Commitment

First Annual REAL Alumni Retreat - Montauk, NY

REAL News
REAL Alumni Retreat
LAST CALL FOR RSVPs is Friday, June 19th !!!

REAL will be hosting a catered BBQ with LIVE BAND at:

Sunset Saloon
93 Navy Rd
Montauk, NY 11954
June 27, 2009
7pm – 10pm
In order to ensure that we have enough food and beer, you must RSVP by June 19th !!! Don’t wait another minute. It’s going to be the party of the summer !!!

PLEASE SEE THE UPDATED ITINERARY BELOW.

REAL is proud to announce the launch of our 1st Annual REAL Alumni Retreat scheduled for June 26-28, 2009 in Montauk, NY.

What : REAL Alumni Retreat
Where : Montauk, New York
When : June 26-28, 2009
Why : Kite, Surf, Standup Sessions, Demos, Clinics and Parties
Who : All REAL Alumni and their Friends
RSVP : Alumni@realwatersports.com

The 1st Annual REAL Alumni Retreat will happen June 26th-28th in Montauk, NY and YOU and your friends are invited ! The REAL Alumni Retreat is a weekend set aside each year so that all of our clients and their friends can get together and celebrate our years (or days) on the water with great sessions and great parties !

We decided to host our 1st Annual REAL Alumni Retreat in Montauk, NY since it is the home stomping ground of REAL Co-Founder Trip Forman AND because Montauk/Napeague Harbor offers a wide variety of session opportunities for kite, surf and standup paddleboarding action !

Already confirmed in attendance from the REAL TEAM are Trip Forman, Matt Nuzzo, Jason Slezak, Sam Bell, Jeff Soderberg, Ryan Evans, Bryan Elkus and Carl Giordano.

REAL Alumni Retreat Schedule
Here is how the schedule is looking for the three day weekend. As we get closer, this will be updated.

Friday June 26th
AM : Kite, Surf and Standup Sessions in Napegue Harbor and Montauk Areas
7PM : Burgers and Beers at the Shagwong Restaurant
9PM : Drinks at Surf Lodge

Saturday, June 27th
AM : Kite, Surf and Standup Sessions in Napeague Harbor and Montauk Areas
7PM – 10PM : Catered BBQ with Live Band at Sunset Saloon

Sunday, June 28th
AM : Kite, Surf and Standup Sessions in Napegue Harbor and Montauk Areas
PM : Drive home with huge session hangovers !

Because we are at the mercy of the wind and the waves, we will provide everyone with a cell number to announce exactly where we will be kiting or surfing or SUPing. We will also be announcing locations and activities on Twitter.

We urge you to book your accommodations soon! Please email us at Alumni@realwatersports.com if you’re not familiar with the area and would like some advice on where to stay.

PLEASE RSVP
In order to help us plan this event more efficiently, please RSVP by sending an email to Alumni@realwatersports.com for you and your friends attendance. Also we need your t-shirt size(s), so we can hook you up with some new RED Threads !

Also, please be sure to print out a copy of the Montauk Area Local Kiteboarding Guidelines.

We look forward to seeing you and your friends at the 1st annual REAL Alumni Retreat !

Baptism

Today after work a bunch of us headed to Corbina to surf. The waves were bigger than I’d seen them in a while and still being a rookie surfer, I was intimidated by the size of the waves as well as the number of quality surfers in the lineup. I watched from the beach for a few minutes before deciding to paddle out. When the waves are head high or bigger, just paddling out can be an ordeal.

Since I got to Cape Hatteras in February, the ocean has intimidated me. In all three of the tri-sports, as I call them, kiting, surfing and standup paddle boarding, I had taken my beatings in the ocean. And of course, my imagination is always running wild about what lurks below my feet. Today, after paddling out, as I sat on my board to catch my breadth, a dolphin breached within 15 feet of me. But it takes a half of one second for your mind to register DOLPHIN and not MAN EATING SHARK. Needless to say I was very relieved a half a second later.

They’re beautiful when they’re that close and at eye level with you. This fear or intimidation that plagues me actually subsides after spotting sea life. To see fish below your feet and dolphins breaching makes you realize that you CAN coexist in the ocean with all of the sea creatures around you. No reason to fear.

Without that fear, your body relaxes and confidence returns as you acknowledge the fact that it’s just water. Attack that wave! Paddle hard! Feel the board accelerate! Get on your feet! What a tremendous feeling of confidence to surf a wave.

The ocean water here in Cape Hatteras is so clear and so clean that you feel refreshed enough to not require a shower after your session. But it’s also cleansing to the soul. To enter the ocean feeling so small and exit, after your session, feeling larger than life. I was immediately reminded of why I’m here and why I came to this place. I’ll sleep like a baby tonight in my board shorts. I don’t want to shower just yet. I’m going to let the salt linger on my skin until the morning.

First Ride

Yesterday I caught my first wave on a standup paddle board. I've been doing a lot of flat water paddling and can now paddle six miles or so at a clip without much fatigue. I'm hoping to race in the 2nd annual PaddleNYC which is a 28 mile race around the island of Manhattan in August.

http://www.seapaddlenyc.org/

So I've been working on my endurance...which, in paddling sports, for me seems to come very naturally. But I had not ventured into the ocean, which is much trickier than flat water, since early Spring, still in a thick wetsuit. Yesterday, in beautiful, warm turquoise water, I was paddling in board shorts. And after paying my dues with some serious wipeouts and lots of falling off going on, something clicked. My timing is better. My acceleration is better. I'm using the paddle to brace myself, recover and extend my ride down the line. I caught three or four nice long rides. Even got two compliments from the beach! So right now my stoke level is sky high.

Another sport to master. Another art form to explore. Another step forward in my quest to be a waterman.