Author Topic: Okinawa Intro  (Read 2943 times)

OkiWild

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Okinawa Intro
« on: March 18, 2019, 07:09:49 AM »
I originally posted this in the Sessions section, but was requested to post it to General, as it's an intro, and Sessions doesn't get as much traffic. Sorry for the double post.



Hello all. Enjoyed a couple of hours out by myself yesterday afternoon at a break close to the house. Only about waist to shoulder high, but clean. All I have are "me" shots, as filming myself is all new. One shot with some backdrop. Only have a GoPro 7, and still trying to figure out the best way to use it. Don't really like the nose camera, but not real happy with how POV turns out, either.  All tips and tricks welcome.

About me. Turned 50 last January... Lived in Okinawa Japan for most of my life. Surfing here for almost 40 years, and a recent convert to SUP. Same old story...painful shoulder when prone paddling, old knee injuries, etc. Been pretty inactive for the last 5 years, as far as surfing goes. Injury plus tired of the growing crowds, hassling for every wave, and hostilities I see towards less experienced surfers. So I mostly left the lineup and hitting more remote breaks by sea kayak, and by myself.

I had NO IDEA that SUP surfing was even a thing. I knew there were people on super tankers here and there, but that was it. So July before last, a friend who knows I surf, starts telling me that he's taken up "downwind sup racing," how it's a great workout, and that i should try it... First thing out of my mouth was "SUP's are for kooks." LOL. After thinking about it for a week, I called a friend who owns a large surf shop I used to ride for, and ask him what he had for "race boards." He sells me a 12'6" Kazuma displacement board for about $1,500 off of local retail, a paddle, and it's on. Used it for daily 5-10km flat water paddles, and even tried to do a few down-winders on it.

One day while out on the big bay by my house, doing my daily work out paddle, there were some small, knee-high, rollers coming in, and I thought "I wonder if you can surf this thing?" Wave after wave of 200 meter glides, and I was absolutely hooked. Started surfing it in larger and larger surf, and had so much fun, it was nuts.

But I sucked so bad at the downwind thing, I went to Youtube, and found all the Blue Planet downwind videos. Pretty quick, I ordered a 14' Bumprider from them, and the world of SUP surfing opened up to me.

A year and a half later, I've sold all of my surfboards, have the two race boards plus four surfing SUP's, four paddles, etc. Back to surfing 3-5 times a week without bad shoulder problems, and have a whole new respect for how hard it really is to paddle into waves while standing up. Especially the 99% reef break we have here. I've found the local Japanese SUP surfer community I never knew existed, and everyone is super cool.

Super stoked to have found this part of surfing, and this community. Wasn't easy getting access to this board...LOL

Cheers,
Matt

JimK

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #1 on: March 18, 2019, 07:13:22 AM »
Looks fun...STAY STOKED

JimK
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surfinJ

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #2 on: March 18, 2019, 08:47:31 AM »
Hey Oki, looking forward to some videos to catch up on how it looks over there.

While stationed at Kadena AB in the 80s I had an apartment on the Sunabe sea wall and mostly surfed out front. When it was bigger there was a heavy spot at a sea wall by the Hija river just to the north. My favorite road trip was to the cove on Ikei island.  The island was empty back then.  Wondered if we ever surfed together?

Wetstuff

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #3 on: March 18, 2019, 10:44:48 AM »
Welcome, Matt ...another new face ..and, he brings pictures too!   Cool to seaweed in photo #2.   Does that seaweed cause any issues?  What's the water temps, etc? 

Jim
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burchas

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #4 on: March 18, 2019, 10:49:08 AM »
Good Stuff. Better late than never :)
in progress...

Dusk Patrol

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #5 on: March 18, 2019, 12:33:28 PM »
Hey welcome... great story.   

A year and a half later, I [...] have the two race boards plus four surfing SUP's, four paddles, etc.
   ;D
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JEG

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #6 on: March 18, 2019, 01:04:03 PM »
fun times ahead OkiWild   ;D

OkiWild

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #7 on: March 18, 2019, 07:52:06 PM »
Hey Oki, looking forward to some videos to catch up on how it looks over there.

While stationed at Kadena AB in the 80s I had an apartment on the Sunabe sea wall and mostly surfed out front. When it was bigger there was a heavy spot at a sea wall by the Hija river just to the north. My favorite road trip was to the cove on Ikei island.  The island was empty back then.  Wondered if we ever surfed together?

If you surfed here in the 80's we most likely surfed together. Of course, I graduated HS is '87, so I was a grom ;-)  Do you remember Steve, with the one wandering eye? Spoke perfect Japanese back then? Pretty popular figure in those days. Just north of the marina is "Turtles," which can be surfed when other spots start getting really heavy and closing out. Just north of that, and right next to the Hija river is "Steps," aka mini-pipes. Really heavy when it's on. The pictures above are from Miagi island, which is just south of Ikei. Surfed there this morning, too. Ikei is crowded with surfers now, and I prefer to stay completely off of surfer peaks. The SUP makes everything so much more accessible with so little trouble. There's a spot on the way to Ikei/Miagi that's about a 1 mile paddle called Dupe Reef. Only surfed it a handful of times, the first time with a pro surfer named Rusty somethingorother. He caught the first wave, so got the naming rights. It was a long paddle and a really crappy day, so "Dupe" it was. That reef absolutely fires, and is nothing to get to on a SUP now.

Things have changed so much, you wouldn't recognize it. For better and for worse :-)

Welcome, Matt ...another new face ..and, he brings pictures too!   Cool to seaweed in photo #2.   Does that seaweed cause any issues?  What's the water temps, etc? 

Jim


Hi Jim, thanks for the welcome. Very little seaweed here. That's the reef refracting in that picture. The water is crystal clear most of the time. On dead calm glass days, it can be hard to surf, as you can't see the water :-)  Current water surface temp is 23°C (74°F). Was out this morning, and the air temp was 20°C (68°F). I wear a full suit because I'm a sissy. Rather be warm and comfy... Summer water temps peak at around 29°C (85°F).

PonoBill

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #8 on: March 18, 2019, 09:05:56 PM »
...so let me tell you about SUP foiling.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

OkiWild

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #9 on: March 18, 2019, 10:11:40 PM »
...so let me tell you about SUP foiling.

...funny you should mention that  :)  Two kids still in college, so I have to wait until later this summer, but it's in the works.

surfinJ

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #10 on: March 18, 2019, 11:46:25 PM »
Yea that spot was Steps, scary. My time there got me used to the reef view on takeoff.  I left the island in ‘87.  A lot of memories.

On google earth I can see the changes, massive. I would surf Ikei often alone, munching on some fresh caught umi shared by locals on the beach after.

blueplanetsurf

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #11 on: March 19, 2019, 01:52:49 AM »
Good to see you on the Zone Matt, keep posting!
Robert Stehlik
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surfercook

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Re: Okinawa Intro
« Reply #12 on: April 02, 2019, 09:11:29 PM »
Ah fresh sup stoke. Nice.  I like "OkiWild" better than Matt though!  ;D
Pretty much same deal for me. Shoulder/knees, ect, ect. Although I was drawn to sup way b4 actually took it up.
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