Surfski Knowledge Base

kathleen petereit
06/08/08 #4484

And Larry and I had to be rescued, that's after we made it through the 4 footers plus the 2 - 3 foot beam waves and 10 kms of the knarliest water his double huki has ever been in. I have no idea how we made it that far, but I was the extremely stressed to say the least, hyperventilating at one point and calling out Larry's name in desperation. While he very calmly kept saying…you're doin' good, hang in there…uuhhhhh yeah whatever Larry ! Despite the fact that I have only sat in a double ski 5 times and only once for half an hour with Larry, in the tippiest ski on the market we did well till we broached…Daryll Remmler with his partner in a double sea kayak did a heroic rescue with me on the back of their kayak and Larry hanging off the side while Marty in a single sea kayak rescued our ski till the CG came. Larry can tell the rest of the story…

Kathleen

Re: Bowen
Larry Goolsby
06/08/08 #4485

Just to clear things up, we didn't have to be rescued, it was just a better choice than the alternative. Let's go back to the beginning of the weekend so that I can take the spotlight off myself and direct towards those that finished the race. The weather forecast for race day was for minimal chance of rain with 5-10 mph winds. Reivers and I went over the night before, while the Kieslings and Nelsons had gone over on Friday. Don. K stayed at a place called “Chocolate Suites' while the Nelsons stayed in a hollowed out stump on the edge of the water. Just as Reivers and I got off the ferry, we picked up a girl and took her back to our room. This girl went on to become my doubles partner for the race. Reivers took me aside and whispered in my ear “Sleep solo, paddle tandem”.

Actually the girl was Kathleen and later, all the Whatcom Paddlers staying on the island got together for dinner and beers. It was a good calm night with clear skies and no wind. However, about 2 am, the winds kicked up (Damn weather liars) and it rained really hard on and off for the next 6 hours. This was not looking good for the two of us in the S2-X. Brian B. and Jesse show up (the Outrigger relay) and Jesse's car had been broken into while they stayed in Vancouver so all he had to wear was a thin t-shirt and shorts. I offered him paddling clothes (9 C temp) but he was happy to stand there and shiver (mental note: single blade = no brain). Anyway, Brian went on to win the relay with another paddler out of Seattle and I didn't hear how Jesse faired. So Erik Borgnes and the Hemmens came over on the ferry and Erik says that the water to the south of Bowen is rockin' something like in the movie “The Perfect Storm”. Great, just what I needed to hear and especially since my partner is hopped up on roids and hormones.

Race starts on calm waters and there are so many boats on the water that it's hard for us to work our way up front. We start passing a lot of paddlers and making good speed until we come around the first corner and run into the wind and oncoming waves. Still not bad but we have to eventually round the bottom of the island and take these waves on the beam. We had caught up to Jeff Raymond and Katja in their XT tandem but as the water got bigger, they didn't slow down and walked away from us. We had also passed DeAnne and Heather but they too caught us as the waves increased. The problem with the south shore of Bowen is that it has an abrupt rocky shore and all these waves were rebounding and coming back at our other beam. Not fun in an S2-X, but were were staying upright. Each time we saw another point of land, I would mentally lie to myself and say that it would flatten out around the next corner when in reality, it actually got bigger after each corner. By now the leading boats were Jeff Hilburn and Morris in the pink tandem, Paul S. and Mike F. in another XT tandem, Erik B. Patrick Hemmens, and Don K in singles. As we neared the Southwest corner of the island we turned to go north and start riding these same waves that were pounding our beam and I noticed that an outrigger was passing us. Either he was really fast or we weren't. Then two other outriggers passed us and I knew we were going slower than we should. As we turned north the waves became a little more even with less refraction but there was a big rip current with standing waves that was worse than anything that we had already manuvered. We made it (barely) through this and started catching rides. We passed John and Ben in their tandem and we were gaining on Heather and DeAnne when we took a wave at an angle and broached enough for the wave to roll us over.

So here we are in the water and I need to straighten out my hydration so I can swim under the boat and remount. I get on and in on my first attempt but the waves were pretty good size and Kath couldn't hold the boat long enough for me to get my paddle back in my hands. In again I went and we flipped the boat upright for a second attempt. Same thing happens and I knew that finishing this race was no longer a reality. That's when Daryl Remmler (my new best friend)pulled up in his tandem kayak and offered to tow us to shore and then go back and get our boat. Yes, going to shore was a good idea but remounting that angry ski on that rocky shore with incoming waves wasn't my idea of resolving this issue. By then, the Coasties were pulling my ski out of the water and asking us where should they take it. I yelled that there was a Honda Element in the paring lot at Snug Cove and would they please be sure to dry it off and tie it down while they were at it. A few hours later I saw a white station wagon (without a kayak rack) driving through town with my Huki lashed to the roof with climbing ropes. I flagged them down and retrieved my boat (damn Coasties).

