Mikey's Board Room: The Stand Up Experience

Back in 2006 I was living on the Big Island of Hawaii, Kona to be exact, and there wasn’t much surf while I was there. I was cruising around checking the surf at Banyans and that is where I saw stand up paddling for the first time. I introduced myself to the paddler after watching him on a the board for almost an hour and found out that he owned an SUP board company, Hypr Nalu. They were some of the first production boards back then, complete with flashy graphics, shiny paint and what I thought to be some pretty aggressive designs.

Hoping on for the first time was a challenge, it wasn't very wide, under 29” for sure, but I was determined to get the hang of it. I didn’t do much surfing while I was there but I did a ton of distance paddling. If you haven’t been to the islands, the underwater sights are amazing, I was paddling with everything from little brightly colored fish to sea turtles. I fell in love with Stand Up.

When I got back to San Diego 6 months after my first SUP experience, I did my research and found THE SUP guy at the time, Steve Boehne of Infinity Surfboards. Steve had experience building big boards from his days building tandem surf boards and had a great transition into Stand Up in the early years becuase of it. A deal was struck and I came home with a 10’6 Infinity Ku Ku Hoe Nose rider and an Infinity Ottertail paddle. I wish I had pictures of the thing, it was heavy for today’s standards, no handle, constructed bomb proof, and was a tank on the waves, but it was a blast!!! It still lives on at a local lifeguard station as physical training equipment.

Fast forward to 2012, I’ve been on more boards than I can count, seen a ton of different constructions, built boards, been to overseas factories, paddled in amazing places and worked with some great people in the industry. The experiences I’ve had and the contacts I’ve made over the years has turned me on to builders doing great things for the sport of SUP. So I asked John if I could do write ups on all the different boards, designs, and creations I’ve run across over the years, SUP or not, and with his blessing Mikey’s Board Room has been created!

Stay tuned for the next installment of Mikey’s Board Room!

Just a few photos from a couple years ago...

I remember this day- the surf was firing. Wally snapped these- check out the camera mounted on my paddle. I'll search around and see if I've got the shots from the paddle cam. Cool stuff, playing with the Go-Pro and seeing what it could do- fun times!

Clean, offshore and cold... still wish we had more like this!

Fingers crossed for more fun days like this! 

 Wasn't kidding, it was GOING OFF!

Back into the mix... finally!

I don't know who has the John Ashley voodoo doll and I have no idea why they've been sticking pins into it but I can tell you this- that black magic is nasty stuff. I've been down and out with two different colds (a head cold that migrated down into my chest), a throbbing left elbow (that one's the product of some over enthusiastic dory rowing) and some perfectly horrible timing that had me sidelined while some of the best surf of the fall came rolling into town.

It's been tough- being so out of it. Most of all,  I realize I've been taking my good health for granted (this happens every year, right after the flu season's first cold hits me). The old saying's true, you don't know how precious it is 'til it's gone. And I wasn't made to watch life lying on my back in a Nyquil induced stupor. So I fired up and got myself to the beach this morning determined to surf, regardless of how the conditions looked.

What a surprise! Overnight, we picked up a nice little impulse of swell that, once again, comboed up with excellent, offshore, Fall conditions. I got to the beach a bit later than the usual suspects (credit for that goes to last night's multiple beers- PacMan WHAT?) but I didn't miss anything. In fact, the surf improved as the morning went on. And I was on it: I scored four or five absolutely stellar, overhead, left-handers that came rumbling through the outside shore break.

Riding those big blue lumps on a loose, light stando is like snowboarding a big open bowl. It's a carve factory, you link S-turn to bottom turn, top turn to cutback. The best wave I picked off ran itself into an inside wave and formed a thick, top to bottom, double-up section. I dropped in on the first peak, looped into my first bottom turn and realized that the double up was going to throw ten yards in front of me. Time to jam! This is when having a super light, finely foiled board really pays off.  The boards we're riding now are light years ahead of the molded monster stand ups we were riding three years ago. We've found that foil (the distribution of foam from nose to tail) is hugely important. All of our boards are thin in the nose and tail allowing them to respond quickly to even small shifts in weight; get over your front foot and it's like snapping the throttle on a two stroke dirtbike- POW, you're gone.

