A Bit Of Blue

Jumping right in with my new Lanzarote stand up paddle blog I figured the best way to start would be with a blog about doing just that.... jumping right in.

As with most surfers who’ve picked up a paddle in recent years the transition to riding waves on stand up boards was relatively simple once I’d sussed out the basic paddle techniques and had a few tips from Tim Mellors on handling the bigger boards in surf (Thanks Tim you’re a gent!) . We get to ride prone paddle surfboards over 9 ft here in the Canaries quite regularly so I’m sure that being accustomed to a bit of volume under the feet helped out too. Pretty soon it became obvious that not only did my SUP work brilliantly at the normal surf spots here but also could get me easily to outer reefs or to breaks with no close road access. Bloody great fun and therapeutic in it’s own way as the journey to and from becomes part of the act as opposed to just moving from place A to place B. It was on these solo paddles that I started to think about the other side of this sport, downwind paddling and even inter island crossings. In my twenties I started to ride bigger waves, not with the motivation of turning myself into a ‘big wave surfer’ but to get away from the crowds and associated problems. I like the honesty of playing chicken with big lumps and the feeling of being surrounded by something on a scale almost unimaginable for a single human being. And this was exactly the vibe I was picking up on these trips out on Lanzarote’s north shore. Bitten by the bug I knew that unfolding in front of me was an entire new way to get in the water, something far removed from the narrow definition of a surfer that was me for many years. It was time to get geeky.

I’d been riding my wife’s Starboard 9’8” swallow tail and not being too versed on downwind paddleboard design decided that if Starboard had kept me excited in the surf then they’d do the same out in the deep blue. I checked out their web site, this being the first time I’d ever used this medium to get my new kit fix. There were a couple of possibilities but standing apart like some kind of weird aquatic missile was the 14’8” Point. When I first saw stand up paddle boards a few years ago they looked a little strange to my eye but at least they are recognisable as surfboards. This thing was plainly a very different piece of gear. I mean, shit, it’s even got a rudder that you control with a flexible rod arrangement on the deck. The blurb said it was built to do exactly what I was yearning for. That was it, a quick e-mail to Starboard confirmed there was one in stock and I sneaked it in with a order of less extreme models for the start up of my Lanzarote SUP school.

While waiting for delivery I upped the geek stakes, checking out forums, brand sites and even checking out downwind tips from Guys like Todd Bradley and Ekolu Kalama. I even found myself standing on my bed checking dry running through paddle techniques, the 40 year old’s equivalent of teenage guitar practice ! What I needed was to get in the water and surf instead of surfing the virtual wave.

Finally 3 big boxes arrived. The guy from the freight company happily informed me he’d had to bend the biggest box at the end to get in in the van. No need to worry though, all the boards including the Point had survived transit without any damage. Unwrapping my new toy and seeing her in the flesh for the first time I started to see just how different this type of equipment is. I also started to suspect that this downwind lark might be a good bit different from anything else I experienced on a board...

After setting up the rudder I headed off to the La Santa lagoon for a bit of orientation. Paddling the beast wasn’t a problem and it was apparent from the start that this thing would go fast...it cut through the calm waters of the enclosed lagoon with amazing ease and yet turned in a much smaller arc than I expected. Feeling a bit cocky now it was the moment to try the steering system. By pushing the deck mounted bar I could turn the rudder (or is it still a fin?) and either turn on in theory keep going in a straight line against crosswind, currents etc. Things didn’t seem to be going well though as I kept yawing to one side even after I released the bar.... the rudder wasn’t settling back into a neutral position. This seemed to be caused by unequal tension on the two steel cables and a bit of tinkering got things sorted. I certainly a happy fella and actually hoped the wind would pick up and come onshore so I could get into some real lumps... quite a departure from 30 years of wishing for light offshores !

The following day was windless so Julie and I cruised up the coast from Playa Honda to Arrecife. I was getting more comfortable on my new baby, changing my paddle stroke to a longer one and happy with the now functioning steering system. Nice easy conditions but my head was on the following day... the was wind and swell on the way.

Sure enough the next day was a stunning Canarian day with azure skies, 2 metre swells and the palms bending in the fresh westerly wind. With the high tide around midday I decided Caleta Caballo was the spot for my maiden downwind session. Pretty soon I was standing on the boat ramp with my still unfamiliar vessel, a new carbon paddle cut a little longer than my surfing one and a good solid Rhino Chaser leash.... ready for battle but without a real plan of action. Coming of the ramp was a doozy but I’d have to paddle against the wind to get enough distance to run with the wind back into the bay. I came out of the shelter of the low volcanic coast and the wind hit me harder than I’d expected. Funny but it hadn’t felt this strong on the beach. I kept at it and got level with the unsurfed slab left that marks the mouth of the bay. The swell outside was bigger, tossed about with white caps from the west wind. The Point went through it all without problems but it was hard work and my legs were already feeling it. I turned carefully and started my first ever downwind run back into the bay. Expecting to pick up the bumps with ease I was shocked at how different it all felt, this wasn’t a just a discipline of surfing, it was an entirely different sport! Trying to feel what was happening underneath me I started to see the holes in front but just couldn’t get gliding. Managing to stay on my feet I hadn’t been sure footed enough to use the steering system and with the difference in wind and swell directions I’d been pushed to the far side of the bay and had a long upwind slog back. Head down and determined I got down to it. Nothing was going to stop me getting onto one of those outside rollers. The second run was better, at least at the beginning. The steering worked well and I was getting some short glides. And it was starting to to feel very very fun. Coming over the part of the reef that breaks as the second peak in bigger swells a sweet bump stood up and suddenly things started going much faster, caught by surprise I neglected to switch into surfing stance and was in the water in a flash. I guess it had to happen at some point ! Paddling upwind again the burn started in my thighs, shit I’d only been in the water 20 minutes and I was feeling it! Digging deep and making my way a outside into the wilder water, determined to feel what I’d wanted to for months I stared my third run. Almost losing it a couple of times before getting inside the headland , ignoring the straining thighs it suddenly came together. Picking up on a swell the board started planing and just gliding through the blue... what a feeling! Sheer enjoyment, blasting effortlessly along in amongst the rolling swells. An absolutely brilliant moment but alas, far to brief. I wanted more but was too blasted to continue so it was back to the ramp.

In just half an hour of paddling I was shattered and I’d learnt a great deal, mostly about what I don’t know. What was glaringly obvious was that I’d just had a first taste of a something that’s going to be lots and lots of fun. Being out in the deep water is so addictive, so free, so wild.. Can’t remember being this stoked on a new way to surf since I first rode a tow board.

Keep tuned in as we hit the island’s coasts for and discover what’s out there.... hopefully there’ll be less paddling and more gliding !!