Last paddle on San Francisco Bay

I'm leaving town soon so when I got the call from Gretchen to do one more paddle before I left, there was one particular paddle I had in mind.  Looking at currents and weather, everything appeared perfect for a trip going west and then east.  I'd always wanted to paddle to Angel Island and hike to the top so it seemed the perfect day to give it a try.

We met in Berkeley at 5:45am with Shanna surrounded by fisherman and power boats.  By 6:50am we paddled out of Berkeley Marina right into a quartering chop.  Winds weren't strong yet, but were showing signs and it was the chop that slowed our progress.  What I predicted as a two-hour crossing turned into three hours.  Not big deal though, because we still made the island before the wind turned on.

Taking our time on the beach, we changed into dry clothes and proceeded to hike to the top of Mt. Livermore, 781ft above sea level in the middle of San Francisco Bay.  It was my first time to to the top of Angel Island and on a great day with great company.  It really couldn't have been better for my last paddle in the area.  But wait, it got better.  While we ate and relaxed, the wind did pick up and was blowing about 20mph when we re-launched on the east side of Pt. Blunt.  This was exactly what I wanted, although the wind didn't line up for perfect straight downwind rides.  It lined up well enough that we could catch some bumps, paddle south and repeat.  We zigged and zagged right back to Berkeley in ninety minutes with a bumpy mix of 2ft wind chop and swell.  We spent about 8 hours on the trip and covered 16.7 miles of paddling and hiking.  So fun to mix paddling and hiking!

fun runs on the bay

We got three nice runs in on Saturday on the latest Downwind SUP Safari with the Barbary Ghost.  Good times with Marion, Craig, Jeff and I on boards and Drew at the helm.  First run was a great warmup with decent glides and strong wind at our backs.  Drew dropped us behind Pt. Blunt where it's super easy to enter the wind.  Going from zero to twenty knot wind in 30 seconds is exciting!

The second run produced the most favorable glides.  Wind waves were small, but very catchable and real good for linking up runs.  Third run was smaller, but a nice cool down as we were all spent by then.  Back on board we changed out of our wet clothes, downed a beer and enjoyed the grub Drew BBQ'd up for us while cruising back to San Rafael.  You can't go wrong with boat assisted paddling.   I'm hooked.

barbaryghost.com

Afternoon Downwind Delight

I'm still pumped from yesterday's downwind session on the Barbary Ghost.  Captain Drew took us out for his first Downwind SUP Safari of the season, and true to his reputation, he hunted down and delivered some bumps for us.

photo by Drew Testwuide

Six of us were along for the ride, starting with a warmup run heading northeast to Red Rock Island. Mixed conditions made it difficult to find glides until the end, but it gave everyone a chance to get their legs under them, get wet and warm up their smiling muscles.

Run two was completely different as wind speed doubled, wave size tripled and glide time significantly increased.  We were limited by our own energy, not lack of waves.  He dropped us in the lee of Angel Island for a good run towards Richmond.  Everyone did fantastic, catching bumps, handling the strong wind and looking out for each other.

I'm again impressed with my new ride, the Cali 14 from Focus SUP Hawaii.  For a pointy all conditions race board, it handles damn fine in mid-sized downwind conditions.  It catches them easy, has great planing speed and the nose releases predictably when stuffed underwater.  No surprises from this board and the secondary stability is impressive.  Loving it!

photo by Drew Testwuide

photo by Christine Schneider

If you're in the bay area, check out the Barbary Ghost and get on one of the next downwind safari's.  You definitely need the skills to enjoy the thrills.  It's a challenging environment so proper paddling skills are mandatory and quality equipment is crucial.

Thank you Drew, Nico, Marion, Craig, Christine, Gretchen and Janet for a fun afternoon!

Port of Oakland Tour

After a long week in Southern California and a full day of travel on Saturday, I woke on Sunday with the intentions of a rest day.  But, the sun was shining warm & bright and I figured some paddling was in order.  A quick text conversation led to a 11:45 meet in Oakland for a paddle out to Yerba Buena Island.

We were both late and by the time we actually launched it was after 12:30.  As the tide started to flood and the wind gained strength we paddled out the Oakland estuary.  The ride out was exciting with plenty of boat wake and traffic to contend with.  We reached the mouth and stopped on the beach at the point of Alameda for a snack and a rest.  As we re-assessed our plan I picked up a handful of shiny beach glass.

Continuing to Yerba Buena meant a straight slog against a 2kt current and 10kt wind and would take at least an hour without breaks.  Instead, we ferried the channel towards middle harbor, found shelter from the wind against the jetty and made good forward progress towards the outer harbor.  The last push was a straight shot upwind from buoy 3 to the Bay Bridge.  Half way there we decided not to push it, opting to turn and burn downwind, riding bumps back into the estuary.  Another rest at the Chappell R. Hayes Memorial Observation Tower for pb&j and hardboiled eggs and then back to the start.  Good day.

heading out the estuary

North point of Alameda, looking towards Yerba Buena & the Bay Bridge

Back through the Port

 

GGSKS 2014

I measure the success of GGSKS by the amount of fun I have and I had a ton of fun this year.  So I guess that makes the 2014 event very successful.  At least by my standards.

