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Today was an interesting day. I sailed at Bird Island Basin with a few friends. It wasn't really windy, but that was actually good. I wanted to try the prototype fin from Glen in Bridge City to see how it worked on the 7.8. Normally I'd use my 17.5 weed with that sail and the Allstar, but this time I tried this 12 inch weed.
The fin was okay. I planed about as expected. It wasn't better than the 17.5, but it wasn't always worse, either. I didn't really get a chance to try out the top end, as it wasn't quite windy enough. That says something about it planing pretty early, though. If I buy a copy, it will be a good shallow water weed fin.
The fin did have a problem turning, though. In even a foot of chop, it wouldn't stick at all. I had some interesting crashes trying to turn. I actually was going faster into turns at Grassy on Thursday, but I must not have been in any chop, because I didn't have the problems I did today.
Overall, it was impressive for such a short fin and might help me get more time on the water at Grassy Point.
The other thing that happened today was my friend Mike was down in the water when I saw him and he was waving for me to turn around. Just a few minutes before I saw Mike as I was going the other direction and I jibed to follow him out past the third island. Since I knew Mike wasn't jibing and I know that he isn't the wreck-for-no-real-reason type, I knew something was amiss. Turns out he hit a submerged obstacle. It's amazing that we haven't run into it before, because we go by that area a lot.
I stopped to help Mike out and he was bleeding from a few minor cuts and though he said he was okay, he seemed a bit dazed. He mentioned something about being fine, but also about compressed vertabrae. Though his fin was shoved up into the fin box and the board was cracked, he managed to get back to the launch, about 1.5 miles away, pretty easily. Before he left, we hunted around for what he hit for a few minutes and I found the obstacle, an old gas head or something covered in sea life. I couldn't move it. It's about 8 inches below the water. We took some of Mike's spare line and tied my baseball cap to the obstacle and then I went back and grabbed an empty jug and some more line from my trailer and I sailed back and tied it on. It took me a minute to find the place again. If we hadn't tied my hat to it, I'd still be there looking for it.
I don't have confidence that the line will hold for long. With the wave action it will probably fray in a few days, because the barnacles and stuff are all over it. I cut my hands up a little trying to tie on the jug.
Afterward I sailed in the area a little while to get used to where it is, so I can remember to avoid it if the jug breaks off. As I was sailing along, everything seemed to be a shallow spot or an obstacle. Darn mind can really play tricks on you. I don't wish it upon Mike, but I'm glad it wasn't me because I would have destroyed the fin Dick loaned me!
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