Windsurfing Trip Planning

Here are some tips and reminders when completing the form:

• You must bring all gear back on schedule, as per the rental agreement, unless an extension is approved by the fleet director. Other members may be expecting to receive the gear at the end of your rental period!
• All club rules apply while on trips (no guests on windsurfing gear, 2-hr limit if other members want to use gear, level system, damage reporting, safety, etc)

There are two kinds of trips, individual trip, and group trip:

Individual Trip

If you are an experienced windsurfing who have been on trips, and is mostly self-reliant as a windsurfing, your request to take gear on a trip is usually granted by the Windsurfing Fleet Director.

Self-reliant means you:

1. know how to rig windsurfing gear properly without needing direction
2. have experience in gear transport,
3. have windsurfed at high wind locations in BC before
4. are checked out at Level 2 or above

Talk to the Windsurfing Fleet Director about your plans. After you obtain the Director's approval, submit the rental form, and pay the rental deposit and fees, you can take the approved windsurfing gear.

Group Trip

Windsurfing group trips are often the highights of the season. In past, windsurfing group trips have included just 2 members up to 12 members.

Group trips are ideal for members who have not been on a windsurfing trip before, or who want to build more confidence with rigging and gear transport before venturing out on an individual trip.  Just like at Jericho, going in a group means you can access a wider range of gear than you would if you went on your own.  

Create a group

1. Talk to a few other members and form yourselves into a group.
   
2. The group should have a meeting and decide how to handle gear selection, transport, rigging, any expenses, etc. Different people have different skills -- for example, some have windsurfing skills, others have planning skills, other have a large vehicle -- you will find that there are many ways to contribute to a successful windsurfing group trip. Make sure you invite the fleet director and a fleet captain to your planning meeting.
3. One or more members in the group should have prior trip experience, and be willing to make themselves available to answer questions or provide advice.
4. Each member in the group should complete a rental form, and should indicate that they are going as part of a group.

The Windsurfing Fleet Director can then approve the group's overall plans and each group member's rental form.

An excellent way to get a group trip experience, is to head down as a group to the Columbia River Gorge (Hood River, OR, USA), where you will find windsurfing rentals (i.e., you don't need to transport club equipment), lessons, restaurants, camping, and more. To experience windsurfing and wilderness camping as a group, head over to Nitinat Lake, Vancouver Island (see the illustrated guide [PDF]). At peak times of the season, both locations have excellent wind (15-25 knots). For day-trips, visit Nexen Beach at Squamish, BC.  

Check out the photo galleries from previous windsurfing trips in the ClubLocarno Facebook Group.

Planning your trip

1. Pre-planning (10-14 days before the trip)

Although windsurfers are known to plan at the last minute around weather conditions, for Group Trips, it is important to plan in advance.

You should plan to meet at one of the regular Windsurfing Wednesday sessions (6:30pm), and discuss the following:

• decide who is going, where to go, dates
• get a tutorial on rigging; share knowledge and experience
• assign duties
• get approval from Windsurfing Fleet Director
• if it is a camping trip - book ferry, reserve campsite, etc.

2. Finalize details (1-2 days before the trip)

• finalize and label selection of gear (sails, accessories)
• submit rental forms and deposits (and payment, if individual trip)

3. Pick up gear (on the evening before the trip)

• meet and load up vehicles
• either carry the gear around the East side of the Jericho compound to the parking lot, or get special permission from the JSCA office to drive your vehicle into the Jericho compound

4. After the trip (on the return date, and the following week)

• On the return date, return the gear to its proper location in the windsurfing container. If it is already nighttime when you return the gear, complete any remaining steps - like re-rigging sails - in the next few days.
  
• Come out to Windsurfing Wednesday and do any minor repairs, cleanup, share stories.
• Collect your deposit

5. Reminder:  Jericho, your vehicle, and you

Jericho Sailing Centre Association:

Bringing your vehicle into the Jericho compound for the purpose of transporting gear is permitted only with special approval of a JSCA manager at the JSCA office. The general JSCA policy is that no vehicles are permitted in the Jericho compound with the exception of authorized delivery vehicles; any authorized vehicle may not exceed walking speed while within the compound. 

Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation:

Vehicles are not permitted on the Vancouver Parks Board pedestrian areas on the East side of the Jericho compound. Don't make the mistake of driving your car from the parking lot onto the gravel road on the East side of the compound.  If your vehicle is found by the Park Ranger, in violation of this bylaw, your vehicle will be ticketed and/or towed, total est. cost of $250-$500!