Getting out to the Line Up

[WhatsSUP]

All:  I'm curious to pick brains here on various techniques in getting out thru the whitewater to the outside.  In terms of actually getting out thru whitewater surf I understand there are a number of approaches, which know will work best at different times.  Considering the options of standing up, on the knees, prone position w/ paddle tucked, bailing out, and going out and around, let's assume a pretty typical beach break and waves in the waist to head high range with an average wave period.  How do you approach (i.e., get out)? 

(I see lots of awesome vid's and pic's here on the forum with the majority capturing rides - rightfully so.  But I find myself really watching for snippets or pics of folks getting up, over, thru, under approaching waves that've already broke.  My curiosity for studying this side of the wave is no doubt a result of my current ability....novice.  I was day dreaming a bit today on one particular session last summer that by the time I got out I was huffing and puffing and it was only like waist to chest high.).  I nearly always attempt incoming broken waves on my feet in a semi surf stance w/ some speed..I find I'm successful getting over/thru half the time or so without falling off.

Any vid's of being on the going out would be awesome!

Thanks!!!!!   

 

[SlatchJim]

I nearly always attempt incoming broken waves on my feet in a semi surf stance w/ some speed..I find I'm successful getting over/thru half the time or so without falling off.

Videos are like beauty pagents.  Rarely do they tell the ugly truth of the matter.  Seems like you're dancing all the right steps. 

[covesurfer]

High paddling cadence, get speed, stay on your feet, go to surf stance and use your weight to get the nose up then immediately keep it from coming up and hitting you in the face. Prone paddling works but is inefficient compared to having oar-on power. With wide SUS boards, there's not an advantage to being prone.

Going to surf stance really helps me on more powerful waves. Reading the waves and knowing what's do-able and what isn't going to be is really critical. Always make sure NO ONE is behind you, inside of you if you might have to bail. Here's a couple of shots going out on a slightly overhead day, it was my limit to what I could make without carnage. Unfortunately, they're screen grabs so they don't show it as well as video. It was actually really fun getting out on this day, every time I made it over a big one, I'd get a big rush.

[Subber]

Generally standing up going through the whitewater works better than other methods
(proning, on knees) because the oncoming white water is just hitting your feet, ankles
and legs rather than more surface area - your body if proning or
your thighs and midsection if  you are on your knees.

Sounds like you have the right approach. 
" I nearly always attempt incoming broken waves on my feet in a semi surf stance w/ some speed..."
-- Have your paddle ready to put into the water to catch your balance once you are over the
crest of the white water.

Short period swell at a beach break can be a hell of a workout.

[supsurf-tw]

Surf stance. Weight on back foot to raise nose over whitewater. Weight on front foot once vertical. Time it so your paddle is in the water when the whitewater hits. If said whitewater is too high then just jump off. No sense getting back to your feet if there's another big one looming. Wait out the set then get back on and resume paddling.

[Bean]

let's assume a pretty typical beach break and waves in the waist to head high range with an average wave period.  How do you approach (i.e., get out)? 

Even a typical beach break will have cuts through the sand bar that will produce rips.  Find those and enjoy the free ride.

[SuppaTime]

I have found that having my paddle ready for a good hard stroke on the back end of the white water works well; time one last stroke before the wash hits, then plunge the paddle in on the backside of it and pull yourself though the wash. When it gets big and I know I am not going to survive the wash, I lean back and kick my board up and over the white water and fall backwards. Board almost always makes it over with little or no leash tug. If another wave is right behind it, I try to scramble up just so I can kick it over again.

But really, the best thing for getting out is to find a channel and use it.

