i tried a downwinder the other day to see what all the buzz was about....


i felt no buzz....


just really sore feet...


ended up sitting down and using the paddle as a small sail


i'd rather paddle flatwater on glass with no wind at all,, more relaxing, puts me more 'in the zone'


sorry lads, I just dont get it!?!?!

Greenroom said...

Downwinders are for people who cant surf

tell jamie mitchell,billy watson, woogie marsh,dave kalama etc that they cant surf,

Th0m0 said...

Well I've never tried a down winder but I can see how it would get the adrenaline going. Your out in the open ocean, the wind is howling, huge swells are rolling through. The wind is pushing you along pretty fast, your paddling hard trying to get onto a swell, surfing the swell, trying not to nose dive into the swell in front and then repeating. It definetly wouldn't be relaxing but it sounds like fun to me.

Well said Thomo ...your hit the nail on the head mate .I did my first ever downwinder with DJ at last yr's MamBO ,and what aride I've still got those memory's stuck in my head ,and the way DJ's been doing a heap of downwinders lately I'm sure at this yr's Mambo he'll push the limits again!

I've done a couple of small downwinders ,but thats gonna change as I've teamed up with Stuart from SUPLOVE and with his experiance i can't wait to do more.

The big key for me is the challenge and the thrill of riding open ocean waves,but saftey is another factor which is why you don't do it alone .So maybe you should give it another try with a few mates ,you might enjoy it more!

Cheers

Boylos

Greenroom said...

Downwinders are for people who cant surf

all the good downwind paddlers are top surfers.
it is not that easy doing a proper down wind run.
you have to have either skill or a lot of time to practice.

Oh Greenroom you scallywag!

WINDY MILLER said...
....

i'd rather paddle flatwater on glass with no wind at all,, more relaxing, puts me more 'in the zone'

....

It's not "either or", it's whatever you want to do. If you don't want to do downwinders, don't do them.

I've done a few downwinders and a couple of mega-downwinders (40-50 knots). There's something surreal about standing on the water with massive horizontal sheets of water blowing around you. Similarly, standing up or sitting down with the paddle in the air is kind of fun as you "sail" alongat 8kph.

For some reason catching a wind blown runner is a huge buzz totally out of proportion to the quality of the wave. If you caught a wave of that size and shape in the surf you'd probably give up and go home. Unfortunately catching runners is an acquired skill. You don't just hook into a wave and away you go. DJ does it well and now with his 14' beast he'll be uncatchable. I have had some success but I haven't put in the time or the equipment to get good at it.

I have a couple of problems with downwinders. I'm not all that interested in buying a purpose built downwinder board, and the car shuffling and fiddling about is a bit of a hassle. They are also potentially very dangerous if the wind shifts or you misjudge your course.

The last two 40-50 knot days I have been kiteboarding and I have a new 7m kite coming so I might join you guys on the next downwinder as semi-aerial escort.

cranky said...

Out of interest are the down winders that you guys are having fun with running with the swell? I find the down winders in prevailing conditions here - that is the swell running at about 30+ degrees to the wind - bloody unpleasant to say the least.

heh cranky we do have that problem here in WA, unless you take the ferry over to Rottnest or Carnac island and start there.

Most of the downwinders i have done in Perth are on the Swan River or the estuary in Mandurah. Conditions have been fairly breezy 20-25 knots but did catch lots of little runners.

Did this one 2 weekends ago about 8Km. The problem with this one is the bounce back you get off the river wall when you head along mounts bay road. You can go furhter out but then you are out with the ferries and with a strong wind can sometimes miss the narrows and get blown mid way along the freeway. let me tell you long walk around the corner with a 12 foot board.

Here is one I did in Mandurah the other day 9km


Would be great in those conditions to be going with the wind and swell on the open ocean but logistics for something like that here are too much. Would need boat and support crew etc

Did do one from Trigg to Hillary's but as you stated the swell cuts across you even if the wind is behind, you so bit less enjoyment.

Hi there,

Any one tried downwinders from redcliffe across moreton or deception bay in bris?

boylos said...

Th0m0 said...

Well I've never tried a down winder but I can see how it would get the adrenaline going. Your out in the open ocean, the wind is howling, huge swells are rolling through. The wind is pushing you along pretty fast, your paddling hard trying to get onto a swell, surfing the swell, trying not to nose dive into the swell in front and then repeating. It definetly wouldn't be relaxing but it sounds like fun to me.

Well said Thomo ...your hit the nail on the head mate .I did my first ever downwinder with DJ at last yr's MamBO ,and what aride I've still got those memory's stuck in my head ,and the way DJ's been doing a heap of downwinders lately I'm sure at this yr's Mambo he'll push the limits again!

I've done a couple of small downwinders ,but thats gonna change as I've teamed up with Stuart from SUPLOVE and with his experiance i can't wait to do more.

