Wing Repair and Board Prepping

Yesterday while I was using this wing (Takuma RS 6.1) the leading edge bladder popped.  Today I went ahead and fixed it.  You never know what you are going to find when you pull a bladder.  The pop sounded small and noncatastrophic - and it even took a little bit of time for the air to completely come out - so I figured I got lucky and this hole was small.

And small it was.  I had this patched in no time.

And I went ahead and inflated it and left it inflated.  It's at my office - I'll check on it in the morning.  I'm thinking it should be good to go.

I also decided to sell the surfboards I'm not currently using.  Those would be the Firewire Sunday (shown here), the Firewire Greedy Beaver, and the Toots 7'4" Asymmetric

The proceeds from selling these boards will go to the Ocean Rodeo Glide AX wings I'm saving up for and to pay off the Firewire Seaside and Beyond.

I'll post more pictures tomorrow of all the surfboards moving around (bought and sold).  There is also a swell that is inbound - surfing tomorrow!!!

Evening Session - 5/5/2022

Another evening session spent surfing - Marlon and I brought the same gear as yesterday.  The conditions were nearly identical - except the wind seemed stronger.

I caught three really good waves.  And had a bunch of full spread eagle epic wipeouts.  The single fin with all the turbulence had a hard time keeping hold (not to mention some of the takeoffs were full on pitching) - ergo the wipeout.

It's been a while since we've had waves this big for this long an extended period.  I'll take it!

W:36/F:43/S:14

Evening Session - 5/4/2022

Evening session yesterday.  Marlon brought his Seaside, and I brought the Sunday (set up as a single).  Waves were big - the wind was up - and the tide was really high.  Made for challenging conditions.

I caught a few really good waves.  One of these was a "sit in the pocket" and just go with the flow wave.  Another was a head high wall that held an open face for several seconds.  SO MUCH FUN!!! 

This is certainly the biggest swell to hit in quite some time.  And it is supposed to hold for the next several days...

W:36/F:43/S:13

Dawn Patrol - 4/10/2022

Dawn patrolled today with the Fire wire Sunday.  Bigger surf settled in - solid overhead.  I wanted to get a different set of fins on the board - but with the bigger surf, the VF4 Hatchet set I had on was completely wrong.  I'm thinking a bigger single fin may be the way to go in bigger surf.

I did manage to get a few decent rides so this wasn't a skunk session.

Kalani was there this morning.  I loaned him my Axis Crazy Short black fuselage so he could try out the BSC 810 he recently got.  It's good to see him back in the water trying out new things again!

If the swell is still here tomorrow afternoon, I'll try the Sunday as a single fin.

W:23/F:35/S:12

Dawn Patrol - 4/9/2022

Dawn patrolled this morning.  Decided to take the Firewire Sunday out thinking the swell would have built up and knowing the tide was on the really low side.  Marlon brought out his Seaside.

It took me a few waves to regain the feel of a shorter board on a juicer wave.  I did have a few really fun rides (but all way shorter than on foil).

I totally forgot I had this board setup as a twin.  Early on I would lean in and try to maneuver hard to the top of the wave - no joy - twins don't turn like thrusters.

Fun day (but for what ever reason, I am way more tired after surfing on a board, than I normally am foiling).

W:23/F:35/S:11

The Anointment of the Sunday on a Monday

The kids got home soon after I did and they both decided to come to WPB with me to anoint the Firewire Sunday.  The waves were forecasted to be 2-3', with a low high tide (at 0.9').  Light winds (but it was an onshore flow).

Originally I had the K2 keels on, but ultimately I decided on using the EN fins for this first run.  Uuuuhhhhhh - the ENs were perfect!!! 

The first few rides were short - I was trying to figure out where the sweet spot was so the takeoffs were slightly late.  Once I figured out to come back so my chin was in line with the top deck logo, I was able to takeoff really early and get some really long rides.  The juicy waves were far and few between - but on those rides I could tell this is going to be an incredibly fun board!!!

This fin setup is really good.  It'll make it hard to switch out to other setups - but I'll force myself to do so.

Marlon also brought the Seaside out - but he needed just a little more energy.

I'm glad I got this board!  It'll be a fun addition to the current lineup!  Now that it has been properly anointed, it's time to slap on some stickers!

W:6/F:13/S:8

Garage Works - 2/12/2022

Rumor mill had everywhere but north shore at none to 1'.  Instead of trying to fight for waves at a single takeoff spot, I opted to catch up on some things that have been on my mind.  First up was changing the fins on a couple of boards (so I can get the keels on the Sunday).  I took the Eric Arakawa's (and the Solara) off the Greedy Beaver and replaced them with the Grennan quads.

And I took the fins off the Pigfish (these actually came from three different sets of fins). 

After that I checked on the OR A Series Glide - came back from the repair shop.  I went ahead and got the leash and harness line back on.

I'll do an inflation test soon.

Marlon also got restarted on shaping his performance longboard.  He did not want to use the electric planer, so he was making lots of passes with the surform.

We also had to pick Noe up from her Laser racing, so we took off a little early so he could purchase a board that caught his eye yesterday - the Firewire Seaside at 5'2" in Helium construction (with a cool paint job to boot).

Stopped off at Kailua Beach Park on the way to Noe - not a single kite, wing or sail out...

We got home and Marlon and I waxed up our boards.  La noted we have different styles and methods for waxing boards.

I prefer my method - just look at the consistency and the tight, tiny wax bumps.

There is supposed to be a swell in bound - hopefully it gets here soon - I have a bunch of things to get done and I might actually do them all if there isn't any wind or surf.

21st Anniversary Present

Yesterday I was able to sell one of the foils that I had not really bonded with - goodbye Lift 150 Surf V2 and the 25 Glide rear stabilizer...

And today I picked up what is officially my 21st Anniversary present!!!!  Introducing the 6'8" Firewire Sunday!!!  I already have plans in my head to surf this as a twin using the Futures EN keels, then the original Akila Aipa Twinzers with a tiny trailer, then dropping in the Greenough Power Blade and Power Glide with and without side bites, and the Greenough High Speed... you get the picture!!!

As much as I love foiling and winging, those disciplines have conditions that suite them best - when it is low tide I would rather surf and this board will really help keep surfing fresh and new for me.

I brought Marlon with me so he could take a look at the multitudes of really nice surfboards.  He was almost going to buy the 5'2" Firewire Seaside in Seafoam (with the black rail stripe and wood reveal - BEAUTIFUL BOARD) - but he is definitely more disciplined than I am (I would have left with the board).

There is a swell forecasted to arrive on Monday - and the tide will be low in the daylight hours so I'm looking forward to anointing the Sunday!!!

Checkout Clips Surf Shop near Ala Moana - really cool shop!!!