Dawn Patrol - 5/25/2024

I had planned on going to Kailua to wing this morning - but I checked the report before heading out and the wind was light.  I figured I'd have a better time going to WPB to surf (since it was low tide and I didn't want to risk grounding a foil - and I didn't charge my Foil Drive battery).

There were some waves, but the crowd was also pretty stacked.

I brought the Hammah Fish thinking the waves were going to be a hair bigger (based on the past couple of winging sessions).  They were good sized on the sets but the longboarders were all over them.  I caught several, and even had a couple of good ones - but I kept thinking the Boogie Fish or the Sweet Potato would have been a better selection for riding the waves on the inside.  

This board is perfect for the chest to head and a half high waves.  Today was more like belly to head.  Definitely should have used the Boogie Fish...

W:61/FD:38/F:4/S:12

Evening Session - 5/15/2024

Not quite an anointment (as I got this board second hand) - but this 5'6" Hammah Fish from J.Splee Surfboards is killer!!!

As you can see I have the Endorfin Twins inserted - these worked really well today (and made the rides incredibly fun).

There is a pretty substantial 'V' running in the back half of the board - and that made this board want to rotate rail to rail.  The rails are really pinched hard, so the board holds in steeper faces - 

This thing goes hard where fish are not supposed to...

I'm guessing this board has around 42 liters of volume - it was so easy to paddle into waves.  But it is amazing how all the volume is packed into such a manageable frame.  I actually didn't like the Greedy Beaver I had because of this issue - the size I got was just too big and corky for me to get into waves and turn - the Hammah Fish is obviously smaller, but it also just works better.

Marlon brought out his longboard and he was catching some really good rides despite the onshore winds.

I caught 4 and had to pay with 3 missed ones.  The rides I did catch were pretty long, the waves were steep and I got to get some great turns in.  My first wave was amazing - it's interactions like this that let you know you have a great board.

I am looking forward to a great summer with this board!!!

W:58/FD:34/F:4/S:10

Evening Session - 11/21/2023

Got in an evening session after work - the tide was low, the wind was light and the waves - even though a little lully - were really fun!

Marlon also came to the beach - he was a little upset at first because he brought the Seaside... I don't know if he stayed frustrated or not (I was actually quite happy with the conditions and choice of equipment).

I brought the J.Splee Boogiefish.  I wanted to test out the fins I had heard were recommended by the builder - Futures K2 Keels.

These were really fun!

It had less drive than the other sets I've used in this board - but the sliding added a lot of dimension to riding this board!

I had plenty of waves by sitting inside of everybody and picking off the waves that got through.

Roland was out also - but he was complaining about his lower tricep (like a pulled muscle).  We looked at the weather - and it looks like the next few days will have small surf and light winds...  might be time to try surfing MCBH, or breaking out the kites for some kitefoiling practice.  That's let the adhesive on the Great White Twin deck pad cure nicely (more on this in the next post...)

For such a short board - this thing always puts a smile on my face!

W:115/F:101/S:56

Dawn Patrol - 10/13/2023

The surfline forecast called for the best wave energy to be present at dawn.  I figured I'd go in a tad late so I could take advantage of the conditions (and I also told Marlon I'd take him to where his ride to Makapuu was - school project).

The waves had more of a SW bend to them - which kept the rights open!!!

There was zero wind and the tide was on the high side.  I only had under an hour to surf so I got to it. 

I find myself wanting to keep surfing this board - the Boogie Fish!  And I also wanted to try it out with the Futures Mayhem Evil Twin Large fins I picked up yesterday.

I was able to get into some nice waves and these fins are continuing the streak of "the next set of fins are even better than the last!!!!"

This stint of riding short fishy surfboards has been reinvigorating.

W:103/F:93/S:45

Evening Session - 10/11/2023

I was wasted (super tired, not drunk) after I got home from work so I took a nap.  I got up after an hour and felt compelled to go surf.  Supposedly there was an increase in the wave energy - gotta get it before the south swells go dormant.

And I wanted to get more waves in with the Boogie Fish. 

I got several fun ones - but almost every other wave had military people dropping in - "I love this place because everybody shares waves" - wrong - you just keep dropping in.  

I still had a good time getting to know this board better.

W:103/F:93/S:44

Evening Session - 10/10/2023

Got in an evening session after work - sometimes just swimming around in the ocean after a long day at work is good to wash off the work day.

The tide was dropping and the waves were about waist high.  The wind was up and down, and it did have more North in it.  There was a winger out in front of Campgrounds - they looked to be powered up and on foil.

I brought out the Boogie Fish!  I placed the True Ames Hess Noriega keels.

This board is different than the other boards I've been using lately.  The end result is this board is really skatey (compared the more drivey feel I get from the Sweet Potato).  This is especially noticable when completing a top turn and redirecting - slides a bit more at the end of the turn.  This is likely due to the bottom deck elements  - some spiral V and concaves that have an edge on the rail side of the feature.

I think the best way to describe this is "fun"

It did seem like it wanted more energy to open up and run.  The waves today did not have that much energy behind them, and it was good to find the low end of this board's range.  Going forward through the week, the waves are supposed to pick up. What a convenient excuse to keep using this board!  

W:103/F:93/S:43

Garage Works - 10/9/2023

Dewaxed took off the deck pad on this 5'1" fish

I personally prefer not to get straight polyester and polyurethane boards - primarily because the heel dents and pressure dings that seem to easily emerge on this construction.  But for $250 - I'll pull this into the latest round of experimentation.

You can see the pressures on this picture of the top deck.

The bottom deck is nearly in flawless condition.

The Octopus deckpad came off, but some residue didn't come up.

This was the biggest heel dent.  I am nitpicking here - in general, this board is in great condition (again - at $250!!!!).

This is the point where I stopped cleaning and turned to outfitting.

I put on a Retro Fish deckpad - it actually provides really good coverage.

And I waxed the deck - two coats of tropical/base coat and two coats of warm water wax.

I'll keep the weights on the deck pad for a few hours to get a good foundation on the adhesive.

I'm going to start out with the Hess Noriega keels on this one.

At 5'1", I do have some concern and being able to get this situated, but it is 34+ liters (so the same as the Cymatic).  More fun experimenting!