Evening Session - 6/2/2026

Noe is home from school - so we took a field trip to WP to see if her spirit animal was hanging out -

And it was!

The surf was big and pretty unruly.  I spent my first 30 minutes just trying to get to a stable lineup.

I brought the Firewire Machadocado 5'10" with the NVS Wolverines screwed in.

I caught two really good (for today's conditions) waves, and another where my feet got wrapped up in the leash.  Not many options given the conditions.

Before going to WPB, I did check out PVs to see how it was handling the swell - if the wind were stronger, it would have been fine for parawinging/winging.  The break is offshore much further and there is sufficient runway to get up on to foil.  That may be the call for tomorrow -

PF:8/W:2/PW:55/FD:41/S:18

Evening Session - 4/18/2026

I had wanted to go parawinging this morning over at Kailua... but the wind did not get to doable levels.  Skunked.

I came back and La and I went and checked out some places we had talked about going to (Kawamoto Orchid Farm, food places in Waialae, eyeglass place).

And when I got back, the wind seemed to be blowing - seemed.

The thought crossed my mind that I had all the parawing stuff still packed in the truck - but I knew better.

And that last thought was backed up by Roland sending an in person report - head high waves, nice and clean conditions.

I grabbed the Machadocado with the NVS Wolverine fins -

I caught six waves in an hour - and three of them were really good.

Late takeoff, dropping into the slot and ripping some really good turns along the length of the wave.

This board can handle!!!

PF:5/W:2/PW:31/FD:30/S:13

Evening Session - 4/7/2026

Same pattern today - came home from work, took a nap, then headed out to get a few waves.

It was breaking overhead out at Foil Drive Country -

I was debating about which board to bring - I ended up deciding on the Machadocado with the NVS Wolverine fin set.

I caught three good ones.

The first was a long right and I got in several good turns.  This board and the fins are a great pairing.

The second wave I was getting stalled up at the top, but the wave doubled up and I got an elevator drop on an overhead wave.

The last wave was another right with a few turns.

I'm happy!  Especially since wave choice becomes critical when the waves get this height and larger.

Marlon was out on his longboard (and the fin bolt got loose); Roland was out on his longboard (mid-length); and Duke was SUP foiling outside. 

The weather is going to take a turn for the worse for the rest of the week... might be a good time to get the tow boogie completed.

PF:5/W:2/PW:31/FD:25/S:11

The Anointment of the Machadocado

After working on No.43, I figured it would be nice to get some exercise in -

The waves were chest high on the periodic sets.

I didn't have much time so I opted to surf -

And instead of bringing the Sweet Potato, I brought the Machadocado out for its first session (with me - I sold the straight Helium Sweet Potato and got this board).

For it's first outing, I fitted it with the NVS Taylor Knox Wolverine Twin + trailer fins. 

My first few waves were awkward - and even planted seeds of doubt in my mind.  But I made a more conscious effort to focus on my footing and the rides got way better.

I had a few rides going right where the face got a tad steeper and the wave lined up - and I got in several great carving turns on these runs.

I had one left where I got three backside schwacking top turns - super fun!!!

This board is definitely a keeper!

But it isn't without a couple of issues.  There is a spot just ahead of the port side fin that looks to be a dry weave spot.  There is balsa/paulownia perimeter rails underneath that area so I am not really worried about water infiltration - but my OCD is kicking in (so I'm likely to do a light sanding and fill job to negate the issue).

And the starboard fin box is a little larger than the fin base.  I end up having to tighten the worm screw more than I normally would - and even after that there seems to be some lateral movement.  I am going to try adding a strip of aluminum duct tape to take up the gap (just like shimming front foils in ferrule setups).

All considered - this is going to be a super fun board!  I've already got the NVS Taylor Knox Pivot Twins loaded up on the Cado - 

PW:5/FD:7/S:5

Garage Works - 1/19/2026

I finally stopped starring at No.43 and got back to work on it.

I decided on using the basalt fabric instead of carbon.  This was mainly because of the Foil Drive duty it's gonna pull.

I cut out the fabric, got it trimmed and pulled it back.

I mixed the epoxy - 18 ounces - and added epoxy to the track boxes (they had slots).

Then I placed the carbon strips back in place, covered the remainder of the board with the basalt, and started laminating.

I had to mix up another 4.2 ounces to get the laps wetted out.

Everything was nice and flat.

And there wasn't any drama with the tail.

Tomorrow I'll get the footstrap inserts set in place, cut out the top deck reinforcement patches, prep the basalt cover and laminate - hopefully.

I took a break and flew the drone for a bit.  Wanted to scare away any pigeons hanging out on the roof.

Then I tested out the new scale I bought from Costco - this thing will handle up to 30 pounds!!!

I measured the weight of the Machadocado - almost 7 pounds with the deckpad (and no fins or wax).

And I wanted to wax this board up in case the waves are decent this week.

And these are the fins I decided to try out on this board first - NVS Wolverines

I'll weigh the board again once the wax is on and the fins are in place.

Nice new tool!

Dawn Patrol - 11/30/2025

The conditions on the dawn patrol were not bad, but they weren't the west wrap barrels that everyone had been whispering about.

The tide has been low in the mornings lately - 0.7' with a slow rise to 1.3'

Light northerly winds - but there was still a little bump in the surface.

I pulled a two staged dawn patrol this morning.  I had brought the Hayden Shapes Hypto Krypto 6'0" this morning anticipating the west wrap to have some size.

And I even installed the NVS Taylor Knox Wolverine 2+1 fin set.

Looking at the waves and the set timing, I thought I might as well give this fin setup a run.

I paddled out and caught three waves where I was able to get a couple of turns in.

This setup has some good potential (I just need waves with energy).

After surfing, I paddled in and got No.41 setup with the AFS Enduro 900/HA40/UHM 80cm mast to get in a Foil Drive session.

Kalani, Roland, Dennis and Stu also made it out on Foil Drive.  Rick, Noel, Makana, Dean, Derrick, Charles and Brent were out on SUP foils or prone.

Early on with the tide lower, there were some waves coming in from the south.  But as the session went on, there were some lines pushing in from the west.

I got in tons of carving turns - I cannot complain.

18 rides - with multiple double dips.

Good double session this morning!

W:58/FD:137/PW:70/S:18/PF:1