Get the MF snake off my MF sail !

Ok, I wasn't really angry. But I've never had a snake on my sail!

Short story: I was swimming back to shore as the thunderstorm got close, and I encountered a small water snake swimming toward me. I swam around it but as the sail went by it decided to hitch a ride on my sail. I swam with it as a passenger for a while, then shook it off the sail and we swam in opposite directions. I'd seen a snake years ago while windsurfing, and a fish and a bear too. This was the first time I had a snake as a passenger.

Long story: After finishing a full day of emails and calls, I headed out into what was supposed to be a late afternoon nicely building SW wind. And it did seem windy when I headed out. I rigged the 6.2 Duke and was hoping for some nice long runs on the 116 Freewave.

I started slogging upwind but could never get on a plane, even after shortening the boom 2cm to add more draft. So I stashed the board and sail and got the 7.0 NP V6 and Fanatic Ray 122 slalom board. But that didn't really get planing either in the 8-14 knot winds that my wife measured for me.

The track, 6.2 Duke and Freewave 116. Then 7.0 V6 and Ray 122.
The 5.4 and Techno foil worked the best at the end.

So I sailed that back to the shed and got out the Techno foil board and optimistically put the 5.4 Duke on it. The wind did seem to have finally picked up. And I got a bunch of nice runs in on the foil. Foiling with the 5.4 was the easiest and most in control I've been. That was my 14th time on the foil.

Speed details!

But now the thunderstorm that had been on the horizon was very close at hand. I could see the lightning so I sailed the foil back to the shed. I went to the point and got the 6.2 / Freewave and thought I'd get one more planing run in, but there really wasn't much wind, the 5.4 + foil was just that efficient. I slogged downwind, and then decided to swim the last bit as the lighting and thunder sounded close. Then I saw the snake... I should have had my GoPro!  The thunderstorm rolled through shortly after.

Just not enough wind.

Heading back on the 7.0 and Ray 122

The thunderstorm rolled through!

The storm from a distance

Rainbow after the storm