Men’s Race

Having won the Nelo Summer Challenge convincingly, just two weeks before, Sean Rice was in a confident mood.

“Portugal was a test of fitness,” he said.  “So, I was really happy with the win there.”

His preparation for the Irish race included travelling to the venue half a dozen times over the last few months to paddle and familiarise himself with the course.  Two weeks of focussed paddle training back in London put the finishing touches on his preparation.

Jasper Mocke and Hank McGregor, before the start

Here we go...

When he saw the conditions on Saturday morning, current ICF Ocean Racing World Champion Cory Hill thought, “Here we go…

“We knew what we were in for,” he said.  “We had pretty much the who’s who of surfski racing on the line at the start.”

The weather had thrown a curve-ball at the race; after the previous two days of howling gale-force winds, Storm Ali had moved on, leaving an almost unnatural calm in her wake. 

The conditions for race?  2-4kt of breeze, a predicted swell of 10cm, sea temperature 14C and air temperature 11C!  It was going to be a 22km grind…

Hotspot

The €2,000 hotspot prize meant that the pace was frantic from the start.

Sean Rice lead the way off the beach, Hank McGregor and Sean’s brother Kenny on either wave, with Cory Hill, Gordan Harbrecht and Jasper Mocke one wave back.  200m from the buoy, McGregor accelerated with Cory Hill, but Rice responded, even opening a small gap to take the €2,000 bounty.

Drone's view of the start of the Men's Race

Sean Rice takes the hotspot prize

For a brief period after the turn, the seven paddlers looked set for a marathon-style wash-riding contest.

“After the turn, I did a hard km,” said Rice.  “But when I looked back, everyone was still close.

“Then we went through a fleet of racing yachts and I kicked on a wave and put my head down.” 

L-R: Jasper Mocke, Cory Hill and Austin Kieffer, just after the hotspot

Fracture

The group fractured, leaving McGregor, Rice, Hill and Harbrecht in the front bunch. 

A few km later, Hill took up the pull.  “Hank was looking comfortable, but 6km in, he left the bunch and moved further out to sea,” said Rice. 

“Cory did a burn and we were moving really fast,” said Rice.  McGregor dropped back and then there were three in the front bunch.

With eight kilometres to go, Rice decided to accelerate again to see if he could force one of the others to drop off the wave.  To his surprise both Hill and Harbrecht dropped back.

One of the stand-out performances was that of Austin Kieffer who finished in 5th, just behind Hank McGregor

When he reached the channel on the inside of Dalkey Island, Rice steered close to shore to avoid the tidal currents that he’d experienced previously on his practise runs.  “But the tide was just on the turn,” he said. “I could see that Cory was keeping up, so I moved out to the middle of the channel.

“There was never a paddles-down moment,” said Rice.  “But it was never totally flat either.”

The finish was inside Dun Laoghaire harbour, 500m of flat, sheltered water from the entrance.

“I wanted to get to the entrance with a slight lead,” said Rice.  “I’d invested energy at the start so the last thing I wanted was a sprint finish.” 

Sean Rice

In fact, Rice finished in 1:29:26, 57 seconds in front of Cory Hill; a convincing margin in the conditions.

“It’s funny that Sean was talking about doing intervals,” said Hill.  “It was a sprint from the start!  It’s almost embarrassing; he’s in a league of his own right now.”

Fantastic Year

“It’s been a fantastic year,” said Rice.  “We had a great summer, so training has been easy and my motivation high.”

Deliberately choosing not to burn himself out at Molokai (which he won in 2017) or by doing marathon worlds this year, Rice is also enjoying living in London.  “It’s been a real advantage to be back home within a couple of hours of each race,” he said. 

At 29, Rice feels as though he’s “just beginning to mature.

“I’ve developed a really good instinct on my feelings and what’s happening with the boat,” he added.  “Even when I lose, I know why.  I train very hard, but I don’t kill myself the way I used to.  I do feel that I can do this for a while longer,” he added.

In spite of being well prepared for the Irish Coast race, however, Rice said, “I was really, really nervous, to the point where I was almost feeling that the nerves and anxiety wasn’t worth it! 

“Having finished the race, today I felt really cool!  I got a bit of a smack at the Gorge, felt I had to change and did the change.

“I’m enjoying the ups; the downs are still mendable,” he said.  “I’d go crazy if I couldn’t race in some capacity!”

He was full of praise for “Flash” Gordan Harbrecht, who came in third.  “Gordan’s result isn’t a surprise,” Rice said.  “But this weekend he beat some really big names – a huge result.  And he’s done the hard yards, including visiting Cape Town to train…” 

Getting In

"...those videos at the end weren't me," she said.  "But I was lucky to get a clean run in after waiting for sets again but my GoPro battery was flat by then so had no footage."

