Hey, that looks like you are having a cool time, I bet the scenery on those downwinders is mind-blowing.

About the Seal - I never realised they wore bikinis

Glass off said...
About the Seal - I never realised they wore bikinis

Funny..no the seal is further behind the blue beach chair on the waters edge, looks like it is actually touching the top of the chair. They are pretty cool though. And yes the scenery is fantastic.

Nice hat Sue.... very jealous , it's been so long since I was over there. "The Fridge" what is going on near the tail , it looks all sectioned? Have you got any shots of Danny busting it on the Sup ?

Rob

Sue whats that hand brake looking thing on the F16 ? Is it some sort of foot operated tiller.

Jenkz...I'll get the names of some local accom for you today and post it. We are staying with friends at PoiPu which is on the south side of Kauai. A couple of good local surf spots and great downwinds as the trades (NE/NNE) are right behind you. About 1/2 hours drive is another good surf bay (it's like a big U) called Kalapaki. The other day there were 14 SUP's out there. A little crowded but very friendly. On the North Shore, a town called Hanalei, it's about 1 hour drive. Beautiful little town, lots of cute little shops and local craft. Danny surfed it yesterday and found some of the crowd not too happy to see him out there. They are all excellent surfers, never miss a wave, never fall off so it's somewhere I personally won't be going out in. But at the other end of the beach there is a nicer more welcoming break for us beginners. I'll post some photo's if we go back up there.

Just Wrong..you're a funny guy

Piros...The lines at the back of "The Fridge" look like lines of inlayed resin ?? There are 9 lines. Not sure what's going on there. I will ask Kamueia when we drop the board back. The Fridge looks like an Aussie lifesaving Mal. Square edges and flat bottom but it goes really well.
I have no photo's of Danny surfing as I didn't bring all my good camera gear over. Thought I'd bring the kids instead. Too much lugguge. He is going out right now for the 4.5 mile downwind on the F16. His first time on one and he's wearing the Garmin so it will be interesting to see what speeds he reaches.

The Avenger...the rod you see on the F16 is the steering system. You use your left toes to move it. Push right/Go right. Push left/Go left. Yesterday was the first time I have used a steering system and it was a big help especially and the start and end of the run when you have to go side on to the wind in a 1 metre swell.

DJ...weather is beautiful here. Sorry

Bye for now...I will post more pics as I get some.

messup said...

hi sue ,that board looks fantastic i guess there very little pivot turning going on just a quick question is that mega board heavy ? your seem to be holding it easily,
tom

Hey Messup...The Fridge is old and beaten up but it really goes well. You're right, it doesn't pivot well but when the runs are straight behind and big it goes really well and doesn't "pearl" as they call it over here. We are actually struggling abit to hold both boards up against the 20 knot wind. Almost lost mine once. We had to move behind a house to be more protected so we could take the photo. But they are both pretty light. I'm guessing the F16 is about 12kg ?? and The Fridge 15kg ??

Sue it looks like they have cut it to adjust the rocker ? You're right where too and not too surf over there , they get pretty defensive about there breaks.

Keep the picks rolling in and when you drive past a "Jack In The Box" drop in and eat a bacon and egg breakfast pocket for me , you will need to do a 10 mile downwinder to burn it off but I loved them [}:)]

Rob

There's no news on the home front Sue, just the usual preseason stuff. Now i know why you crossed over to SUP. ...hahaha

Cheers Rambo

Spent the day on the North Shore of Kauai at Hanalei. A very cute little town and one of my favourite places in the World. The main strip is about 150 metres long. No curb and channeling, no traffic lights, no advertising, no fastfood chains. Just little local shops and cafes in old Hawaiian timber buildings. The town is surrounded by huge mountains and waterfalls and lush vegetation. It's where they filmed "Jurrasic Park" on the Napali Coast (You can see the start of it in the pics below). You drive your car right onto the little beach and paddle out 3 minutes to the break. (To the right of the pics). Today was 6 foot face right handers and about 10 SUP's out at all times, though about 40 came and went throughout the day. Everyone from 3 yrs to 70 yrs, experts to novice, all types of boards. They are just everywhere. I managed to get out the back and sit and watch the big boys surf right by me and the waves are about 150 metres long from way out the back. (Sorry I'm not too good at surf talk..just trying to paint a picture ??). I only wish I had a waterproof video camera to capture it all.

Laird Hamilton's father Bill was out there with his old Golden Retriever catching some great waves on a SUB with no paddle. We met eyes and said Hi. Me trying to look cool and not fall off my Laird 12' Softtop ?? Laird was apparently out yesterday and while on the same wave as a long board friend of mine, passed him his paddle and said, "here try this man" as they were on the same wave.

