Author Topic: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous  (Read 20391 times)

Blue crab

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #15 on: October 17, 2016, 08:48:13 PM »
Remickulous, Thank you for your service.  Do reward yourself with a lesson from Rob. So many of us in Seattle got started with him.  His tips remain helpful after several years in the sport.

Remickulous

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #16 on: October 18, 2016, 07:51:33 AM »
I absolutely will take your advice, and will be taking his PSUPA instructor course ASAP!

"So many of us in Seattle got started with him" - is there a Seattle paddle scene/group I can get tied into? I would love to come down & paddle with you and/or others. I have YET to meet a local paddler, much less actually paddle with someone else. I heard about "Round the Rock" and will definitely sign up for that next year, but I imagine there's a few of you hardcore folk who paddle year round?

Thanks again for the advice. I will definitely be learning from Rob!
Custom 16' x 33" x 6", 51.6lbs, all the litres
Starboard Coast Runner (2012) 14' x 28", 38.8lbs 293L
Surftech Universal Blacktip, 11'6" x 32" x 5", 32.8lbs 238L
48yo, 215lbs, 70", Bellingham, WA

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suprbowl

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #17 on: October 18, 2016, 09:10:07 AM »
You could check in with Urban Surf. They put on a race series in the summer so will probably know who you should contact. Kudos on swiping that Starboard. You beat me to it! 😜

Remickulous

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #18 on: October 18, 2016, 01:26:54 PM »
You could check in with Urban Surf. They put on a race series in the summer so will probably know who you should contact. Kudos on swiping that Starboard. You beat me to it! 😜

Now that's funny! Had no idea if anyone else might be interested, so I made sure to grab it ASAP, and I'm really glad I did. Imma PM you and blue crab so you have my contact info if y'all ever wanna get out some time.
Custom 16' x 33" x 6", 51.6lbs, all the litres
Starboard Coast Runner (2012) 14' x 28", 38.8lbs 293L
Surftech Universal Blacktip, 11'6" x 32" x 5", 32.8lbs 238L
48yo, 215lbs, 70", Bellingham, WA

Love is never wasted

Bulky

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #19 on: October 19, 2016, 08:42:47 PM »
Fear is a good thing. It keeps us in check and yet gives us something to overcome. I've paddled for  close to 10 years with 100's of miles out in the ocean by myself. Far enough that I can barely make out land. In fact I usually paddle by myself. I prefer my pace to anyone else. Every once in a while when I'm out there, I will get this brief wave of fear over 'what's beneath me'? A lot of water and marine life is the answer, and I forget about it soon after. One time a Humpback whale will surface next to me just to check me out. That's kinda shit catches you off guard and reminds you how small you are. A blip in the ocean. I would have never experienced that paddling in a harbor or a couple hundred yards offshore.

Well said, TD.  I echo this.  I paddle 4-5x a week a dawn always by myself except for maybe 2x/yr.  Just can't find anyone to do it with me but I'm not really recruiting that hard.  Partly because time is of the essence before work and I don't want to spend 5min waiting for someone else or have anyone waiting on me.  Beyond that, the solitude of being out on the water all by myself is something I enjoy.  Lots of sunrise and animal shows--sometimes I'll catch a little on camera but most of them are just for me.  I don't lose sight of land (unless there's fog) but most mornings get 1-1.5mi offshore which means I'm pretty much invisible.

Yeah, there are times where fear becomes a factor--I'd say every 2mos or so I have a couple days where it hits me--I'm in 100ft of water.  No one can see me. Who knows what's under me.  I see it as part of being aware that there is risk in the endeavor.  But then I think through what I've done to manage that risk (leash, phone, clothing) most important is my knowledge of conditions and choosing my route accordingly--if wind/current/swell are a factor, I paddle out into them so I'll get a push home.  My safety plan assumes I'm going to have to self-rescue so that makes staying attached to my board non-negotiable.  If I drop my paddle, I'm tied to my board and can probably prone paddle a mile back to shore in about 20 min.  Can't assume anyone sees you even 200yds offshore--let alone whether they'd be able to tell if you were in distress. 

