It
all happened as any good epic does, with venturing into the unknown, saying
'YES' and jumping in with both feet. I have been a kayaker for over 18 years
and have most recently found inspiration in surfing ocean waves and rough water
paddling in performance sea kayaks, but never did I expect to fall in love with
paddling all over again in the form of 'High Performance' surf kayaking. From
the moment I took off down a wave and felt my surf kayak begin to plane and
carve, gaining energy and momentum from the ocean's force, I knew that my
quiver of boats was about to grow.
Making
the transition from sea kayak surfing to surf kayaking has been one of those
both-feet-jumping epics. After surfing in Neah Bay, WA at Hobuck Hoedown and loving
the festival vibe from years past, I have surfed my home breaks at Jordan River
and Tofino, BC, Canada in a Valley Rush+ and have gotten my my fair share of
big wave beat downs and cruzee faces alike. When the opportunity arose for the
second year in a row, I decided I should repeat the pilgrimage to Steamer Lane
and attend the Santa Cruz Paddle Surf Festival in California.
 |
| Kate - Steamer Lane 2014 Middle Peak photo: Mark Boyd |
After having been in a surf boat only a
handful of times, I knew that I had a lot to learn. Having the ability to
transfer style and technique from my sea kayak and white water boats is handy ,
but there is certainly a learning curve to this small, hard railed boat, that
begs both aggression and finesse. So I figured that the most efficient way to
get into this sport was to watch and paddle with the best. I knew I needed to
see bigger waves, so the decision to return to Santa Cruz was easy.
The event draws competitors from around the
world to surf at this famous California point break, this year a solid crew
came from Basque Country demonstrating big carves and dynamic moves on the
waves! During the 3 day festival surf kayaks, SUP's and wave skis take over the
lane and competitors have the opportunity to surf the break with only 3 other
wave riders, which is remarkable based on how popular Seamer Lane is. This is
the perfect recipe for paddlers to demonstrate their skills, share tricks and
expand the envelope of what we, as paddlers, think we can achieve.
 |
| Kate - watching the break photo: Mark Boyd |
Remembering
back to my first trip down to the competition last year, I truly had no idea
what to expect. As I drove down the windy coastal roads through Redwood forests
and along the Pacific Ocean, I imagined myself riding the face of a beautiful
wave, visualizing the ride. I had seen some footage from surf videos and past
kayak festival posts, but nothing ever looks the same on camera as it does when
you are paddling along side a double overhead cresting face. So when we pulled
into Santa Cruz on a warm afternoon and looked out at The Lane, imagine the
butterflies in my stomach when I saw the crisp shoulder of perfect waves,
against the steep California bluff. The wave peels off the point with stunning
consistency cruising to the right with a beautiful steep shoulder and high
potential for deliciously long rides. Perfect!
***Kate's PFD of choice is the Kokatat Maximus Prime (in Navy) which you can not see under her competition bib in the photo above***
You will be hearing and seeing a lot of Kate this season, watch for her upcoming review of her CUSTOM Kokatat Women's Icon Drysuit.
No comments:
Post a Comment