downwinding alone?

[JonathanC]

Did a  shuttle run a few days ago and there was a guy with a rental Naish 14 Glide, it was very tame conditions, no North swell and light trades but it just didn't seem right to leave him. B started following Jeremy and went too close for (my!) comfort to the rocks on the West side of the gulch. I went out and finally after 10 minutes sat down and waited for the him.
I remembered my first run which was one of the scariest things I've ever done, admin described the conditions later as some of the most "technical" he had ever seen....great.
So I stuck with B and waited for him every quarter hour and gave him some directions and headed off again. Kinda felt like I was actually a responsibility to guide someone through it on their first time and it was fun to do it.
In Melbourne we tend to stick together much more and wait for each other on down winders.
A big part of that is because it's actually more fun IMO to be close to a buddy to share the experience and of couse there is the safety aspect, particularly for less experienced paddlers.
When I first started doing the downwinders on Maui I was surprised to find that everyone pretty much took off on their own, some of my best runs there have been with friends close by, whether on OC1 or SUP. for me it's a little like skiing, gets boring on my own.

Realize this is a little off topic, but from a safety perspective it's obviously better to have someone around, if not take more safety equipment, never seen anyone with a pfd on Maui , but very common in Melbourne. Just different mindset I guess, I pretty much always sup surf in OZ with a helmet on, can imagine the reaction on Maui if I did that! Just take the safety gear and enjoy it solo and live to tell the tale. Live dorky is way better than dead cool....

[DavidJohn]

For me it's not a race and I think the reason the DW scene has grown so much here is because we have waited and re grouped along the way so the DW virgins can catch up.. You need to arrange this before starting off so everyone knows what's happening... or it wont happen.

DJ

[beaglebuddy]

Sounds good Bravo, PM me when you get your board.

[LaPerouseBay]

Did a  shuttle run a few days ago and there was a guy with a rental Naish 14 Glide, it was very tame conditions, no North swell and light trades but it just didn't seem right to leave him.

You forgot to mention it was his first time.  I was on oc-1 that day and was glad you were there.  It was understood that as an SUP, you had the responsibility keep an eye on him, right?     I've done it a few times.  On one occasion the poor guy had to do the entire run on his knees.  I'll bet he remembers that day.    

Yesterday a friend was describing a scary view of the last MCKC maliko race.  He was up above maliko and saw a novice struggling early on.  Wind was very, very strong that day.  The novice was too far inside, skirting the breakers at hookipa.  My guess is that the safety guys pulled him from the race.  The swells up ahead were mowing through kanaha with a vengeance.  The wind was east that day, blowing offshore.  It was challenging to make time - even in an oc-1.  Standups were taking a lot of gas.  

That's the day I saw someone swimming WAY outside about 2 miles from the harbor entrance - broken leash.  It was the scariest thing I've experienced downwinding.  He was screaming like a shark was eating him.  Probably because so many people had passed without seeing him.  I looked back without seeing him more than once.  I thought it was a bird or something.  He was barely visible.  He settled down when I spotted him.  We waited 3 minutes for the safety guy to see me - it seemed like 30.  

Realize this is a little off topic,/  I pretty much always sup surf in OZ with a helmet on, can imagine the reaction on Maui if I did that!/

Personally, I wouldn't give a helmeted surfer - or downwinder - a second glance.  Another good tip for anyone downwinding is to be very cautious when resurfacing (if you go in deep).  Keep your elbows up around your head like a boxer.   I got bashed in the face with the side of my f-16 early in my downwinding days.  If it had been the pointy end, it could have been lights out, pun intended.  

[pdxmike]

DJ--nice touch in your video having the cheers and applause starting up just as everyone's emerging from under the pier.

[PonoBill]

Yeah, the Maui crew is a little brutal about that, but they show up when you need them--more or less. It's like the Kanaha lifeguards said to me after I swam in from Lowers from losing my surfboard (three days after dropping off two dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts):"We had our eye on you, you were doing fine."

No more doughnuts for you guys.

In a way it's very flattering. You're capable. We're not going to rescue you.

Same mentality applies here in Hood River. A year or two ago I was doing a downwinder with Mark Ribcoff and Ron Parmenter. We came across a kiter who was kind of floundering. I diverted to make sure he was OK. Mark intercepted me and said "we don't do that. they need to know it's up to them to be safe".

Makes sense.

I understand the urge to shepherd newbies, but Jonathan and I share the same experience--my first Maliko was with our intrepid Admin, and it was a really tough one. See you at the Harbor. Worked okay for both of us--we're addicts. Jonathon might actually be worse than me. Flying in from Australia just so you can do downwinders is a little extreme. Most of the newbies I've shepherded have never set foot in Maliko gulch again--and probably never will. My only word of recommendation is this. If you don't think you can swim in the Fjord, don't go anywhere near the edge with Randy.