Note: The CCWA has quite a few new members and we have been looking for ways to help us get to know each other. We’re hoping to make “Who’s Who in the CCWA” a regular feature but we need your help. If you know of someone whose story should be told please pass their name and contact info along to the newsletter editor.

I am sure most of you know Don Lumley better as Crab. He has been a member of the CCWA since about 1981. He has served as commodore, vice commodore, and newsletter editor, and still volunteers for countless club events from barbecues to running errands for Arleen Ward. He also won the B-class Speed Challenge last year at Bird Island Basin (BIB).

After settling down with Crab for our interview, I begin to think, “Man, how can I possibly touch on all the things about Crab?” He’s a windsurfer, sailor, scuba diver, traveler, and teacher, has lived in Panama, has driven to Costa Rica many times ... and I’m sure much more that we have not even talked about. So I am going to barely touch on windsurfing, and you can fill in the blanks next time you see him at the beach.

Where did you learn to windsurf?
I took a lesson in 1981 at North Beach. It was 10 minutes on the beach, then about 10 minutes in the water, and then we had to cut the lesson short because of jellyfish.

Why did you want to windsurf?
I had always been a big boat sailor and racer. It was intriguing and it seemed like the next step. It just looked like lots of fun.

What makes you keep windsurfing?
It gives me peace of mind and calms the “Inner Beast.” (His wife Susan says that if the wind hasn’t blown for a long time she wishes she had the power to make it HOWL!)

Funniest windsurfing story?
I was at the “Suck Down Sail Off Wheel of Fortune” at BIB. It used to be an annual event. I landed on “sail naked,” and I did!

Worst windsurfing story?
I broke a mast on the other side of Peta Island and it took two hours to walk back. Not to mention my Dad and Susan were looking for me with binoculars the whole time.

Scariest windsurfing story?
It turned out to be a joke. I was sailing at Port A with Doc Allen. So Doc Allen starts yelling, “Shark! Shark!” and pointed to a fin. I saw the fin and froze, but held on and did not fall in. Turns out it was only a dolphin.

Favorite piece of equipment that you hated to see go?
It was this incredible West Wind 280SS. It was the perfect Fit. (So, I asked, “Z Booms weren’t your favorite?” Crab said he is the curator of the Z Boom museum! Hmmmm, so sounds like he didn’t let them go!)

Where did you guys sail back in the early days?
There was a place by the Causeway we called “Club Mud.” You can get the picture by the name. We all sailed on Bic Wings.

How did you get your nickname, Crab?
He smiled, thought for a moment, and said, “It’s too long a story for a newsletter. It would take a whole book.” So that will have to remain a mystery about the salty windsurfer that we know and love.