Wind is my friend!

After a few days and several hermit crab races, the weather on Wednesday and Thursday finally co-operated... and Friday was kick ass!!! What a way to end the trip! The group was stoked and everyone left SPI as very happy campers! And yes, I finally got up and riding! How fun! I thrashed around in the crowds a couple of times, flying the schoolbus (a.k.a. the 14m - it is HUGE, slow, and yellow, hence "the schoolbus"), flying the 11m (which I inverted!!??), and flying the 9m... and I was able to figure out the water start on my own. But then the masses of kiters became a little overwhelming for my newbie skills, so I resigned myself to launching/landing duty. On Friday however, in perfect conditions, my favorite instructor Bill from Air Padre took me out on the boat - he had another lesson, and allowed me to come along for the ride. We went way downwind from everyone, and I rode non-stop for almost three hours!! No crowds to deal with or anything... I just concentrated on learning to ride! What a day! It was truly stellar!

Anyway, we packed up Ol' Purple, said our goodbyes, and left SPI early yesterday morning, stopping last night just outside of Amarillo. Today we drove across the Texas Panhandle and the corner of New Mexico, through a wicked snow storm which sent many, many vehicles into the ditches, and we arrived in Pueblo about an hour ago. I'll be hanging around here for the next week, and I'll post about my adventures around the area - if I find any!! Ha ha! Cheers!

Sun, but still no wind...

Sunday turned into a super warm, CALM day... so needless to say, there was no kitesurfing to be had! Instead, we went out to the jetty, and checked out all the fishermen and their catches. Actually, I found it quite fascinating... the jetty is an amazing structure, built in the 1930's... revamped a few times, but constructed mostly of huge granite blocks. There are two jetties, both of which are almost a mile in length and run parallel to each other to provide the entrance/exit to Brownsville Harbor. The section of water in between is called Dolphin Bay, and yes, we saw dolphins playing!! We also saw pelicans, sea turtles and small sharks, and many other varieties of fish. Very cool! Anyhow, it was a neat way to spend the afternoon. Not sure what's up for today yet... likely no kiting, since it is forecasted to blow a whopping 3mph. Oh well. We're in the sun, not snow, so I'm not complaining!! Cheers.

Rain, rain go away...

Well, it's been three days now, and we haven't seen a ray of sun. WTF?? There's been some wind however, and the diehards in their drysuits bashed around in the torrent for an afternoon, providing entertainment for those of us who were smarter than the elements and stayed on the beach!! Today's not looking too bad, and the rest of the week sounds even more promising. I'm still hopeful of getting out for a lesson, so we'll see. May have to make a trip across the border to Mexico, as the Scrabble and Crib boards are taking a beating! Cheers.

Doing the wind dance...

We're in South Padre Island, Texas... Todd arrived a few weeks ago and I got here Monday night - via Chicago O'Hare Int'l. Over the last few days, the weather has been amazing!! That is, if you like calm, hot, sunny days...! CALM is not a word we are friends with, actually. We are all anxiously waiting for a blustery 12-15 knots (at the very least), and so far it is not happening. Wind Guru says the forecast looks better for tomorrow however, so hopefully we'll get out riding in the afternoon.

We're sharing a house with fellow Canucks Renee and Sheldon, and Jen and Chris. To pass the time, we've been spending the windless days and evenings playing Scrabble, hanging at the beach and socializing with several other folks who live here part time. Overall we have no complaints really, just big-time wishes for wind!

Cheers.

Desert life...

Climbing, climbing, and more climbing!! Mount Lemmon is where we're at, and we've been on the rock every day since arriving in Arizona. Jody, J and Brad met us here on Tuesday and we have been playing non-stop. How fun! The temps are obviously HOT, so the upper mountain crags are desirable. Perhaps if we get a cooler day (not likely!?) we'll try something lower down.

The forearms are aching from overuse, and the fingertips are a bit sore from the prickly granite, but we still manage to hang on to beer cans at the end of each day, so life is good!

Cheers!