Downwind lessons 3/29/11

I learned two valuable lessons this day.

The winds kicked up great conditions for a late afternoon downwind paddle. I'm still learning about this. This day was a notch or two up from any I have done so far, a little bigger with some whitecaps.

The two miles I paddled upwind to earn the fun was a good challenge, and doable. I always keep in mind that there's no law about winds blowing the "right" way on race day. Some races turn out to be upwind, or, worse yet, crosswind.

Once I reached Lover's Point, I turned into the bay, paddling crosswind. When I started heading in the direction of what's been downwind on other days, I was still going cross swell. Then something surprising happened. I started finding bumps going across the windswell I thought I was going to be riding but couldn't because it was the wrong line.

Today's lesson #1: bumps go in several directions. You might find them going in the direction you want to go, even if they aren't the most obvious things out there.

It became fun to find those and learn how that works as another, larger bump is crossing your path.

Eventually, I was able to ride the "main" bumps. It was just after that when a guy on a surfski blazed past me, whooping. He was paddling like mad and getting richly rewarded for his work. I returned his enthusiasm, cheering him on.

His buddy wasn't too far behind, and he was going just as hard, staying on bumps for 50 or 100 or more yards at a time.

Lesson #2: once you know how to get into the rhythm of catching the bumps, the speed of your paddling matters -- that's how you stay on the bumps longer and milk the ride for all you can get.

Gotta keep training!

Paddle 3/20/11: Risso's Dolphins Everywhere!

The days-long storm broke long enough for Mike Roberts and me to get in a 12-mile paddle. Our route: Monterey's San Carlos Beach to the Pt. Pinos bouy to Monterey Bay Hotel, and back to San Carlos Beach. We had a nice downwind run from Pt. Pinos. But the best part of the paddle today was the Risso's dolphins.  We started seeing them right after we launched. It looked like over 50 were in the pod. Then there was another pod. Then another. We kept seeing them for three miles. And they were showing off -- including breaching. Several dove deep under our paddleboards.

They're surprisingly large -- around 12 or 13 feet in length, beefy, and with a very prominent dorsal fin. We knew who was in charge, and were glad they were being hospitable towards us.

When I looked them up,  it turned out they feed on squid. Squid and Pacific Grove are like lobsters and Maine. But I've never seen these dolphins before, and I have only seen pods this large in Hawai'i (those were spinners).

I found a site with some great pictures of Risso's dolphins. (<= Click that, and you'll see)

Just another thing I LOVE about paddleboarding.