Sunday, January 31, 2010

January 31st, 2010

I'm out of the water for a couple of days.... some lingering crud is working it's way through my system. Is it me or does winter make you feel like hibernating? Here's a couple of snaps off the pier this morning:



Photo: We've all been here before...



Photo: Really full tide this morning made the waves kind of flat- still fun though.



Photo: A little green flash.

Thursday, January 28, 2010

More Baja... got some COOL stuff coming up for you!

There's some great stuff coming up... I've got a couple of videos to throw together and just received a box of fins that's going to make your eyes pop... until I get a few minutes to figure this stuff out, here's a few miscellaneous shots to keep you going:



Photo: The flotilla. Tim Hatler of Palapas Ventana did a great job of getting the boats (pangas) together to haul all of the racers across the channel to Isla Cerralvo for the 11 mile Crossing. Here we are launching off of Expo Beach, heading for the starting line.



Photo: Sunset over Palapas Ventana- just a beautiful place to be! The flat water paddling potential of this place is untapped... stay tuned, we're pulling a couple of fall paddle trips together.



Photo: Tap-madness at the Palapas Ventana Bar... this is the night before the beginning of the kite expo/paddle race.... and you guessed it the competitors were going off!



Photo: Flash back to my surf trip on the other (Pacific side) of the peninsula... here's the hydroponic garden at the killer little coffee shop/bar/restaurant called La Esquina. If you ever get down there check it out and order up the club sandwich on foccacia.



Photo: Oh yeah, get a couple of these too!

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Some Baja Photos: La Ventana Paddle Royale

La Ventana Paddle Royale 2010: Here's a couple of shots from this year's event.



Photo: Early morning fin adjustment. Here's Kiwi setting up his board with pangas and Isla Cerralvo in the background. This was the inaugural year for the 11 mile Crossing- a race across the channel from the island offshore to the kite/windsurfing town of La Ventana. Conditions were perfect for the race, glassy in the morning with a following wind at the end of the race. Mark Field, a.k.a. Kiwi, took 1st place with a time of 2:02. Jason Maartense finished a close second with a time of 2:05, Mark Dix came in third.



Photo: As always, dogs (or puppies) rule!



Photo: Tahitian pro-kiter, Julien Sudrat was fired up to compete in the Crossing as well as the 1 mile SUP sprint race. He followed that up by pumping up a kite and racing in Kite Crossing event... iron man! That's the town of El Sargento in the background.



Photo: Kiwi, heading across the channel from Isla Cerralvo to the finish line at La Ventana.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

La Jolla Local Katie Charges Overhead Waves on 8'6 Craig Stand Up

Don't miss these photos. I think they're the most killer stand up pictures I've seen in a year. These were sent to me by my friend Gail who's part of the local La Jolla Shores crew of women stand up paddlers who just plain rip! This is Katie riding a 8'6" David Craig stand up- taking the drop on a macker. Check 'em out:



Photo: Not too many channels to paddle out through on big days as the Shores... definitely not a walk in the park.



Photo: Straight up charging!

Friday, January 22, 2010

Is it still soaking wet?

Here's a couple of more "dry day" photos- hopefully it's mellowed out by now and you haven't floated away. By the way, don't even ask where I'm at (hint: fish taco...):



Photo: Glassed in fins just ooze speed- if you're a racer you might want a little piece of this action. This one is stuck on Stamps' latest racer... it looks sweet!



Photo: A new one for the man himself... Stamps' just picked up his freshly cut preshape while I was up at his shop- this one's a featherweight- one pound foam. I picked up the blank and it was as heavy as a coffee cup... 8'10 Ninja Bump coming at ya!



Photo:
Last Sunday really was a nice day.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Baja By Motorcycle... small motorcycle...

Ran into this guy in Mulege....



Once a lifeguard in Newport, now an editor somewhere... he took a little time to get lost in Baja. The guy's cruising the peninsula on a moto, a small one (I guess, I'm not much of a moto guy but it looked much smaller than the euro-BMW bikes I saw ripping along). Check out his blog, click here.