So the race ends with Paul and Mike in the XT tandem breaking the previous record by 52 seconds and winning $500 (It was Canadian so it's like $497 US). Jeff and Morris were just a few seconds behind them with Jeff and Katja just a few seconds behind the Pink boat. I have to say that Jeff and Katja should get the award for the best performance because they caught two of the strongest tandem teams that I have ever raced against. The first single in was Erik B. with Don K. not far behind. Patrick fell back a ways and didn't show up for several more minutes. Reivers came in looking like death while Paul Clement only stopped at the cove to refill his hydration bag and head out to do one more lap around the island. DeAnne was the first woman with Heather a strong second. Oh yeah, and there was a guy who did this course on a stand-up paddle board in 6 hours. I am such a wimp.
Larry G.

Re: Bowen
Reivers Dustin
06/09/08 #4486

The weekend did not have good beginings. I met LG and the Borgnes's in Ferndale and just as we were getting in the rigs someone asked, “got passport?” Shit-ahoy, my passport is back in my office desk. So Erik and wife head for the border w/o us and LG kindly takes me to my office. As we arrive, lo and behold, I had carefully placed my office keys in my glove-box in my car (back in Ferndale). So back we go to Ferndale. Then back to the office. Then off to Canada. LG was very calm and supportive. By which I felt like an even bigger ditzel.

But the race.

I had a blast for the first 3/4 of the race. The first 4 miles or so was pretty much like the wall on a rough day. The last 4 miles of that rough section was really big. There were occasional sets that just roared. But they would carry you into the shear wall or you would take them at too sharp of an angle. So the single's (both OC's & 'skis) would turn into the wall for the ride, then try to crab-angle to milk the wave. Not so easy on a double. Ben & John had one of their ripping good starts and I passed them in the rough while they were examining the sea-bottom. I did well in this rough part. Maybe its pay-off for all those Saturday rock-a-hoola workouts. Also, I played the currents well on the back side. But I wasn't in shape for a 20 mile race. In the last 4-miles everyone I had passed climbed over my back. I was limping in at 3 mph with cramps like an old man. Er, an even older man

Re: Bowen
paul clement
06/09/08 #4488

News from the back of the pack…

Kirk C and I headed to Bowen early Sunday and had a nice time.

I was feeling great about the conditions for about 200 yards… and then we turned the corner out of the harbor. I was hanging on for dear life and watching everyone else become small dots on the horizon.

I thought the first couple of miles were unpredictable and unruly like the wall only much longer, then I turned a bit of a corner and things got worse. For me, this was big bad stuff. It seemed to come at me from a lot of different directions. I got into a bit of a rhythm of looking for the crease between peaks and went through periods of, “what in the hell?” and “ok, I have it here”.

Then I turned to traverse the South end of the island and kinda got scared for a bit. The runs were fast, but took me into the wall. Working back out was a real balancing act. I thought for sure I was going to break my paddle a couple of times as I slammed a brace and had water up to my elbow. At one point, I teetered on top of a wave for a second and made a bad decision that caused me to brace wrong side and I went in. I remounted in very short order and began to let the big ones wash under me once in a while. I was bummed because I felt like I was not making the best of a fast situation, but I didn't want to be in the water again. After that bit, I passed a rescue in progress and didn't realize it was Larry and Kathleen in the midst of the CG pickup. All I had in me was a, “is everything ok?” and heard yes, so I continued being scared.

The rest is pretty boring. Turned the corner, caught a few wakes and went pretty well up the backside. Found an amazing womens OC-2 to draft for a while. I felt best after I turned the corner and headed home. Strength vs. strength in predictable water into a STIFF headwind. I liked that despite barely moving. Caught a couple and made some (relative) time.

By the second time around the water had mellowed considerably… as had I.

Re: Bowen
kathleen petereit
06/09/08 #4489

Paul…did you really do 2 laps ????

Re: Bowen
paul clement
06/11/08 #4500

Uh, no.

But I did manage to chew the same piece of gum for 3 hours and 14 minutes during the race.

That's something…