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Messages - miker

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1
Travel, Trips, Destinations / Re: On the rocks in Rosarito.
« on: November 24, 2021, 06:19:24 PM »
I got out today for an hour but realized the rib can't handle it yet.  A few more days watching my brother catch 50-200 waves a day.  At least tequila is cheap, it's sunny and I love Mexican food!

2
Travel, Trips, Destinations / On the rocks in Rosarito.
« on: November 23, 2021, 10:05:14 PM »
My brother and I are on a surfing trip to Baja California.  On a beach near la Mission we've been out pretty much every day.  A few days ago I had a great paddle out, magically finding my way outside with little hindrance. 

Once outside I found myself surrounded by dolphins...  Que tranquilo.  I watched them a few minutes and then they went on their way.  Looking up I see the wave I want.  I paddled hard, dropped in, cut back and looked up to find I'd drifted to close to the rocks at the point - should have looked up first.  I got caught in the break and quickly tired fighting my fate.  Realizing the inevitable, I got on top of a big wave and let it deposit me unceremoniously on the rocks. 

I lay there with a few lacerations on my right hand limp as a jellyfish washed up on the sand for about 10 minutes.  Then I sat and breathed for another 10.  Finally I trudged back to the beach.  Once there my brother pointed out a ding in my nose and I noticed aa worse ding in the nose of my board.  If your board gets damaged down here, head out to Roberts k38 motel and ask for Poncho. He does great work at great price and had it ready for me the next morning. 

Unfortunately my rib wasn't ready but that gave me time to get some dental work done that I'd been avoiding during COVID.  Should be out tomorrow with any luck at all.

3
Gear Talk / Re: Starboard Widepoint 10'5 progression
« on: August 26, 2021, 01:36:06 PM »
I just went from a 10'5 Widepoint to a GenRation (sunova) Kanga 9'6" and couldn't be happier.  You could probably easily go down to the 9' though if you went this route.  It turns down the line so much easier with the tapered rails and the quad setup.  The Widepoint tends to get 'locked in' to a direction once it picks up speed.

4
Gear Talk / Re: if you could only have one board (2021 version)
« on: August 26, 2021, 10:51:00 AM »
After careful consideration this Summer, I would still go with a GenRation (Sunova) Kanga. I might drop to 9' or 9'3" instead of the 9'6" but it really is a 'do everything' board.  mush, clean, chop, wind, small, big, it does them all admirably.  I'm constantly surprised at just how well this board handles everything.

5
Subsequent trips out to surf have only reinforced my original assessment of this board.  For me it's revolutionising how I SUP surf.

The biggest improvement this board makes is the ease with which I can paddle out through the surf.  The second is the ease with which it turns down the line - and it's overall responsiveness.

6
Congrats!  Loving my Genration as well. 

PS - is that a little home horticulture in that planter in the picture??  8)

 8)

7
OK, it's time for an update.  I did a bit more flat water paddling this week with my brother (don't worry, surfing happened too) and we were blown away by how this board handles tail turns on the flat water.  We're really digging the low profile rails and how the affect stability.  The sweet spot on this board is huge.  You can almost do a tumbling routine (if only we weren't old fat guys!)

Anyway, this morning we finally got our act together and the surf gods gave us a reasonable surf forecast.  12s period with a 3 ft swell.  Not bad for Tofino.  Secondary was about the same size so we knew to take the 12s with a grain of salt - at best we'd get 12s and some times we'd just have to tough it out while a few were bunched up.

So our impressions after a day of surfing?

- paddling out through the white water was an absolute dream once we nailed down the best technique for this board.  You want your weight a bit more forward than on my old Wide Point.  If you bury the tip a bit as you hit the wave, the low profile rails and some other kind of magic keep you remarkably stable.  My brother was shocked when comparing it to his 8'10" Fanatic AllWave with more old school rails.
- catching waves is very easy.  This board wants to get up and go as soon as the wave catches up to it.  It almost turns down the line by itself.  The turn radius is pretty large, but the board is so responsive to rail pressure it's a thing of beauty.
- If you are out in front of a wave and it breaks on you, the board has a tendency to correct on it's own if you aren't square to the wave.  On the WidePoint or AllWave, you'd get much more bobbing laterally and the Kanga is just so stable.
- We were too busy surfing to get photos.  Maybe one day we'll plan ahead and use our breaks to get some pics and video of each other to post.

Verdict: This is a terrific board, especially if you are old, fat and kind of lazy like us.  I can't be happier with my choice.  Many kudos to supthecreek for helping me figure out which board I wanted - he was bang on with this recommendation.

8
DHL just delivered my new Kanga.  I'm pretty stoked as I've been waiting a couple of months for it to be built and ship.  DHL had said it would be 12 days but got it here in 6, which was a nice surprise.

Unpacking was a bit of work as it was very well protected in a double layer of cardboard with bubble wrap and padding, but I was pretty motivated and got that out of the way quickly.  Then I got the fins set up in quad, called my brother, and we went for a bit of a paddle out in the breezy chop.  It was a bit different from other boards I've paddled with the stepped rails, but once you get used to it you might find it feels more stable.  The chop tends to roll over the board instead of lifting it.  When it releases off the wave it corks up a bit.  This is almost the opposite of what I'm used to but even in a short paddle out in the 15 knot wind it didn't take long to adjust to.

I'm looking forward to heading over to the West side of the Island soon to see how it surfs.  I guess this gives me time to put the traction pad and rail tape on.