Baja's a dream, get to nappin'!

Is it coming down yet?

A couple more photos from Sunday- try to stay dry!



Photo: Kiwi on a Klean Korner.



Photo: Love it when it's so flat that paddling back to the outside is like a walk in the park- except every now and then you've got to dodge a couple of head high waves.



Photo: Dig it... or dig in... just don't miss this wave.



Photo: Dr. John, easy in... definitely not missing it.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

It's probably raining by now...

I'm anticipating a lot of days out of the water- it's supposed to pour down rain in the next couple of days. You wouldn't have guessed it though if you were out and about this morning. Bright sunshine, sheet glass on the water... and super fun waves!

Here's the first set in a series I'm going to post over the next few days... something to keep you going while you're waiting out the rain. Enjoy- and keep the stoke alive!



Photo: Sunday, January 1-17-10, super fun day of surf- too bad I've got the beginnings of a head cold going on right now. I opted to stay out of the water even though it was going off- here's Kiwi on a fun left hander. You'll see more from this angle- I shot this off of the pier.



Photo: Super glassy, super fun.



Photo: Dr. John driving down the line.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Ordering A Custom Stand Up Board: Here's how it goes...

Here we go again! I just spent the morning up at the Stamps surfboard factory talking to Tim Stamps about my next board. Tim makes all my boards- if you find a good shaper that you can work with stick with him. We've been ratcheting the design closer and closer to the feel that I'm looking for- I'm excited about this new one.



This is where it begins. Always try to bring in what you've been riding, this gives the shaper a reference point to work from- it also allows you to talk about what you like and dislike about your current board. Tim uses CAD software to design my boards- I'm a HUGE fan of this technology. Working from digital files of previous boards allows a shaper to be much more precise when shaping the next iteration of a board. Here we're checking the outline and talking about refinements to the 9'4 Viking that I've been riding.

"What's the application?" That's the big question of the morning.... Tim dropped it on me right off the bat. My answer? I want a board that fits the quick sections and tight curves of a juicy, beach break wave. I'm not looking for a board to nose ride, I'm looking to tighten up the arcs of my turns. I want a board that promotes speed and flow, I want to connect the dots as a I go down the line- and I want to go fast.

Practically, this will be my daily driver. Additionally, I'd like for it to have some range. I don't envision doing five or six mile runs on it but I'd like to be able to cover a mile or two without too much trouble. I'm ready to sacrifice a little paddle-ability for performance but I'm not quite ready to completely give up the glide.

Tim inks it up at 9'1". It's a 3" drop in length from what I'm on now, a sensible amount of change. In surfboard design, inches are a big deal- a 3" change will make a big difference in the board's character.



Tim fills out the order form, making notes to himself about the changes to the design's outline. A big part of the discussion centers on the board's fin set up. I'm sold on the Gerry Lopez Stand Up Fins that Futures is putting out- these things are HOT. The big question though is if we're going to go quad or thruster- Stamps gives me the option to run five fin boxes. The idea is that I can try the board in each fin configuration. Stoked! I agree and we add that to the order sheet-this is shaping up to be one hot board... the excitement builds.

For color, the sky is the limit. This is the fun part. You can do whatever you want (or can afford), the artist who handles Tim's boards is super talented and can do almost anything. I, however, stick with my favorite scheme- we call it the "Mahi Spray", it's the green, blue and yellow coloring that I get on all of my boards.

Now all that's left to do is wait- that part sucks!

Sunday, January 17, 2010

More RambleWriter stuff: Check out the truck!

It's sitting down in Buenos Aires just waiting for you. Ten grand for the truck, maybe five or six hundred for a one way plane ticket, a couple of paddles and a good all around stand up board- fly down pick up the truck, rack the board and let the adventure begin. Take pics and send 'em to me!

Take a tour of the truck from Rochelle Woodward on Vimeo.

Friday, January 15, 2010

I love stuff like this...

