The hardest paddle out...

Post by **chrisb** » Mon Jul 24, 2006 10:03 pm

Nick Carroll wrote:
smnmntl wrote:Tamarama can be... interesting. Usually the rock off is the go, but not always, and then you've got the paddle from hell. So much water moving around such a small area.

And while we're at it, McKenzie's is no picnic to get caught inside.
smnmntl you should try wearing flippers and using a small plastic rectangle as a flotation device, you'd be out there in a SECOND.

Waving the red flag here.

Post by **Mr_momo_32** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 6:57 am

2nd Reef wrote:Garie get my vote. a bit more punch than the normal beachie.

can you just walk 50m up to the rocks and rock off?
thats what i have done.

Post by **stoive** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 7:25 am

anybody surfed Beer Barrel Beach in East coast(NE) tasmania? theres a terrible sweep going the whole way down to the rocks at the other end even on a 2/3ft day.Hawksnest up near the little gibba can be hard too..

Post by **ether** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 8:24 am

2nd Reef wrote: Coming in? I've heard Lurline can be a bitch, though never surfed it.

Yes, can confirm that's the case. You have to paddle against the rip and kinda surf the back of a wave up onto the flattish rock face at the southern end. I've only surfed it on relatively small days and it was still bloody hard.

On big days you see guys almost in, then the rip suddenly turns to a jet stream and they're blown almost back out into the line-up. Or worse, they mis-judge the wave in and land flush on the rock face rather than with water beneath them.

Post by **munch** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 8:38 am

ether wrote:
2nd Reef wrote: Coming in? I've heard Lurline can be a bitch, though never surfed it.
Yes, can confirm that's the case. You have to paddle against the rip and kinda surf the back of a wave up onto the flattish rock face at the southern end. I've only surfed it on relatively small days and it was still bloody hard.

On big days you see guys almost in, then the rip suddenly turns to a jet stream and they're blown almost back out into the line-up. Or worse, they mis-judge the wave in and land flush on the rock face rather than with water beneath them.

here here

sometimes thought the paddle to coogee would be easier

Post by **maxi** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 9:24 am

I'm not sure about Sydney as I hate paddling out whatever the conditions .... but this thread got me thinking about how the hell guys paddled out at massive Waimea bay / N. Shore in the '60s on huge boards. How did they do it? I start wimping out as soon as it edges over 4ft at my local beachie (

) - so I can't even begin to wrap my head around what those guys did back then. Although the likes of Greg Noll and co. seemed a bit bigger / stronger / more muscle bound than the pros of today.

Come on ... let's hear it from those of you who have been there or similar ...

Post by **Felix** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 10:55 am

Lennox and North Steyne when there are no channels but the heaviest I've experienced is the Nambucca rivermouth with the tide coming in. No choice but to give up. I'm sure there are many just as heavy that I have never surfed when they are big.

Post by **petelev4** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 11:49 am

Pokes wrote:yea curly is a bitch to get out sometimes

yeah but when it gets to a certain size out curly it isnt always worth the paddle, big mushy closouts

Post by **J_Rock** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 1:19 pm

J Bay is meant to be a prick too, no chanel and no breaks between waves, just constant duckdiving. And thinking about gettin eaten by a huge shark wouldn't help either...

Post by **Nick Carroll** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 1:27 pm

maxi wrote:I'm not sure about Sydney as I hate paddling out whatever the conditions .... but this thread got me thinking about how the hell guys paddled out at massive Waimea bay / N. Shore in the '60s on huge boards. How did they do it? I start wimping out as soon as it edges over 4ft at my local beachie ( ) - so I can't even begin to wrap my head around what those guys did back then. Although the likes of Greg Noll and co. seemed a bit bigger / stronger / more muscle bound than the pros of today.

Come on ... let's hear it from those of you who have been there or similar ...

Well in the Good Old Days

nobody had legropes, so you swam a LOT and hung onto your board in very difficult situations. In Hawaiian conditions this made you fitter than the average fiddle.

Most Nth Shore spots aren't too much of a strain to get out unless they're really crappy (ie nth swell Pipe); you just need good timing. Coming back in can be another story. At Waimea it's a timing thing again, you wanna ride the right wave into the inside corner and get up on the sand pretty quickly. The bad thing in Nth Shore surf is being caught just inside the closeout zone at a place like OTW-to-Rockpile -- just a straight dump onto shallow sand and reef. Get stuck there and no matter what you try -- going outside again, getting back to the beach -- it probably won't work, sometimes for several minutes. Which is definitely long enough to kill ya.

I always think if you can't get out, maybe you're not s'posed to that day.

Post by **munch** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 1:53 pm

Had an experience at what looked like fun bronte a long while ago.
I jumped into the rip and was heading out fairly quickly but got caught up in a situation where the rip was pushing me out and the waves that kept landing on my head were pushing me in and inbetween each wave there was to much frothing to get any bouyancy so all I was getting was gulps of air inbetween the waves

seemed like a long time and eventually I just grabbed my board and pointed it towards the beach and took a beating but got there ...
Anyways, as Nick Knack says I wasn't meant to get out that day

but at least I provided some humour for me mate who had smartly decided to stay in the car and see how I went ...

Post by **Deadbolt** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 2:18 pm

Havent tried Bells myself but have heard its an absolute prick, with that nasty shorie on the bigger days. Know alot of guys prefer to go round to Winki when coming in too.

Post by **straddiekook** » Tue Jul 25, 2006 4:24 pm

actually, anyone here surfed 6 foot Burleigh? sketchiest rock hop.

Post by **Grassy** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 3:07 pm

Definately Brownwater on a big day..

Post by **stoive** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 3:29 pm

coming in through that shorey is crazy

even when it's not big enough to break from outside into to the shorey its sketchy, funny how people just get mowed down by em and washed up the beach...

Post by **gman** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 3:51 pm

The Hardest Paddle Outs i've ever known are

1. Lennox at 8ft in winter wearing a 2/3 steamer

2. Burleigh from the cove at 6 to 8ft - even with just boardies on, the sweep and the power of burls unloading top to bottom in less than a metre of water is mindblowing.

Post by **stoive** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 3:58 pm

i wouldnt think it would be that much harder paddling with a wetsuit on...i've never even noticed a change in my paddling really

Post by **gman** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 4:18 pm

stoive, It must be me. I hate wetsuits. But as I recall it took me about 10 minutes to get out at Lennox on the day in question.

I envy you not feeling any drag in a suit.

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