Evening Session - 12/1/2024

And Marlon and I hit WPB for a late afternoon mid-length surfboard session.

Waves seemed to have come down - but we were just looking at a lull.

The waves were actually really good.

Marlon brought the Submoon and I brought the Tomo Revo Max

I had the Vernor Magic Twins on 

This actually turned out to be a super fun session.  I caught several waves where there was a wall to turn-carve-turn - this board is great!!!

I'm actually going to pass on the FD foil dawn patrol - but only so I can surf!!!

W:145/PW:2/FD:87/F:5/S:24

Dawn Patrol - 12/10/2023

Dawn patrol this morning - almost as good as yesterday.

Waves were slightly smaller, but more consistent.  And the wind was a little stronger than yesterday (but not enough to really mess with the surf).

Lance from Kailua came over.  He brought his big SUP.

Marlon brought the Submoon again.

I brought the same gear as yesterday.

Lots more people in the water today, so I would peel off the wave sooner than normal.  

The breaching issues I was having yesterday... all cured.  I was able to crank some super hard turns today without losing it.  Probably one of my better days on the Foil Drive.

22 waves in 1.5 hours (7 waves per half hour - so 1 every 5 minutes - ridiculous!!!!)

W:117/F:107/S:58

Dawn Patrol - 12/9/2023

Dawn patrol this morning was really good!

Surfline was calling a small southern hemisphere swell at 52 kJ (swell energy).  The tide was pretty low and dropping.  Very little wind so really good conditions for Foil Driving!!! 

I setup the Spitfire 960/375P today.  Marlon brought out the Firewire Submoon.

I got the battery down to 50% after 2 hours.

The surf was really good at dawn and stayed that way for about an hour.  After that it got a little bit lully.  A couple of sets rolled through that were head high.

The Spitfire caught me off guard a few times - it would break the surface and down I'd go.  The Advance Crazy Short fuselage makes this setup pitch sensitive (and more lively/fun).

I got to recycle plenty of times this morning - doubles, triples and even a quad.

Turning was bliss!

24 waves in 2 hours!!!!

Hopefully this swell sticks around for tomorrow's dawn patrol!

W:117/F:106/S:58

Dawn Patrol - 9/18/2022

Marlon and I dawn patrolled this morning.  He brought the Submoon (and I watched him get some really good rides).

Waves were belly to chest high - but with the transitioning tide (flood) you had to either way outside, or way inside.

Very little wind made for really nice conditions.

I ended up running one more experiment.  I took the same foiling setup out as the previous foiling session - but swapped out the 375P for the 400P.  So the setup was the ART 999/400P on the Ultrashort fuselage.

I caught a bunch of waves - and several of them ended up being doubles if not triples.  Super fun session this morning!

The 400P definitely gave more lift so it was easier to pump.  I think the 375P has a place with this - especially once the waves get higher than chest.  The smaller rear stabilizer will allow for bigger/faster takeoffs.

W:92/F:79/S:21

Dawn Patrol - 9/10/2022

Marlon and I hit the dawn patrol this morning.  He brought his Submoon and was having a blast.

I brought the same setup as last time.  Compared to the last session, the waves were cleaner, the tide was lower, and the waves were just a tad bigger - at least at the onset.  The waves seemed to get smaller and diminish as the tide dropped (counter intuitive).

I was catching some fun ones and had plenty of double dips (and even a triple every now and then).  Lots of carving up and down the face, and riding across the break (last cabin to the showers, then back again and over to Middles - lots of back and forths).

The chatter in the lineup was that tomorrow will be bigger... 

W:92/F:75/S:19

Dawn Patrol - 9/4/2022

Marlon and I hit the dawn patrol.  Swell was waist high.  No winds until later (like 8 am).  Tide was rising from a 0.6' low.

Marlon brought out the Firewire Submoon.  He had a fun session.

I brought the 4'8" prone board and used the ART 999 (400P).  Kalani, Scott, Tim (and maybe another) were out.  I caught a handful - super fun with the clean conditions on the ART.

W:89/F:73/S:19

Dawn Patrol - 1/30/2022

Dawn patrolled again this morning - the swell that started hitting yesterday was still here (for the first half of the session).  Marlon brought his Submoon.  I took out the same setup as yesterday (trying to get it dialed in).  I didn't leave anything in the bed this time (peace of mind).

The waves were slightly smaller than yesterday, but it was choppier today.  I caught some really fun ones - but the repeats were fewer than yesterday.  After the first hour, the waves dropped in size and the chop subsided.

I was having a hard time making the drop and bottom turning onto the wave faces - so I moved the mast forward.  That seemed to lessen the issue - but I'm going to have to keep working on this.  Truthfully I should have had the 980 on, but oh well.

Kalani was on the beach!!!  He's on the road to recovery and getting out there on a longboard was a great leap forward!

Had to run errands today so I called it around 8:30.  Fun session!!!

W:3/F:10/S:4

Dawn Patrol - 6/18/2021

Marlon and I hit the dawn patrol yesterday.  Our dragon fruit cactus was in bloom.  The surf was big, but it was really choppy.