In the video the paddlers exercise more restraint, avoiding the temptation to ride those swells in to the beach...  Eventually, they choose their moment, let the wave roll under them and chase the back of it...  It only takes about 20-40 strokes and you're past the impact zone.  Easy to say, difficult to do.

The second paddler has to do it twice.

Sharon's had some practice though - this was her 80th downwind this year!  The Queen of Durban Downwind!

Weather Forecast

“The locals say the forecast is only worth looking at from two days out,” said Hayley Nixon.  (Where have I heard that before?!) 

As I write this, Storm Ali is approaching the UK and Ireland with 40-50kt gusts predicted for Wednesday morning (downwind, anyone?), but the forecast for Saturday says that the winds will be light, SW, swinging to the SE.  Let’s hope the locals are correct and that the forecast changes before Saturday…  (Careful what you wish for though – the forecast for Sunday is for 30-50kt westerlies!)

The Loot

The prize pot is enormous by surfski standards.  If the first paddler to get to the hotspot also wins the race, they’ll walk away with €10,000, not too shabby.

Links

For more info, see the links below.

Click here for the list of confirmed entries (and results will appear here too)

Click here for the race website

Click here for the race Facebook page

About to turn onto a ferry-boat wake

The short version is: I totally love how the boat handles. This is THE boat for me at my current level. It seems fast, I LOVE it in the short Oslo runs and the summer power boat chop – meaning 1-2-3 ft intersecting waves from all directions all summer + wind waves reflecting from steep cliffs.

Being nimble is important in our steep choppy waters, and this boat is just that! Turn, accelerate, go!

Windy Conditions

In late summer we’ve had  a lot of good winds, ranging from 9-20m/s mean wind speeds. On a few occasions I’ve been surprised on the water as the wind suddenly kicked in. Normally I’d head back and opt for my Swordfish or even my V8Pro for these forecasts, but I was surprised to learn how the short V11 just sailed on. It rolls, but you get used to it, and I’ve had some fun days in it.

Comparisons

All this is a personal issue and might be little value to others, so I’ll try to compare the experience to other boats:

• The Oscar-era Nelo560 I owned was much the same, lively, fun, fast and wild but not too wild, but destroying my buttbones. Perhaps the Nelo is a bit more twitchy – but only by a few points.
• My old love the great THINK Uno Max is a paddle bus, a fast bus for sure, faster on flat and in small chop. When conditions get big I don't enjoy it as much as the V11.
• The V14 (of course) is a tad more unstable, but the biggest difference though is that it’s much more easy for me to manoeuvre the short V11 in waves – letting me catch rides and runs moments after I see them.

Summertime... and paddling is easy...!

Horses for Courses

We get short steep waves in Oslo. I wasn’t too fast in my V12 in Oslo, but I was very fast in my V12 when I got home to the long fast predictable runs in windswept sandy Danmark. The V11 is an Oslo / Sune boat and I love it.

In Summary

I like it so much I’ve ordered the new V10 Elite 3^rd generation as well. Did that a long time ago, and sometimes I wonder if I really need it now that I’ve become one with my V11.

I’ve owned 27 surfskis, I’ve liked quite a few, fell in love with maybe two or three, but it’s the light nimble V11 that I want to paddle when I get home from work these days.

So is this useful for you? I don’t know. For reference I’m 44, started paddling at 37, at 38 Boyan told me my technique probably couldn’t get worse even if I tried, at 40 I went to Fish Hoek to paddle Millers run with Nikki Mocke in 15ft+  (figure rising every time I tell the story) swell and waves and loved/hated it. Normally though I paddle anything from flat, small runs and lighter downwinds at 10-26kt winds in Oslo and Denmark, and paddle 5 times a week for fun, fitness, friendship and sometimes for competition.

Downsides?

Yeah, but not too many. The paddle bangs against the sides of the boat now and then, and the lid on the rudder house expands in the heat and gets stuck. EPIC has informed they’ll fix that though. The hairline scratches are not pretty on a jewel like this – but inevitable.

Now that our awesome summer is ending or has ended, the autumn winds are slowly brewing and I’m looking forward to comparing the V11 to the new 3^rd Gen V10 in the months to come!

I’m not suggesting that you rush down to your dealer and buy a V11. You might be way past my skill level or you might find the ski way too much to handle. All I’m saying is that finish and construction are first rate, the ski is very light and solid. I find that it handles very well in short steep confused as well as larger runs and surfs very well. Feels rock solid on the runs and doing good upwind despite being light, although it surely doesn’t have the directional stability that my Think Uno owns.

Biggest difference being that the V11 turns on a dime making paddling downwind while picking between emerging waves very fun. Don’t know if / don't think that it’s faster than speeding on a straighter line in a V14, but you get a very satisfactory feel for the water in the V11. Haven’t tested it in fast long runs where my Think rules though. But – it’s surely an Oslo / Sune boat for now!