And I was gone, driving my board, milking that thing for all it was worth. Legs pumping, I was getting a rhythm going: compress off the bottom, extend and release across the face, over and over as fast as possible, eating up huge section of open face- racing for the safety of the shoulder. The bottom dropped out, the lip heaved and the impact right next to my outside rail shook my fins free of the face. The tail of my board got sketchy, washing out, putting me in a really bad position. Fall off here and you take the rest of the lip right on your chest, pile driving you straight down into the cobble reef, you end up tumbling as giant water hands push you deeper and deeper.

Black magic. Voodoo dolls- bad stuff... but not today. Today, I was loving it all- brutal wipeout or victory cutback on the shoulder it wouldn't have mattered to me. I was healthy, paddling, surfing and laughing with plans on the horizon and adventure just a couple of weeks away. Most importantly, I was back in the mix- in the thick of it and, to me, that's all that matters.

SUP Contest Photos: The Dempsey 2010

Here's a bunch of photos from this year's Dempsey Contest (all photo credits to Jeff Wallis):

Photo: Kristy Murphy posted up on the nose... that's five legit toes over.

Photo: Art Curtis surfed his way into the Finals.

 

Photo: Kiwi launching into the lip in a sketchy spot. The southswell was pushing through the pier all morning, if you blew the landing there you might end up wrapped around a piling- he pulled it. 

Photo: Ross McBride, the eventual winner of the SUP division, on the end section of a nice, north side left-hander. Evidently, these guys scored killer, head high left hand peaks for their heat.

Photo: Hey, that's me! I was happy to hit the lip- even if it was a micro-lip. We had pretty dismal conditions on the south side.

Photo: Matt Bagby, scoring a fun north side wave... how fun does that look! Matt made it into the Finals and did really well.

Photo: Junk in the trunk.... that's K-junk, north side.

Photo: Kristy Murphy again- not on the stando but killing it nonetheless. Rad.

More surf shots...go ahead, click on 'em!

It really was cranking these last couple of days:

Photo: Somebody is about to get poached...

Photo: The inside tweeners were the real gems out there.

Photo: You had to dodge the thumpers...

Photo: ... if you wanted to get the good ones.

Photo: These guys got a few good ones. 

Photo: Super fun out there.

Surf Week: Solid swell + offshore winds

Check 'em out:

Photo: When the winds blow north-easterly in Southern California it means one thing: Santa Ana conditions. Get ready for hard offshore winds holding up the faces of whatever happens to be hitting the beach. Lucky for us we comboed up the winds and some solid surf, when that happens... things get interesting!

Photo: The air's clear (check out Point Loma- it looks touchable), the surf's cracking now all you have to do is find a corner. And if that's impossible, just pull in and enjoy the view.

Photo: Dr. John knows what to do when the doors open up a little bit...

Photo: ... you pull in!

Photo: Even if it means you're going to get beat!

Whoa... some good ones out there today! Photo heavy post.

High pressure, northeasterly winds and a nice mixed swell... wow- what a fun day of surf!

 

Photo: Art, if you see this- you should have gone- this wave was epic!

Photo: Pinch yourself...

Photo: for missing...

 

Photo: this wave.

Photo: The thing just kept peeling! 

Photo: To be fair, he did snag a couple of good ones...

Photo: pArt II

Photo: Grinding rights and lefts.

Photos: There were barrels up and down the beach. Check out Manny Vargas on the inside with his double camera set up getting the shot (and HD video?) of some unknown ripper.

Photo: Another shot of Manny from way up the beach (I like to get an angle on the wave I'm shooting- makes the shot a bit more interesting).

Photo: Pete in his usual spot. This photo is kind of Mondrian-ish in a distorted kind of way, eh?

Photo: It was a great morning to get out on the beach. Sunny warm days always bring out the cute girls- ain't life grand? 

Photo: Parting shot... wow.

Anybody Remember SUPer Dave?

If you do, you'll remember a guy totally fired up on stand up surfing- kind of a wildman. Dave posted some of the first photos I'd seen of stand up surfing mainland Mexico, gave me tips on fishing gear for my trip down there (white, 1/4 oz. jigs with wire leaders) and was always putting up photos of his latest stand up boards (which, three years ago, were shrinking in size while I still thought 10' was the bottom end of my board range).

Dave even made a trip all the way out here to California- packed up his big 'ol diesel 4x4 with stand up boards, large caliber handguns, compound bows and camo gear. Dave was just as stoked about the giant wild pigs he'd hunt on his way out west as he was about surfing Cardiff Reef or the 'Patch. The guy was a true character and I always checked out his crazy posts on the stand up forums. The last I heard, he stuffed a couple of short standos into a board bag and bailed for Bali... and then I didn't hear much from him at all.

