Wave sailing in Los Angeles

theq · Joined: 10 Apr 2000 Posts: 707

I sail Leo Carillo frequently during the Summer. Yes, a floaty board, between 100L and maybe 110L would be optimum for a 200lb sailor. Theres a regular at Leo who weighs 200 or so. I believe his average sail is about a 6.2M. I tip the scales at near 170lbs, and I use a 98L JP Freestyle Wave and a 5.8M sail most of the time. I keep my 85L board in the car, along with a 4.5-5.0M sail just in case the wind starts ripping.
The guy who warned you about the rocks and shorebreak is partially correct. The rocks can be rather aggressive at lower tides. Booties are an absolute must, IMHO. Stay away from anything less than 70% carbon, in the mast department. A RDM is advisable if you can find on for the larger sail size, as the shorebreak can get difficult during a consistent swell with light wind on the inside. If the winds filled in, and youre patient with your timing, youll make it out just fine. Getting caught inside during a larger swell usually ends up tearing a sail or breaking a mast. That said, the waves are really quite gentle and well lined up as a rule.
100L+ board, 6.2M sail, booties, and patience, will be rewarded. Be ready for parking problems on PCH, especially on weekends and during swells, when surfers, windsurfers, kiters, and beachgoers converge on Leo.
BTW: Leo is not a dirty beach per se. While it has a lot of dirt, mixed in with the sand near the shallow bluffs, the beach itself is very clean of human supplied debris.
Oh, and leave your dog at home, as you can not take them on the beach. The Parks and Rec. guys, along with State Lifeguards like to write tickets. Good luck.

theq · Joined: 10 Apr 2000 Posts: 707

The rule of thumb at Leo is to bring everything.
Having read your response the other day, I decided to bring my 4.1M sail to Leo yesterday. Good thing, as I was probably the only one who wasnt overpowered during much of the late afternoon. Add at least 5mph onto the graph and youll get what it was doing on the outside. It was probably the windiest day of the Summer. Not too much in the way of waves, but some.

jp5 · Joined: 19 May 1998 Posts: 3394 Location: OnUr6

yeah man, ya never know what youre gonna get at that place! 4.1 wow thats cranking!!

Juerg · Joined: 03 Dec 2002 Posts: 72

http://yourscene.latimes.com/mycapture/photos/Album.aspx?EventID=142349&Category
ID=18063

check it out wave sailing in LA this is cool

christopher_cf · Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2006 11:29 pm Post subject: RE: Wave sailing in Los Angeles

Dont forget about Huntington City Beach (a.k.a. Surf City). The waves are great here. It just doesnt get as much wind as Cabrillo most of the time. This year has been pretty good though. I sailed near HB Pier 6 times this season: twice with my 7.0 Ezzy SE Wave (16 mph) and 4 times with my 6.0 Ezzy SE Wave (18 mph). I still missed several sailable days.

I weight 185lbs and use a 109 liter 2004 F2 Style which performs decently in the waves (although the 98 liter JP Freestyle Wave that I rented at Kanaha would be better Wink

. I am not that good of a wave sailor yet, but I am working on it. Since the beaches from Cabrillo southwards get cross-onshore wind, all I have been doing so far is backside wavesailing.

I have added info for many LA area sites to <a href=http:thewindmap.com>The Wind Map</a>. I am just one windsurfer though. It would be great if more local sailors could add their knowledge and opinions to this wiki. Here is the stuff I added for <a href=http://thewindmap.com/wiki/index.php/Huntington_City_Beach-North_America>Huntington City Beach</a>

Happy wavesailing!
Christopher
<a href=http://clewfirst.org>Clew First Windsurfing</a>

capetonian · Joined: 11 Aug 2006 Posts: 1196 Location: Florida

Thanks for the information Christopher, I will definitely check out Hungtington Beach.