The Expedition Windsurfer

The morning broke very cold for west central Florida.  The mid 40s is unseasonably cold for this time of year and I was feeling every degree.  I was stoking the fire, trying to beat back the cold and waiting for my coffee to heat up, when two commercial fishermen motored past my campsite.  I wondered how they felt about the cold weather.
I had spent the night on a small mangrove island near the mouth of Bishop Harbor in Tampa Bay.  Last night in the orange glow of the setting sun I found a small spit of sand adequate enough to set up camp.  I now had a panoramic view of Tampa Bay including the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and lower St Pete.

Normally I would have chosen a different island to camp on but I was running late and wanted to set up camp and collect firewood before I lost all of my daylight.  I had spent all of yesterday testing my nearly finished Expedition Windsurfer and had not made a decision to camp until late in the day.  So what is an Expedition Windsurfer you ask?
The Expedition Windsurfer is a board that is built with multi-day expeditions in mind.  Having storage lockers built into the hull enabling the board to be packed out with supplies such as a tent, sleeping gear, food, water and safety gear.  I had been looking for a way to combine two activities I love, windsurfing and kayaking, into one neat package.  I looked for a production version to the Expedition Windsurfer but never found anything remotely close to what I had in mind, so I took a set of 16′ kayak plans and made a few modifications and here I am, camping on a beautiful little island that I windsurfed to.

The building project has been quit a challenge.  I thought about using a navel architect program to design the board, but having a serious case of mental permafrost I soon realized that I would spend more time trying to learn how the program works than in building my project.  At the urging of Matt Layden who said to “just build the thing” I proceeded full ahead.  Well, maybe not full speed, it took me over two years to finish the project from the time I bought the lumber, to testing on the water.  Family obligations, starting a new business, a car accident that broke both my arms and just trying to figure out how to make things work took time.
Some of the decisions I had to make concerned the size and shape of the board.  How long and wide should it be?  How much rocker should it have?  Where should I put the daggerboard, sliding mast track and fin?  Most of these I answered by looking at how other longboards were designed and making a best guess.  I knew that I wanted the board to be paddle friendly so I settled on the kayak shape for the bow.  I found building a retractable daggerboard box and installing the fin box to be the most challenging portions of the project requiring numerous attempts before settling on the final version. To ensure that the board would have proper safety flotation built in, I designed it with three separate compartments, one in the bow and one on either side of the daggerboard well.  In the event that one of the compartments is punctured the other two would provide enough flotation, in theory at least, to get me home.

After this first test run under sail I’m very pleased with the board.  As is always the case with any prototype, I see some changes I would make if I build another board.  The most important improvement is to build it lighter.  The finished weight is 74lbs, way too heavy.  With better building practices, that is easily achievable.  I would also add another half inch to the freeboard to make it just a little easier to get drybags in and out of the hatches.

One of the first things I notice when I sail this board is how quietly it goes through the water.  The v-nose cuts through the water rather than slapping it.  Another impressive aspect of the board is how fast it is in low winds.  Using my GPS I clocked my speed at just under 12kts in 12-15kts of wind using a 9.5sq sail.  It is very similar to the Serenity in that respect.  I am also pleased with its stability.  At 33″ wide and tapering to 26″ at the tail the board provides a stable platform to paddle from, both standing and sitting.

As I break camp and repack the board for the sail back to the landing I have a feeling of accomplishment.  I think about the possibilities of an Expedition Windsurfer.  I see me, with my family and friends, sailing these boards to island retreats or out to the shallow grass flats to fish, or perhaps paddling through the mangroves in search of ancient Indian mounds.  And for those with the guts, adventure racing.  The possibilities are endless.  The sail back to the truck took me over shallow grass flats and sandbars.  In the clear water I saw conchs, snook, trout, and even a couple of small sharks.  The trip was all up wind sailing but I didn’t mind a bit.  I enjoyed the sail and started thinking of my next great adventure.

You can follow my “Expedition Windsurfing” adventures by visiting my blog @ www.adventurewindsurfing.blogspot.com

Great adventures,
Trey