the Atlanta Boardsailing Club
windsurfing, kiteboarding and wingsurfing in the Southeast

Shallow water windsurfing in Guam courtesy of Michael Bates and Evan Walker via Barrett Walker. If you see that much bottom detail on Lake Lanier, you have about two seconds to jump off the board before you destroy your fin.

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Press Release for Immediate Distribution

The Atlanta Boardsailing Club is proud to announce a new valet service for the windsurfing community at Van Pugh Park on Lake Lanier. Windsurfers will no longer have to carry their heavy carbon fiber boards and rigs to and from the treacherous shores of Lake Lanier. Instead, highly trained valets like the one pictured, will ferry the equipment safely and quickly. In addition, their specially designed uniforms will ensure that members receive a high level of service while conveying a clear message of professionalism.

The valet service will also offer optional rigging services. The valets will undergo an intense physical training making sure that no sail leaves the beach lacking enough downhaul. They will receive certification from several major sail makers assuring windsurfers of not only having well trimmed rigs but the right rigs for the conditions. No longer will windsurfers cast their eyes at the horizon and debate the proper rig size for hours.

Recognizing both the need for such a service and the convenience it provides to the windsurfing community, the ABC has worked diligently behind the scenes for months. Taking security steps that would rival iPhone development, club members communicated over secure channels and met at locations known only to the CIA and ninja with top level security clearance.

Most of us are retiring the black wetsuits of mourning over the passing of Windsurfing magazine now that several months have passed. While the news was sudden, in retrospect, we should not have been surprised as the migration of media from print to digital has been years in the making.

Former Windsurfing Subscribers at Van Pugh, Lake Lanier.

The now ex-publisher, Voldemort Bonnier, decided to fill out the remainder of the subscription with TransWorld Smurf magazine. I'm not sure what the thinking was other than windsurfing and surfing have a common etymology. While the sports are similar, the magazines (Smurf and Windsurfing) are fundamentally different. Windsurfing seemed to focus on the notable people, equipment and locations of the sport. Smurf, especially the ad content, seems focused on fashion.

Wally Part 2

Perhaps like you, I thought that the original Windsurfer had pretty much been consigned to history. An odd board here or there brought out by someone who lived in the darkest jungles of Peru (like Paddington) and had yet to hear of the advent of monofilm.