Today was a great day. I got home from class and there on my back porch was large rectangular box. A few months ago a friend of mine sent me a new kite to take a look at and try out but he accidentally sent me a kite that was way to small. It was only a 7 meter. The smallest I can do is a 13 meter. I am a big guy I need a lot of pull when I am getting out of the water.
The new kite they sent me was a 12 meter Liquid Force Session. I know I said earlier that I can't use anything smaller than a 13 meter but supposedly because of the new batwing shape of this kite it give more pull with less surface area. Don't ask me I leave the figuring to the R and D people.
I haven't gotten to use the kite yet because I just got it today but I think that it is going to be awesome. Probably the next time I will get a chance to try it out is over christmas. I will be making a trip down to Cape Hatteras over the holidays.
As soon as I can get to an internet connection after my first session I will give all you boarders out there the full run down. All though i can already tell you that this is not an ideal board for those who are just starting out. So for all you Christmas shoppers out there DON'T BUY THIS KITE!!!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Monday, December 8, 2008
Custom Made Board Bags
Everyone knows that when you travel with your boards you are always worried that they could get broken. This is a very real reality. I have had two board damaged already. The best thing to do is buy a board bag. Basically anyone who makes boards also sells the bags.
But what do you do if have a totally custom board like I do. I haven't yet found a bag that would fit my board because it isn't a production model. So I figured out how to make my own bag.
First get some foam rubber and nylon. The best way to do this is lay the board out on paper and you can make a pattern. Then just go to the cloth section of Wal Mart and they can tell you how much of each material you will need.
I took the nylon and coated the inside with an epoxy made for glueing foam rubber. Then I simply put foam rubber on it and let it set up over night. I did both sides the same and then had my grandmaw to attach a zipper to the edge. The two sides zip together and I no longer have to worry about getting my board dinged up in the back of a truck or on a plane.
But what do you do if have a totally custom board like I do. I haven't yet found a bag that would fit my board because it isn't a production model. So I figured out how to make my own bag.
First get some foam rubber and nylon. The best way to do this is lay the board out on paper and you can make a pattern. Then just go to the cloth section of Wal Mart and they can tell you how much of each material you will need.
I took the nylon and coated the inside with an epoxy made for glueing foam rubber. Then I simply put foam rubber on it and let it set up over night. I did both sides the same and then had my grandmaw to attach a zipper to the edge. The two sides zip together and I no longer have to worry about getting my board dinged up in the back of a truck or on a plane.
Take a Lesson
Hey Guys, today I have come to you with a piece of advice. If you want to get into the great new sport of kiteboarding take a lesson. I myself didn't and it can be done that way. But there are many things a lesson can help you with as well as keep you safe.
First off rigging up your kite really isn't very simple. You have to do it right or you wont be able to control your kite properly and that can cause some serious side effects like death. This really isn't a joke because there have been deaths which are mainly due to people being un educated.
Another advantage of taking a lesson is the learning curve is greatly increased. Let me clarify that , you learn much more quickly with the help of someone who knows what they are doing. They can teach you not only the best way to do the stuff but the easiest and also the fastest.
There are a lot of places that give lessons but if you don't know anyone already involved in the sport the best way to do it is go to a school or training camp. The biggest and in my opinion the best is Real Kiteboarding located in Cape Hatteras, NC. The are the worlds largest kiteboarding school. The great thing is all the people are real kiteboarders. This is what they are really passionate about and what they love doing. That is where my buddy Sleazy works he is the sponsored pro I told you all about in an earlier entry. However don't plan on getting your lesson from him they really only keep him around for his celebrity status just kind of as a promotional thing. Still all the instructors are very good and realy know their stuff.
All in all take a lesson and do it at Real Kiteboarding in Cape Hatteras, NC.
First off rigging up your kite really isn't very simple. You have to do it right or you wont be able to control your kite properly and that can cause some serious side effects like death. This really isn't a joke because there have been deaths which are mainly due to people being un educated.
Another advantage of taking a lesson is the learning curve is greatly increased. Let me clarify that , you learn much more quickly with the help of someone who knows what they are doing. They can teach you not only the best way to do the stuff but the easiest and also the fastest.
