Why I'll Never Become An Excellent Windsurfer...

I enjoyed 20 minutes of  wind, enough to get this jump.
Photo credit: Julian Varty.

Frustrated. That's the word that best describes me when I talk about windsurfing. New Brunswick does not get good wind in the spring, summer or fall, and I acknowledge that fact, but occasionally we do get wind. Or we're told we are to get some.

Twice this summer I've driven to Saint John because Environment Canada has forecast a wind of 30-50 km/h. That's an ideal wind for windsurfing. A wind of that magnitude creates ideal conditions for the sport that I love. When a wind of 20 km/h is forecast, there's a 50/50 chance that you'll be able to windsurf. When a wind of 30-50 is forecast, one would assume that your chances of windsurfing increase. Not so.

A wind of 30-50 km/h has only been forecast for Saint John twice this summer. I drove there both times. Both times the wind didn't happen. I know that wind is tricky to forecast, but if you can't do it......DON'T TRY!

One last word on this topic.....ACK!

Now, what am I going to do about this problem? How should I deal with the problem of Environment Canada's lousy wind forecasts? I have no idea.

I know! Why not issue a fatwa?

Of course I don't mean this literally. That's a bit much. I hate what their forecasts are doing to the windsurfing community (ruining it), but a holy war won't ever happen.

I agree, a holy war is going to far. Environment Canada is, figuratively speaking, killing us. We must simply forgive them for their sins and move on...to the Gorge or the Magdalen Islands. Windsurfing for New Brunswick, sadly, has been cancelled this year.