Sune Wendelboe, Oslo, August 2018

Click here to see Sune's Blog

Follow Sune on Instagram here. 

Waka Ama

Kevin Jerusalamy, a highly ranked waka ama paddler from Tahiti, was locked in a titanic battle with Kaitaia’s Tupuria King from start to finish, and only managed to finish less than a minute in front to take the win in the waka ama division.

Kevin Jerusalamy

It was a brave effort from Jerusalamy who had struggled in relatively cold conditions.  He and King were paddling side by side for the entire race until the last 500 metre dash to and through the archway.

Race director Tim Eves said the event had lived up to high expectations with the battle in the waka ama division particularly engaging.

Results Summary

Ocean surfski: 

1. Sam Djodan (Aust) 1h 51m 15s
2. Simon Longdill (Akld), 1h 54m, 14s
3. Sam Mayhew (Akld), 1h 54m 54s, 

Waka ama: 

1. Kevin Jerusalamy (Tahiti), 2h 3m 12s
2. Tupuria King (Kaitaia), 2h 3m 40s
3. Stephen Roulton (Whangarei), 2h 4m 7s,

SUP: 

1. Jan Dunlop (Akld), 2h 35m 55s
2. Sam Johnson (Whangarei) 2h 36m 32s
3. Jonno Leonard (Akld), 2h 46m 35s

The DNA – first looks

Like all of Allwave’s products, the finish on this boat is spectacular.  Measurements are:

• Weight: 11kg (in carbon)
• Length: 640cm/21ft
• Width: 42.8cm/17in

While it looks similar to the CX, Roberto confirmed that the main differences are:

• Cockpit moved 7cm forward.
• Rudder moved 7cm forward.
• Raised rails (to make the cockpit drier).
• Slightly increased volume in the nose.
• Increased footwell length to cater for taller paddlers.

The rocker in the hull is unchanged.

In other respects, the DNA is the same as the CX: it has the same footplate and adjustments and you can adjust the leg length while seated in the ski.  The angle of the rudder pedals is also easily adjusted using a jamming cleat mounted on the front bulkhead.

Footplate fittings

The rudder bar (beautifully machined and clearly extremely strong) is now hidden under a hatch cover and they’ve done away with the emergency steering mechanism that I so admired in the original CX.

(Roberto said that the practical problem with the system was that the bungy cord tends to lose its elasticity over time and they had complaints from paddlers who said that the system didn’t work when it was needed… 

My answer to those paddlers - having used the system in a real emergency - is that they should replace the bungie regularly along with their rudder cables.  This is called “annual maintenance”!) 

Paddling the DNA

My first paddle was on the sea, near the ancient Roman Port of Ostia (my mind was constantly blown by the history of ancient Rome).  On the way we paused for the first of many times for coffee…  It seems that in Italy one cannot go for more than about 45min without a hit of caffeine!

Post paddle - with Stefano Pirrello, Allwave's agent in Sydney, Australia

Conditions were perfect for the first run – a light breeze and an almost flat sea.

The DNA is a snug fit for me; plenty of room to rotate, but you’re firmly in contact with the boat.

Setup was quick, with no need for Allen Keys or other tools.

(Not having brought my own paddle, I borrowed an Orka Inner Pro, made by Orka paddles in Cape Town.  I used the paddle for my entire stay and enjoyed it – it’s an easy and comfortable to use medium-size blade that plants in the water cleanly and doesn’t twist or skid in the stroke.)

Stefano (in the CX) and I did a number of ins-and-outs and my immediate observation was how fast the boat feels. 

It’s more tippy than my swordfish – but that was no surprise.  (As time went on, however, my feelings changed from “Nice, but I’d sweat it on a Miller’s Run” to “Oh boy, I can’t wait to try this on a Miller’s Run”…)

The sea was calm, but there were small bumps in the water.  Several times as Stefano and I were paddling steadily alongside each other, I found myself catching runs and smoothly accelerating away.  This was the first sign to me at rate that the boat is a surfing machine…

Back to the lake and out we went for dinner – and possibly the best fish dish I’ve ever experienced at the Ristorante Il Pioppo…  oh man.

I have to digress here and mention the food.  It was wonderful to stay with the Spigolis and to experience authentic Italian food…  the pastas were, not surprisingly, nothing like the imitations we get back home.  And in three days I put on more than a kilo in weight…

Italians seem to have an insatiable appetite for caffeine!

Flat Water

The next morning, we started with some paddling on the glassy lake… 

Stefano and I did a series of intervals and even with my disreputable flat-water technique, I was maintaining around 13kph, which for me is appreciably faster than I normally achieve on the flat!  

