Author Topic: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River  (Read 42050 times)

covesurfer

  • Teahupoo Status
  • ******
  • Posts: 1936
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #75 on: August 27, 2015, 12:50:55 PM »
I agree with all the points you make Suppa.

I was only visiting but I Garmined all my runs when I paddled in the Gorge last week. Based on the speeds I logged in the Columbia, compared to speeds in the ocean without constant current, my conservative estimate is 1.5 to 2 mph of current. Of course, depending where you are on the river, that can vary considerably. My experience is that the river runs faster in deep water locals, like the area off of Swell and the Hatch. It is much slower on the Oregon side, the area some of us call the 'Wells Island Express'.  The big rolling swells seem to correlate with strong current running opposite the wind.

It is really a mystery what happened to Andres and it is so sad for such a young, full life to be snuffed out. Yes, the macro details are clear, he fell off his board and lost it. But, why would a young, fit, experienced waterman be unable to swim 1/2 mile, slowly, with the current, to safety? The water is not cold right now, it's in the low to perhaps the mid 70's. An hour or hour and 15 minutes of even slow progress would likely get you to shore or very shallow water (where you could stand) from the location where he went down.

Now that he has been found, maybe some light can be shed to what may have actually caused him to die out there. And that, in turn, may help others to stay safe. Just the focus this brings to safety on the water is something positive to come out of this terrible tragedy.

Perhaps an injury, maybe a medical event? As pointed out, however, the fact that he was found so close to where he went in is extremely strange in a river with relentless, if relatively slow moving, current. I wonder if something submerged trapped and then released him? I hope some further information will be provided in order for us all to better understand how to be safer on the water doing what Andres and the rest of us love.

covesurfer

  • Teahupoo Status
  • ******
  • Posts: 1936
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #76 on: August 27, 2015, 12:57:26 PM »
Haha, Wardog, that WindWing sail gives away the era of those photos! Conditions are similar, but the number of sailors is actually far fewer these days. But now you have kites added in the mix and as you point out, the starboard ROW memo along with all of the other normal sailing rules of the road didn't get read.

It's still a sh*t show when you try and paddle through busy areas. We actually move downwind pretty fast, I've recorded glides over 13 mph pretty regularly in the ocean, more like 10 or 11 with the river current. The guys on sailing gear will still almost always try and squeeze by in front of a paddler rather than go behind you. It even happens off Kanaha in open ocean. Drives me f'in nutz!

Enjoyed those pics, I'm thinking early 1990's?

standuped

  • Sunset Status
  • ****
  • Posts: 417
  • Zapotocky family values
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #77 on: August 27, 2015, 01:07:00 PM »
...as someone who has helped pull a deceased person from the water...believe me...it wasn't fun or easy...


That's for sure.
Florida gear.. Bic 12'x31"~207L.. JP Fusion 10'8"x34"~190L..Angulo custom 9'6"x33"~160L.. SIC Fish 9'5"x29.6"~145L..Epic gear elite paddle~7"x75"..Oregon gear..JP Fusion#2..Foote Triton 10'4"x34"~174L.. Surftec Generator 10'6"x32.3"~167L..Kialoa Pipes 6 3/8"x75"...Me 6'1" 220 lbs circa 1959

OUTSIDEWAVE

  • Teahupoo Status
  • ******
  • Posts: 1894
    • View Profile
    • Email
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #78 on: August 27, 2015, 01:23:15 PM »
having not ever windsurfed or down winded  those pictures look crazy to me. I cannot even conceive e of being out in that kind of water without a pdf an Big wave leash a spot locator beacon  etc. 

 I am sad about this  but confused also. 
How is possible to enter a race with currents/ winds like those in the picture that ward posted  without a mandatory  pfd and leash.
 
 I know for example that on all of the  4 wheel drive trips I have gone there are minimum  equipment requirements for the trip   and those trips are a lot more forgiving than any kind of water ever is.
Am I wrong  about the  water/ wind  in the gorge or is  that about  what it looked like?
SEA BIRDS THEY DO TOUCH AND GO AS THE WORLD JUST TANGOES BY.... SO I SADDLE UP MY SEAHORSE WITH MY FLYROD IN MY HAND.... 10'3 King custom  10'6"  c4 da beachboy

stoneaxe

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 12084
    • View Profile
    • Cape Cod Bay Challenge
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #79 on: August 27, 2015, 01:28:58 PM »
I am sad about this  but confused also. 
How is possible to enter a race with currents/ winds like those in the picture that ward posted  without a mandatory  pfd and leash.
 

