Have a look at this photo:

I am by no means a surf safety nazi. But having been on the receiving end of bad vibes for no good reason while paddle surfing in both northern california and southern california, this sort of thing makes us look pretty careless.

A 170 lbs paddler endoing an 18’ foot long sea kayak in a mixed break is asking to get himself creamed by some meth-heads and as a result the rest of us will pay the collective karma on this.

Of course it looks cool. Of course he might be further away than he looks in the photo. But even I will be the first to say a sea kayak has little place in a crowded break. I can just picture him high bracing and bongo sliding his way through the break zone wiping out boardies left and right.

Sigh. After the articles in the Santa Cruz Newspaper we need to be getting better, not worse.

Your thoughts!

Comedy Skit with Ben Stiller of the Locals Only Surf Beach

I’m not sure how old this skit is, or on which tv show it might have first appeared. Based on the fact that the Malone Brothers are in it, it seems likely it is recent. I’m pretty sure I met these guys on the boardwalk right next to Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz.

Kayak Surfing Santa Cruz

I was fortunate enough on my SMX west conference to swindle two days of kayak surfing near Santa Cruz into the mix.

I did some research about where to rent a surf kayak, but then remembered the flippant offer from world surf competitor Sean Morely to give him a call if I wanted to surf. I managed to get a hold of him and he offered to take me out, but it didn’t work out, and he had a class to attend for a new ACA surf instructor certification. So he benevolently lent me a carbon kevlar Valley Rush and a paddle.

Sean gave some advice that Davenport, about 10 Miles north of Santa Cruz would probably be the best place to try as it is more paddle surfer friendly. Laura and I loaded up the surf kayak on our tiny rental car and drove north along California Highway 1. The drive is beautiful with a dramatic coastline and lots of open space unlike a lot of Southern California. We found Davenport Landing quite easily. I walked down the beach and checked out the break. A medium size swell was breaking in a manageable fashion off of some offshore rocks. But the waves came right up to some cliffs and rocks. On the other side of the break and further out, there were some very large faces that appeared to be more dumpy. I was clearly not going to go near that.

Day 1 Davenport Landing

I suited up and headed out. Again, paddling out on flat water is always a treat for a midwestern boy! Once out I was quite cautious because of all the rocks. but once I started catching rides I calmed down a bit. I caught a number of excellent rides and scooted off the back before they crashed into the onshore rocks. Faces were 4-6 feet at most. I managed to only wipe out once or twice. I can say that I had forgotten how awful it is to use a straight shaft white water paddle for rolling, the indexing is very iffy and I felt pretty rushed to get some air a few times.

Day 2 Davenport Landing

This day was far windier than the first. Wind was peaking at about 20 knots. This is more what I am accustomed to kayak surfing on Lake Michigan. The faces were smaller and harder to catch. I still caught some great rides. I even managed to paddle with some other kayak surfers, which is a first for me. And as it turns out fortuitous. I had the bum luck of a dumb swim. The wind and the rip carried me to the far end of the break, and I had to stand cold, tired, and feeling a little stupid on the beach. The surf was not even as big as it had been on Lake Michigan on days when I had stayed in the boat. I keep reminding myself that for a beginning kayak surfer on Great Lakes Surf with no training, maybe I should be more forgiving of my follies. Hopefully I get to make a few more mistakes!

The Valley Rush Surf Kayak

The kayak was excellent! I’ve never surfed such a fast surf craft. Once downwave this boat was unbelievable. It’s far and above the sweetest ride I’ve had yet. The power pocket tail was really helpful in getting a good takeoff. Though it seemed a little loose in the tail on some turns where I got squirted out of the whitewater. I think the fin placement could have used a little adjustment to the back to allow me to grab a little tighter.

Many Thanks to Sean for the opportunity to paddle the Rush!

Check out the picasa picture gallery:

In the three times I’ve kayak surfed in California there’s always been a bad vibe from board surfers. Until you sort of creep out and slowly surf the premium part of the break. You have to show them that you aren’t going to kill them when you wipe out.

There was an interesting article with some editorial comments posted in the Santa Cruz Sentinel
about the Surf Kayaking Competition in Santa Cruz.

It sounded like the editorial was fairly balanced, but that the comments got a little out of whack.

For my part as a visitor, I always approach with humility, but if I lived there I am not sure where I would fall on the militant line of rights to surf where I like.

Thanks to my benevolent benefactor and intrepid guide Chuck Freedman, I was able to paddle not once, but twice on what would normally have been a land based trip to San Francisco.

Chuck made a long drive from Reno Nevada with gear to paddle with me.

We decided to head out to Santa Cruz and paddle north along the coast. We were treated with sea stars, pelicans, a hoard of sea lions, and after some searching, sea otters. As a great lakes paddler, I am used to an inert sea, a sea teeming with life sometimes bigger than the kayak is a real treat. The sea lions were not very wary of humans and let me get quite close. The sea otters were quite jumpy about me. I tried to gauge distance, but found that I drifted too close, the sea otter turned and hissed at me in anger and then dove.

Chuck and I proceeded along the coast followed by sea lions and pelicans. We ducked into coves, caves and around sea stacks. Can’t top that.

The wind was up around 20 knots and gusting to thirty, so we turned around and sailed back into the harbor.

The paddle under the Gate and along the Marin headlands was nothing short of magical. The wind was up again in the bay, around 25 knots. We ducked behind the headlands and followed the coast tucking in and out of coves. We hurried past gay nude beaches, and then finally saw some harbor seals. They were quite nervous about us and all nipped into the water once our kayaks were within a few hundred yards. But they continued to be curious about us until we rounded the Marin Headlands and saw the lighthouse. The seas were very lumpy around the outside. I managed to squeeze off a few shots, but the clapotis off the rocks was pretty intense while my hands were not on my paddle.

Chuck and I surfed back with the wind and the tide. Two and a half hours out, 45-50 minutes back. It was the sort of sea state that brings joy to my heart. White caps as far as the eye could see, green frothy seas whipping along. A few good sprints carried me along at a terrific pace. It was one of those days where you wish you could go on forever, and then off the edge of the map.

Once again, I am surprised and given faith in human kind when you meet someone as generous and kind spirited as Chuck. He didn’t know me from Adam, but dedicated his time and his effort to bring me out onto the sea in one of his favorite places. The world seems a brighter place for this sort of person.

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