Best of Boston

1982 Best Classes, Windsurfing

Ruth Strachan

Strachan, who taught herself to windsurf five years ago, works with Can Am Sailcraft. “It took me half a summer,” she says, “and a lot of tears and frustration.” But Strachan figures she can teach a novice in two lessons; she even provides special breathing exercises for people who freeze up. How tough is it to learn? “It’s based on counterbalance, rather than brute force,” she says, “like learning to ski, in that as you do it, you can get very strong. But you don’t have to be particularly strong to learn the basics.”

Marblehead, 617-631-6008,