Well, my old 166 CPU blew up last week, so here I am again on a brand new Pentium IV, with Windows XP. I lost all previous data (email contacts, etc), so never did call Kaitlin on the sponson thing. But, I did get out surfing last Remembrance Day weekend, the 11th. There was some great surf that weekend, including some double-overhead sets. Most of the staff from Ocean River Sports and some from Victoria Canoe and Kayak Center showed up, along with a bunch of other yakers. Needless to say, the surf boarders were a little displeased, and resorted to the actual issuing of death threats to some of us. (no BS). I had my big knife on deck, and wasn't too worried, though I did get yelled at a few times. Boarders must surf right (a right break at Jordan's), and so most of us tried staying north of these guys, but hey, with drift, currents, overlap - well, it can get nasty. Talk about aggro attitude. It was the first time in my new custom drysuit from Whites. What an incredible piece of gear. 6 hours in the surf, not a drop of water, total mobility, total joy. The way synthetic fleece allows a bi-laminate top shell to slide over above is definitely less restrictive than a wet suit. I even took a swim with the current out into the first break, leaving my boat on the beach. Though cool with the compressed insulation, again, it was flawless. It was a unique experience at the end of the day, pulling the suit off, with nary a wet spot (there was a very small wet spot in the small of my back from condensation). I spent the entire time in my Nordkapp. Never came out once. For something different, I tried placing myself in some 8 foot curls (bigger than it sounds) while broached to the break just as she curled. It was a weird sensation to have the kayak rotate 360 in the curl, especially as you get upside down. Interestingly, rather that get dragged endlessly under the soup as normal, the wave broke around the kayak, and as I surfaced, the wave had moved on. Of course, this leaves you sitting in line for the next immediate break. I twisted my back in one nasty episode -- but I didn't want to let go of my paddle. There were enough swims by others that day, including some of the instructor trainer types in WW kayaks. The ensuing rescues of gear and paddler are always such a pain, though the kayakers did help a few boarders in the end who had suffered leash breakage and board breakage/ separation. Some of the boarders had come down from Tofino, as they couldn't get out up there, it was so big. There were a few times where I was under for a while, but I've finally got to the point where I can consistently manipulate the psychology to hang upside-down, take the time to reorient the paddle (including running my hand to the power face for a quick reference check, then rolling back up. A few time I had to dog paddle to catch an interim breath. T'was an awesome day, and one where I felt some of that good old health returning. Barring poor conditions this Friday, I hope to cross over to the San Juans for a get together with kayak friends. Surfing again, and now looking forward to some crossings. Kookyaking is here again for me. Doug Lloyd *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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