver

Since 08 Oct 2008
246 Posts

Stoked



PostMon Aug 11, 14 9:25 pm     Reply with quote

Saturday was devilish at RE, but clean up nicely down wind. Some over head sets down by Shark fin rock. Sunday was classic 6-7m head high and wind ripple clean past the canyons. So stoked to be out on 015 Airush Wave, seriously the kite just makes riding waves alot easier. Tis the season for ground swell, my favorite time of the kite season is almost upon us!
_________________
Sent from phone, please excuse typos.

Brad Gordon

Thermal Foundation
www.snowkiteadventures.com
text 2063000450

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tonyb

Since 09 Oct 2006
973 Posts
Stevenson in the summer & SPI in the winter
Bolstad Clan



PostThu Aug 14, 14 12:35 pm     Reply with quote

Looks like the wind is going to be good for this Saturday so we're going to try to get this thing done.

Lots of swag and prizes to give out for this event so come on out, the more riders the more fun this thing is.

Looking at doing a practice run tomorrow afternoon (Friday the 15th) if anyone wants to tag along.

We'll be dropping a rig at the Spit Saturday morning around 9:30 am and coming back with a pickup truck that can carry 4 more people and lots of gear if anyone needs a ride to Stevenson the morning of the race.

Tony

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Melkite

Since 17 Jul 2014
15 Posts

 



PostThu Aug 14, 14 8:18 pm     Reply with quote

Would someone give me a ride with me this Saturday? I can sare gas. I don't think it make sense to have so many poeple to drive alone in one car all the way to Stevenston.

I can meet or at Esite or White Salmon beach around 10:30am.

You can send me an email at melanie3d@gmail.com if you are interested! Smile

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BeerKite

Since 29 Mar 2011
471 Posts

Obsessed



PostFri Aug 15, 14 7:59 am     Reply with quote

The stars are starting to align. I have a sitter for tomorrow and the day off. Now, does anybody have a big kite I could borrow? I only have a 7 & 10 right now. Can't wait!

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