There are a lot of places that give lessons but if you don't know anyone already involved in the sport the best way to do it is go to a school or training camp. The biggest and in my opinion the best is Real Kiteboarding located in Cape Hatteras, NC. The are the worlds largest kiteboarding school. The great thing is all the people are real kiteboarders. This is what they are really passionate about and what they love doing. That is where my buddy Sleazy works he is the sponsored pro I told you all about in an earlier entry. However don't plan on getting your lesson from him they really only keep him around for his celebrity status just kind of as a promotional thing. Still all the instructors are very good and realy know their stuff.
All in all take a lesson and do it at Real Kiteboarding in Cape Hatteras, NC.
Matt King
Matt is one of my boys that totally knows how to shred. He is an Aussie from Bondi Beach near Sydney. He is one of my idols.
Everything he does with his life goes back to surfing. There is a link to a picture of him where you will see that he has sick hair. He spikes it up not with gel like a regular person but rather he uses surf wax. Thats insane!!!
He rides a 5'8 Hubby Stick and it is gorgeous. He was giving me some advice about visiting Australia. He says don't go to the south where Sydney is but rather I should go to Hamilton Beach. I think I'll take his advice. See logically Australia being below the equator is opposite the way North America is. So in the north being closer to the equator it is warmer.
But the real appeal for me in Australia is the wild life. Since recently got into diving the Great Barrier reef is the most famous place in the world to go SCUBA diving. Matt says the surf is better in the south than in the north. But because of my newest interest, SCUBA diving, I would rather take the surf not being as good and make it one heck of a SCUBA trip.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=2036276&id=659405638#/photo.php?pid=2036276&id=659405638
Everything he does with his life goes back to surfing. There is a link to a picture of him where you will see that he has sick hair. He spikes it up not with gel like a regular person but rather he uses surf wax. Thats insane!!!
He rides a 5'8 Hubby Stick and it is gorgeous. He was giving me some advice about visiting Australia. He says don't go to the south where Sydney is but rather I should go to Hamilton Beach. I think I'll take his advice. See logically Australia being below the equator is opposite the way North America is. So in the north being closer to the equator it is warmer.
But the real appeal for me in Australia is the wild life. Since recently got into diving the Great Barrier reef is the most famous place in the world to go SCUBA diving. Matt says the surf is better in the south than in the north. But because of my newest interest, SCUBA diving, I would rather take the surf not being as good and make it one heck of a SCUBA trip.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=2036276&id=659405638#/photo.php?pid=2036276&id=659405638
Blew a Hammy
We all know that there are those injuries that can occur. There is nothing we can do about it, it's just a risk we deal with because of our love for the water.
The other day my buddy calls me up and asked me if I wanted to go down to Lake Tillery. This girl he was dating has a house down there so I was like sure. We drove down at like nine o'clock. Since it was to late then we decided to hit the sack and get up for an early session of wakeboarding.
We got up at 5 o'clock and went out to warm up the boat. Joe was riding first and I had to drive. He had a couple of nice grinds and was really riding well for having just started this summer.
So finally it was my turn. I put on my wetsuit and jumped in the water. Don't forget that the water temp was about 40 degrees. The boat takes off and yanks me out of the water. I thought he was going to jerk my arms out of socket, he hasn't had a lot of experience driving the boat either. I was riding really well and loving it. Then I had to show my ass.
There are marker buoys in the lake for navigational purposes and also sometimes to mark shoals and banks and things. I signaled Joe to take me over to one. The boat doing about 45 miles an hour I was moving pretty fast. Once I got to the buoy I did or attempted to do what we call a bump grind. The buoys are floating so when you land on them they sink a little so you have to jump off the grind to not lose your balance. Well when I went up I missed my mark on the buoy and it went between my legs and the board. I don't know how it happened. But the boat kept digging and the buoy stayed where it was. So something had to give. That was my ham string. I don't think I have ever had that kind of pain. But you know what they say "no pain no gain".
The other day my buddy calls me up and asked me if I wanted to go down to Lake Tillery. This girl he was dating has a house down there so I was like sure. We drove down at like nine o'clock. Since it was to late then we decided to hit the sack and get up for an early session of wakeboarding.
