Sunday, there was no wind. Monday we had good cross-on wind but those waves look gnarly. Glad I brought my old Flydoor... hmm, wind feels good - XB13. By the time I finished pumping, I wonder if it shouldn't be the 10... launch, no I'm ok - out we go.
Water is odd... very shallow for a ways, then with 1m+ breakers - get over them easy. The next set are over 2m :o I run at them, thinking I'll just boost over them but the pull from the kite is inconsistent and I get slammed and tumbled by the wave. Reset, try again... same result. Hmm, what's going on with the wind? I had a hard time walking upwind to the water... go canny this time, trying to time it so I can get out over the wave before it breaks.
Manage that, only to discover the even bigger waves just beyond...
I finally get all the way out! Damn, that's a lot of swell on the waves! The sea is rising and falling 3 or 4 meters in hill-sized swells around me... water is choppy too. Take my time to get used to it and go a l-o-n-g way out...
Coming back in, I come in too far and have to fight out through the breakers again - doh! Hitting the white water, my board sinks then gets grabbed and I get tumbled again... this time, my board goes through my lines, at the bar leaders :o I fight to keep the kite in the air with one hand and clear the board, but I can't do it. Kite ends up in the waves and I drag the board clear with two hands - now fighting the pull in the surf :-/
Back out, and from now on I avoid going all the way in. Jumps aren't up to much as the crests aren't sharp, but are wide and choppy. Waves out there are hard to ride, as they're going in different directions. Cruising around...
Looking at the shore - when I can see it! - wondering how I'll get back in past the mountainous, violent dumping breakers... eventually, my legs are giving out so I make a run in, timing it to ride the waves a little then use the speed to build more speed and blast through the danger. Only just works...
Give up the several hundred meters upwind I gained by doing heel-to-toe-to-heel carves in the shallow and flat water between breakers... that was nice!
Crikey, what a session! :(
Moment of the day was the final carve-fest.
Mood of the session was AAAAAARGHH!
It sucks when you put your board through your lines - twice.
Weather was mental - over- to under-powered on the 13 - mostly just-powered when I need to be over-powered :-/ but the weather station reckoned 7 knots with gusts to 24 LOL
What I learned today...
- what a "chicken gybe" is...
- if you had a shit of a time getting out, don't come all the way back in! Idiot.
- riding down the back of those huge swells was like snowboarding! Had to be careful not to outrun the kite :o
- what my limits with waves are at this time!
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