The big key for me is the challenge and the thrill of riding open ocean waves,but saftey is another factor which is why you don't do it alone .So maybe you should give it another try with a few mates ,you might enjoy it more!

Cheers

Boylos

Stuarts a champ hey. love the downwinders. I have been trying out parking north, paddle down coast for 8-9 kms, leave my gear at a mates, and run back...good gig

i'm thinking twice about getting another dw board, reasons are there is a fair bit of stuffing around with cars transport etc. 2- i wouldn't go out solo and paddling upwind to get some dw action 500 or so metres off shore doesn't cut it and trying to organize pe
ople for a dw is hard. the time factor put in to do an hour or so ends up being 3 hrs or so when its all said and done. when you are doing dw'er they are fanastic and with strong wind and swell it is a challenge for sure, but i'm tending to find there is a lot of talk about dw, but not actually doing a lot of them and the boards aren't cheap- not sure i can justify the expanse
these are just my thoughts on whether to get another dw board
cheers

Hi Lacey,

I also hear the term Downwinder, but I am not convinced that what a lot of people are doing is actually the same state to state.

I believe what you and Dale are doing is very different to what DJ and Jonathon are doing in the bay. One is social the other is very serious competition.

I also think after extensive research I would be more interested in SUPsploring than downwinding.


Phill

Downwinding rocks. But don't kid yourself that going out in a lazy 25-30 knots is the way to do it. Its a sport that really comes alive above 40 knots. Below that is just paddling on a windy day. Sure you can get a few runners and stuff but if you're not a bit afraid then its not the real deal.

My rule of thumb is that when it gets too heavy for the kiters thats when you want to be out there. I've done all the sports and IMO this is testing yourself against nature at its most extreme

It's all starting to sound a bit snobbish, picking up on the differences between downwinding, surfing, supsloring etc. Doing extensive research on the subtleties is just over thinking the situation. The prevailing conditions are beyond our control and will inevitably dictate the activity you do on your board.

AFAIC standing up on a board and paddling is all good. I'd probably prefer to be surfing perfect conditions all the time, but that doesn't happen that often. When it's blowing a gale in the right direction it's a no brainer, if you can organise the car shuffle, to get out there for a downwinder, if there's the swell and the wind is favorable, go for a surf at your favourite spot. For other conditions supsploring (I like that word), finding an island to go fishing, or just paddling for fitness sake and taking in the outdoors works a treat. It's all about getting wet - or is it about staying dry - now I'm confused.

Hey Oliver,

The over analysis is prolly due to the drugs.

I have been trying to work out what board if any to get to do what bit and when.

Then as I said the Supsploring concept seemed to get me more excited. I guess I just want to know whats around the next point or in the next bay etc.

I did some Supfishing recently after seeing some of your posts, I used a silver slice attached to my legrope attachment point and that worked a treat on salmon and was great fun! (Big Thumbs Up)

The Downwind racing / paddling has way more to it than most people understand is the point I was trying to make. To get the most out out it you need to exploit the subtle aspects of each board.

To me the more I looked, I realised the less I knew

It also showed me how much skill is required to do it well and I dont believe most people give the downwind crew enough credit for what they actual achieve.

Phill

oliver said...

It's all starting to sound a bit snobbish, picking up on the differences between downwinding, surfing, supsloring etc. Doing extensive research on the subtleties is just over thinking the situation. The prevailing conditions are beyond our control and will inevitably dictate the activity you do on your board.

AFAIC standing up on a board and paddling is all good. I'd probably prefer to be surfing perfect conditions all the time, but that doesn't happen that often. When it's blowing a gale in the right direction it's a no brainer, if you can organise the car shuffle, to get out there for a downwinder, if there's the swell and the wind is favorable, go for a surf at your favourite spot. For other conditions supsploring (I like that word), finding an island to go fishing, or just paddling for fitness sake and taking in the outdoors works a treat. It's all about getting wet - or is it about staying dry - now I'm confused.

I don't think it's been said before but anyone who's a keen down-hill snow skier or snowboarder will appreciate what down-winders are all about.

It's just like going down a slope or mountain.. Looking for that perfect line and linking up turns etc.. and sometimes stringing together recoveries.

But unlike snow skiing the run is not over in about 10 minutes before having to get back on the chair lift.. Our runs go for at least one or two hours at a time.

We also don't have to pay $100 for a lift ticket and travel hours to get there.. We just have the minor hassle of a car shuffle.

DJ

SurfeeChick said...
...

I have been trying to work out what board if any to get to do what bit and when.

...

With my endless musing on a SUP quiver I am thinking something like the Starboard 12'6" might be a good choice. You can do downwinders, go for a flat water paddle and surf it fairly credibly in ankle slappers up to quite decent sized surf.

It's interesting that people find downwinders hard. I can't stand comfortably on the current crop of sub-10' surf boards but I can stand on a bigger board in downwinder conditions easily. Reliably catching runners is not so easy but I've done that a few times.