Windswell session!

Well, the waves may not be epic, but they're still a hell lot of fun!



Yesterday Tuesday fortunately the lifeguards didn't close the parks (at least they didn't close Hookipa) and, despite the super strong and gusty wind (up to 35mph), sailing was unexpectedly fun. A few reasons for that:

1) my 4.0 Superfreak is the best sail on Earth for those conditions (and my skill/preference). I hate those conditions, but I love the fact that I have a sail that makes them sailable for me. With any other sail, I would have probably chosen not to go sail. Or at least I would have not lasted two bloody hours! Actually, one more wave and my arms would have fallen off...

2) the last hour or so it was: Keith, Lalo, Philippe, Julien, Anatol and me. There were so many waves to ride and despite the fact that I was clearly the kookest I had my fair share. All friends, hooting at each other when on a big one...
Just a different place and dimension of when instead there's three people on the same wave or when you have to pick the line not based on the wave but based on the five people going out at the same time.

3) the windswell may not be the cleanest and easiest to read, but when it lines up both the rights at Middles and The point open up beautifully. I connected my last one and managed to make four turns on it. That's a lot for Hookipa!
Abd four shitty turns count like one good one! That's a new rule I just invented ;)

4) the wind was so offshore that on the inside there were sections in which it wasn't blowing hard at all. It was actually possible to sheet it in the bottom turns.
That made going out through the waves with a 4.0 and a 72l board a bit of a challenge though...

5) the offshore wind offered many barreling lips to throw aerials on. I keep landing on the back, but I'm slowly getting better.

The photo on top is a classic Josh Stone shot taken by Francky earlier in the day. He's got plenty more on his website mauiwatershoot.com.

Alex took some photos from the bluff too, but I haven't got them yet and I will post them as soon as I get them. So make sure to come back to check those out too.

Aloha.

Indonesia + Tsunami warning

12.40 update.

So a tsunami did hit Samoa. Here's the sad >news.

At the same time the warning for Hawaii has been cancelled. But I heard that the lifeguards will close all the beach parks from 1 to 4. If that's true, that means no sailing at Hookipa this afternoon.
Oh well, time to finally get those clothes off the floor...

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A Tsunami warning is in effect for the south Pacific. This is why.

If you live in a place in the Pacific Ocean don't panic, but do check the NOAA link too see if the warning is confirmed. Scheduled time for the eventual tsunami to hit Honolulu is 23.15Z which I believe is 1.15pm Hawaii time today Tuesday 9 29.
I also believe that only the south shores would eventually be affected, but... I take no responsibility for that!!

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Argentinian windsurfer Felipe is in vacation in Indonesia (which this time doesn't have to worry about this tsunami) and sent me these photos (gracias!). Seen the lack of epic waves here in Maui this week, they are more than welcome...





Nice wipeout!

Thanks, Andy!

I might not have even gone out this afternoon, if it weren't for Andy. I would have missed one of the best sessions this month.

I was walking home from work, and I knew it had been offshore all day. It didn't really bother me. I was surfed out. I'd had a great day at work. Things had come back to me today that I had invested with the kids. Yes, it was, overall, a pretty wonderful life today. But, it was going to get nearly perfect.

So, I was feeling pretty good, walking back home, not a cloud in the sky, thinking about going to dinner with my friends. I was surfed out after yesterday's session at the point. My back was feeling a bit sun burnt. I wasn't worried about surfing at all today, really, because all the reports said it was small, small, and smaller.

Then I checked my cell phone for messages. There were three. One of them was from Andy, telling me he had used his lunch break to check the surf, and had ended up surfing for two hours in fun, fun waves. You might think about checking it after you get off work, he said.

Suddenly I didn't care about my sun burnt skin, or how surfed out I was. I threw the fish in the car, and took off for tenth street. When I got there, I could see it was small, but so perfect... the wind was directly offshore with not a cloud in the clear blue sky. There were only about five guys out. I raced out there. Chris was out, goofing off on a log with a couple grommets hooting him on. We talked about stuff, life, and he remembered that day, long ago, when he caught a ride to the point with David and I in the blue van. Chris is such a great kid. So humble and kind.

I caught so many perfect little waves this afternoon, and all the time I thought about how I wasn't even going to bother.