Back to Oahu tomorrow night to surf Waikiki at night on a full moon. Apparently a cool thing to do??. And we just checked the surf report here. This Thursday is forecast a 12-18ft Hawaiian, 18-30 feet Face on the North Shore. So they may be calling the "Eddie Aikau" on for next weekend which will be amazing to see. Bye for now.

Great pics Sue.. Thanks.. It looks like heaven on a stick..

DJ

LaPerouse Bay - Do ya mean the mountain range was the inspiration for the song?
Or is there lots of puff growing up there?

Awesome pics thanks Aussie wahine - keep em comin!

Oh my God Sue - what a trip the family are having ! It's Kim ( TCO - Nat's sister ) here. Am so hooked and in love with my SUP now also .... so have not been doing half the outrigger pre season training that I should have, as I am out catching waves all the time on my SUP. Am so anti training in the Tweed river when the points have been such fun ! Am busting to do a SUP downwind one day, as I know that I will love that element also. Cannot believe the size of the F16 you are holding. See you aroud maybe when the OC6 marathon season starts. Keep chalking up the good life over there.

Nice to hear you guys are having a great time. I was on oahu just before xmas, caught the pipeline swell and had some amazing sup waves at himalayas and a few other spots. I was lucky enough to get a 9'6 and 10'6 Naish dropped off and they got used every day. I had 7 surfs in one day, staying right in front of a few great breaks I couldn't stay out of the water. Looking forward to supping with you on the sunny or gold coast one day if you ever come home. Go well. Fun little moment with Laird hey.

Hey piros, full moon paddle could be suss with all the bities at the moment. 3 underwater grey mozzie bites in 2 days, they've got the whole east coast covered.

Piros said...

aussiewahine said...


Laird was apparently out yesterday and while on the same wave as a long board friend of mine, passed him his paddle and said, "here try this man" as they were on the same wave.

Back to Oahu tomorrow night to surf Waikiki at night on a full moon.

How cool is that have you done the full moon paddle yet? we are planning the same thing here just waiting for the right moon and tide.

Keep the pics rolling Sue they're great.

Rob

Piros said...

How cool is that have you done the full moon paddle yet? we are planning the same thing here just waiting for the right moon and tide.

Just watch out for those naughty sharks, I think they prefer feeding at night. Those bull sharks who roam the canals where you guys live - they have poor vision and just sense movement and will strike at any time - so I've been told. I think the guy snorkeling today in Southern NSW was attacked by a bull shark.

Here's a pic of the guys leg who went out at Fingal the other day. The story said that it bit him on the back of his thigh.... I just can't figure out where his arse and his other leg is.



These publicized shark stories just add to the drama of a night paddle, statistics show you are more likely to die or be injured on the roads going to or coming home from a good session. If I was to choose how to die, I reckon a shark wouldn't be too bad - at least you would have more chance of being remembered by future generations and get a few more hodads down at your funeral cause of the added publicity.

Sorry If I hijacked your thread again - doh

Well didn't end up surfing at night on the full moon. Got back from Kauai that afternoon only to find a Kona Wind, which means it's from the South which means it's wind blown, choppy, no wave crappy ! Even though I was disappointed the highlight of that day was seeing Laird at the Kauai airport. Nearly ran him over on a pedestrian crossing.

Photo's below are after another race yesterday. 8 mile from Makai Pier to Kailua on the east side of the island. Conditions were flat, hot, no wind, no runs. I met alot of these paddlers afterwards. A great bunch all offereing me to take their boards out but unable to with the kids on the beach with me and Danny M.I.A. He was racing OC1 and had an unfortunate incident with a 3 foot rouge wave off Rabbit Island. Only one canoe length off the lead.

First place in the SUP was the Camo board. Not sure the brand. Looks alittle like the Fridge with the square sides. I think it was home made. 2nd was the blue 14' Vortice (Guy who won last weeks race). 3rd the Girl on the Infinity 12'6". Then next 3 places were Jimmy Lewis 12'6". Notice where they put their race numbers which I think is a cool idea.

Last shot (boards leaning up against the trees) is at a friends house on the beach at Hawaii Kai where we had a bbq last night. Unfortunately my camera battery went flat about then. Bye for now

1st Place Camo Board (Norm Bradley)



2nd C4 Vortice


12'6" Infinity



12' 6" Jimmy Lewis (Jeff Chang)



Kailua


A friend's Quiver