Learning to Tow Surf
Corey and I have been learning to tow surf the last few months. We have gone out when it was small and practiced all the basic maneuvers so when it is big we don't hurt ourselves. Well it was finally big enough to tow surf and we had a blast! We did have a couple close calls where we thought we had screwed up, but overall it was a success! We got towed into waves bigger than we ever imagined. We were told it was 15ft Hawaiian which amounts to around 30 foot faces.
One of the waves in particular is a must remember... The way we get into the waves is the person on the jetski is towing the other person behind and they whip them into the face of the wave. Once they do that, the surfer has the speed they need to position themselves right where they need to be on the wave. As this is happening, you are surfing down the wave, but the wave is growing at the same time so for a while, you are not actually getting closer to the bottom until it peaks out. At this point you drop down so far and so fast. On one wave in particular this scenario happened, then once I hit the bottom of the wave, I turned back up, racing across the face and I saw another peak forming so I raced to get to the peak and dropped in again. This was followed by a big barreling section (called the anaconda) in which I stayed right in from of the barrel. I have head that crashing in this particular session is insanely powerful and painful so I avoided it at all cost. In the future, I'll attempt to go for that barrel. So on this wave, I had the two biggest drop-ins I've ever had, along with the longest ride of my life on a wonderfully big wave. I'm guessing it was about 200m, but it's hard to know for sure. It was one epic ride!
I did have a couple wipeouts where I was smashed by these ginormous waves. They can be intense, but it really helps to have on flotation. I was wearing a wetsuit, a flotation suit and I life vest. I felt unstoppable! I only say that now until I take another beating.
The day was a success and I can't wait for another to arrive!
One of the waves in particular is a must remember... The way we get into the waves is the person on the jetski is towing the other person behind and they whip them into the face of the wave. Once they do that, the surfer has the speed they need to position themselves right where they need to be on the wave. As this is happening, you are surfing down the wave, but the wave is growing at the same time so for a while, you are not actually getting closer to the bottom until it peaks out. At this point you drop down so far and so fast. On one wave in particular this scenario happened, then once I hit the bottom of the wave, I turned back up, racing across the face and I saw another peak forming so I raced to get to the peak and dropped in again. This was followed by a big barreling section (called the anaconda) in which I stayed right in from of the barrel. I have head that crashing in this particular session is insanely powerful and painful so I avoided it at all cost. In the future, I'll attempt to go for that barrel. So on this wave, I had the two biggest drop-ins I've ever had, along with the longest ride of my life on a wonderfully big wave. I'm guessing it was about 200m, but it's hard to know for sure. It was one epic ride!
I did have a couple wipeouts where I was smashed by these ginormous waves. They can be intense, but it really helps to have on flotation. I was wearing a wetsuit, a flotation suit and I life vest. I felt unstoppable! I only say that now until I take another beating.
The day was a success and I can't wait for another to arrive!
A good friend who wished to anonymous...but this is the wave we were surfing.
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