has been lurking around and finally got a (used) board + rig.
I have been sailing in mid-80's on then "one-design" and has never picked a boom since now it is time

Diamond lake in Mundelein is the closest to me -> is windsurfing allowed there? I cannot find anything online that specifically prohibits it. I also think I saw a windsurfer in Busse Woods (sailing is permitted there, but not sure if it is allowed). Oth.erwise I will travel to Lake Andrea

will annoy the community with my questions a bit... hope I can return a favor to another newb when the time comes

thanks!

Welcome, Andy! Never heard anybody talk about Diamond lake or Busse Woods. Somebody might know something. Another lake that looks interesting is the Tree Oaks Recreation Area near Crystal Lake for S-SW wind.

Besides Lake Andrea you might also want to check out Pistakee Lake ( See Launches page scroll menu > Pistakee Lake )

Hi Andy, glad to hear another newb site stalker (like myself) came out of the woods! How much time did you put in back in the 80's? and what did you pick up for gear?Lake Andrea is also on my list as well as checking out Silver Lake. Maybe we can get together at one of the lakes in the future. Reid, this is the first I've heard of Pistakee Lake. Do you have any past input (or anyone else) on the lake?

i sailed as a teenager -> a couple of years, competed locally
this was on a small shallow body of water, so no waves and other fancy stuff.

now on to gear
- got 2 boards Bic Nova 182l & Starboard Go 144l
- plus a range of sails : 4.5-7.5

could only try a 5.6 on a Bic Nova so far (Lake Andrea) - it was a challenge to go close to the wind without a center fin (read: I could not do it ).
I also seem to struggle with sail rigging - maybe i did not apply enough downhaul, as battens were sticking badly on 1 side of the mast and did not rotate on tacks

Garry Zack wrote:
The info that's on the Launches page about it is from a guy long ago that shared it. He sailed it a lot. Motorboat traffic might get heavy in the summer months. He would also make the drive to Clinton Lake for wind and warm water. There's another potential spot for Pistakee Lake. If you click "Map" (top right) after going to Pistakee Lake on the Launches page you'll see a small park on the other side. You can then drag and drop the orange figure on it for street view. Not sure what the parking is there, but might work for S-SE winds.

Still looking into Diamond lake and Busse Woods for Andy.

But the info I found on the Tree Oaks Recreation Area will now be getting its own topic.

andy wrote:
Great gear to get back into windsurfing with, Andy. Here's Garry's sail before and after shots after a Marina Sail Park lesson.

Before lesson. Poking the mast sleeve and stuck on one side



After lesson with proper down-haul. Battens are behind mast and free to rotate. I also positioned the sail on the mast using the adjustable head cap. So when fully down-hauled the bottom of the sail is right at the bottom of the extension.You can't see it but it had looseness right to the graphic in the middle of the second panel from the top.



This vid shows just how much pull is needed when down-hauling.




I like the Maui HookUp tool for down-hauling

Maui HookUp tool



You can post pics and or questions about your gear and we can help you.

Sounds like you have some good gear to wreak some havoc! Reid's 101 rigging class with proper down-haul will definitely fix that problem. It's kind of like New Years when you're tweaking that cork out of the bottle of champagne. You squint your eyes, slightly turn your head and grit your teeth and when you get to the last 32nd of an inch it pops right where it's supposed to. That Maui HookUp tool Reid has works real nice.

buy or make a winch. srsly. even the a giant stick to pull on is not easy enough for the average beginner to be able to really pay attention to the sail while downhauling. The differences we're talking about are on the order of an inch.

My first try at a winch was good but heavy. my 2nd try broke. my 2nd try left me sailing with not enough down haul and having to do a lot of uphauling. I'm blaming the sail not my lack of skill. Ha!

Dan

will invest in images.the-house.com/chinook_downhaul_crank_l-prod.jpg then
thank you

Hi Andy,

Live in Gurnee now and go mostly to Lake Andrea. Been to Silver Lake but got lake itch there. Busse had signs for no windsurfing for years but maybe they allow it now. I had lake rights to to Round Lake a few years ago and it was alot of motorboats.

I am thinking of trying the small sailing lake near Allstate Arena. Need to pay a launch fee but it is on my way home from work.

Let me know when you go out. Always looking for somebody to sail with.

Steve, are you talking about Lake Opeka near the arena?

1st time ever planing... in and out of planing with a longest streak of maybe 12 seconds.

Evanston, NW sailing center; on their JP Explorer 195 with a 5.5 sail (was afraid to take a bigger sail as it was a SW/S wind today)

want more
but it was no fun for my hands/arms -> need to try with a harness, i guess