Not saying this eliminates fear, but it does help to realize I've thought through most of the likely dangers and have a rationale plan.  True, this doesn't cover something hungry with big teeth rising out of the depths to eat me, but I'm not prepared for lightning strikes either.  Statistically, the most dangerous part of my morning routine is the drive to the beach--but I never sit in my car having to talk through fear there.

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Blue crab

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #20 on: October 20, 2016, 12:02:47 AM »
Remick, The community in Seattle is amazing.  Rob is a great place to start. He hosts a race in Ballard every Monday. Urban Surf hosts a race every Wednesday. There are also a few pods of downwind groups who try to make it happen when it is windy.    I think you'll find it to be a really welcoming & kind community. Good luck!

I personally rarely make it to the races / events because I am too damn busy with work & kids.  More often than not, I paddle alone just for a work out & to enjoy nature / solitude as Bulky describes. I even do most of my downwinders solo these days as my wife is really cool about helping shuttle, and I can get the whole thing done most quickly by myself.  I agree with the others that a bit of fear is a good thing. keeps you on top of things...

yugi

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #21 on: October 20, 2016, 04:05:01 AM »
...
 I agree with the others that a bit of fear is a good thing. keeps you on top of things...

yeah!

PonoBill

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #22 on: October 20, 2016, 07:37:14 AM »
Ah, fear. I'm an expert at this. Most of the sports I do require a helmet, except for the ones in the water, and some of those probably should. I took a couple of little poundings at the recent Kalama Kamp in Turks and Caicos and came up gasping and panicked. Made me realize I'm back at the bottom rung of the getting pounded ladder--once again. Every year I go through this. Get held down a little longer than I wanted, struggle for air, and carry a little more fear and caution for the next few weeks, until I settle down and relax in the rinse cycle.

I'm always a little scared at the beginning of every season. Whether it's surfing, downwinding, windsurfing, or racing cars. It's reasonable--I know what the outcome can be. It's not simply a matter of adequate preparation and skill--Mark Foo drowned. Ayrton Senna and Jim Clark crashed and died. There's always some luck involved, and luck runs out (or more precisely for my physics bent, regresses to the mean). And I know my skill level is not really up to the level of challenge I'm willing to undertake. But I know this: Panic is useless. A little fear is good.

That's it, that's all I got.

Oh, two other suggestions. One--Learn to cross-step. Learn it now. Walk around the house cross steppng. Every time you shuffle or jump around the board you're reinforcing your status as a shuffler. I have years of shuffling to overcome. Cross stepping enables you to move along the spine of the board which means you can move without tipping the board side to side. It's not just stability and style--it means the board keeps working the way it should. The most important element is knowing where the pressure of your foot is being applied. Lots of youtube videos, but a quick little video I recently saw by Jeremy Riggs is priceless. Extra bonus--start cross-stepping and your foot pain goes away.

Two--learn to paddle. Dave Kalama's new stroke is a revelation. If you can swing a Kalama Kamp, even one of the short ones that cover only technique, then DO IT. I learned to paddle from Dave about seven years ago, and it made me faster than most people at that time. Then they all got better and I didn't. I have a lot to work on from the new Kalama stroke--it changes all the time, he constantly works on it, but once I have it all converted to autopilot I'll be a lot faster than I was. Faster is important, not just for racing, but for surfing and downwinding. Faster means you caught that bump or made that monster wave, slower means you didn't and the monster's big brother is feathering right behind you and you're caught inside.

Talk about fear...
« Last Edit: October 20, 2016, 07:40:23 AM by PonoBill »
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drfierce

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Re: Beginning SUP - Chronicles of Remickulous
« Reply #23 on: October 20, 2016, 10:32:37 AM »
PonoBill-- do you happen to have a link to that cross stepping video? Not having a lot of luck finding it.
Learn to cross-step. Learn it now. Walk around the house cross steppng. Every time you shuffle or jump around the board you're reinforcing your status as a shuffler. I have years of shuffling to overcome. Cross stepping enables you to move along the spine of the board which means you can move without tipping the board side to side. It's not just stability and style--it means the board keeps working the way it should. The most important element is knowing where the pressure of your foot is being applied. Lots of youtube videos, but a quick little video I recently saw by Jeremy Riggs is priceless. Extra bonus--start cross-stepping and your foot pain goes away.

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