It happened during training not during the race. I assume, hopefully correctly that leashes and PFDs are required during the race.
Bob

8-4 Vec, 9-0 SouthCounty, 9-8 Starboard, 10-4 Foote Triton, 10-6 C4, 12-6 Starboard, 14-0 Vec (babysitting the 18-0 Speedboard) Ke Nalu Molokai, Ke Nalu Maliko, Ke Nalu Wiki Ke Nalu Konihi

SUP Sports ®

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 3216
  • Stoked For Life ®
    • View Profile
    • SUP Sports ®
    • Email
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #80 on: August 27, 2015, 01:47:14 PM »
Haha, Wardog, that WindWing sail gives away the era of those photos! Conditions are similar, but the number of sailors is actually far fewer these days. But now you have kites added in the mix and as you point out, the starboard ROW memo along with all of the other normal sailing rules of the road didn't get read.

It's still a sh*t show when you try and paddle through busy areas. We actually move downwind pretty fast, I've recorded glides over 13 mph pretty regularly in the ocean, more like 10 or 11 with the river current. The guys on sailing gear will still almost always try and squeeze by in front of a paddler rather than go behind you. It even happens off Kanaha in open ocean. Drives me f'in nutz!

Enjoyed those pics, I'm thinking early 1990's?

Good eye...summer 1990...25 years ago...yikes!
We started spending chunks of every summer there from '83 up thru Y2K, when the Oregon Coast would fog up...my wifey loved it there...almost bought a 5 acre spread up in Mosier by the cherry orchards...loved the empty swells off of Chicken Charlie Island compared to the corridor...even visited in the winter just to see how cold it was...

BTW, I sold that sail because it was invisible on the Oregon Coast in the afternoon sun...broke a boom on the outside at Pistol River and nobody saw me...
Mahalos...{:~)

WARDOG ®
Owner/CEO  StandUp Paddle Sports®  &   SurfingSports®.com, Inc.

(805)962-SUPS (7877) store
(888)805-9978 toll free

Retail Store:
Standup Paddle Sports, LLC
121 Santa Barbara St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

PonoBill

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 25864
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #81 on: August 27, 2015, 01:55:35 PM »
Dog, I had one of those WindWing low aspect mast chokers in 2.9. Nice little sail, I liked how it powered up with some torque even though it was hankie size.

As far as cutting through Swell City goes, I do it a lot, but either out more towards the middle if there's a lot of sailors or really close in where the big, slow mast high rollers are if the crowd is sparse. In close the windsurfers are on high alert and generally turning. I sometimes get some close brushes, but they see me, they're just peeing on the spot (MINE!).

Pure speculation, but I suspect he got snagged on a ledge and didn't come up until he got buoyant enough. the bottom isn't flat by any means. I've never dove there, but I have in a lot of other places in the Columbia River system. The bottom is often slabs of basalt. I suspect a very craggy bottom texture is what's responsible for the Swell in Swell City.

I spoke to a sheriff at the Pine St. Bakery this morning who had seen the on-board video. He was just grabbing coffee to go, so we didn't talk long, but he said Andres was swimming vigorously but not well for about a minute. He didn't think there was any injury or medical issue. I asked why he thought the swimming effort only lasted a minute and he said "that's about average". That's about all he said other than "I feel really bad for the guy, but what the hell was he doing in that water without a PFD?" I didn't have an answer.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

Admin

  • Administrator
  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 6443
    • View Profile
    • StandUpZone
    • Email
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #82 on: August 27, 2015, 02:02:12 PM »
Here are some Gorge shots and video from a windy day in this stretch of river from last year http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php/topic,24142.msg243617.html#msg243617 .

Even when its ramped up it is very swimmable and there are many swims every good day. 

Weeble

  • Sunset Status
  • ****
  • Posts: 273
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #83 on: August 27, 2015, 03:19:48 PM »
Once again folks, I'd really like to say that guys like Chilly and myself are happy that this thread didn't get mean, but instead stayed informative and supportive.  Especially for Chilly, as not only was he close to Andres, but he is of the same cloth that Andres was cut from.  It has not been so on some other threads out there.  I think that some of us here took the knee jerk reaction to the paddle out for Andres with the lack of leashes.  What can I say, we're just  in a mode of over reaction.  There is a lot of people (myself included) that when we die, many will have the right say something true... like, he was okay, but he could really be a dick at times.  I can assure you, that Andres was not one of them. 

Whether you knew him from him kicking your ass in a race and the way in which he was so gracious about it, to being a rep for Mistral, or his involvement with Special Olympics, everyone down in south Florida SUP knew him.  While a Mistral Rep, he would show up at a race, put up the tent, inflate 10 to 12 inflatable SUPs, plus the big giant one, do his race, rep his brand, put people, especially kids on the inflatables for demos and then when the race was over, people had to force him to let them help with packing up all of his gear.  His work as a coach for the Miami Special Olympics SUP Race Team was crucial to it getting off of the ground.

We'll never know what really happened, or  why he wasn't better prepared.  It just wasn't him... but it happened.  However, the way I'll always remember Andres is from this photo...

