checkwriter
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 9, 2002
- Messages
- 1,158
My DS and I recently tried the parasailing offered by Sammy Duvall's Watersports at the Contemporary marina. Here is a short review of our experience.
I called early afternoon as we were winding up our morning at DHS and was able to secure a 3:30 reservation. The very nice young woman who answered the phone explained that we would need to be there at about 3:15 to fill out the releases and make the payment. We drove over the the Contemporary, told the guard that we were there for the parasailing, and parked in the day lot. Our walk back to the marina took us through a circuitous path created by the construction fencing for the new DVC building. Here's a couple of shots of the new pedestrian bridge that will run between the main building and the new DVC building. I like its serpentine look:
We made our way to the Sammy Duvall counter, signed the forms that promise we won't sue them even if they fall asleep at the wheel and send us crashing into Space Mountain (kidding!
), paid our money, and then walked around the CR a bit until it was our time to go.
The boat that is used for the parasailing is a large, open-cockpit boat with plenty of seating in the bow and a flat platform in the stern. Ours was crewed by two friendly, well-tanned young men who welcomed us on board. Another couple, a father and his daughter, joined us.
As soon as we sat down, one of the crew sized us up and brought over life vests and harnesses. He had us remove everything from our pockets; these we stowed in our shoes and put the shoes in a compartment area under the seats (except for my camera, which he said I was free to carry with me).
We put the harnesses on first. They are made of thick webbing, and act essentially as a swing-type seat, with one strap that you sit on and another that supports your lower back. There are loops for your legs, and a strap that cinches around your waist so that you are strapped in to the entire harness. There are also two straps that end with sturdy hooks; these are what connect your harness to the parasail. The life vests went on over the harnesses.
The crew member showed us how we were to hold on to the harness straps, and told us that if we were concerned at any point we should simply scissor-kick our legs and he would use a hand signal to confirm that we wanted to be reeled in.
DS and I were doing a tandem sail. This simply meant that one of us would be hooked to the parasail line in front of the other. I wasn't sure quite what this meant when it was explained to me, but it became apparent when our turn came to go.
As we headed out in to the lake, the father-daughter couple put on their equipment.
While the boat was running, the crew member who was not driving picked up the parasail, which was stowed at the stern of the boat, and tossed it up into the air, whereupon it caught the wind and stabilized about 30 feet behind the boat and about 15 feet above the water. The lines holding the parasail ran tightly back to a guide bracket sticking up from the platform at the stern. He motioned for DS and I to move to the platform of the still-moving boat, and to take our positions sitting down, feet towards the bow, with the bracket in front of us. DS sat in front of me, kind of like you would if riding a toboggan together.
The crew member hooked our harness lines to rings that were woven in to the parasail lines, moved out of the way, and let us know that we were good to go. He then activated a winch that slowly played out the line, and the parasail gently pulled us in to the air. Here's a shot of the boat from not too high up:
Because of the angle of the guide line, I had no problem seeing over DS's head in front of me. It took us a couple of minutes to reach our full height, while the boat made a series of wide circles around the lake. It was surprisingly peaceful and gentle, and we had plenty of time to enjoy the view and the experience. Here are some shots I took while up there.
After our allotted time was up, we were reeled slowly back to the boat until our feet hit the stern platform. The crew member unhooked us from the parasail, which was back to its original position about 30 feet behind the boat, and we stepped down in to the seating area. The father-daughter team took their turn while we removed our harnesses and life jackets. It was pleasant just riding around the lake watching them enjoy their experience.
We talked with the crew member as we watched, and he explained that they were very careful about making sure that the weather was appropriate for this activity. They ground the parasails for rain, of course, but also for wind and even wind gusts. Fortunately, we had a good day and this was not a problem. They run all year round except when the lake temperature is low -- I believe he said below 55 degrees.
All in all, this was very enjoyable. We never felt nervous or concerned for our welfare.
Here is a link to the Sammy Duvall website, where you can get more details including current pricing:
http://www.sammyduvall.com/parasailing.htm
There is a photo package available for $20 where the crew member will take pictures of you from the deck with a 35mm camera and you take the roll of film with you at the end of the ride. We did not take advantage of that, but they have no problem with you bringing your own camera up with you during your sail. And if it's not clear from the above, we never came close to getting wet the entire time!
