News from Hawaii.....Molokai World Surfski Championship

Video taken by Oscar Chalupsky of Rene Appel and Joe Glickman, playing in the waters around Maui Island, Hawaii, a few days before the 2007 Molokai World Surf Ski Championship.
Oscar is on the black Epic V10E. Joe is in the white Epic.These guys are doing 16km/h on the waves - Oscar is keeping up with them while filming!

The Fishing Is Canceled, but Kayakers Are Buoyant
By DARYL KHAN

The New York Times
May 7, 2007

Kayak fishing is a sport still obscure enough that just about anyone who shows up for a tournament quickly finds that there are no strangers.

Yet it is also a sport that can inspire someone like Richard Court to drive the 560 miles from Toronto to Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn for the fourth annual Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Tournament, which raises money for women who have breast cancer.

Mr. Court and other fishermen will convey the thrill of whispering over the water, without motors or heavy oars, and of the particularly scrappy blue fish or striper that can drag you and your slip of a boat on a “Nantucket sleigh ride.”

Then, of course, there is the Manhattan skyline on the horizon as the fishermen haul their kayaks down a jagged concrete ramp past the husks of derelict boats with names fading into a ghostly blur and a beach littered with everything from a tire and beer bottles to a designer Italian pump.

“Where else in New York City can you go to camp for three days and fish for three days,” asked Carl Schneider, 37, an electrician from Farmingdale, N.Y. “This isn’t about the tournament. It’s more about camaraderie. That’s why I’m here. I’m not here to win.”

That turned out to be fortunate, because the cold 25-knot winds that blew in yesterday morning forced the cancellation of the tournament.

Yet many of the 200 or so contestants who had paid a $75 entry fee and had camped along a patch of weeds at the edge of a large parking lot did not seem to mind; they had already been fishing, some as early as Thursday.

“Just to be among the guys who do the same thing that I do, you know?” said Mr. Court, 62. “No hard feelings at all.”

One group, calling itself the Wolf Pack, set up quarters under a canopy with a banner showing a wolf howling at the moon. The Wolf Pack has two rules — no rules and no meetings — and its members sat along a rickety cafeteria-style table covered with bags of Doritos and pretzels. The drinks were on another table, along with a soldier’s helmet topped with a carved wood kayak and a sticker identifying the owner as the Grand Supreme Ruler.

“That’s mine because I’m the oldest,” said Artie Wehrhahn, 60, of Greentown, Pa.

“It’s a strange paradox,” said Joe Cambria, 42, the tournament organizer, who was born and raised in the Bronx and now lives in New Rochelle. “Here you have this amazing resource. Some of the best fishing, kayaking, birding around. And yet you still have garbage and trash and all kinds of stuff floating in the water.”

Nevertheless, the fishermen say they feel like they are immersed in nature. And they say that this time of year, with fish swimming north, it is some of the best fishing in the Northeast.

“This is like church,” said Frank Stoner, 48. “You come here in the morning, you have no impure thoughts. You’re about to go fishing. It’s beautiful out here. It’s as close you can get to God without visiting him.”

And then he added, “It’s a little slice of heaven in the middle of a concrete cesspool.”

SpiderCrab seen in Jamaica Bay!
Thats right! See SpiderCrab for free in Jamaica Bay. There are hundreds of spider crabs living on the bottom of Jamaica Bay and you can catch one at The Kayak Fishing Tournament this weekend at Floyd Bennett Field. Free Fishing demos, free demo kayaks and see SpiderCrab for free, no long lines! http://www.kayakfish4conservation.com/

Google map

May 19, Saturday, Open House

The Open House is on Saturday May 19 from 10am to 5pm RAIN OR SHINE. Water activities will be weather permitting.

KAYAK TRIPS  11am, noon, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm

War Canoe Trips 11am -noon, noon -1pm, 1pm -2pm,3pm -4pm

SAILING Trips 11am -noon, 1pm -2pm, 3pm -4pm

ROWING Trip 11am -noon,  1pm -2pm,3pm -4pm

RACING Demonstration 11am-noon and 1pm-2pm

Come and join us at the open house. There will be lots of interesting equipment to look and you can get out to the water. There will be members you can ask questions and test the water so to speak.

See the flyer!

Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Tournament May 5th and 6th

The Fourth Annual Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Tournament will be held on Sunday, May 6th, 2007. Last year's tournament was a great success. Not only did the event raise money for a worthy charity, but 202 kayak anglers enjoyed great fishing with hundreds of fish caught and released. The three targeted species - bluefish, striped bass and weakfish - all made an appearance. More than 60 people attended the kayak fishing demo and learned about this great sport. This year will be a 2 day event with the Saturday being the pre-fishing day and also a free fishing kayak demo. The Saturday will also be a chance for meeting others as well as going fishing to prepare for the tournament. There will be a Captain's meeting Saturday evening(location to be named later). Sunday will be the actual tournament as well as a chance for people to try out all the best fishing kayaks. ESPN Outdoors covered the event for Bass Center and we are hoping for similar media coverage this year.

For more information, go to http://www.kayakfish4conservation.com/

I have attended some of the environemental action sessions recently, and the Bronx River folks make a particularly strong presentation. You can check in with them at:

"It takes less than 1/10 of an inch of hard rain for sewage to enter our waterways." --plaNYC 2030

Storm Water Infrastructure Matters (S.W.I.M.)
www.swimmablenyc.org

John Wright

Hi Joe,
How are you? We're holding our 9th Annual Mayday On The Bay Kayak Race Sat May 5. I know you're not usually around but I thought I would extend an invitation again to be a guest at our race this year. It's a fun fast 3 mile race. Starting and ending in the waters behind Empire Kayaks. If you can't make maybe you could pass the word along to anybody you think might be interested.
Thanks

Mike
Empire Kayaks
4 Empire Blvd.
Island Park, NY 11558
516 889 8300
www.empirekayaks.com

PDF brochure

The second an announcement from The Dinghy Shop about their Kayak Test Drive, April 28 and 29, and a Sailboat Showcase to follow, May 5. Contact dinghyshop.com

Andy said...

Good luck....here is a video about urban kayaking to kick off your blog..

youtube movie

Google Calendar of the schedule

Here is the calendar of the club's events. You can go to Google calendar and search sebago canoe club and find this schedule!

SailCom Club Sailboat Repair/Sailhouse Work

May 5 and 6 - Saturday and Sunday SailCom Club Sailboat Repair/Sailhouse Work, Brooklyn clubhouse. Contact Chris Sears, squantch@aol.com, if you can help with boat repair. Contact John Phillips, jrp_nyc@yahoo.com, if you can help with Sailhouse work (he needs one other person with

carpentry experience). Other work days to be scheduled.