With the averge age of the kneeboarder these days this area should be used to post issues on health matters (surfer's ear, knee surgery, stretches, etc).
mr. SFKneelo,
velveeta?
i come up with a horrid and tasteless metaphor (years ago) and now you come out and acuse me of being secretly a test pilot and promoter of the the very thing i abhor. talk about media spin!
i'm all about the bleu cheese dude.
sincerely,
the nasty cheeser
"This sucks more than anything that has ever sucked before." Butt-head
So WHAT can we do? Back to the original posted question it seems. I was fortunate enough with my new gig and optimum(my surf co) to attend ASR this weekend. I chance encountered Pacsun-Surfing America-i.e. the governing body for surfing in The US of A aka Mike Gerard. Very interesting question when I point blank after discussing the drop off of sales for bodyboards 35-40% over the last few years and the less and less high school and shop teams for bb-WHY DID YOU DROP KNEERIDING??????????? HE told me I don't know-is there an interest or a website- I asked him please when you get home or to office check out KSUSA and you can see that WE ARE ALIVE AND WELL! We have just finished our world championships here in the other surf city and the stuff the old geezers(speaking for myself) and these young kids do-wow I wish Matt Ska n sand Had been 15 minutes earlier I could have had a real live example of our future! any comments or direction?
peace and still rippin at almost48
Kevin
Kevin does surf with the kids. I was fortunate enough to hook up with Kevin this past summer for a go out at Malibu. We were surfing in the middle of all the kids (that was the warmerst -or hottest- water I've ever felt at Malibu!).
I usually surf out of the way spots but had a great time at Third Point. I watched as the kids checked out Kevin's riding.
Last edited by surfhorn on Mon Jan 29, 2007 9:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO RECRUIT NEW RIDERS FOR QUITE SOME TIME. I RIDE WEDGE AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE AND THERE IS NO BETTER PLACE TO FIND BB ERS I GET QUESTIONS ALL THE TIME MOSTLY ABOUT THE SPEED AND ACTUALLY MAKING WAVES AND SNAPPING ON SECTIONS THEY CAN'T EVEN GET TO. I HAVE EVEN GIVEN UP A COUPLE OF MY OLD ROMOS IN HOPES OF HAVING SOMONE TO KB WITH OUT THERE. NOT MANY OF US LEFT THAT RIDE THERE. USUALLY ME AND THE BODYBOARDERS. MAYBE THIS YEAR I WILL SEE ANOTHER CONVERT
1980 I was 18, 6'4" tall and riding a stand up board. There's a reason giraffes do not surf. They are tall, gangly, top-heavy with a crap centre of gravity. This lead to bodyboarding. This was great for about a year, then my weight began to normalise relative to my height and the bodyboard didn't quite float like it used to.
One day I was out at Willyama Wreck (South Australians will know and love this break). A kneeboarder paddled out and went deep. When he took off he slotted inside the deepest barrel that I have ever seen to this day. The wave just ballooned out and he was way back inside with so much room to spare he could have reached straight up and still not touched the ceiling. Time just seemed to slow down as I watched this guy literally cruise inside this wave in an upright kneeling position. So cool. So casual. So in control.
maxb wrote:I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO RECRUIT NEW RIDERS FOR QUITE SOME TIME. I RIDE WEDGE AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE AND THERE IS NO BETTER PLACE TO FIND BB ERS I GET QUESTIONS ALL THE TIME MOSTLY ABOUT THE SPEED AND ACTUALLY MAKING WAVES AND SNAPPING ON SECTIONS THEY CAN'T EVEN GET TO. I HAVE EVEN GIVEN UP A COUPLE OF MY OLD ROMOS IN HOPES OF HAVING SOMONE TO KB WITH OUT THERE. NOT MANY OF US LEFT THAT RIDE THERE. USUALLY ME AND THE BODYBOARDERS. MAYBE THIS YEAR I WILL SEE ANOTHER CONVERT
I hope to bodyboard wedge this summer, and kneeboard it if possible.
For sure dude! I need to get some serious practice in before I even think about kneeling the Wedge, but if I kneel every weekend from now until south swells start hitting, I'll probably be in okay shape. That may not sound like much, but I've been riding waves for 7 years now, so it might work out.
Otherwise, I'll say wuddup on my sponge! I'm hoping to ride that place period, on something, it looks scary but I know by now, with my experience, its basically all mental.
kneelingbro....pm me when your going bro... ill try to make it down...the place is mecca for bodysurfing ,, and kneeboarding/bodyboarding it is killer too....
some tips for getting primo wedge; swell should be over 5', longer swell period the better,....dawn patrol can be more crowded then the arvo sessions...and watch the WETSAND sw module in the winter/summer/fall/spring...the place can do its thing in the most unlikely times...
the place can break you, I KNOW!!!, not for the fragile..
Tide is the master, tide can be a disaster...-Dub side of the Moon
skansand wrote:kneelingbro....pm me when your going bro... ill try to make it down...the place is mecca for bodysurfing ,, and kneeboarding/bodyboarding it is killer too....
some tips for getting primo wedge; swell should be over 5', longer swell period the better,....dawn patrol can be more crowded then the arvo sessions...and watch the WETSAND sw module in the winter/summer/fall/spring...the place can do its thing in the most unlikely times...
the place can break you, I KNOW!!!, not for the fragile..
So true. The place is definitely gnarles. I went there one day on a medium sized swell to scope it out and take pics, and a bodysurfer caught a huge bomb right as the blackball flag was being lifted. Straight top to bottom slide, in the pit, BOOM!, down for the count. The guy surfaced literally 15 seconds later. That is probably the freakiest thing I think of when I think of the wedge--the hold-down. The currents, backwash and shorebreak combine to make a nasty cocktail that is sure to thrash you. Regardless, you've got to ride it at least once in a lifetime, you know? I'm going to try to make it this summer. Hopefully I'll be pimpin on a kneeboard by then. But who knows? At least a sponge, hopefully. I'll PM you if I'm going. Yes, an afternoon session would be the call, for sure. I just like late day seshes, and getting down from the South Bay to the Wedge before the blackball flag lifts is a B!TCH!
april is usually a good month to get wedge clean and a bit more managable, plus it doesn't start getting b balled till may, which is also a very good month. check local surf .net look at wedge may 14 2006 mothers day last year that is wedge when it is fun
The thing that attracted me to kneeboarding was the beauty of the sport. I had just finished a session one day at Makaha and looked over my shoulder to see a kneeboarder doing these incredibly beautiful and graceful manouvers on a clean 8'-10' face. I stayed on the beach and watched him for about an hour. That was my inspiration... and still is.
Perhaps getting the sport "out there" in the media would generate interest.
Be who you are and say what you feel.
The people who mind don't matter, and the people who matter don't mind.
I agree KED, just look at some of those shots of Waka slotted. THAT'S KBing and what every wave rider wants. His face says Pure Vida and shear joy.
Aloha
-k
