LOST BEST TWIN TIP AT WADDELL

[sloughslut]

Did you walk down the beach and look?

[mighty]

What's a good twin tip for waves? I liked the Tronic when I tried it in Maui years ago. Mako? X-ride? Are there others?

And ride them longer for more stability? If I was a 134-6 on regular twin tip, I'd want something over 140 for the waves?

Thanks!

[akhodakivskiy]

Rebecca: The wind is slightly on-shore around this stretch of the coast. There is a good chance that the board is somewhere down the beach. You can undertake another trip to Waddell and walk as far as you can...

[Frappes]

Someone appeared to lose their board several hundred yards west of GGB yesterday and body dragged all the way back to the beach. Looked like the same woman from Waddell on Sunday.

Two boards in less than a week? Ouch!

[le noun]

A wet top and shorts would have been fine.

And then you break a line way out and die of hypothermia as you swim back to the beach...

OK, so seeing as this thread is now about Twintip kiters in the waves...

As a fairly confident kiter, with 4+ years on a TT at all the inside the bay spots (can jump high, do backrolls, upwind no problem, water self-rescue fine, etc), what progression do you recommend to going at Waddell? Is there some intermediate step other than showing up at Waddell and watching, learning, then trying?

Just curious. I have often wondered about going in Waddell but I don't really know all the exact skills needed and what the usual process is to build them..

dw

I don't think the thread moved to TT riders in the waves. Wavesaregood and cleepa were just observing that some riders start riding at Waddell regardless of their (poor) skills.
I don't care if you ride a TT, foil or surfboard in waves: if you can't body drag back to your board efficiently, STAY INSIDE THE BAY until you can.
If the only wetsuit you own is a 2mm shorty, stay inside the bay until you get a thicker one.
And multiple other things that have already been discussed a thousand times.
I would add that being able to not be looking at your kite so you can focus on the waves and other riders around should be a mandatory skill as well as soon as the waves are above shoulder high.
Being a strong swimmer is also another needed skill: what if you end up caught into a rip without board and kite and the wind died so everyone else is heading back to shore?

I REALLY don't mind people on TT in the waves, it can be super fun to use them as kickers and the flat water inside OB is awesome as well. The issue is people not being ready for oh-shit scenario
We are a super friendly community, always helping each other, but sadly this has lead to people just expecting others to rescue them.

[drroc]

Being a strong swimmer is also another needed skill: what if you end up caught into a rip without board and kite and the wind died so everyone else is heading back to shore?

I think the key is to know how to stay afloat with minimal effort and conserve your energy as the waves pummel/push you towards the shore. It also helps a lot to have a floaty impact vest. Having a vest has turned a few dicey situations for me into just annoying situations.