Renowned UK Radial/ILCA 6 Great Grand Master sailor Max Hunt has ticked off an item that must be on many sailor’s bucket list, the “Blowout”. In late July he flew to the West Coast of the USA to sail the 20 mile downwind blast up the Colorado Gorge. Though his mission was to “survive and finish”, he came a very creditable fourth, completing the course in 2 hours, 16 minutes and 15 seconds.
Describing the setting for this blast Max said, “the race starts at Skamania Coves at Stevenson WA, and finished by passing under the bridge at Hood River, with the amazing backdrop of Mount Hood in the background. Hood River is a mecca for wing foilers/kite foilers etc due to the wind and warm waters.”
The wind, which at times is reputed to hit 40 knots, is basically a turbo-charged seabreeze, with this description explaining the phenomenon from the Columbia Gorge Racing Association website. “The famous winds of the Gorge are driven by the temperature gradient between the desert to the east and the Pacific coast to the west. The Gorge acts as a “wind tunnel” in the Cascade Mountains. Colder air at one end of the tunnel flows toward warmer air at the other end. In the summer and fall, cold air from the coast rushes to replace rising hot air in the desert. In the winter and spring, cold air flows from the east to the more temperate coast. The larger the temperature difference the stronger the wind.”
The race is sailed in two stages with an approximately 15 minute break in the middle to recover, re-hydrate, take on carbs and steel yourself for the very challenging second stage. Founding Father of the event Kerry Poe give this graphic analysis of the event.
The Laser Gorge Blowout is 20 miles of downwind white-knuckle sailing through the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area. The 2026 race starts at Skamania Coves Resort, just east of Stevenson WA and finishes at Hood River. Swimming ability is mandatory! The race is a downwind start and will typically have 14-20 knot winds and flat water. The waves and wind begin to increase over the next 7 miles as you approach Wind Mountain. At Wind Mountain the river narrows and turns, creating some nice rollers to create havoc on Laser sailors. Between Wind Mountain and Viento State Park the river is surrounded by 2,000-foot high cliffs. The finish of the first leg of the race is at Viento State Park, a popular boardsailing and kite-boarding venue. The park has a beach protected from the wind where the sailors can load up on energy food and check their sanity before starting the most demanding part of the race. The sane Laser sailors will have the opportunity to pull out of
the race at this point.
In the second half of the race, sailors will see the wind increasing and the waves growing larger as they approach the most demanding part of the river, SWELL CITY! Yes, there is a reason that it is called Swell City. The Laser sailor won’t only be worrying about how to keep the bow from crashing into the back of the next swell, but will also have to try and avoid approximately 200 windsurfers wave jumping over him. Wind speeds can range from 25-40 knots, and I won’t attempt to judge the wave heights. A short distance past Swell City is another popular board site called the Fish Hatchery for the board sailors not as inclined to take on the big swells. Next comes the welcome relief of dying wind (20-30 knots) as the survivors sail past the Hood River event site to finish under the Hood River Bridge. After the race, sailors can limp to one of the many local brewpubs for some well deserved refreshments.
The race rules allow a maximum of 20 entries, primarily Lasers of any rig size. There are no handicaps, it is first across the line wins. If there are fewer than 20 applicants RS Aeros are permitted to join in, but are not eligible for the perpetual trophy.
The history of the event is not well documented, but seems to have been inspired by a Windsurfer event of the same name first sailed in 1986, with the big names of the sport at that time, such as Robby Naish and Nevin Sayre, entering the inaugural dash.