Water splashed up onto students' boards and the ruffle of sails could be heard as gusts of wind were caught in their stitched folds.

"This is rare in the sport of windsurfing that there is a place like this for you to learn," said Jeff Davis, Western’s Lakewood facility manager and a windsurfing instructor.

Western’s windsurfing class has been offered every spring and summer since 1985 and it gives students the opportunity to learn about the sport and practice with Lakewood’s equipment. This summer, Western added an early morning youth class that is open to the community to teach children and teenagers how to windsurf.

Western senior Michael Smith cuts across the water during windsurfing class at Lake Whatcom, on July 10. Windsurfing has been taught as a class through Western every spring and summer since 1985, while Western's Lakewood Facility provides a good place for students to practice the sport. Rentals are also available through the Lakewood, although footwear is not provided. Photo by Mark Malijan

Western alumnus Nate White comes out to Lakewood twice a week to windsurf. He said the lake is a place to get good wind speeds, which for windsurfers need to be between 10 to 20 knots (12-25 mph) at minimum.

Windsurfing is a sport that combines sailing and surfing, Davis said. It requires wind to maneuver and balance to stay on the board, he said.

A windsurfer has to be able to maintain his or her balance on the board while at the same time using the sail and his or her body to steer.

"It’s doing many simple things at the same time correctly," said Western senior and windsurfing instructor Chris Matthews.

Western psychology professor Jim Graham, who is taking private windsurfing lessons from Davis, was a surfer before he tried windsurfing.

"In surfing there’s time spent paddling out and waiting for a wave," Graham said. "While windsurfing you don’t have to wait, you just keep sailing."

Megan Shaw, a windsurfing instructor, pulls her sail up during windsurfing class at the Lakewood Watersports Facility on July 10. Photo by Mark Malijan

Graham said the hardest part of learning how to windsurf is knowing how to and when to steer with the wind. He said windsurfers have to be able to adjust their position on the board and turn the sail to be upwind or downwind.

Western’s windsurfing class provides students a way to simulate adjusting board positions without having to go out onto the water.

A windsurfing board is set up on a rotating spinner on one of Lakewood’s docks for practice, Graham said. He said a student can practice positions on the board without fear of falling into deep water.

Matthews said students usually can learn how to balance on the board on their first day but maintaining that balance takes weeks of practice.

For a beginning windsurfer, the average cost for the equipment usually runs around $1500, Davis said. He said Western provides students the needed equipment for classes and rentals, although footwear is not included.

Windsurfing was at its height of popularity in the 1980s following a European renovation of the sport, Davis said. The sport’s popularity rapidly declined in recent years due to a lack of starting equipment and classes to teach windsurfing.

Davis said he has been to the Caribbean and most of the Pacific Rim to windsurf, but he said the Northwest has some of the most amazing places for windsurfers.

"Even though its close to home, I always get that feeling of ‘this is a vacation’ when I windsurf around here," Davis said.

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