GGSKS is a subset of the sea paddling community and a damn fine one.  Sean Morley and I receive lots of feedback (positive and negative) and probably way too much praise.  But, here's the reality.  If you enjoy the event, you can't blame us.  Blame the community.  All we do is lay the foundation for GGSKS and everyone else adds to it until something beautiful has been formed.  We're just facilitators.

The value of this event goes well beyond any hard skills you'll learn.  It's also about connecting with other people that paddle.  It's about having a good time, laughing, smiling, cheering each other on.  There's a positive energy in the air and all you need to do is embrace it to become a better paddler.  I think that great paddlers must first be great people and I met lots of great people this year.  I made some lasting connections and I can't wait to see how it will impact my life.

This year we had 190 people attend the event as students, coaches, staff, media & volunteers.  We came from California, Florida, Washington, Alaska, Oregon, New York, Montana, Illinois, Michigan, Maryland, South Carolina, Minnesota, Nevada, Virginia, mainland Mexico, Baja California, Scotland, Quebec, Ontario and Nova Scotia.  14 states and 4 countries.  That's pretty rad.

Don't listen to me describe what it was like, just watch the film by Marty Perry.

ACA SUP Instructors Certification Workshop

What a fun weekend on San Francisco Bay!  Cindy & Steve Scherrer came down from WA to help me run an American Canoe Association Level 1/2 SUP Instructors Certification Workshop for 6 potential candidates.  We had a great team of paddlers with a ton of learning going on and super support from all.  In the end, we certified four new Level 1 Instructors and two new Level 2 Instructors - success!

Congrats to Adrianna, Kelsa, Jeff, Alon, Michael & Mitch!

One of the best venues I've ever worked in

Instructor Candidates from Massachusetts, Colorado & California

Near perfect conditions all weekend

The ACA SUP Instructors Program was created on the foundation of 40 years of paddling instructor development.  Since 1972 the ACA has been developing curriculum and implementing best practices for paddling instructors from canoeists to kayakers to standup paddlers.  

The common question with the 3-day SUP Instructor Workshop is "what are we going to do for three days?"  The answer usually consists of something like "we'll do as much as we can, but really we need 4 or 5 days."  The way this program is designed, candidates need to have already developed their personal paddling skills before coming to this course so they can focus on the how-to of teaching.   More often than not, candidates need personal skills training during the instructor training and aren't quite ready for level 2.  

In order to get certified, candidates must demonstrate proficiency & knowledge in a couple different areas like teaching & learning theory, safety & rescue, strokes, maneuvers, technical knowledge, group management, leadership, trip planning and more.  There's much more to know than just how to pivot turn and go fast.  

The essence of the course is to help candidates become ready to develop a paddling program.  The three major segments of that program are:

Strokes & Maneuvers.  Can a candidate exercise full control over their board all the time?  Do they have the cognitive skills to decide what stroke to use when?  Are their strokes efficient?  Is their body position safe?  Do they understand the main paddling concepts?  Do they know the names of each stroke and how to break them down into smaller pieces?  Are they able to develop teaching progressions?  Do they understand the different ways people learn and can they adapt their teaching methods to foster success?  

Rescue & Recovery.  Can candidates deal with the unexpected?  Are they safe?  This includes things like towing, paddler recoveries, unassisted rescue, rescue protocols & signaling.  Candidates are required to be certified in CPR and venue appropriate first-aid.  Candidates must demonstrate the strength and technique needed to respond quickly and appropriately.  

Journeying.  Is the candidate a good leader?  Can they manage a group of paddlers well?  Do they exercise sound judgement & make decisions quickly?  Are their trip planning skills adequate?  Do they understand the marine environment & the weather?  Can they read water?  

My best advice for future Instructor Candidates is to review the Instructor Criteria, master the paddling strokes forwards and backwards, onside and offside, and increase your marine environment knowledge as much as possible.  

Alameda SUP Circumnavigation

For the last few months I've been paddling with locals on these weekly Meetups in the Oakland estuary and have seen a ton of growth in the paddling skills of the participants.  It seemed appropriate that we all get together for an end-of-summer paddle that included a reasonable amount of mileage, current, wind, vessel traffic & chop.  Alameda was the perfect route to provide all these challenges.

The plan was to launch from Tidewater at 8:45am, circle Alameda counter-clockwise and return to the start by 3pm at the latest.  The planning accounted for the best use of current & wind and the weather forecast was highly favorable with light wind & warm temps.  We ended up launching 25 minutes late, but nobody cared since we were all just out to have a good time.  By the time all 19 of us set off into the current, the sun had already burned off the fog and was heating up.  The first 3.5 miles were the hardest, but we were fresh and everyone powered through to our first meeting point, where we dropped 3 paddlers who didn't have time to do the whole loop.  It was right about then that the shot blocks came out, layers stripped off, we re-grouped and charged on towards San Francisco Bay.

