Regarding stiffness this was a variable that I felt I didn't have a lot of control over. My choice was to select the oval tapered shaft which has it's own stiffness index (see above videos) depending upon length of shaft. I felt confident that the materials used, technology and the integrity of the company would provide a shaft with acceptable stiffness for my needs.
It's been a weird Spring. The wind usually picks up in April and the water temps are usually cold. Low 50's. It's not uncommon to get the windiest runs of the year in April. But not this April. That's the bad news.
Thanks to Scott at Covewater Paddle Surf in Santa Cruz for offering up the 2014 SIC F-14 Wide Glide (without A.S.S. active steering system) for me to demo. Covewater co-worker Keith knew a lot about the board and gave me a few pre-paddling tips that turned out to be right on. He also made a very good case for taking the FCS 10 inch Weed Fin instead of the stock SIC fin, so I did. I was skeptical at first because even though the fin is billed as a "kelp" fin, it's 10 inch depth had me concerned. But the fin has substantial rake and is very narrow with a thin foil, which finally made me more curious than skeptical. The fin is well constructed with carbon fiber and looks like it could take a beating, which at that depth it probably would sooner or later. The final selling point though is the fin shape itself, with that deep 10 inch depth and the narrow base carried throughout for holding the tail in and acting as a pivot point when maneuvering on the bumps, glides and waves of a downwinder. I was intrigued and I took it with me. I'm glad I did. In addition to the excitement of the first downwind run of the season, I was jacked to try the new Wide Glide and to see how it compared to my Angulo Shaka.
From the minds of creative, knowledgeable and imaginative people come innovations that always precede, then exceed expectations. Bob Simmons begot the modern planing hull, while years later, Joe Bauguess & Richard Kenvin begot the mini-Simmons. Staying with the surfboard genre Dan Thomson built upon Simmons original premise and proffered the current era planing hull as found in the Vanguard and Vader. And in the SUP world Kirk McGinty burst forth with the Original SIMSUP series of boards. Starting with the S1 through S3 series, he continued his creative juggernaut with the S4 and S5 editions. These innovations have led to the birthing of an utterly unique amalgam of modern SIMSUP hybrids, blending tradition with modern hydrodynamics and always based upon his core values of maximizing speed and maneuverability without loss of stability. The board you see here which I have dubbed the SNAzY (Shovel Nose Asymmetrical simmY) is the vibrant result of my latest adventure with Kirk and the Original SIMSUP.
The board weighs out at 15.8 pounds naked, and with Future Controllers, 16.8 pounds.I suppose there's always something of a good news bad news scenario. What's good for some, may not always be good for others. Some need rain, some don't. And on it goes.
There is a wind drought on Maui. This was supposed to be a downwinder vacation. But then the wind stopped.
I was fortunate enough to get a couple downwinders in upon my arrival. But since then, nada, zilch, nothing. But now the good news.
My wife and best friend Mariposa has parlayed this unique opportunity to learn how to SUP. Without wind it's calm just about everywhere, just about all the time, offering the perfect conditions for flat water paddling, even in the nearshore to more open ocean expanses. She loves it. Genuinely I am stoked.
She has turned into, what I call, a SUP "monster". Every day now, for the last three days, without fail, we go paddling. Who am I to argue with such passion? We will paddle. We're even talking about extending for a week. Who am I to argue?
And so we have now come full circle in our paddling history. I learned how to SUP on Oahu 2007, she learned how to SUP on Maui in 2013. The bond is forever set. We are man and wife and now, more deeply, SUP brother and sister. May the force be with us.....or something.
The full video series will be forth coming upon my return to the mainland.
Here are a few tips from Jeremy Riggs via a couple online resources and from a couple things he told me that were really helpful.
Links are at the end and I'd also check out Jeremy's website Paddle with Riggs dot com.
From Elder SUP: 1) The key thing is keeping up your momentum. Shorter rapid paddle strokes keep momentum going – keep speed up.
2) Don’t go right up the back of the wave in front of you – that will slow you down as you paddle UP(hill).
3) Look for the place to keep the momentum going, a place to guide the board into the trough where you can catch the next bump – and have tons more FUN!
From me: 1) The reason paddlers get tired is they paddle too much. Don't paddle when you can't go anywhere because you're fighting the ocean. The ocean will win. Don't knock yourself out. Focus on catching the next bump.
2) Don't take too many strokes on one side of the board. That can easily lead to the tail sliding around and you will fall off. Jeremy's "rule of thumb" is no more than three on one side before switching.
3) One more like #2...be ready to switch paddling sides quickly to not only change direction (and catch or stay with the bump) but to keep from sliding out.
4) Be ready to back peddle quickly when you catch a steep one so you can keep from pearling. You have to be fast to the tail and then quickly move forward again to stay in trim and stay in the glide. (Standing too far back on the tail is like putting the brakes on.)
5) Don't just watch the nose of the board, a good downwinder is constantly looking around, left and right, seeing what's coming in the smaller bumps to gain speed in order to catch the bigger, longer glides.
#5 was the hardest one of all and where Jeremy's coaching is essential. During our session he was constantly calling me into bumps that I didn't even see. But this skill isn't something you'll learn overnight. It takes time and practice. The cool thing is that it's really fun learning and no worries, you WILL catch bumps!
http://elder-sup.com/2013/04/26/sup-addiction-the-glide/
http://www.supthemag.com/find-the-glide/glide-guide-mailiko-run/
http://paddlewithriggs.com/
My friend Bill Boyum is a longtime Maui local and veteran waterman who has been involved with Maui wind and paddling sports from the beginning. Here's his re-cap of the race from an email he sent this morning.
"I went swimming with Shirley in the morning, but as we finished I saw a bit of a wind line outside so we drove up to watch the start from the cliff above Maliko.
