VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

Hey Russian D. you had mentioned when the sailing log first went up that you could do some more summary stats. Here's a request.

Right now, the group log totals windsurfing & kiting sessions by number of days that anyone posts, for sailing sites by month and for the year.

I'd be interested in seeing the total number of sessions too for each group. It would give an indication of trends in the participation in each sport (and its great to see people doing both!) and if there are seasonal differences, etc. Even doing it by the year would be interesting at first if its a big deal to do it by sailing site or month.

The numbers would be much bigger and more impressive, too, which would be important should we ever need to fight for access to Dallas Road or something similar!

Hey man,

I have to disagree with you. It doesn't seem to me that kiting community is interested so much in logging their sessions. Almost any single day you can see at least a couple of kiters out on the water, and the log doesn't reflect that. Seriously, how many kiters participating in the log on a regular basis you can remember of the top of your mind? Martin, MatDog, KSD, Colin that's about it.... SuperDave AKA MarathonDave practically lives on the beach and not a single record in the log. So that kind of info won't give you information you want. If anything, it'll give you number of people from each sport participating in the logging (and I don't mean forestry related stuff) activity, but without knowing number of people participating in each sport, those numbers seem to be useless. And of course they won't reflect "trend" at all.

As about "bigger and more impressive".... Who are you going to impress? And don't you have anything else to impress this person with?

Your right.

Russian Guy wrote:I have to disagree with you. It doesn't seem to me that kiting community is interested so much in logging their sessions. Almost any single day you can see at least a couple of kiters out on the water, and the log doesn't reflect that. Seriously, how many kiters participating in the log on a regular basis you can remember of the top of your mind? Martin, MatDog, KSD, Colin that's about it....

I'd have to agree as well, but add KSKK to the list. It seems like a lot of people use the website but there aren't enough contributors. I'd say if you use the site and want it to grow or even be around in the future you should consider contributing to it. And a good way to do this is to post in the sailing log (you don't have to write lengthy comments, a few words like "ok" or "epic" will do). The sailing log does seem to be a little one sided right now and lacking in kiting logs, so the sailing stats might not be too accurate. Mf4's suggestion is a good one though and maybe we could add it to the list for an addition to the sailing log in the future?

Thanks to everyone that uses the website and contributes now,
dave

Who I wanted to impress? Politicians, should the need arise (there seems to be fights over beach access all over the place on a regular basis). It seems this would be powerful data to corroborate petitions, etc., that would be needed.

I agree that it would only show the logged sessions, but there are many windsurfers who don't log as well. Is the proportion of non-loggers higher for kiters? I suspect it is, but maybe not - There is often 30-50 windsurfers out on a typical summer day at Nitinat.

I still think it would be interesting to see the total number of logged sessions in December, for instance, vs June, or compare the total number of logged sessions in 2004 vs 2006.

I log evry session, I just don't have enough of them. I have done since April of 2004. Pretty pathetic when I look at my own stats. Too many family/work commitments = too little TOW.

Penguin wrote:I log evry session, I just don't have enough of them. I have done since April of 2004. Pretty pathetic when I look at my own stats. Too many family/work commitments = too little TOW.

Sorry Penguin, yes I know I missed a few. Thanks for logging you sessions!

more force 4 wrote:but there are many windsurfers who don't log as well. Is the proportion of non-loggers higher for kiters?

Yes there are many windsurfers as well who don't log their posts. I think perhaps people are turned off since they think they have to write a big story for every session. I think a simple one liner is fine and it's a matter of preference on how detailed you get. I know it's been helpful for me reading the posts to find out if anyone sailed at Nitinat or Gordon's and it's great to be able to track my gear that I've used (gotta sell that 3.5) and my days on the water.

Probably should add "Meh" to the one-word suggested list (Winddoc's original contribution?).

I've heard that logging sessions is too much bother when I've encouraged people to log. I remember the first time or two did seem a little complex, but it is a no-brainer by about the third time. If you goof up its easy to edit later. Looking back at your session from 2 years ago triggers memories that wouldn't surface otherwise, and I find really enhances the enjoyment of the sport. Even a couple of words works for that. But if you feel up to a Bobson-like mini-novel on a long weekend, they are fun to read too!

I've started to use the log in the past little while.
I agree with MF4, it's fun to look back and remember... now.
But like penguin said, just not enough TOW lately.

When the log started,
I personally felt a little self concious
about logging my newbie sessions.
It can be pretty telling.
Even to yourself.
But in the name of my own, and community statistics, I started.

I can see it being a help, to figure out what you need to sell
to make room for more stuff you do use.

How much gas you use a year, at least the days you sail.
Where you should start looking for a house,
according to where you sail the most.

but it is a no-brainer by about the third time. If you goof up its easy to edit later.

Thanks, man! I'll take is as a compliment.

I personally felt a little self concious
about logging my newbie sessions.
It can be pretty telling.
Even to yourself.

That's why I have "private" section now. If you are a little shy in writing public descriptions, leave a little something for yourself. it'll help you to track your progress. And BTW there is no shame in being a newbie, as a matter of fact I kinda envy newcomers - so much to learn! and BTW THERE"S NO SHAME IN A WALK OF SHAME. It's all learning and cool.

As about adding more stats.... Well... another reason I'm opposed to that is that I want it to be simple. It's not difficult for me to present information in many different layouts, but I don't want group stats to look like a corporate financial report. Although if enough people press, I may buckle.

We do have a few more stats now than are in the common log page - The home page link sums the 2286 sailing sessions by 72 sailors already - I'm just wondering if we could be a little more specific.

And the "No Brainer" ease of the log is meant to be a compliment, RD! I don't see how it could be any easier, but any such thing takes a couple of times using to be comfortable with. It takes a "Whole Lot of Brains" to design something that works as a "No Brainer" for the user!

I think the private comments bit is a great addition. I use it to keep track of the number of times I've worn my disposable contacts (don't use them for anything else, one pair can last half a year) and similar stuff that I figure no-one else could possibly be intested in (thats getting into dangerous ground!)