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luke
My wife Kris and I were recently married and choose Vela Aruba for our honeymoon getaway because it’s just so easy. With one phone call, we had everything planned. Great location, great accommodations (The Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino’s Tradewinds Club) and great windsurfing equipment for any kind of wind or skill level.
After a few days of great sailing, the wind started to slow off a little, so we decided to try the Starboard Tandem windsurf board. Vela is the only place I’ve ever seen this beast, so we had to try it. We asked one of the Vela staff about what the best sail combination for us would be for us. After a quick assessment of the wind and the two of us, he said 6.4 and 5.4. Remember, this light wind. “No problem,” I said, and we grabbed some matching Neil Pryde Alphas and headed out.
As we dragged the mighty beast to the water, another guest or perhaps a local looked at the gear and uttered, “Very powerful, that thing.” I thought to myself, “This thing is a tank. Is it really going to be that much of a ride? I’m sure we’ll have enough sail with nearly 12 square meters, right?”
Well, we had enough sail and then some! After coming up with a game plan of how to get going, tack, and of course, fall, we started on our way. Amazingly, we got up onto a plane very quickly and then just as quickly flew over the handlebars. Forgot how ridiculously long the fin was on that ship!
When we finally got into deep enough water, it was an absolute blast! I was in the back and Kris was in front, and we were ripping across the water yelling, screaming and laughing hysterically. This board was big, mean and fun! Then the wind started to kick in and things got really exciting.
Picture this: My petite wife on the front of this huge windsurfing board — way up in the air. It looked like she was walking the plank at high speeds! She was a good 2-3 feet out of the water. It was a very strange site that you just can’t get on a 100-liter board. It was also a very entertaining site from my point of view! Kris quickly learned what apparent wind was, if she didn’t already know. It was all she could do to hang on to a back-winded sail. That’s what I love about her.
We continued to sail way overpowered for a good 30 minutes and it was really fun. Kris wouldn’t admit it at the time, but it became one of her favorite windsurfing memories — and mine, too.
Those are the kind of stories we have from Vela and that’s why we keep going back. It’s always a blast, and it’s always consistently first class, no matter which Vela you choose.
By: Bill Bachman, Pewaukee, Wisconsin
Tags: aruba, aruba marriott, aruba marriott resort & stellaris casino, starboard tandem, vela windsurf, Windsurfing Equipment
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