[Zooport]

I find that if I follow the advice above (brief nose up and then down, plant a paddle to pull through) but another thing helps me tremendously that I don't see mentioned.  One of the keys for me is to compress as the wave hits me to absorb and smooth out the jolt of the wave hitting.  Using legs like shock absorbers when the wave hits, so that when I'm at the top, I'm pretty much compressed into a squat.  So my sequence is:  1. As much speed as possible.  2. Briefly weight the trail as the nose first touches the wave to get the nose slightly up.  3. Plant a paddle as far forward as possible.  4.  Compress to absorb the shock and keep balance.  5. Finally, shift weight forward to keep from going over backward.  All this happens in less than a second and takes some practice.  I'm nowhere near having this perfected and I still eat it a lot, but I'm often surprised at how easily I can pop over when everything works.

Also, some boards are just better at punching through than others. 

[supthecreek]

Slatch said:
"Videos are like beauty pagents.  Rarely do they tell the ugly truth of the matter.  Seems like you're dancing all the right steps"

aaaahhhh, you never saw some of mine  .... ugly and proud!
Check out from the 4:27 mark on this video. Getting out is sometimes plain hard work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6PjSMNPIaI


SUP are fast paddlers.... I study the water movement, sets, and breaks. Then I start out through the in-shore white-water, while a set is running it's course...... then I paddle hard and fast in the lull. Timing and water knowledge comes with experience!
HINT:
un-focus and look at the in-shore white-water. You are looking for directional movement. NOT the waves..... the water that is building up inside has to exit.
It creates a rip...... find the direction of the rip and use the flow to help you. Understand that you will drift down the beach..... time your drift so you will be at the channel when the lull starts.

[surfcowboy]

Listen to the guys who talk about timing and channels and such. Sure, you can get over some waves and in time bigger and bigger but I say paddle smarter.

When I was new I'd throw myself into or over anything but as I learned the ocean I became far more efficient. Now, I mostly sit inside and wait for lulls and seldom actually have to pop over a broken wave. Your technique and balance will allow you to make it over but why wear yourself out?

When you see the raw feed of the standup world tour events you'll feel better, those guys get worked too.

[headmount]

If you've taken the first wave in a set and go down for some reason, then wait on inside till you think set is subsiding.  I'm always counting waves in my head to know how to do just what's being discussed here.  Too old to do the Gallipoli thing so there's no choice but to time as well as possible.  What's difficult to calculate, is when a swell is on the rise or we have two different swells.  A rising swell can have over ten waves in a set.  Charging into that kind of no man's land just wears you out really fast plus, increases the potential for bad things happening getting over significant whitewater.  Whereas a dropping swell might have only two to three waves in a set, which makes it easy.

Channels sometimes still have breaking waves but the waves break mushier and are still worth going the extra distance to go there.  Of course if you make the wave you're on the conveyer belt.  A beautiful thing.

[PonoBill]

Besides the unweighting tricks discussed here the biggest thing that ditches me is the turbulence after the whitewater passes. I find it very important to get my paddle into the water in front of myself. I smack it in to give some stability and then sink the blade and pull hard to get rolling. My Foote 10'4" is a total cheater for whitewater. It has a handful of ways to get through and they all work. Makes me look like I know what I'm doing, but it's autopilot.

[Badger]

You have to be careful unweighting the nose on some boards.

Boards with a lot of nose rocker can smack you in the face in a split second.

Some boards seem to handle it better by going straight through the whitewater instead of over it.

I'm no expert though. When it gets over chest high, I just bail.

This was a good thread on the subject from a couple years ago.

http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php/topic,23890.msg241062.html#msg241062

.

[Bean]

The key to not getting smacked in the face is simply getting your back foot to the tail. 

[WhatsSUP]

Great responses....thanks everyone!  VERY VERY helpful.

Numerous good tips, hints, and suggestions.  I think I on the right path and have to just get more experience to better understand what is generally "doable" in my case.

I was super happy to see feedback from east, west, and Hawaiian SUPers!  I've probably reread each 3-4 times this morning while sipping coffee.  Just good stuff! 

And Creek, off-topic - I've watched this vid in the past and gotta say the from min 9:00 on its probably the best display of working the back foot I've seen on the forum.  I'll be revisiting that section quite a few more times. 

Thanks again guys....time to reread the feedback once again!