 I was so fortunate to be there when this photo was taken. It was during a Special Olympics Coaches training session hosted by Irma Price and Ruth Finch Holland. While on a lunch break, several athletes from the Miami team arrived and Andres began working with this team member. Andres was working with him on getting him to stand up and at first it wasn’t working so well. I was standing on the shore with his mother watching. Andres slowly paddled him out of view behind a stand of mangroves and a few minutes later, they came paddling out together standing up. The look of joy and pride on the athlete’s face took my breath away. His mother did all that she could to contain her excitement as well. Andres was behind him, working the board to keep it as stable as possible and paddle them forward. Any time that the athlete looked over his shoulder, Andres had stopped paddling and looked down at him with a “it’s all you” look. And as soon as the athlete turned around and began to try and paddle again, Andres resumed a gentle, quiet paddle stroke and kept them moving. As they neared the shore, the athlete looked to his mother and literally ran the length of the board, leapt from the nose (nearly throwing Andres into the water with the weight change) and ran into his mother’s arms. THAT has always been, and always will be the way that I remember Andres.
Faster than some, slower than most....
2015 Boga Typhoon 14 x 25.5 Team Edition
2013 Laird Bark Race 14
2012 Fanatic Fly Race 12.6 (the white one)
2015 Fanatic Allwave 9.5/ 2013 Fanatic Allwave 9.10
Ke Nalu Konihi 95 on an Elite 90 Flex
Ke Nalu Molokai on an Xtuf
Maliko Blade that gets interchanged

jerdogSUP

  • Waikiki Status
  • *
  • Posts: 15
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #84 on: August 27, 2015, 03:33:30 PM »
Chilly,Weeble, thank you for sharing. I'd love to hear more.

thorn

  • Waikiki Status
  • *
  • Posts: 35
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #85 on: August 27, 2015, 05:10:42 PM »
That made me cry. As a mom of a special needs child, people with that heart are everything to me.

pinoySUP

  • Waikiki Status
  • *
  • Posts: 10
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #86 on: August 27, 2015, 05:46:02 PM »
What an inspiration!  During PT school I had the opportunity to work with persons with disabilities via Shake-a-leg, the Junior Orange Bowl Sports Abilities Games, and our school's Hurricane Challenge, and I have long wanted to get back involved with these type of organizations!  To Weeble or Chilly, is there a particular contact in charge of the SUP for The Special Olympics?  From what I've read so far of Andres, I certainly would not be any replacement for his loss, but I'd love to help continue what he helped start.

stoneaxe

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 12084
    • View Profile
    • Cape Cod Bay Challenge
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #87 on: August 27, 2015, 06:14:29 PM »
Ahh shit! Now I'm crying too!

Truly sorry for being a bit insensitive. It really wasn't the place for it.

The stories I've heard and the obviously very personal and deep feelings so many have for him makes me feel like we lost a brother....and we did.
« Last Edit: August 27, 2015, 06:17:25 PM by stoneaxe »
Bob

8-4 Vec, 9-0 SouthCounty, 9-8 Starboard, 10-4 Foote Triton, 10-6 C4, 12-6 Starboard, 14-0 Vec (babysitting the 18-0 Speedboard) Ke Nalu Molokai, Ke Nalu Maliko, Ke Nalu Wiki Ke Nalu Konihi

ninja tuna

  • Peahi Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 645
    • View Profile
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #88 on: August 27, 2015, 06:30:18 PM »
Weeble,

Great story and photo.

SUP Sports ®

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 3216
  • Stoked For Life ®
    • View Profile
    • SUP Sports ®
    • Email
Re: South Florida Paddler Missing on the Hood River
« Reply #89 on: August 27, 2015, 06:41:07 PM »
What an inspiration!  During PT school I had the opportunity to work with persons with disabilities via Shake-a-leg, the Junior Orange Bowl Sports Abilities Games, and our school's Hurricane Challenge, and I have long wanted to get back involved with these type of organizations!  To Weeble or Chilly, is there a particular contact in charge of the SUP for The Special Olympics?  From what I've read so far of Andres, I certainly would not be any replacement for his loss, but I'd love to help continue what he helped start.

Please also consider helping Surfer's Healing...SUPs make the perfect vehicle for getting special needs kids on the water...perhaps, this is the silver lining and legacy of the SUP world losing Andres...

http://www.surfershealing.org

http://blog.surfingsports.com/2010/06/surfers-healing-malibu.html
Mahalos...{:~)

WARDOG ®
Owner/CEO  StandUp Paddle Sports®  &   SurfingSports®.com, Inc.

(805)962-SUPS (7877) store
(888)805-9978 toll free

Retail Store:
Standup Paddle Sports, LLC
121 Santa Barbara St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

 


SimplePortal 2.3.7 © 2008-2024, SimplePortal