So of course, everyone in windsurfing has their own ideas on their local forecast. When your favorite pastime (or life-style :-) is so dependent on mother nature, its no surprise really.
At ASW we spend a lot of time looking at a number of local forecasts and web resources. Below is our list. If you have a killer link you'd like us to add, mail me
| Current Conditions |
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| Austin Yacht Club |
Awesome FX site with real time conditions and great wind log. The perfect place to cross-ref your GPS speeds with actual on-the-water wind speeds.
The current conditions here are pretty accurate for southerly wind and straight north. If the direction is north west, it comes right over the club house and tends to be a little off. |
| iWindsurf |
If your a serious wiundsurfer, you've got to try this service out. For $100 a year you get real time access to wind meters all over the country. Their Travis meter is on the end of the doc at UFloat Em just north of AYC. It provides the only serious real time alternative to AYC. iWindsurf have great coverage for the best spots in Corpus and if you ever vacation to the Gorge, Hatters or Florida, they have you covered.
The iWindsurf meter offers great real time for a North and their Southerly is awesome if your sailing to the north of the point. If you're up in the basin then their RT tends to be 3-5 mph off.
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| Forecasts |
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| Weather Underground |
The WU forecast is the stock NOA call for our area. They are usually pretty accurate and tend to have regular updates. They don't tend for cover the thermal push as accurately as KXAN (the ASW pick for forecast) but good enough |
| KXAN |
The KXAN future winds forecast wins the ASW award for accuracy and dependability. Get the quicktime plug in and follow the growth and decline of those little wind lines like they turn into gold.
On anything from the south, their computer models tend to be spot on. Set your watch and plan your day by it. If the lines peak at 6pm get their at 4:30pm and she'll be there right on time. Their northerly seems to have been rather under rated this year. Many a day of 15-25 turned into a 25-35. Not sure why, funky year i guess. |
| KVUE |
KVUE is really only useful for their Doppler radar. They have the best animated loop cycles for local Austin and surrounding area.
On summer evenings, always check out what's on radar to the west of Travis. Timing a storm cell as it arrives can provide the only relief from the summer doldrums. |
