------------Spoiler alert! -----------------
I was never in grave danger and it all ended happily.
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We sailed for one day in Hood River, OR, as per usual, then went to Oceanside on the coast for some wave sailing. It was a struggle getting into position to launch but once I was set I made it out through the beach break in one go. I was having fun sailing out in the rollers for a while but the current and wind were taking me gradually down the beach. However, I was staying close to Randy and the other windsurfer on the water. Then I had a bad reach. The wind had picked up and my sail was now too big and the wind was gusty and turbulent. Instead of pushing me nicely along the wind now kept stopping me up and I lost a lot of ground in one reach. I wanted to come back to shore but the thought of making it back through the shore break when I could barely sail was a wee bit terrifying. I tried to go for it a couple times but ended up back in the water. I thought of ditching the sail and riding the board in on my stomach but figured if I was going to ditch the sail anyway I might as well try to get in with it. (Breaking waves are dangerous for the gear because the mast can get skewered into the ground and break, ripping the sail in the process.)
Randy had now walked down the beach to where I was and was watching my progress. Hmmm, "progress" probably isn't the best word to use. He could only see me when my sail was in the air because of the waves. Then a big wave broke on me and I let go of the gear in the turbulence. Just for a second. It ended up not too far from me and I tried swimming to it but the waves kept pushing it farther and farther away. I couldn't swim very efficiently with my life jacket on but didn't exactly want to take it off ... so after several minutes of chasing the gear I decided I should just head for shore.
By this time Randy hadn't seen my sail in a while (and either had I for that matter) and he became really concerned and called 911. Meanwhile I was bobbing along, swimming to shore. I had a thick wetsuit with hood and booties and a lifejacket so I was warm enough, it was just slow swimming in all that getup and the strong current was pulling me down the beach into a bay. After a while I saw emergency vehicles go by with their sirens on in the direction of the beach I had set sail from. I thought, "Oh crap, I hope that's not for me." And I kept swimming. There were people on shore who were keeping pace with my drifting down the beach so I thought I was in sight. I came to a sand bar at one point and could run towards shore in waist deep water between waves, then was in deeper water again. I was so close to shore at this point but progress towards shore was very slow because of the current at the entrance to the bay. A couple jet skis sped past me but I couldn't see if they were coast guard or not. They didn't seem to notice me; I thought of waving to them but was so close to shore at this point and I didn't want to bother them if they were just touring around or coast guard off to save a drowning person.
Someone jumped in a kayak and came out to meet me but by the time he got to me I was able to touch the ground so just walked in. He seemed disappointed that I didn't need a tow. Then there was a bit of a commotion on the beach and people told me that there was a windsurfer missing in Oceanside. I told them that it might be me. There was no cell reception so we went into a little store to use the phone and I talked to the coast guard and confirmed that I was okay. A guy who lived in Oceanside offered to drive me back (he had been kiting earlier but had stopped because the wind was so unusual. He does polar expeditions! http://www.polarcircles.com/) and a few minutes later we pulled into the parking lot where Randy was waiting with a bunch of emergency workers. I knew he was so worried about me that he wouldn't care that I didn't know where all the windsurfing gear was!
The other good news is that the nice guy in the kayak (friend of the guy who drove me back) found my gear bobbing along in the bay! It was pretty far out so he apparently asked the coast guard people to get it with their jet ski. It was waiting for us beside the boat ramp in the bay. I guess they can add that to our bill?!My only injury was this. I'll let you guess what body part this is.
We're going to get radios before my next coastal sail!
In the next blog: a goat encounter!
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