Moment to remember: This gorgeous left wedged up, with no one around but me. I stoked for it, could see it had the perfect shoulder, tapering down the line. I dropped in, and just pulled into it, pig-dogging it. Some college guy was swimming around on the inside, and I had to thread the needle past him. When I came out, his buddy, who was standing inside with his board, was hooting his head off at me. I could see him smiling, his teeth so perfect and white, his brown skin glistening in the sunshine. The light was so perfect this afternoon, amplifying everything in a golden surreal light. He looked so amazed, I see his open mouth, him looking at his friend like WHAT WAS THAT? and his friend shouted to me, "Nice wave!" I said thanks! and paddled back for more. There were rights that just opened up every single time, it was just ridiculous. I can't even imagine how good Bob caught it this morning...

And, to think I nearly missed it. Thanks, Andy! I owe you...

Surfing the point...

After not much sleep last night (sore legs from riding the bike yesterday), I decided to pass on the 50 mile bike ride that we had planned for today. After calling the surf reports, it looked to be a bad day for surfing, too. Small, small, small.

I drove off to the beach with my fun shape, thinking a paddle out might do me some good. I checked the pier. It was depressingly small. I went to tenth street, and my hopes rose a bit. There were some little green peelers, and no one was out. It was outgoing tide, and it had a couple hours to go before it bottomed out. Andy called as I was on my way to Matanzas, and I told him to sit tight, that I'd save him the drive. He said he was just throwing some boards in the jeep. When I got to his beach, I decided to check it, and just then he rode up on his bike. We checked it there, and could see that there was a possibility that we might be surfing today.

Moment to remember: This really old man was walking his yellow lab, and they were both moving towards us. The dog seemed to almost recognize me. It just came right up to me, wagging its tail like it knew me. I was overjoyed at this. I love dogs so much. He wiggled happily and licked me as I petted him, and the old man watched, smiling. "What's his name?" I asked. "Bilbo Baggins!" Oh, how I loved this...

I headed off to check Matanzas, and Andy went off to get the jeep. We met at Summerhaven, and decided to paddle out there, because you could see a couple waves peeling off way out back, with about three guys on it. That turned out to be a "big bowl of wrong," as Jeff Garlan would say. We caught one wave each before deciding this was not the place, and we went right in.

It was off to tenth street then, where the waves had looked the best, green and sparkling, with offshore winds. There were only about three people out, and right off we knew we made the right call. Andy caught a good one on the eleven footer, and I pig-dogged one on his quad that he let me try. That board was lively and fast! It was kinda big for me (6'4"), but it picked the waves up so easily that I didn't mind, and it was surprisingly loose! We stayed out for a couple hours. Andy was styling like I have never seen before. He kept doing this classy, drop-in leaning bottom turn that was beautiful. Zander came out and did some skateboard moves to entertain us. On my last wave, I did a cartwheel dork move for Andy's amusement. I had it in my mind, by then, that the point was going to be happening this afternoon. Turns out I was right.

I really didn't feel like riding the bike all the way out to the point, but Andy was thinking he needed to spend some time with the family, which meant no wave-ski ride out there. I grabbed the Firewire and headed out, after lunch, on my own.

It was only mid-tide by the time I got there. I could see two guys already out, and Andy called right then for a report. It didn't looked that great at that moment. It was hard to tell if it was going to do its thing today.

But, as Alan says, hang in.

There were four guys looking at it, and soon they paddled out. Chuck was one of them. I followed them, and right off the bat I caught a good one. I wanted to run up and call Andy to get down there, but I reasoned that maybe that wave had just been a fluke. But, the waves kept coming, and they kept getting better. They were wedging up into the nicest fast bowls I have seen in a long time. All you had to do was drop in and go! There were tubes galore, and straight up ruler edged walls, shoulder high, to rip apart. I had so much fun out there today. I surfed until I was exhausted. The sun was baking my back, and I knew I should get out of the sun. If only I could save those waves I left for later. It was still so good when I left, but I just couldn't physically do it any more.

I rode out at high tide, under a deep blue sky dotted with fat purple bottomed clouds, and found a sharp paring knife on the water line as I rode. I turned around to pick it up, thinking some creature might swallow it, thinking its silver shine might be a fish, or someone might step on it. I remembered how I had searched the shoreline for a stray piece of wax, earlier. I had ridden all the way to the point before I realized I had forgotten to bring any wax. That was one way to ensure a good session...

Big Hookipa

Second and last post update: at the end of the post I added a short clip of Robby's first wave and the links to a couple of other videos on the net. Enjoy.

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First post update: at the end of the post, I added a short gopro video of four waves at Kanaha. I'm not done yet, since I have more Hookipa clips to upload. Make sure to come back...

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As predicted, the waves were big at Hookipa yesterday, Friday September 25.

