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Topics - PonoBill

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886
Downwind and Racing / Columbia ROCKS
« on: July 19, 2010, 08:05:19 PM »
Damn we had fun today. The swells were perfect. My F18 is down for awhile getting a new skin, so I've been paddling my 12'2" which is thin, narrow and overall just a damned small board for my 250 pounds, but it fits into the swells great, and its a SUFBOARD, which means I can toss it around. Hooohah, was it fricken perfect today!! Basically one long swell ride, from Viento to the event center. My arms are BURNING this evening from the intense paddling, getting into swell after swell.

I could hear Heidi Ribkoff a half mile behind me, hooting and screaming in the swellrides.

Doesn't matter what you have, surfboard, race board, cruiser, whatever. When it's nuking in the gorge come ride it. It's as close to a Maliko run as I've found.

Man, that was a good one.

887
SUP General / New DK post I suspect you'll all like
« on: July 07, 2010, 11:05:44 AM »
Dave is really going from strength to strength as a writer. I admire how much his posts are not about HIM, but about what he loves and why he loves it. This one: Gliding  http://www.davidkalama.com/2010/07/gliding/, will make you think--at least it certainly did for me. So much so that I was sorely tempted to add a whole bunch of my ideas about this issue to the post, but I restrained myself and did what an honest editor should do:  Fixed a few spelling errors and tweaked the flow. I'll add my thoughts as comments later, as you probably will. It gets right to the core of why we do this stuff and why we change our lives for a little glide.

Pretty cool to think that a guy who is one of the best in the world at all the ocean things we love thinks about the "why" as much as the "how". Redefines "Warrior Poet" for me. I didn't really think they existed.

888
SUP General / Spew Boy
« on: June 26, 2010, 03:49:26 PM »
Got that vertigo thing again today during the Gorge Blowout. I was wearing Maui Jims--it was too bright not to wear sunglasses. Started feeling tippy at about Wells Island. I bore down and got 'er done, but when I reached the beach I had a bit of the staggers and came close to impressing the groms that Zane Schweitzer was teaching windsurfing to by chumming in the water around them. As fun as that sounds, I managed to maintain, got my sunglasses off and was calmed down a few minutes later.

I'm thinking that high quality polarized lenses might not be the trick. I'm going to have to try some others. I didn't lose any places while I was dizzy, but I lost some time. I was close to Mark Ribkoff (3rd overall) at the halfway point. Then he got away from me a bit, and then pulled out a substantial lead by the end. Dino was clearly encouraged by my slowing a bit and was coming up fast. I had to whip the poor horse to get over the line in 4th.

Fun race. Rod got first on his F18, Dan Gavere 2nd on a Starboard Surf Race, Mark r third on a surf race, and me on the F18. I'll post the rest of the results when we get them. Good turnout, good conditions (except for the ripping current) and a nice day.

889
Downwind and Racing / Medium Sized Gorge Swell
« on: June 25, 2010, 02:21:41 PM »
...NOT. But we get a fair number of swells this size when the wind is strong enough.




This is Rod Parmenter at Swell City. The Gorge swells move a lot slower than ocean swells, so you can get into these big guys without linking up from a small one.

890
Downwind and Racing / Fat Boy 12'6" race board
« on: June 18, 2010, 07:39:17 PM »
So okay, I gotta get a 12'6" race board. Finished second in the Big Winds race last night and got nothing but grief about being on an F18. I tell you, this kind of sucks. I think 14' makes for a more level playing field. We mooses are not likely to float like butterflies on a 12'6". But I haven't tried ANY of them yet. Yeah, Mark has a surf race and Rod has a blade, I can give those a paddle. But before I part with bucks I'd like to hear from my brothers on the right side of the scale--you know, those numbers that are near the end, like 250. Not sexist or anything, I just kind of assume I'm not going to hear from any 250 pound SUP racing women.

I still like my 12'2" but the 10 pounds of pure muscle I added last year in Maui (might be a little beer residue mixed in there too) are turning it into a Jesus board. With the nose skimming the water the rear end is a few inches under water and my feet are damp.

891
Downwind and Racing / Sign up for the Blowouts
« on: June 09, 2010, 08:34:58 PM »
Did I already post this? Am I loosing my marbles?

Whatever.

We have successfully negotiated adding Stand Up Paddle downwinders to the famous Gorge Blowout races. If you are considering doing the Gorge Blowout races (Windsurf Blowout June 26 or 27--wind dependent) or the Kite Blowout (July 23 or 24) please go to Downwindrace.com and register. http://www.downwindrace.com/2010/06/registration-form/

It's not a binding registration--more of a headcount and an idea of who will be in what classes, so even if you're just noodling about it, please register and we'll hound you into coming. Both are going to be really fun weekends and you'll have a blast.

892
SUP General / Remarkable Laird Story
« on: June 01, 2010, 08:39:47 AM »
Dave's blog has a new remarkable story about a Jaws experience that only he and Laird could see--because Laird was buried inside a twenty foot tube when it happened. Almost as amazing is that Laird and Dave have been dancing with Jaws for 18 years. Here's the link: http://www.davidkalama.com/2010/05/inner-tube/

893
Downwind and Racing / Racing the BLOWOUT
« on: May 29, 2010, 11:42:08 PM »
A group of us have been working on a race series for the Gorge, a few weeks ago Mark Ribkoff had the fine idea of teaming up with the big existing downwinder events to add SUP to the lineup. Turns out the organizers are pretty enthusiastic about it. So there are going to be SUP classes for both the venerable windsurfing Gorge Blowout on June 26 or 27 (wind dependent) and the newer Kite Blowout July 23-24.