In the final hour before the start the wind doubled from 7 to 14 and more importantly went from straight onshore to about 45 degree angle onshore. The surface set up with very small, very organized clean lines.
Almost immediately we heard the horn and an armada of OC-1s blazed out of the gulch, followed closely by Bart, then Jeremy and Scott.
Out of the gulch Jeremy Riggs, with his 17 foot 24" 26lb no pad, wax deck Bullet,leaped ahead of Bart on his 14' Starboard Race. Those little bumps were perfect terrain for JR's board. He was even passing some Oc-1s. Already 50 yds back in second, was Scott and then Bart. But working his way to a much farther out line was Livio, who from appearances from our angle, was losing ground to the inside guys, who were reaping full harvest of the onshore angle glides. But Livio is a vet and it was also evident that Dave Kalama was moving out to that outside line as well in an OC-2. A much different tactic than the pack.
So I paced Jeremy from the drive down and he was holding just under 8 minute miles for the first two.
Then we couldn't see and we drove to town to see Iron Man 3. It was sold out so Shirley says, lets go see who wins. In the harbor, finishing at 1:14 was Livio and JR a minute behind.
You shoulda seen how red their faces were when they came in, looked like they'd been nuked. During the last section, as you of course know, the almost good enough wind at the start, had died off. It was hot hot hot."
My Re-cap: I was one of the folks on the inside line, trying to stay up with the back of the pack. For the first four miles there was OK wind but by the fifth mile it dropped off to none, or very light and variable. From there it was head down and grind it out looking for any little bump that would give me a boost towards the finish line at the Harbor. I was glad to be paddling the SIC Bullet 14 cuz that board is a wave magnet. I actually passed about a half dozen paddlers on longer boards by the time I reached the Harbor entrance.
I caught a few more good glides in those last miles but couldn't pick up many in the choppy, mixed up seas that were mated with the anemic winds. I'm sure that there were more little bumps to be ridden than I could chase down, and if I was Jeremy Riggs...but then I'm not Jeremy am I?
I'm not all that enamored of flat water paddling either (especially if you can go downwind instead) but as I rounded the breakwater standing on the rocking horse backwash beset sea surface this course had become, I was never so glad to see the flat water paddle that stretched out before me in my life.
From that big green navigation buoy at the Harbor entrance to the beach park finish line was an easy mile run. I was tired and hot but there's nothing like the end in sight to energize a body. (The thought of the Beer Garden didn't hold me back none either.)
At the end of the finish line chute, I was given a lovely purple and white orchid lei and an ice cold glass of water. I took two big gulps of water from the soon to be holding beer glass, and dumped the rest over my head. Home at last and in about an hour, when my temples stopped pounding and my face felt like it was no longer pressed up against a hot plate, I was feeling a whole lot better.
There were easily a couple hundred people at the after party and award ceremony and I think everyone felt good to be done. I had a sense of accomplishment that we had finished an event that was not only worthwhile and for a good cause, but a race course that was difficult, challenging and character building to complete on this day. We had all faced some degree of adversity and had overcome.
From there it was all good. Awards, raffle prizes, traditional Hawaiian dance and music, a fun afternoon for everyone.
Many thanks go out to IMUA Community Services, not only for what they do, but for putting on a first class race for the paddling ohana.
Mahalo!
beings, more often than not, our thoughts and our lives are shaped like the aftermath of rocks thrown into a quiet pond. One thought, action or event creates a series of concentric circles which collide with the next thought, and the next series of concentric circles, all blending and banging up against one another, creating non-linear, uneven, seemingly random patterns. This is how stand up paddle surfing has affected my laydown surfing perspectives, not only on means of locomotion, but on surfboard shapes. Is a short and very maneuverable SUP possible? Yes. Can those design elements be translated into a shortboard surfboard? Again, the answer is yes. While the wisdom of Solomon imparted that there is nothing new under the sun, I say, "Let's hear it for recombinant evolution."
instead of having a paddleboard I can surf, I have a surfboard I can paddle.
idea of how well intelligently designed short and fat surfboards work, even though they are considered highly unconventional in today's mainstream shortboard culture, where most shortboard sales are driven by 45 guys on the ASP circuit.
players in the rebirth of the mini-Simmons. John Elwell was a contemporary of Bob Simmons himself in the late 1940's and early 50's, and John brought to the table a working knowledge of Simmon's designs. Joe is a master shaper, and RK has the passion to bring this "new" idea to the surfing world. The complete primer on the mini-Simmons can be found on RK's blog, Hydrodynamica. He is also the driving force (and primary funder) of the independent film project, Hydrodynamica Project.
ground vis a vis modern surf culture. Why then, dig into the past? What could possibly be gained from looking at such a strange and frankly odd design? I mean, look at that tail! Look at the dimensions! But surf culture veterans who are open minded surfing moderns, bring creative and practical sensibilities based upon their natural bent and life experiences. And almost all moderns have deep experiences with skateboarding. In the evolved and enhanced mini-S, RK presents a blending of the shortboard with the immense dexterity of the skateboard, and the drive and glide of the longboard. All this in a 5'4" to 6' package.
shortboard/longboard/skateboard synthesis. To get an idea of how the board works, scroll through RK's blog. He has a lot of videos posted that demonstrate how well the board performs under the guidance of a competent ripper.
should emerge from highly evolved shapes like the mini-Simmons. If you have the float that makes it possible to catch a lot of waves in variable conditions from crappy to epic, but your board's float doesn't impede your surfing performance, shouldn't that translate into more waves caught, while still capturing the stoke of airborne, tail sliding, tube riding, high energy surfing? Well, in fact it does. So why don't they get it? Slaves to fashion I guess. Bottom line...less mini's in the line-up mean more waves for me.