Photo of the day goes to Philippe, with a beautiful bottom turn right in front of a wall of water. Look how forward he's leaning. That way he's putting weight on the whole inside rail of his board and hence he's using it through its whole length. Well done.
I noticed that when the waves get big, I kind of like bottom turns shots more than top turns. Two reasons for that:
1) you see the big wave behind
2) most sailors, understandably, don't hit the lip just as hard when it's mast high or more...


And now the rest of the photos in strict chronological order.
Levi when the sun was still shining.


It's great to see old glories like Sierra Emory back in action. That board is AT LEAST eight years old.


Luke Siver, always stylish. This aerial was way bigger, but I caught it on the way down.


Michi Schweiger elegantly squeezed between the rocks without ending up on them. Sorry, no points for the Hookipa Rockstar Contest.


Keith Teboul.


Jason Diffin bottom turning on a monster.
Unfortunately from now on it got cloudy and the light is quite poor. That was a bummer for Jace Panebianco too, with whom I had the pleasure to share the spot on the bluff. He was filming for The Windsurfing Movie 2. On the movie website there's a lottery for some interesting prizes, like a trip to Maui. Check it out!


Interesting wipeout by Julien.


Another sweet lay down bottom turn by Jason Diffin.


Rush Randle. His board is probably even more than eight years old. Doesn't matter. Once you know how to rip, you rip no matter what you ride. Even though I have to admit that the new shorter multi-finned boards seemed to go more vertical.


Rush again.


And Rush again.


Robby.


This sailor escapes me in this moment.


The shorebreak bodyboard girls.




Robby.


Tormod sent me this shot. It might be the same aerial, but shot from a different angle and with a way better timing.


Levi.


And this is a short clip to show a bis set. I shot a few more of those, and I will add them whenever I got time together with some gopro footage of my Kanaha session. So come back to this post to check them out.


Quick forecast.
After this big swell that will stick around for the whole weekend, unfortunately the weather maps show a humongous high pressure dominating the north pacific for the next 8 days or more!
For Hawaii that means, strong trade winds, plenty windswell, but no ground swells whatsoever. Those are my least favorite conditions, but I am not going to complain at all because, no matter how shitty it will be for the Maui standards, it will still be a thousand times better than where I used to live in my previous life...
Plus the windswell at Hookipa or Uppers can be fun. Maybe I'll even score some points for the Rockstar Contest!

And here's the gopro video I shot the same day at Kanaha. Not exactly over mast high, but still fun. Check the sky in the background. Later on those clouds would turn red for quite a dramatic sunset.



PS. Mick Fanning won the ASP contest in France (in quite poor conditions). He's now very close to Parko in the rankings. Thanks to the $105,000 of the Trestles contest, he's actually leading the year earnings with a total up to date of $188,700... and that's from the contests only!

Here's Robby's first wave.


And here's the links to Jeff's and Bernd's (age 12) videos.

Green Day Three

After work surfing, I like this habit. I get off work, walk home, throw the Firewire in the car, and head to tenth street. Seems like a pretty good life to me! Only today, it got so crowded! It wasn't at first, but after three waves, I looked all around me, and I was surrounded by twenty aggro twenty year olds taking every little wave that heaved its chest high self up. It sure was fun until I decided I just couldn't deal with it anymore. I really had some fun ones. It was so unlikely, too. I paddled out thinking it looked shapeless and more choppy than even yesterday, but wave after wave seemed to come to me, and they even peeled off! I was stoked. It was so unexpected. I just hope it lasts for tomorrow - the weekend! I want some morning glass...

Trestles (day 3)

Third and last Trestles report. Let's start with a sequence of CJ Hobgood.

Again, this is a mushy wave. Look how much speed (spray) he was able to generate on it.


I think surfing is the sport in which one can more freely move the body.


CJ continues his dance.


Well, if CJ deserved a short sequence, this young blonde gal deserves a long one.






Mr 9 world titles is experimenting with stringers.
Talking about which, Gianfranco has invented a new way of building blanks. He patented it and he's now getting the attention of the first shapers and surf companies. Too early still to disclose details, I just hope that his intuition will be appreciated the way it deserves.


Slater vs Alves was a fun heat.
Kelly starts the exchange.


Heitor.


Heitor.


Kelly.


Heitor.


The crazy inventor.


The NW buoy reads 10 feet @ 18 seconds tonight. And the direction quickly turned to a less westerly direction around 320-325.
That means that tomorrow the waves at Hookipa will be massive and though a rather squally weather will make it ever trickier. Better recharge some batteries (both camera's and mine)...

Links:
1) Excellent second issue of the online Windsurfer International Magazine.

