The fact that he windsurfed and snowboarded was more comical than anything else. Kerry just looked like a horses ass doing it, and windsurfing and snowboarding had nothing to do with him losing like he did. Kerry lost because he didn't sell himself hard enough. He spent most of his time on the campaign trail painting a picture of doom and gloom and voters were left wondering "Huh?" and thinking what planet is Kerry on while touting a resume that spelled disaster for a country heaped in a war for survival.
Kerry lost because he didn't sell himself hard enough.The only way to do that would have been to face hard questions about his past. He was never willing to do that. And he was right to avoid doing that. He would have lost by an even larger margin if he had tried to openly talk about who he really is and what he has really done over the years.
Kerry got the most votes he could possibly get in this country (and I suspect he didn't actually get 1-5% of the votes in his total). He got those votes by obscuring his identity. If he had made things more clear, he would have gotten fewer votes.