9
Sessions / 3 days in Tofino
« on: June 04, 2021, 07:44:01 PM »
My brother and I (and his on and off common law) went to Tofino for three days for some SUP surf action this week.  We got in a couple of sessions a day at various beaches.  It was pretty typical Tofino action - primary swell would be great on it's own, but there were at least two secondaries that occasionally would come at almost 40 degree angles to each other and things would get weird.  Some chop on the middle day (Wed) added to that.  Despite the not entirely ideal conditions, everyone caught a ton of waves and great fun was had by all.  At times we were getting a wave every few minutes.  As a bonus (at least for us) the travel restrictions in BC meant that the campgrounds were half empty and the beaches weren't crowded.  At one point on Chesterman beach I had the whole beach to myself for an hour - just at the point when the swells got themselves sorted out and made things more fun.  I'm just going to sit on that feeling as it won't happen there again for a while I'm sure.

Next on my wish list for the surf gods is the whole beach to myself and perfect swells in a few spots I know in Mexico.

10
Executive summary: Good carbon fibre paddle at a good price.

As part of an order for a Genration Kanga, I added an A95 Paddle.  The 'extras' on the order all came in quite early and I got a chance to check the paddle out this past week on a three day surfing and camping trip to Tofino.

The paddle came with a carrying case, which at first I thought would be useless, but discovered is quite useful when schlepping gear on longer trails out to the beach.  Just sling it over your shoulder and free up your hands.  Who knew (well, probably a lot of you, but I sure didn't)?

As to the paddle, it's a huge upgrade for me.  I've had a cheap fiberglass/plastic paddle for a few years now and figured it was fine.  My brother had been telling me I needed a better paddle and I kept thinking it would be a waste of $$.  I do 80% surfing with my boards and paddles and the rest is toodling about.  Right off the bat I noticed the weight - this paddle was about half the weight of my old one.  Out in the water it wasn't long until I noticed I had quicker acceleration and best of all faster turning.  Anyway, not a lot to say.  It's a pretty solid price for a carbon paddle that performs well.

I don't have a ton of other paddles to compare with - this is just my third and I've tried a couple of my brother's paddles.  This one is better than any of them for me.

11
Technique / Re: Riding out the whitewater after a wave
« on: March 30, 2021, 05:08:02 PM »
Only 15 sessions on a SUP....my guess, you’re not using the paddle as a third leg/brace. Dig the paddle for balance.

This is the key.  What I do is dig the paddle in just as the white water hits.  This does two things.  Firstly, it keeps my speed up.  Secondly, it provides the push for my upper body to stay caught up with the board.  This makes it almost impossible to fall down.  But bend your knees and get lower too.

12
Sessions / Jordan River Vancouver Island
« on: March 30, 2021, 04:58:20 PM »
When people think surfing on Vancouver Island, 99% of the time they are thinking of the beach breaks between Ucluelet and Tofino.  There is, however, one more break that's pretty well known and accessible (probably too well known so it's not like talking about it here's going to ruin it).  Jordan River, which is 1-1.5 hours from Victoria occasionally has a decent wave.  Most of the year the Olympic peninsula shelters it too much and there's no decent swells that reach it.  Once in a while though, often after a storm, you get the perfect conditions for the production of some pretty sweet waves.  On those days, it's way better than driving out to Tofino.

Yesterday was one such day.  I'd been monitoring the surf forecast for days and thinking Monday was going to be the day for me.  There was a big wind storm Sunday night and the nearest buoys were reading some pretty big swells.  Neither Magic Seaweed nor Surf-forecast give accurate predictions for Jordan River.  One was predicting 3 foot waves, the other was predicting 12 foot.  Dawn patrol looked to be possibly epic, but my sleep schedule had a different plan and I got out there at noon.  As I looked out over the fairly crowded surf, I saw something rarely seen on the Island; a wave that actually broke down the line with minimal close outs!  I slapped on a wet suit and paddled out.  It was a glorious few hours paddling out only to be greeted by a wave too good to pass up, riding it in, turning around thinking maybe this time I'll rest up only to be greeted by another too good to pass up.  The waves worth surfing were waist to shoulder high and clean.  The wind storm of the previous night had brought the swell directly from the west creating perfect conditions (well, as perfect as it gets around here).  For me it was also a nice breakthrough day.  The conditions allowed me to turn my big SUP down the line and almost look like I knew what I was doing out there.  Unfortunately, my official photographer had slept in and wasn't along for the ride.

Eventually I needed to make a decision - rest on shore for a bit or head back to Victoria to help my wife with some renovations at our son's house.  I turned and caught one last epic wave and thought to myself "this is the perfect way to end this session".


13
Travel, Trips, Destinations / Re: Kaua’i Trip
« on: March 29, 2021, 03:25:22 PM »
I don't foil (yet), but I can say with reasonable certainty that Hanalei bay will have depth for it.  I don't know how you'd manage in reef breaks, so Tunnels would possibly not be in the cards.

14
SUP Gear Reviews / Newly Acquired / On Order / Re: Sunova Steeze 10'
« on: March 28, 2021, 09:33:29 AM »
I'll keep an eye out for you in Tofino.  That board will be a dead give away =)

15
Gear Talk / Re: Anything out there similar to the Hammer?
« on: March 10, 2021, 07:43:52 AM »
As an owner of 3 hammers (one is now up near you in Bellingham, WA with a niece), and a someone with significant dimensions  :), Get the Kanga!  It looks awesome in the video Creek reviewed it.  It's the closest thing to my Stoke x-wide, and I'd probably get one if I was in the market.  Best of luck with it.

Thanks for the feedback.  I put the order in and I guess they'll start building it. I understand it's going to be a bit before it arrives, but I've been looking for a new board off and on for a couple of years so a little longer won't hurt.  I'm looking forward to putting it through it's paces when it gets here.

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