Glassy conditions on Lake Bracciano

We had just returned to shore when I noticed the Sabazia II ferry boat, the only powered vessel allowed on the lake, passing on its two-hourly circumnavigation…  so of course, we headed out to ride its wake.

It was too far out, and we didn’t make it – but we were able to turn and ride the wake waves anyway and once again it was clear that the boat just loves to jump onto a wave, however small.  I was riding the waves diagonally and the boat didn’t show any sign of broaching either.

Chasing wakes

Ladispoli Downwind

Then it was time for more pasta, before we headed down to the sea again, this time to paddle from Ladispoli to Passo Oscuro with one of Roberto’s customers and friends, Emilio. 

We stopped on the way for coffee (of course) and we finally figured out that what I normally drink at home is what Italians recognise as Café Latte…  One drawback of ordering a latte though is that I was left behind while the others tossed their espressos down…  I swear for them, it’s just a caffeine hit.

The paddle turned into a really pleasant, mellow run…  It wasn’t exactly a downwind; some of the time we actually had a gentle headwind (which was a blessing in the heat) but we did have small runs the whole way, and it was enormous fun. 

For me, the fundamentals of a good downwind boat include:

• A perceptible acceleration as the back of the boat lifts up and you take off onto a run – even on a very small wave
• The ability to surf diagonally down the face of a wave without losing control and broaching
• The ability to turn from a diagonal back onto the run so that you execute s-turns to stay on a wave

Clearly any boat will broach if you’re careless, but I’ve paddled boats in the past that had a clear propensity to broach and some that either had rudders too far back or that were designed badly, making them ineffective.

Mellow Roman downwind

The DNA is enormous fun in waves…  It feels fast and feels as though it’s accelerating onto the runs and I thought it very manoeuvrable.  The rudder on the one that I was paddling was a big surf rudder and it was highly effective.  I could catch a run, move to one side or the other and swing the boat back. 

I found myself on my own when I reached what I thought was the finish, so I paddled back into the waves to meet the other two – and realised that I was feeling extremely comfortable in the boat.  Conditions weren't exactly hectic – but balance was proving not to be an issue at all.

There was another issue though – my coccyx had developed a raw area from rubbing on the back of the seat.  I have an unusual backside, however and have struggled with many a seat that most paddlers have no problem with. 

Back to base and a late supper before the final day of testing.

Results Summary

Overall

Women

Single Skis

I can't wait to see the boat paddled onto a wave...  

What do you think?  Comment on the story below.

Challenges

Mounting a camera higher above the deck presents some challenges:

• As the ski tilts from side to side, the horizon tilts with it. But most of the time, the really interesting footage is when you’re on a run and the side to side motion is usually less…
• When the camera is mounted close to the deck, the lens is automatically washed quite frequently so that there isn’t a build-up of water droplets. Not so with the mast. But so far, going downwind, this hasn’t been much of a problem and for the future I have plans for running a thin pipe up the mast so that I can squirt water over the lens by squeezing a kayak pump in the cockpit… there’s always something!
• Does the mast affect the handling of the boat?  The new mast complete with camera weighs in at 600g (just over 1lb).  If you're a racing snake, you won't want this dangling off the back of the boat, but it really doesn't make much difference to me, nor does it appreciably affect the tippiness of the boat either.  

Testing

A couple of days ago we had a gentle northwester and I tried the mast on a mellow Reverse Miller's Run...

I will get install some self-adhesive velcro to increase the stability of the base, but this time I simply used duct tape.  I added a safety line in case the duct tape failed...  

Ready to go!

And here's a short clip of the end result.  Can't wait for a day when it's really cooking!

 For more information

So... to reiterate: if I can do it, you can do it – go forth and build masts! It’s a fun way to add a different perspective to your paddling videos.

Here's just one of many sources of "how to" information: https://www.wikihow.com/Fiberglass

Postscript - Rescue

A few hours later, a paddler on a reverse Miller's came off and injured himself trying to remount his ski just south of Roman Rock lighthouse.  Fortunately he had pencil flares and popped a series of them, which were spotted by the NSRI's Coast Watch team who'd been alerted by the paddler's companions who'd realised that he was in trouble.  Click here for the full story.

Takeaways:

• Anyone can injure themselves; it doesn't matter if you're the best paddler in the world - if you can't paddle, you're in deep manure.
• Pencil flares work.  If this paddler hadn't had them with him, he'd potentially have been in very deep trouble since he was being blown offshore.
• SafeTRX would have helped.  If SafeTRX is available where you paddle (and it's in most of Europe, in South Africa and in Australia), do yourself a favour and install and use it.  (Don't rely on it solely of course - always use a combination of safety procedures, starting with fitness and competence appropriate to the conditions.)

Thank you NSRI!