Pre-Christmas Downwinder

Dan and I had some very nice conditions today on our downwind run this afternoon. He was on his 18 foot Bark prone board and I was on a 14x25" Starboard Ace (borrowed from Mike Fekete - Thanks Mike!).

Temperature was around freezing and we had beautiful clear skies throughout.

When we left Sunnyside Beach in the WNW wind, it was blowing 29mph with gusts to 38mph (according to Toronto Island weather station)! Wow, that's a lot of wind. In the flat offshore wind near the beach, my board was going 10kph WITHOUT paddling.

As we got further out, the swell quickly formed. It only took a stroke or two to easily get into a ride. Midway to Gibraltar Point on Toronto Island, the wind dropped to about 20+mph with gusts to over 30mph - still nice conditions. The bumps were also bigger now due to the longer fetch. I was hardly paddling and catching whatever bumps I wanted. It was novel to be riding the bumps while not breaking a sweat since the wind and waves were so good. The Starboard Ace again showed it's fantastic ability to catch and stay on bumps in downwind conditions. I've had quite a few sessions now on this board in all sorts of conditions. It's an extremely impressive board and I'll write a review of it sometime soon.

As we approached Gibraltar Point, the waves got a little bigger due to the groundswell and the stronger wind. It was actually more difficult to to ride the bumps and maintain longer glides since the faces were steeper. I would decelerate more readily as I went up the back of the following wave.

As we rounded the point, the water got flatter but there was still some decent quartering wind. Dan got some interesting wave action around the point as he was closer to shore where the waves were breaking. From the Centre Island pier to Cherry Beach was the only time I felt like I had to exert myself paddling. There was very little wind there since were were in the wind shadow of the Island, so it was typical flat water paddling the rest of the way back.

Very nice paddle overall and probably the only possible downwind route in a NW wind. Toronto Island gives us quite a few options for downwind routes that wouldn't be possible otherwise.

Kudos to Dan for doing the paddle prone. I can't imagine doing that myself.

Here's a link to a video that will give you a good idea of today's nice conditions. I took this while sitting on my board. Sorry no video while I was paddling. Camera was in my lifejacket pocket.

Some photos below:

Here comes Dan:

There goes Dan:

Nice bumps:

Beautiful late December day:

Lots of whitecaps:

CN Tower and Dan's toque tower:

Looking backwards:

Here comes a nice swell from behind. That's the tail of my board at the bottom:

Nice wave:

Dan rounding Gibraltar Point:

Can't Get Enough of Jeremy Riggs

Jeremy Riggs is one of the top downwind paddlers in Maui. I'd love to do a downwind lesson with him in Maui. Here's his web site: http://paddlewithriggs.com/

Here, he's riding a custom SIC Bullet that's 17'4" long and just 24" wide. Some people have said that he must be an alien with balance like that.

Humber Bay to Cherry Beach in Light Wind

There was only 12-14mph of west wind on Sunday but I needed a fix of downwind paddling, no matter how light it was. I missed the good wind the day before. At least it would be a good workout. In a west wind, one of the only routes available is from just west of Humber Bay Park to Cherry Beach, about 13.5km.

We paddled the Dominator and the 2012 JP 14x28. The JP has quite a bit of nose and tail rocker. It's slower than the Dom in flat water but it seems to catch the bumps with more acceleration. The Dom's also pretty fast in these mild "downwind" conditions but it seems to catch the bumps in a very subtle way.

At the start of our run, it was very flat in the offshore wind until we got further out. We eventually got some nice groundswell as we approached Toronto Island.

Nothing exciting but here are some pics.

Setting up:


Downwind fin on the JP:


Lots of rocker on the 2012 JP:


Plenty of nose rocker on the JP:


Dominator on the stone "beach":


Nice clear water:


Starting out:


JP and my Werner Nitro:


Finally some small bumps:


Toronto skyline:

Great downwind footwork

In downwind conditions, when you're chasing a wave, you want to be forward on the board so the energy of the wave can more easily push your board along with it. However, once you catch the wave, you want to step back on the board to avoid the nose of the board from pearling into the wave in front of you. Stepping back also allows you to steer the board by surfing it from the tail.

Here's a 1 minute clip of  Ivan van Vuuren's considerable downwind surfing skills on a really big day on one of the world's most famous downwind runs. Table Mountain in Cape Town in the background. Amazing footwork. Amazing conditions.

Another good footwork video, this time from one of the top downwind paddlers, Jeremy Riggs of Maui:

Welcome

Welcome to SUP Downwind, a blog on downwind stand up paddling in Toronto and other locations.

I'd like to help grow the number of local SUP paddlers getting into downwind paddling and spread the fun. It's always more fun to do a downwinder in a group.

Typically in downwind paddling, one starts at point A and finishes downwind at point B. This allows you to enjoy a nice long downwind paddle without dealing with the upwind leg. In strong winds, it's the only viable approach since it'll be too windy to paddle upwind.

Alternatively, if it's not too windy but windy enough, you can paddle into the wind first to earn your downwind ride back to the starting  point. This is more work but more convenient. It's also the easiest way to get introduced to downwind paddling.

This video gives a good introduction to what downwind paddling looks like with several skilled paddlers in Cape Town, South Africa on a well known downwind route:

For a more realistic local view of downwind paddling out of Cherry Beach with a mediocre paddler (me), here's a video:

Regardless of skill level, you just have to catch a few bumps to have a great time. While pushing yourself to catch the bumps, your heart rate will often hit 90% of max and you won't even notice it since you're having too much fun. No need for the "no pain, no gain" approach to exercise. As your skills improve, it just becomes even more entertaining as you're able to catch the waves easier, ride them longer, and get out in bigger conditions.

On really windy days, conditions right here in Lake Ontario can get much more impressive which ups the ante for fun and skill required to take advantage of the waves.

Downwind SUP paddling has been going on in Toronto for a few years but it's still early days with just a handful of regulars. For SUP fans that have tried it, it can become addictive due to the fun quotient. Anyone that has a few months of SUP experience and is comfortable in choppy conditions can give it a try. If you're a beginner, just make sure you're going with someone more experienced, or paddle a familiar route in conditions you're confident you can handle. Also seek out info on safety precautions for downwind paddling before going. It's always safer to go with a partner. A lifejacket with a whistle is required by law and a leash is also a necessity. A phone in a waterproof case is a good idea.

Among other things, I'll be posting reports of downwind paddle sessions in Toronto as well as maps. I'll also post links to helpful resources for those wanting to learn more about downwind paddling as well as selected downwind videos from around the world.

Downwinder from TWC to Centre Island Pier (NE wind)