Marlon brought the Sub Moon.

I brought the wide 4'10" with the NL160.

It didn't matter - I got taken to the cleaners.  The foil hit me on my right calf, my head and my right foot.  It was pretty frustrating.

Evening Session - 4/29/2021

After I finished sanding the rear stabilizer and Marlon finished his homework/studies, we headed to the beach.  There is a swell hitting - so Marlon brought out his Submoon - and I brought the HS1420CS/chopped 300 on the Wide Prone Foil Board.

Marlon was on the outside and was busy catching bombs.  I started out at Fenceline because it didn't look crowded and there were breaking waves (on top of the really high tide of 2.2'+).  I caught a few, but the tail felt draggy (I did use acetone to remove the wax and checked for any issues).  I decided to move over to Two Cots.  I caught some of the bigger gems that came through tonight.  Riding the foil high and parking in the pocket.  By the time I got my footing back, I then banked hard off the closing sections - SO MUCH FUN!!!

This is the perfect setup for 90% of the surfing sessions (if it gets bigger, I'll step down to the CF1200).

Great way to end the day!

Dawn Patrol - 4/11/2021

Dawn patrol this morning - back on the boat!  The swell was supposed to be bigger, but it wasn't.  The wind was supposed to be dead, but it wasn't (until later).  I changed out the fuselages on my 72cm mast so I could use the HS1250 (again thinking it was going to be bigger today).  Prayot had the Lift 170HA and the Armstrong HS1250 on the 85cm mast. 

Prayot has been trying to pick up a wave at Firsts, ride it out to maximize speed, then pump across the channel to Seconds to link up on another wave.  He's gotten close (yesterday) - and still keeps on trying.

I spent half the session at Seconds - hanging on the inside to pick up the reforms that the plethora of SUPers weren't riding.  Then I paddled over to Firsts.  Firsts really is the perfect foiling wave - but it is a fickle spot.

Marlon rode at Seconds - he caught several of these and a few even bigger ones.  He was exercising the Submoon to good effect.

Another 3 hour session - so much fun!!!

Evening Session -3/30/2021

Late post from yesterday - Marlon and I hit WPB in the late afternoon.  Wind was up (Eli was ripping on the wing - I didn't see him come down off foil once), tide was on the full side and there were waves - head high on the sets!

Marlon brought his Submoon and I had the Dually.  I saw Marlon take off on a few really good ones!!!  I kept drifting towards the crowd on my first few waves (blocked and had to abort the launch a few times).  But towards the end the crowd dispersed and I caught a few gems!  I keep forgetting how much fun surfing (not foiling) can be!

Dawn Patrol - 3/14/2021

Marlon and I hit the dawn patrol - he brought his Submoon out, and I had the wide 4'10" with HS1850.  The waves were surprisingly good - consistently waist high, and clean.  The tide was pretty high at 1.6' - so little worries about grounding.  I saw Kalani in the parking lot and he asked which foil I was using - he rigged the same. 

I caught a few waves and with the 1850 I was pumping back out without issue, but the waves were picking up.  I told Kalani I was thinking about chopping my 1550 - more out of boredom than need - he offered for me to use the 1550 I chopped down for him.  I switched out wings and was back at it.  The chopped wing was loose, but still had a good amount of lift.  I foiled with it for a while.  I'm going to chop mine down.

I saw Marlon on several waves - despite the new board being over a foot shorter than his longboard, he isn't skipping a beat.  

Lots of fun this morning!

Evening Session and the Anointment of Marlon's Submoon

Marlon has long been asking about surfboard tail shapes and how an arc tail would work.  Originally our plan for his birthday present was to buy a blank, and he was going to shape a longboard with an arc tail.  School, the alaia, and plenty of other things have gotten in between the plan and life.  A few days ago I asked if he just wanted to get a Firewire Submoon... I found one of the last ones today and brought it home.

Marlon was stoked!!!  We hit the beach in the afternoon and could only stay for a little bit (homework), but Marlon was catching a bunch of waves.  I saw him on a couple and the shorter length (compared to his longboard) was not hindering him.  I asked him how he liked the board and he said it is awesome - goes fast, turns like crazy and he could even get up to the nose.  I'd say there are no regrets here deviating from the original plan.

The tide was lower than 1.0', and I was originally going to ride the TJ Everyday - but I changed my mind at the last minute and brought out the skinny prone foil board.  I've had the GL180 bolted on for some time now - but swapped out the rear stabilizer for the chopped P18W (now it is 16.25").

I caught several waves and got some pretty long rides.  I got in a bunch of back to back roundhouse turns and the long glides were really fun.  I didn't catch as many as I thought I would, but I also did not sit inside where the waves were mostly breaking - too shallow.  You could see the front hanging offshore and stretching over to the Koolau range.  It didn't take long for the onshore winds to kick up, and the rain began shortly behind.  Good time to call it (so Marlon could get his homework done).

Waist high waves made for a successful anointment!!!  Happy belated birthday oh patient Marlon!!!