I called early afternoon as we were winding up our morning at DHS and was able to secure a 3:30 reservation. The very nice young woman who answered the phone explained that we would need to be there at about 3:15 to fill out the releases and make the payment. We drove over the the Contemporary, told the guard that we were there for the parasailing, and parked in the day lot. Our walk back to the marina took us through a circuitous path created by the construction fencing for the new DVC building. Here's a couple of shots of the new pedestrian bridge that will run between the main building and the new DVC building. I like its serpentine look:
We made our way to the Sammy Duvall counter, signed the forms that promise we won't sue them even if they fall asleep at the wheel and send us crashing into Space Mountain (kidding!
), paid our money, and then walked around the CR a bit until it was our time to go. The boat that is used for the parasailing is a large, open-cockpit boat with plenty of seating in the bow and a flat platform in the stern. Ours was crewed by two friendly, well-tanned young men who welcomed us on board. Another couple, a father and his daughter, joined us.
As soon as we sat down, one of the crew sized us up and brought over life vests and harnesses. He had us remove everything from our pockets; these we stowed in our shoes and put the shoes in a compartment area under the seats (except for my camera, which he said I was free to carry with me).
We put the harnesses on first. They are made of thick webbing, and act essentially as a swing-type seat, with one strap that you sit on and another that supports your lower back. There are loops for your legs, and a strap that cinches around your waist so that you are strapped in to the entire harness. There are also two straps that end with sturdy hooks; these are what connect your harness to the parasail. The life vests went on over the harnesses.
The crew member showed us how we were to hold on to the harness straps, and told us that if we were concerned at any point we should simply scissor-kick our legs and he would use a hand signal to confirm that we wanted to be reeled in.
DS and I were doing a tandem sail. This simply meant that one of us would be hooked to the parasail line in front of the other. I wasn't sure quite what this meant when it was explained to me, but it became apparent when our turn came to go.
As we headed out in to the lake, the father-daughter couple put on their equipment.
While the boat was running, the crew member who was not driving picked up the parasail, which was stowed at the stern of the boat, and tossed it up into the air, whereupon it caught the wind and stabilized about 30 feet behind the boat and about 15 feet above the water. The lines holding the parasail ran tightly back to a guide bracket sticking up from the platform at the stern. He motioned for DS and I to move to the platform of the still-moving boat, and to take our positions sitting down, feet towards the bow, with the bracket in front of us. DS sat in front of me, kind of like you would if riding a toboggan together.
The crew member hooked our harness lines to rings that were woven in to the parasail lines, moved out of the way, and let us know that we were good to go. He then activated a winch that slowly played out the line, and the parasail gently pulled us in to the air. Here's a shot of the boat from not too high up:
Because of the angle of the guide line, I had no problem seeing over DS's head in front of me. It took us a couple of minutes to reach our full height, while the boat made a series of wide circles around the lake. It was surprisingly peaceful and gentle, and we had plenty of time to enjoy the view and the experience. Here are some shots I took while up there.
After our allotted time was up, we were reeled slowly back to the boat until our feet hit the stern platform. The crew member unhooked us from the parasail, which was back to its original position about 30 feet behind the boat, and we stepped down in to the seating area. The father-daughter team took their turn while we removed our harnesses and life jackets. It was pleasant just riding around the lake watching them enjoy their experience.
We talked with the crew member as we watched, and he explained that they were very careful about making sure that the weather was appropriate for this activity. They ground the parasails for rain, of course, but also for wind and even wind gusts. Fortunately, we had a good day and this was not a problem. They run all year round except when the lake temperature is low -- I believe he said below 55 degrees.
All in all, this was very enjoyable. We never felt nervous or concerned for our welfare.
Here is a link to the Sammy Duvall website, where you can get more details including current pricing:
http://www.sammyduvall.com/parasailing.htm
There is a photo package available for $20 where the crew member will take pictures of you from the deck with a 35mm camera and you take the roll of film with you at the end of the ride. We did not take advantage of that, but they have no problem with you bringing your own camera up with you during your sail. And if it's not clear from the above, we never came close to getting wet the entire time!
Good to know they let you take pics up there as well.
