Last session of 2013...?

We're at the end December here, and it's looking like today may have been my last session for 2013. Things have been pretty wind blown for the last few days, but it cleaned up nicely today. It was well under zero, especially with the wind chill, but the sun was out and it actually felt somewhat warm. Beautiful conditions actually with the blue sky and green waves.
It's been a great year, can't wait for the next!
Happy New Year!

Swell December

After a great November, the first half of December was slow. That's usually the case here with winter surf in Hokkaido as the north winds and low pressure systems that track over from Siberia tend to blow things out. The last week, however, has been really good, got in five straight days. Several days we had overhead surf and clean conditions. Below are some picks from this morning; it was small, the swell has dropped quite a bit, but was still clean and fun enough. Cold though...the temp was under zero; you can see that the tetrapods have frozen over with the fresh water flowing out of Horobetsu River. Hopefully we can get in a few more sessions before hitting the warm waves of Hawaii in January... Mele Kalikimaka... 

Tail end of a winter swell at Kako

Frozen terapods

Sweet November

Man, this November has been great. Just day after day of good surf. Today was really fun, the waves would stand up, but then back off a bit down the line...you could make most of them by taking a high line a just racing the lip. Here's a pic of me on a traditional board, my 6'10" McCrystal Discgo; when it reaches head high I tend to leave the wood boards in the car. Only four of us out today, more salmon fishermen than surfers...pretty sketchy avoiding the lines in the water, and even just walking back up the beach, but super good fun...best November ever!

Another nice morning

The first snow of the year fell yesterday morning, but it quickly melted and warmed up to a balmy 4 degrees. I had this point (Pachiura) all to myself before work. Beautiful offshore plumes, and tons of fun. The best season of the year continues...

ahh, Hokkaido fall surf

The waves have been great. This year things were pretty quiet through September, but it really picked up in October. We just finished up typhoon #27, and may get one or two more before winter and the north winds arrive. I got in a week straight up until Monday, which is a really good run for this season, especially with the short days and work. All these pics are from Kako, my home break. Really fun waves and nice steady offshores...

The rail rebuild on the fish is going pretty well. I sanded all the varnish off the top and bottom, and am now shaping the new rails. I had to drill out the old FCS plugs because the extra width put the rails too far from the fins. Got quite a bit of kickback/movement drilling with the 30mm bit not liking the hard plastic of the plugs...ended up with some ugly tearing around the holes. I filled the holes with 30mm dowling, and quite a bit of wood filler, looks pretty ugly but should function OK... I probably should have just left the old plugs in. It'll be set up with a pair of big twins and a small trailer (MR TFX), the same set I bought for the previous incarnation of the board. Actually, with the wider template the board is looking more like a MR superfish (minus the wings), so hopefully it will go OK...More posts later... 



Repair, rebuild and fall surf

The diamond tail is back in the water. I replaced the cracked piece and nose area, and although it doesn't look as good as before, it is ridable. While I was at, I redid the somewhat bumpy gloss finish with a fine sand and clear acrylic coat. It's something I wanted to do anyway, so the repair was a good excuse. Nice to be back riding my favorite board again.    

 

Another project I have underway is a rail rebuild on the fish I made last year. It was my first framed board, and I did a really really lame job on the rails. So, I finally went ahead and planed off the rails and built them back up again with paulownia strips I picked up at the 100 yen (dollar) store. It is looking more like a normal board now...luckily, I finished it only with varnish before, so I can sand the whole thing down and glass it.

Ahh the fall, fun waves and hardly anyone out. Hopefully this will hold until the end of November.

back home again, sup report, and repair

Back home after two weeks and a couple of conferences in Europe. Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Antwerp and Mont St Michel were definite high points...as was the Dutch and Belgian beer and those tasty frites. Unfortunately, was not close to any surf, but the time off was probably good for my body after surfing pretty well every day for the last few months. Good to get out and see new stuff too, here's me at Mont St Michel:

 

Returned home to some solid swell. It got up to about head high and a half, the perfect size before the waves start closing out. Tuesday was probably the best day of the year, only two people out and really clean.  Here's a pic after the swell had dropped and the wind came up, still fun though...and the Hokkaido fall weather is incredible.   

 

Unfortunately, got some damage on my favorite board (the 6'6" diamond tail) this week. I went up high, came down in the shore break, and the nose plowed into the sand cracking the upper deck from the vent to the nose. I removed the cracked piece, dried it out, and am starting a pretty major repair. Looks pretty bad, but it is interesting to see how the inside of board looks after a season. Will post more as the repair gets underway.

And last but not least, a quick bit about the SUP. I've taken it out a couple times. It works OK, but it's pretty heavy and somewhat squirrely due to its short size. Also, I've only got wax on the deck, and find it comes off  pretty quick and gets slippery after about 30 minutes. I need a deck pad, and then should be good to go. The paddle works awesome.

I'll post more on the repair, and a rail rebuild I have underway, when I get some time. In the meantime I'll be enjoying Hokkaido's finest season.