We got up at 5 o'clock and went out to warm up the boat. Joe was riding first and I had to drive. He had a couple of nice grinds and was really riding well for having just started this summer.
So finally it was my turn. I put on my wetsuit and jumped in the water. Don't forget that the water temp was about 40 degrees. The boat takes off and yanks me out of the water. I thought he was going to jerk my arms out of socket, he hasn't had a lot of experience driving the boat either. I was riding really well and loving it. Then I had to show my ass.
There are marker buoys in the lake for navigational purposes and also sometimes to mark shoals and banks and things. I signaled Joe to take me over to one. The boat doing about 45 miles an hour I was moving pretty fast. Once I got to the buoy I did or attempted to do what we call a bump grind. The buoys are floating so when you land on them they sink a little so you have to jump off the grind to not lose your balance. Well when I went up I missed my mark on the buoy and it went between my legs and the board. I don't know how it happened. But the boat kept digging and the buoy stayed where it was. So something had to give. That was my ham string. I don't think I have ever had that kind of pain. But you know what they say "no pain no gain".
Thursday, December 4, 2008
How I Got My Board
I went to the beach after my junior year in high school. I was with my parents and a friend of mine that was a surfer. We took turns for about three days on his board. This is when i caught my first wave and figured out how easy it was to talk to girls when you are carrying a surf board.
I talked and talked and finally got my mom talked into going with me to a surf shop and renting me a board. But when we got there it was 50 to rent one for 5 hours and it was 100 to buy it. Long story short that is how I got with Silvia Ruiz.
I talked and talked and finally got my mom talked into going with me to a surf shop and renting me a board. But when we got there it was 50 to rent one for 5 hours and it was 100 to buy it. Long story short that is how I got with Silvia Ruiz.
Story
This is a story I found that every surfer needs to read.
I know it is a pain when people always get in your way but man you just got to get over it and ride!!!
I started surfing as a lark. I lived by the beach in Santa Monica and had learned to body surf at Sorrento (Neenies - Famous Weenies) and State Beach.
I had just graduated from Samohi and was going to Santa Monica City College (1956).
A friend talked me into trying board surfing.
I borrowed a home made board from a girl friend's father who was a fireman. The board was a small balsa with a skeg that looked like a boomerang.
It was late afternoon when my friend and I arrived at Malibu. No one was in the water and the waves were tiny little lines breaking at the point.
I got the board out of the car and as I passed a car parked at the curb with it's doors open on the beach side, a voice came out of the darkness, "You can do it, boy".
I glanced in the direction of the voice and saw this big guy lounging in the back seat of this huge sedan. I was so self-conscious I just smiled and lowered my head and continued down the path to the beach. I found out later that the voice belonged to Tube Steak "King of Malibu".
I rubbed some paraffin on the deck of the board and walked into the water with it. I floated the board then tried to lay down on it. Oops!
Flipped right over!
I laughed at myself and how silly I must have looked. I kept trying until I got my sense of balance and started paddling out toward the waves. I don't remember if I caught any waves that first day but I did "pearl" a lot and lost the board on the rocks and learned how hard it is to walk on slippery barnacle covered rocks at low tide.
I kept at it but the borrowed board was really too small for me. I bought a used Velzy-Jacobs "Pig" and finally learned what it felt like to catch a wave and stand up.
It was so much fun and better than body surfing so I went surfing every chance I got.
At first I went for the fun of it but got hooked on the whole scene and started hanging out at Malibu where I met a bunch of great (and crazy) guys and girls.
I became a fairly good surfer and enjoyed the summer fun we all had together.
I remember those rare summer days when it got 6 - 8 ft., glassy and perfect shape.
The only problem with those days was that the word spread quickly and anyone with a board showed up at the beach. It got crowded and lots of people didn't know how to surf very well.
I was a regular at Malibu and when these kooks started taking off in front of me and didn't know how to turn they'd screw up every wave they tried to ride. Everyone got mad at these guys but they were so stupid they didn't care. They just kept getting in the way.
I know it is a pain when people always get in your way but man you just got to get over it and ride!!!
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