2) Norway blog reader Tormod is in Maui and took some photos of the surfers at Hookipa. Photos 13 to 16 are of a surfer with straps on the board. Rush Randle has been doing that for years so I assume it's him. First time I saw it from the bluff I didn't know he had straps and I went:"Wow, what kind of wax does that guy use?!?!!"
Here's Tormod's blog with his first impression of his custom quads.

3) The Quicksilver Pro France ASP surfing contest started. Here's the live webcast.

4) The PWA Sylt windsurfing contest started too, but the only live coverage you get on the PWA site is the usual lame text live ticker. No offense for the person who does it (it's actually brilliant!). What's lame is trying to cover a windsurfing contest with text updates!
I'd rather read the sailors' comments on their blogs. Here's KP's and Phil Horrocks' ones.

Green Day - the blooper reel

I knew it couldn't happen twice in a row. Today the water was still gorgeously green and warm... but the waves were smaller, weaker, and designed to make you KOOK OUT! But, I had fun, somewhat. The sun was out, the college dudes were trying to rip it up (FAIL) and, the bees, well, the bees are humming in the wall. On Thursday, the bee keeper will arrive, a hole will be knocked into the wall, and the bees will be taken to a new home. Bob and Cindy offered me a place to stay when they found out. Joy. I love my friends!

Green Day

Wednesday is early release day, so I was in the water the minute I could sneak out of there. I went to tenth street, and didn't even look at it first. I had to get into the water. Our days of warm water are numbered.

It was such a nice surprise to come over the dune line and see the water was crystal green. I don't think I have seen the water as clear as today for a long, long time. It was so inviting and warm. I could see a nice peak working with a bunch of guys on it. The Flagler College guys are back. The water was filled with them, just like every year this time. Two guys near me were so stoked, one talking about how this was the best day he had had in a long time. I heard bits and pieces, something about how his fins were completely out, and well, I had to admit it was a lot better than it looked. There were some really nice peaks rolling through, despite the wind being onshore. I had wave after wave on the Firewire that had my heart beating fast. I love that board! Plus, Michael Arnold, my favorite professor of all time, paddled out near me! Good times.

On a bleaker note... I was informed today that the buzzing sounds I have been hearing of late, not to mention the little critters I have found on my windowsill, are evidence of something a bit disturbing. My landlady had the pest control company come out today, and they discovered a massive beehive inside the wall behind my refrigerator. They actually used the word, "massive." It kind of feels like my own little shop of horrors around here now.

I will have to move out for a couple days while the wall is knocked out. A beekeeper will be called in, since honey bees are on the endangered list. The power company will have to come out and cut off the power. When my landlady came into my apartment today, she said she could hear the disturbing sound of humming if you were really still, which I never am. She warned me not to shut the cabinet doors too hard. I just hope they aren't that African variety that attack without provocation.

Should make for an interesting week. More to come...

Trestles (day 2)

Welcome to Trestles: very civilized sign. For sure better than the bumper sticker "Welcome to Hawaii. Now go home".
BTW, why is Middles not in the middle of Uppers and Lowers??


The waves at Trestles are kind of mushy, slopy and slow, yet extremely rippable. Most pros' top turns were cut backs as Bede Durbidge shows in the expression session held on Saturday.


Heitor Alves impressed me a lot with the speed he could generate on those mushy waves.


He made it to the quarter finals where he met Kelly and lost his concentration...


Let's take a break.


Kai Otton.


CJ Hobgood. He surfed pretty good but lost in round 4 to a very inspired Micheal Bourez. I wish I recorded CJ's frustration scream at the end of heat...


One of those things.


The very fun right at Uppers. The swell was from the NW and Uppers was actually working better than Lowers most of the times.


Stay tuned for day three, I got a hell lot of photos.
And stay tuned for the Maui reports too, since the big swell is around the corner. On Wednesday morning the NW buoy already shows 2 feet at 20 seconds from 300. The Waimea buoy shows 1 foot at 22 seconds from the same direction. Wow, you don't see 22 seconds very often!

Longer period forerunners travel faster hence they reach the buoys before the main body of the swell. Soon they will be replaced by shorter period waves (in this case, I guess 14-16 seconds), but way bigger in size.
This directions gets blocked a lot by the West Maui Mountain, but my guess is that the size will be big enough to allow some energy to wrap around. Plus, as usual, towards the end of the swell the waves will come from a less westerly direction, since the generating storm is slowly moving east.

Well, if I haven't confused you enough with this, check what an El Nino year is. Thanks to blog reader Paolo for the link.