We just finished our annual trip down the Baja peninsula. We covered over 2000 miles, ran the 4x4 up and down the beaches and bushwacked it through some desert scrub. Sound gnarly? Not even close. Check these guys out- overland run all the way down into Peru, pirate camping off the highway. Here's a little guide they put together, check it out:

Pirate Camping 102: Site Selection from Rochelle Woodward on Vimeo.


I just found this website and I'm excited to jump into it. Check out the article that goes along with the vid I posted above. Now that's a piece of writing that I can sink my teeth into. There also looks to be some cool vehicle mods posted to the site. The guy writes well which is always a bonus. Give it a look and tell me what you think.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

San Francisco Paddle Surfing: Fort Point Photos

Stand Up Paddling Fort Point in San Francisco: These shots were sent to me by a friend in the city.



Photo: Yep, that's the Golden Gate in the background.



Photo: I hope the stand up paddlers were acting reasonably, it looks like one of them may have shoulder hopped a prone guy.



Photo: It's good practice to consider that your actions as a stand up paddler affect all who come after you- don't ruin it for the rest of us!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Baja Sights: A couple more shots...

Here's a few of the "in between" shots, photos that take place in between all of the blazing paddlesurf action!



Photo: Look for a bunch of locals ordering up food- that's the best indicator that something good is going down. In this case it's all about the fish taco. A buck a taco gets you a corn tortilla loaded up with fish- you add salsa, cabbage and the magic white stuff and you're all set.

Can't even describe how great it is to surf hard all morning, roll into town and pull up to this spot. Everybody orders up some tacos, maybe a cold Fanta or an icy Pacifico from across the street- kick back in the sun, eat and feel good. Clean livin'!



Photo: Last look from the roof of our place- sunrise or sunset, both were equally beautiful.



Photo: Okay, so if my trunks are hanging up to dry and my jeans are on the sand that leaves me wearing.... Well, it was a giant beach.

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Super fun day... so tired.

I'm off to catch the green flash from my friends deck... cold beer in hand, tons of fun waves today. Crowd was about three... me included.



Photo: Here's today's set up...



Photo: Lilly made a new friend...



Photo: Markos snagged a couple of fun lefts...

Bummed to be wrapping
this trip up. All in all, this will go down as one of the "best ever" surf trips. Can't wait to do it again next year!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Five Monday Photos



Photo: Lilly knows how and when to hit the snooze button. Nobody lounges like Lilly, nobody.



Photo: He might be worried about taking a fin to the eye socket or maybe he's distracted by something else entirely... what do you think?



Photo: This is what it looked like at 3pm today.... I wonder what tomorrow will bring?



Photo: Big Chad snapped this shot of me coming back down off a whitewater rebound... yep, I fell.



Photo:
A sunset, a cardon and me fiddling with the exposure compensation button on my
S5 IS.... sometimes good things happen.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Surf and Wahoo.... yum.

Somebody turned the switch back to the "ON" position... waves started rolling through this afternoon and the tide looks like it will co-operate for the next couple of days. It's looking like our last two surf days might be fun ones. I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed.



Photo: This is actually not a photo of the surf today, it's from Matt W.'s memory card- but it's so stoke-worthy that I decided to throw it on up.



Photo:
Watch those fingers. Uncle Russ shows the boys what the mouth of death looks like.

If you don't know, that's the head of a wahoo. Those teeth are like scalpels. No joke. My friend Tim Hatler has speared 'em up to 80 lbs (that's no joke either) and he's told me that it isn't usually when the fish is alive that you get bit. Most of the slices come from a slip of the hand into a dead wahoo's mouth. Most times, the victim doesn't even know they're cut until they see their own blood dripping off onto the floor. Watch it!

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Meanwhile, somewhere out there in the desert...

...others were scoring too. Somewhere south of the border:



Photo: Sunrise.



Photo: Heavy on the front foot, go fast.



Photo: Little bowl section.



Photo: Jose, slotted.