Punta Banda beach sailing is windsurfing on three wheels whilst reclining beside the ocean. You will never feel more connected to the wind.

There is no ocean or boat to worry about and you are perfectly positioned to control the sail with your arms and steer with your feet. The more effort you put into tuning the sail the faster you will go and the more athletic the thrills will be. Beach sailing, especially in a Kwikat, is a balancing sport like motor cycling or skiing where your reflexes (legs and arms) are constantly tested. With time you will achieve tremendous control over the sail and your own particular wind ballet.

Here are 12 points to ponder before setting out on your first sail.

1. Respect the beach. Don't run over anyone or even scare anyone if you can help it. Give people and birds plenty of room and especially slow down. A couple of runs down the beach and the seagulls learn to ignore you--maybe not the dogs. Be very careful around the horses, they will startle so slow down and go wide by them.

2. Always wear the seat belt. When you learn to turn you may also discover it is quite possible to throw yourself out of Kwikat in a turn. Plus if you flip at speed you will want to be strapped in protected from the beach by the rigging and frame.

3. Watch the beach closely. Running at 20 mph over a broken shell can take out an eye. And running over debris or into a hole can rip a wheel off, causing total loss of control and maybe the end of your sailing day. Avoid broken glass, shells, or anything that could be thrown up into your face or damage a tire.

4. Almost anything on a Kwikat can be fixed (temporarily) with a length of string. Always carry a string and a pair of pliers...you can be two miles from the nearest help. Sail accordingly.

5. Kwikat is in the Parked position when the sail and cart are both pointing directly into the wind--usually toward the ocean. Always stop Kwikat in the Parked position. Failure to do so may result in the cart tipping over, possibly on to your head.

6. Kwikat has no brakes so de-powering the kart, by turning, sliding, or driving over soft sand becomes really important. Practice, practice, practice. Never drive beyond your ability to stop. Grabbing the tops of the tires is an effective brake if you are wearing gloves--which you should be.

7. Learn to slide and turn. ALWAYS, as your speed increases test the beach for traction by turning Kwikat slightly into the wind (toward the ocean). This is the turn you are most likely to loose control of Kwikat on because the sail is mostly pushing on that outside rear wheel. It is also the turn you will have to perform when you want to stop or slow down. Practice, practice, practice.

8. Controlling the sail is your main task. When you master the sail and the wind, you are master of your day at the beach. The more effort you put into getting the most from the sail the faster you will go, and the more control you will have over your trajectory. Controlling the sail is intimately connected to steering--the sail's angle to the wind combined with the cart's angle to the wind exactly controls your speed and direction.

9. The beach has three zones for beach sailing, (1) the wet zone by the ocean (slow, wet), (2) the dry sand up near the top of the beach (slow), (3) and the go zone (fast) somewhere in the center of the beach. On your trip down the beach you will encounter high speed sand, smooth sliding sand, and maybe even squealing sand; a plethora of sands are to be found, each with it's own unique sailing qualities.

10. The Punta Final is the wildest part of the beach sail. When you get there you are a long way from help, the sand grains are fine (beautiful sliding sand), the wind picks up 5+ mph, and the point area is cambered off (sloped) toward the icy salt water. It would be easy to sail right off the beach into the channel if you were not paying attention or going too fast to turn. I have seen this happen, its quite spectacular as the cart leaves the spit and falls into the ocean--rather like the coyote running off a cliff in a Road Runner cartoon.

11. You don't learn much about anything in 20 minutes, and so it is with beach sailing. You can get the hang of beach sailing in half an hour but it will challenge you for the rest of your sailing days. Such is the joy of beach sailing...

12. Stay well within your sailing limits for the first 100 miles. Beach sailing is very much sailing on the edge--a veritable wind ballet--so split second timing and good reflexes are definite assets but they need to be trained first. Again, practice, practice, practice.

With a little practice, you will soon learn to love beach sailing and Enjoy Your Best Sailing Day Ever. Windy Returns, Gordon Parnell