Photo Of The Day!!!

[loscocco]

in the winter we have big storms that come in and pound the Norcal coast for a few days at a time.. they are definitely NOT ideal kiting conditions most of the time as they can be very cold and gusty but still fun for the hardy and rather crazy guys like me

[ricki]

Originally Posted by loscocco

in the winter we have big storms that come in and pound the Norcal coast for a few days at a time.. they are definitely NOT ideal kiting conditions most of the time as they can be very cold and gusty but still fun for the hardy and rather crazy guys like me

I always thought you had some powerful storms. Had a few guys swearing up and down for a couple of years that Norcal never had squalls or hazardous wind conditions. One of them was a magazine editor too. It is hard to hide those powerful systems that send fronts across the USA like clockwork through the winter though. I suspect you know about the loss of Daniel Bergin in one of these systems about a year ago. A lot rides on you and your gear performing just so. Statistically, that just won't happen all the time in wx extremes. Good luck out there.

[ricki]

I visited Neil's operation at Tiki Beach in Ft. Lauderdale yesterday. More unexpected good wind, there has been quite a bit of that recently. The boat show was just winding down so easy access to the area will be restored very soon.


Helga rides though






Somebody told me that sails on the starboard side have McCain and Palin. Didn't hang out long enough to see it, wonder if it is so (not).



William sets up for a trick



The masked rider. Thought he might have had a particular sensitivity to sun. The mask came off on landing so not sure.

[Clew In]

Hey,

Short video from Saint Augustine:

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=12W3DK4owEI

Clew In

[ricki]

This Photo Of the Day is dedicated to Chris and Tammy on their nuptials and pending honeymoon in the Hawaiian Islands. Have fun out there folks!



Hanalei Bay on the north shore of Kauai



Umauma Falls just north of Hilo on the eastern shore of the Big Island



Southpoint on the Big Island. Further south than Key West and far more remote. It is supposed to be the first landfall of the Polynesians when they first came to the Sandwich Islands. Tough landing!



Monk seal between the Lehau caldera and Niihau west of Kauai. Was dying to free dive with this guy but was already carrying residual N2 time from SCUBA.



Akaka Falls north of Hilo on the Big Island



Sunset off Kona on the Big Island. Not sure why the setting sun can look different over the Pacific but it does.



La Perouse Bay, Maui



Sunset over Niihau from Waiokapua, Kauai

[C. Moore]

Thanks Rick. December can't come soon enough.

[ricki]

Originally Posted by C. Moore

Thanks Rick. December can't come soon enough.

You're most welcome Chris! Can't think of a better place to launch your lives together. As you may have noticed, I have zip photos from Oahu. We landed there for a few minutes between islands. So, if you think of it while visiting your home island, snap a few for us folks way back down east. Have a great time, you'll be flying west in no time I suspect.

[ricki]

Please check this video clip out, it's short.



then, look below ...





So what is so unusual about the riding clip? Nothing really, just what the guy in riding. I had never seen the like myself, at least not in over a century. Asked a bunch of surfers in the area and they hadn't heard of such a thing.





The last time I saw a board like this was in this photo from Hawaii far in the past


From: http://www.balsasurfers.com/balsafaq.html

I saw one very similar to it today and being used.


Check this puppy out, it's a door! I could be made of balsa but it looked like mahogany to me. No skegs, rocker to speak of, still this guy makes it work and well. This is the guy in the three short clips in the video. I wish I could have caught more riding footage of the retro woody surfer.



An edge view.



Look how low the guy is sitting in the water, now we know why.

He said it is hard to paddle, no surprise there but says when your in the wave, it's fast! Bet the turning for aerials is tricky too. Amazing stuff. I could have sworn he called it a "Monaleia board". Have found zip under that and other spellings. Does anyone know more about these rideable doors?

[ricki]

I've learned more about this board, an alaia. It is apparently inspired by the surfboards used by Hawaiians back in the old days. A guy named Tom Wegener has researched the old designs and has been shaping them. An interview with Tom including a number of photos appears at: http://tinyurl.com/5lhygn



From: http://legendarysurfers.com/blog/labels/lala.html



A video about alaia boards from another shaper.