[Paddlewise] Surfing

Anyone interested in this stuff would benefit from reading Marchaj's, 
Seaworthiness: The Forgotten Factor and Heavy Weathetr Sailing by K. Adlard 
Coles.

Anyone not interested in this kind of thing should probably stay home or at 
least paddle in protected waters with benign weather where waves are small, 
winds light and there are no shoals or currents.

Tord (I think) mentioned that the boat designers on a design forum could not 
agree on much. Maybe it would pay to listen to mariners instead of 
designers. They might tell you something truly radical like "Stay away from 
dangerous shoals and inlets".

Speaking of surf, The East Coast Winter surfing championships were held in 
front of our house. The judges stand being set up in our lawn.  Really 
interesting watching professionals surf and hearing commentary by pros. The 
waves weren't all that big (2 meters for the better waves) but it is late in 
the season for the really powerful storms. After watching this I can see why 
young people find surfing more exciting than sea kayaking. I find it more 
exciting and I don't even surf. I can't imagine a kayak (even a surf kayak) 
doing the stuff these fellows did. Anyone out there done a 360 on the crest 
of a wave and then rode the top of the curl down to the trough, surfed along 
parallel to the wave face climbed the wave and did another 360 in a kayak? 
They tell me the West Coasts surfers are better.

Cheers

John Winters
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