I was stoked when, out of the blue, I received an email from the SUPer man himself. Turns out he scored in Bali- in a big, big way. I tried to convince him to send me the photographic goods but it seems that they may be published soon (don't worry, I haven't given up) so they were off limits. He did, however, send me these shots from the Montauk surf season.

Thanks Dave and we're going to be looking forward to other "out there" SUPer Dave contributions... right?

I even snagged a few... Thanks MannyVphoto.com!

Monday was great. The day went well for me: 6am - 10am, stando surf with Sean Poynter, Wally, Manny V, Kevs and Pat- northside then southside. 11am, Cays Club Sandwich, Pacifico and Nap. 3pm, back out there for some low tide mackers at the Rivermouth.... cranking! 6pm, Rutherford Ranch '07 Cabernet, a good friend, my backyard in the cool of the evening... perfect! Here's a few shots:

Photo: Fun in the sun- actually this was a tough day for stand up paddling, especially if you were a goofy foot. The west swell was pushing more rights than lefts and it was sucking out and pitching- tough on a big ol' 9'0 stando... but still fun. All Photos: Mannyvphoto.com

Photo: Like I said, lots of rights. This one came from way out the back- I was really scratching to try to catch it- all the while listening to Poyntee and Manny whistling and yelling at me to go... pier/peer pressure.

 

Photo: I did manage to push it over the edge- but, man, it got steep right there and at that point everything was kind of moving in a blur.... I knew I couldn't hold it together. 

Photo: And once that little kernel of doubt gets into your mind, it's just a matter of time before it comes to fruition. Like now.

 

Photo: Here's what I learned from this wave: When the water photographer tells you to pull in... you better do it! Sorry Manny- you know how I am! 

In His Own Words: Starboard Pro Stand Up Paddler Sean Poynter Charges Big Puerto

Stoked to hear from my friend and pro stand up paddler Sean Poynter. It turns out that Sean's been up to some serious gnarlyness- stand up paddling into some mackers down in Puerto Escondido at the Central Surf Pro. This contest, limited to stando surfers, is held at Puerto's infamous Playa Zicatela. Zicatela translates roughly into: "Go ahead and paddle out gringo- I will f&%# you up!".

Seriously, this isn't a place that you just show up to thinking you're going to score a Stand Up Journal cover shot. This spot takes preparation and experience. I suggest filling your washing machine with warm water, crawling in, putting it on the spin cycle and closing the top. Now breath hold in there for three or four minutes at a time. In about a year, you'll be ready for Puerto's dredgers. Seriously, get caught inside here and you'll change your underwear along with the way you look at life.

Poyntee's definitely got the know how- he was a traveling pro surfer before he figured out that the act is meant to be done with a paddle in hand. Here's how it went in Sean's own words:

Hey John, 

Got back last night from Puerto. There turned out to be some really good waves, pretty sizable. Since missing the winter in Hawaii due to an injury, I missed my intake of big waves. Going into the event in Puerto I was hoping that the waves would show. I wanted to get a little redemption for the missed winter. I was going too long without being scared. I had a couple moments in Puerto, there's nothing like it, makes you feel alive. 

It was a completely new experience. There were a lot of first's for me: first time to Puerto, first time surfing a stand up on waves of that size, first time going for real barrels on a stand up and my first time on the boards I was surfing. I'm stoked how it turned out. I ended up with a second place result, with some good waves under my belt and a couple of even better beat downs. 

The format was really cool. You surfed two three hour sessions. The first was on Friday, the next on Saturday. The results were determined by the highest total the scores from the best wave from each 3 hour session. 

Three hours sounds like a long time, but in conditions like that it was a necessity. The reason being you can't paddle out where the good ones are breaking, you would have to catch a ride down to the harbor and then make a 10/15 minute paddle to the breaking waves. Since leashes were not used, whenever you fell or caught a wave and got caught inside you would end up losing your board, so the whole process of catching a wave took some time. 

To say the least, the event was killer. I'm stoked I had the opportunity to be a part of it. Big thanks to Angel from Central Surf Shop who put it all together, the judges, the locals, the lifeguards, and the competitors for giving it their all. 

I'm looking forward to competing in the event next year. I'll be back in San Diego tomorrow night, let's try and catch a surf. Hope all is good.

Thanks John

And, no- I would NOT have paddled out into that!  Congrats, Sean!