Durban Poison
Posted: Fri Feb 15, 2019 3:45 amI felt like picking GMac's wipeout apart.
0:34-:40 Check out the rocker on his board.
1:03 Funny thing about this point of view is that his board’s rocker looks flatter than the view of it in the previous section.
1:09 For the first wave of the morning, I think I (if I surfed 40+ foot waves regularly) would have played it safer and positioned myself farther out on the shoulder for the first couple waves. I have a caveat on that so stay tuned.
1:10 He pops up. I’m interested in seeing where his back foot lands on his board.
1:11 I think he might have popped up with his back foot too far forward (I suffer from this disease on a lot of my popups). In my mind if you pop up too far forward on a steep big wave, you’ll generate too much speed and when you want to wipe off that speed by changing the angle of your route down the face or try stalling the board with a foot stomp on the tail (not something you can really do during the initial drop), you won’t be able to do it because you’re in the middle of the surfboard. Getting your back foot over the fins on a steep drop just ain’t gonna happen if you’re too far forward on the board already. Being in the middle of a longer board (on a takeoff drop) is akin to being stuck on a moving railcar where you’re just watching the scenery go by.
On the other hand, I suspect popping up forward on the board might help with breaking the ledge on bigger waves where it’s easy (depending on conditions) to get hung up in the lip. I’m just speculating on that though. It does make me think that offshore winds are not desirable in huge surf (hope I’m not stating the obvious). I think I’d prefer no wind to offshores in big waves.
1:12 The bottom is falling out from GMac's board and he’s dealing with an air drop. I got caught up in the lip on a double overhead wave, but I didn’t force my board over the ledge. I jumped back off the wave, but I remember fearing getting dragged over the falls. That might be a good reason not to hop off the back of the wave if things get dicey because if you do get dragged over the falls, your board very likely will be below you as you go over the falls (ugh). I hate wondering where my board is when I go over the falls.
1:13 Much better view of where he’s positioned on his surfboard. Again, I think he’s popped up too far forward.
1:14 I peg this moment as the start of the wipeout--too much speed and no way to get control of the board to recover.
1:26-1:30 Another great perspective in terms of wave selection. I look at this moment and I can’t blame GMac for going for it. It looks like a well-shaped wave from this point of view. Although I would say he’s pretty deep on that peak. He’s a charger though. This is the caveat I referred to earlier.
1:32 and 1:33 Better view of where his back foot is on the board.
1:32-1:33 Check out the nose of his board here. The rocker of his board saved him from pearling, in my opinion.
1:34 When I was in high school I went water skiing with friends. I was on a slalom ski and told the boat driver to go way faster. He did. I ate it and hit the water like GMac. I didn’t break any bones, but I felt serious pain. Slamming into water will bust you up.
The question I have is, would he have been able to avoid the wipeout if his back foot were farther back on the board when he popped up? If his back foot had been over the fins, could he have changed the direction of his path down the wave to move more across the wave rather than straight down? What do you think? If you interpret this ride differently from me, what do you see? Let’s hear your insights.
0:34-:40 Check out the rocker on his board.
1:03 Funny thing about this point of view is that his board’s rocker looks flatter than the view of it in the previous section.
1:09 For the first wave of the morning, I think I (if I surfed 40+ foot waves regularly) would have played it safer and positioned myself farther out on the shoulder for the first couple waves. I have a caveat on that so stay tuned.
1:10 He pops up. I’m interested in seeing where his back foot lands on his board.
1:11 I think he might have popped up with his back foot too far forward (I suffer from this disease on a lot of my popups). In my mind if you pop up too far forward on a steep big wave, you’ll generate too much speed and when you want to wipe off that speed by changing the angle of your route down the face or try stalling the board with a foot stomp on the tail (not something you can really do during the initial drop), you won’t be able to do it because you’re in the middle of the surfboard. Getting your back foot over the fins on a steep drop just ain’t gonna happen if you’re too far forward on the board already. Being in the middle of a longer board (on a takeoff drop) is akin to being stuck on a moving railcar where you’re just watching the scenery go by.
On the other hand, I suspect popping up forward on the board might help with breaking the ledge on bigger waves where it’s easy (depending on conditions) to get hung up in the lip. I’m just speculating on that though. It does make me think that offshore winds are not desirable in huge surf (hope I’m not stating the obvious). I think I’d prefer no wind to offshores in big waves.
1:12 The bottom is falling out from GMac's board and he’s dealing with an air drop. I got caught up in the lip on a double overhead wave, but I didn’t force my board over the ledge. I jumped back off the wave, but I remember fearing getting dragged over the falls. That might be a good reason not to hop off the back of the wave if things get dicey because if you do get dragged over the falls, your board very likely will be below you as you go over the falls (ugh). I hate wondering where my board is when I go over the falls.
1:13 Much better view of where he’s positioned on his surfboard. Again, I think he’s popped up too far forward.
1:14 I peg this moment as the start of the wipeout--too much speed and no way to get control of the board to recover.
1:26-1:30 Another great perspective in terms of wave selection. I look at this moment and I can’t blame GMac for going for it. It looks like a well-shaped wave from this point of view. Although I would say he’s pretty deep on that peak. He’s a charger though. This is the caveat I referred to earlier.
1:32 and 1:33 Better view of where his back foot is on the board.
1:32-1:33 Check out the nose of his board here. The rocker of his board saved him from pearling, in my opinion.
1:34 When I was in high school I went water skiing with friends. I was on a slalom ski and told the boat driver to go way faster. He did. I ate it and hit the water like GMac. I didn’t break any bones, but I felt serious pain. Slamming into water will bust you up.
The question I have is, would he have been able to avoid the wipeout if his back foot were farther back on the board when he popped up? If his back foot had been over the fins, could he have changed the direction of his path down the wave to move more across the wave rather than straight down? What do you think? If you interpret this ride differently from me, what do you see? Let’s hear your insights.
, but not sure how it relates.