There are more and more crew getting out there on race sups which is great to see.
At the alley on some mornings there can be more than a dozen doing ins and outs at the point, on 12'6 and longer boards. There were at least that many out there this morning.
It is pretty much a given that at some time, all paddlers will come off while on a wave or paddling through. Saw a lot fall this morning, and have seen the best of paddlers separated from their boards. When you fall off your board you need to ensure it has the least impact on other water users. At least a leggie will stop it doing further possible damage on its way through the crowd.
There are heaps of coil type leggies that don't drag behind the board, so really there is no reason not to wear one when in the surf.
My suggestion is that if you think you don't need to wear a legrope while surfing one of these tankers, paddle out on a short/longboard and sit at the point while other race sups are there and get a feel of it from the other side.
Couldn't agree more Scotty - especially when there's other people surfing the break at the same time - no matter how small it is.
Yes, I'm guilty sometimes of being one of those without a leggie as usually in training I don't know that we'll be doing ins and outs until we've already paddled down the creek to the beach and I can't exactly just grab one out of the car at that stage.
Just my opinion, but I don't see any heroics in not wearing one - actually I find I'm more likely to fall when I don't have one on, as I'm thinking so much about "what if I lose the board and it gets in someones way that", that I'm not focussed on keeping my balance and making sure I don't fall.
If it's dead flat (like the last few days) then IMO no leggie is ok as there's no waves to push the board into anyone else, but as soon as theres any waves or other water users around then it should be about respect for them, not about whether you think you need a leggie or not.
Strong talk going around that it is going to be mandatory to wear a leggie with a SUP in all Victorian waters. That sucks for the Yarra River, but otherwise a reasonable law imho.
Woody,
Also expect PFDs / paddle vests, fluid / camel back (can be built into PFD) and mini flares minimum for downwinders and maditory check in check out with dedicated land support (again no brainer).
Also strong possibility that boat support / coverage for races will have a minimum of 8 paddlers to 1 boat.
Its all going to get much tighter thats for sure but the orginal proposal was far worse.
Phill
All I saw at the Alley this morning was some portly dude on a white sup absolutely shredding ...... he certainly was having a stand out session ...... like to know what SUP he was riding ........
Hey Phill, do you know how they define the check in / check out process and what constitutes land support?
Hey Woody,
I would assume its would be the same as for when I ran fishing charters.
You detail the following:
The land based contact for us it was the coast guard or marina in the area we were launching from.
You provide them with:
1) The names and emergency contact details for all people going.
2) The start point and time of the run
3) The end point and expected end time of the run
4) When everyone is back and accounted for you ring them and advise all is well.
5) They sign you out.
Simple process really if they dont hear from you by the intended signout time they contact the authorities.
On Corio Bay DW:
We have the the following contact numbers in the hands of the land based vehicle:
Local Police, Marine Safety, Royal Geelong Yacht Club and Royal Geelong Hospital.
Everyone that paddles must have a PDF, legrope no exception. All PDFs have whistles / camel back with fluid / or bottle of fluid and an enery or chocolate bars.
We use radio contact with the guys that paddle and can talk directly to the paddlers on the water to ensure they are OK in case off server squalls which we do get.
We have a vehicle track and follow all paddlers via binoculars if someone needs to bail they can and will be picked up.
The neck of Corio bay is also quite small so we can ensure by sellecting the take of point carefully that the paddlers will hit landfall from just about any direction. It also means that wind change is less of an issue.
We have access to internet weather reports in the vehicle from mobile phone and know if a significant wind change is likely and can warn the paddlers via radio.
Phill
Actually, Bruno André has found a way to use of a leash to go FASTER in races.
Article in French: tendance-innovation.blogspot.com/2010/12/le-husky-style-mort-dans-loeuf.html
He calls it the "husky style", and use the leash to lean on it at the waist. He (and other racers who tried it) say that you gain a significant paddle leverage and use less energy to recover from the move. He says it is also faster to unhook the hook at the waist to run on the beach.
(do not pay attention to the rant: Bruno can bit somewhat paranoid and just because the racing authorities have decided to investigate if it was legal or not, he blew a gasket)
Don't like coiled leggies in the surf, as I don't think they are as secure. In small waves there's probably no issue, but if it gets a bit bigger they don't feel as secure, for me anyway.
Also, the coil can soon become pretty straight if you get caught inside any decent set waves. I seem to recall AlSup ending up with a long straight leggie down at Woolamai last summer, in the session where he snapped his 11' board.
I think it would be alot better if leg ropes were banned for all surfers SB, LB and SUP.......think about it.......straight away youd eliminate 50% of the line up because they wouldnt paddle out
HI Mick here,it's interesting reading all your opinions on leggies.I'm only realitively new to SUP although I have surfed at a compeditive level since the late 70s.I feel that for the size and amount of bouyancy of the average SUP plus the fact you also have a paddle to grapple with a leggie of some discription could only be an advantage to a user of any level.And while we're on the issue of water saftey I think that a small handle/toggle rope attached to the nose area on the deck would be a fantastic improvement in the surf as at the moment once your caught inside you have no control over your equipment at all.I've been thinking of putting 2 legrope plugs in about a foot from the nose and rigging up a handhold so at least I can then control my board to some degree.(I've thought about nose riding and think that in the right position it shouldn't be a worry).What da ya rekon??
Mate I'm loving it.Best fun I've had in years.With the handel I reckon 2 leggie plugs with cord from one to the other and a bit of hose in the middle.Next time I get the chance I'll have a look at a clubbie paddle board and see how their rigged up.
