Up until now, I've only done a handful of short downwinders, and have only done them solo. I've experience enough to know that it's something I'm going to keep doing and something I want to be good at. I took mikeman's advice from a great thread (www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Downwinder-Frustration-Please-help/) and hooked up with Al to see if I could glean a few pointers from a really proficient downwinder. The video shows a bit of the session. I edited out all the times I fell off - which were many and varied - and this is what I was left with. Still working out the video editing thing.

For anyone getting into downwinding, I'd recommend hooking up with someone that's being doing it for a while. I didn't really apply much of the new knowledge straight off, but it is sinking in slowly. Nothing that time on the water won't fix eventually.

In a couple of frames you'll see Al gliding along in the background, methodically milking runners with very economical paddlestrokes. By contrast, you'll see that my natural inclination is to thrash into anything that presents half an opportunity. I think there's a lesson to be learnt there somehow.

Keep at it. Everyone has to start somewhere...

You are still looking behind you a lot, which is not helping you. Try focus on the water around your GoPro, as a challenge, for the next few paddles. Keep on filming and check if you are improving in this area. Once you know where to look you will start working out what to look for.

There are many other good downwind paddlers near you. Try and hook up with them as much as you can as this will really help speed up your learning curve. If someone invites you on a paddle then take them up on the offer.

Keep those videos coming...

Nice vid

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mikeman said..You are still looking behind you a lot, which is not helping you.

It's just paranoia, it'll go away
I know... I got to watch (and follow) the trough. The video didn't show it real well, but I'm pretty sure I've got the general idea of paddling as soon as the board starts to tip forward, or even anticipating when it will to get a stroke in beforehand. I understand its a lot of it is about feeling the opportunity as it grows in front rather than trying to spot it coming up from behind.

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mikeman said..Keep those videos coming...

I see so many things I'm doing wrong in the video - good learning tool. thanks Dr for the comment.

Great vid.. and great music.. Thanks.

I don't mean to criticize.. but.. You should try and work towards getting your stance a little narrower.. I know the Glide is only 27" wide but standing too close to the rails (like you are) just makes the board even tippier.. IMO.

Also it's hard to see from that camera view but on that board I have found that if you don't have your toes very close to touching that black stripe at the front of the deck pad you're making it very hard to catch anything.. I've found just being a few inches back from the line makes catching runners much harder.

One more thing.. Don't paddle so much.. It's not a race.. .. Watching yourself on vids is a great way to see what you're doing wrong.. .. and a great way to save a moment/memory when get it right..

DJ

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DavidJohn said..
I don't mean to criticize.. but.. You should try and work towards getting your stance a little narrower.. I know the Glide is only 27" wide but standing too close to the rails (like you are) just makes the board even tippier.. IMO.

Also it's hard to see from that camera view but on that board I have found that if you don't have your toes very close to touching that black stripe at the front of the deck pad you're making it very hard to catch anything.. I've found just being a few inches back from the line makes catching runners much harder.

Thanks DJ - I'm after whatever advice people are willing to offer, so feel free to criticise.
Yeah, I'm going to have to work on the stance... the wide stance also makes the transition from surf stance back to neutral a lot rockier, so I lose quite a bit of momentum and often end up bracing when transitioning back, which is the exact opposite to what I want to be doing. Even in flat water my feet creep out to the edge and I've been trying to get in habit standing narrower and slightly oblique - but I don't see any evidence of that in the last video.
In neutral stance I think I'm more or less centrally over the handle which puts me quite a bit (say 3-5") back from the black line (or more if I had narrower stance). I'll have a look at this next time I'm out.

Great vid. I could actually feel the glide at 3:23. Keep at it.

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Gyppo said..Great vid. I could actually feel the glide at 3:23. Keep at it.

thanks Gyppo, well technically that was just a takeoff coming into the beach break - but fun anyway

The wind forecast for yesterday was pretty good, but had to work in the morning and then storms came through early afternoon and I thought that was the end of it. Anyway, the wind picked back up in the arvo and I snuck out for a quick one. Apparently NNE 15 knots, gusting 30 according to seabreeze.

No video of the paddle out, as I got absolutely nailed on the shoredump and the gopro got folded flat against the floorboards. I was finding that it was impossible to keep the nose of the board heading offshore - the wind was just turning me around side onto the waves. I forgot to ask Al last week, but I noticed that he was able to get a lot more perpendicular to the wind on the paddle out than I was able to. Gotta practice beach starts in some calmer conditions. Anyway, a bit of prone paddling to clear the break.

Although it was all a bit messy, I got a few good runners, but missed quite a few and fell off on others. Managed to link a few together though.
I was trying to concentrate on watching the trough and I think that's definitely helping. I was also trying to get my stance in narrower - but it's a hard habit to break. DJ - I also played around with getting up forward more on the board - near the black line, but it was pretty suicidal in neutral stance - I just found myself having to jump back so quick that I wasn't getting much benefit from it. Much better in surf stance to sneak one foot up a bit more though.

I've noticed that I really favour paddling on my left during downwinders (not on flatwater). If I paddle on the right (travelling south in a NNE wind), I tend to swing side on to the chop and come off more. On a longer course this could get tiring. I also find that I don't switch to paddle on the right when I go into surf stance (natural foot), as this would generally push me away from the trough, which seems to build leftwards, not right under these conditions. Any tips?

Southerly wind today - looks a bit disorganised at the moment, but hope to get one in later after work.

Here's a quick video from yesterday - I might have to change the music - sounded OK at first (I've just be grabbing the first one or two free ones I come across on the vimeo site).



Here's my speed chart...

No real downwinder opportunities today, so I thought I'd sneak out at lunch and catch a few of little waves creeping into the river on the 14'er - thought it would be good practice for milking runners.

Here's a random assortment of waves.