Both events are big, with lots of ancillary events (music, pupus and beer after parties, etc.) and both are very well organized and operated. We're very pleased to be able to affiliate with these pros.

Downwindrace.com will track points for the series and award trophies and swag. We're talking with other folks about additional events so stay tuned: http://www.downwindrace.com

We are also informally getting together every Monday night to do downwinders from Viento park. If you'd like to give a Columbia River downwinder a try this is a good introduction. Check out http://www.downwindrace.com/2010/05/announcing-monday-night-flights/

Truth is, Rod Parmenter, Mark and I do downwinders pretty much every day that there's wind, so if you're looking to shuttle drop me a PM or email at: downwind at kenalu dot com.

894
Downwind and Racing / Great maliko video
« on: May 29, 2010, 07:48:39 PM »
Bill Boyum has outdone himself this time. This is the best Maliko video I've seen. Made me crazy, even though I had a really rocking Viento run today.
[url][http://www.kenalu.com/2010/05/29/great-maliko-video/url]

895
Events / Portland Ross Island Race part deux
« on: May 22, 2010, 06:03:16 PM »
Another fun race, this time counterclockwise. Cold and overcast weather, but a lot of people turned out anyway. I didn't do a count, but I'm guessing 40? I was well positioned at the start, so I tucked in behind the two leaders and hung in there. Mark Ribkoff on his new Starboard Race 12'6" decided to switch out his paddle so he was on his way back from the parking lot when the horn blew. Nice of him, he would have beaten me. As it was he came through the pack and was bearing down on me at the finish. Beau (Great Dane) from Seattle finished first, Rick Graves came second, I held up the geezer division with third. I think Mark (Marks Ride) was next. I don't know the rest or the finish order, I'll paste it in when Gorge Performance posts it.

tough race, going against the wind and current for the second half. I was glad to see the finish line. My SIC F18 has been treating me very nicely, what a great board. And as long as Mark keeps making these strategic faux pas, and Rod Parmenter keeps paddling shorter boards I may stay up at the pointy end of the finish order for a while longer.


896
Technique / Time on the Water
« on: May 14, 2010, 09:23:49 AM »
Another great post from Dave Kalama: http://www.davidkalama.com/ .  I think Dave is a little nervous about doing these introspective pieces, he told me if I didn't like it not to publish it. Personally I think it's really great stuff and in some ways a lot more important and useful than technical tips (though I certainly appreciate those too). But I'd like to hear your comments, either here or as comments on the site. I know Dave will be receptive to your thoughts.

897
Downwind and Racing / Connor Flying
« on: May 10, 2010, 10:06:05 AM »

short clip by Bill Boyum of Connor Baxter blasting along on a Maliko run. Kid can paddle. http://www.kenalu.com/2010/05/10/connor-flying-at-malkio/

898
Events / Portland Ross Island Race
« on: May 09, 2010, 11:24:36 AM »
Gorge Performance did a great job with the first Portland Stand Up Paddle Race. Smoothly organized, the race got off nearly on time, and they had the results quickly. Good turnout, and good racing. the four mile course was a pacing challenge since it's downcurrent in one direction and then upcurrent  coming back.

Next time they'll also have a closed course race like the BOP, that will give the spectators something to watch. There were a surprising number of racing boards for a first go, two F18s, a Vortice, several Naish race boards, a bark, a JL SLice, and a Hobie.

Overall winner was a laydown paddleboard. I don't remember everyone's name, so I'm not going to post results until Gorge Perfomance puts it up.

there's a HUGE number of races schedule for the Northwest this year. I'm going to make as many as I can. Anyone in reasonable driving distance should be considering these races, they are much too much fun.

899
Events / Downtown Portland Race Series
« on: May 02, 2010, 12:56:01 AM »
Gorge Performance of Portland, Oregon is organizing a three race Stand Up Paddle series in the Willamette River, paddling around Ross Island.

I fully intend to be there, paddling my guts out. You’d think they’d have a geezer class. Bob might look like a kid, but he’s not that much younger than me.

The flatwater course is approximately four miles, circling around Ross Island. Here’s the basic information:

Race dates: May 8, May 22, June 12
Location: Oaks Amusement Park http://oakspark.com/
Registration at 9 a.m., racing at 10
4-mile course around Ross Island
4 Divisions: Under 14, Under 12′6, Women, Elite
First race is $30 and includes a tee shirt. Subsequent races are $20.

Gorge Performance
503-246-6646

Surfrider and the Wllamette Riverkeepers will also be there. If you don’t have a board, you may rent from them for $20 ( 4-hr rental rate).

Gorge Performance has been around since 1983–I bought my first “high performance” windsurfer (an Aitken rotomolded 10 footer–hot stuff!) from Bob a few weeks after he opened. They’ve been in the middle of windsurfing, kite surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding and now Stand Up Paddle Surfing, jumping in early to any edgy sport. Still stoked, and still crazy after all these years. Always a good place to go for expert advice and the right products. Good folks.




900
Events / Conner's Maui to Molokai
« on: May 01, 2010, 11:57:30 PM »
Connor Baxter, who set a record last year as the youngest paddler (age 14) to complete the Maui to Molokai race, won the SUP division this year at age 15. Connor sent me his take on the race, and his Mom Karen sent a zillion pictures of the race. I'm going to publish the pictures as a gallery, but the article and selected pictures are up on Kenalu ( http://www.kenalu.com )under the EVENTS tab, or at http://www.kenalu.com/2010/05/01/connor-baxters-maui-to-molokai/

Neat story, great kid. Incidentally, Junya McGurn and Dave Kalama teamed up in an OC-2 to win overall at a blistering 2:33. Yikes!

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