We kept steady pace through the long, straight estuary highway of ferries, tugboats, sailboats, fishing boats and speedboats - half of them heading out for Americas's Cup activities.  Sure enough, their large wakes rolled right across the channel towards us but weren't too bad.  The clapotis created by the rockwalls of the estuary put a few people to their knees.  We rounded the corner into the bay then celebrated with another long break while drifting down the bayside of the island.  After taking in food & water and the crystal clear view of the San Fran skyline we got treated to small bumps and mini-surfs heading towards Crown Memorial.

We made good progress traveling with the current & wind from our backs.  Approaching our fourth and last bridge, we were perfectly funneled towards our finish and moving fast enough that nobody cared for a break on land.  The sky was bluebird with just a cloud of smoke peaking over the Oakland hills.

We turned up the estuary to complete the loop and paddled straight into the wind we were so enjoying at our backs moments earlier.  As we all staggered to the dock full of smiles, we joked about another lap but decided to eat & drink instead.  High fives all around.  Fun people, fun paddle.  Can't wait till the next outing on Friday the 13th...

Upwind Downwind

My favorite summertime paddling workouts are upwind downwinds.  We get such good wind in the San Francisco Bay Area that it's easy to forget the morning flatwater and save the workouts for the late afternoon when it's blowing...  I paddle straight into the wind for a set amount of time or distance and then surf my way back to the start for another lap.  It's a fantastic way to get a quick workout and develop technique, efficiency & power in lumpy conditions.  Not to mention, it's really fun whether I'm in a sea kayak or on a standup board.

Paddling upwind builds strength and lets me work on timing & stroke mechanics.  It's also a great way to reinforce wind dynamics on watercraft and practice the best way to turn into & with the wind.  Running downwind requires timing, sprinting, surfing, smiling, laughing, water reading skills and stroke technique among other things.  It draws on most aspects of board/boat control as well as balance, bracing and stamina.  It's good to mix up the training sessions and paddling upwind downwind creates a very natural & varied session for me.  Tonight I was playing around with a new camera & mount, so I got a few shots in as well.  And, I couldn't resist raising the sail for a few minutes..

Yellow Bluff SUP

Here in the Bay Area we have a little tidal race called "yellow bluff" that creates a fun play spot during a strong ebb.  I've seen it create some really beautiful standing waves at times, but normally it develops into a wave train with one or two clean waves at the front.  It's a fantastic park n' play training location to develop skill and practice technique and is very popular among sea kayakers.  Here's a quick video of a grey January day playing in the confused waters on a standup board.

San Fran SUP Downwinder & Artemis Racing

Sean Morley & I got out recently for a nice downwind crossing of San Francisco Bay from Horseshoe Cove, beneath the north tower of the Golden Gate Bridge, to Berkeley.  We had to get an early start in order to be back in time for other responsibilities, which meant we were a bit too early for the wind.  But, no worries, the wind made an appearance halfway into the trip just as we were getting near Point Blunt.  The tide was flooding and assisted us to that point rather quickly.   

Sean in his P&H Cetus MV, myself on a Naish Glide 17'

Just as we crossed Point Blunt on the southern tip of Angel Island, we halted to allow the Artemis, the Swedish entry into this summers America's Cup, tear past us with amazing speed and sound.  They were out training on the AC72 with four safety boats in chase.  It was a perfect training day with clear skies and wind growing steadily from the WSW to about 20 knots by 12:30pm.  It was incredible to witness one of these cup yachts so close and going so fast.  It creaked like no other sailboat I'd ever heard and sounded quite 'tuned' for speed.  As we were crossing the tidal flow making our way from Angel Island to the Berkeley pier, it crossed about 300' in front of us, so close the chase boats had to split and travel on either side of Sean & I.  

Team Artemis

Team Artemis

Little did we know that not 30 minutes after that, the Artemis capsized, leaving one crew member trapped underneath the wreckage resulting in his loss.  Such a fun day for us and a horrific day for Team Artemis and the sailing community.  Days later, after hearing that the capsize was a result of equipment failure and not over-pushing the boat, I can still hear the creaking and moaning of the boat as it flew past us. 

Team Artemis capsized on SF Bay.  (photo AP/Noah Berger)

2013 Golden Gate Sea Kayak Symposium

Three weeks have passed since the 2013 Golden Gate Sea Kayak Symposium in the San Francisco Bay Area.  The vibe was right-on this year with a healthy mix of personality, positive attitudes, a relaxed atmosphere & abundant sunshine.  It was a great place to make friends and do some paddling.  

After a brief period of contemplation, we've decided to do it all again in 2014.  My goal next year is definitely to spend much, much more time on the water.  Maybe even do some coaching!  I want to give a huge 'thank you' to the many sponsors, volunteers, staff, coaches & participants that came out for the celebration.    

photo by Roberto Gutierrez

photo by Roberto Gutierrez

photo by Roberto Gutierrez

The morning drive to the launch.  photo by Roberto Gutierrez

photo by Roberto Gutierrez

photo by Roberto Gutierrez

Love this classic bridge shot.  photo by Roberto Gutierrez