Today Hans Heupink planned a tour in the Voordelta for the TKBN.
Unfortunately the weatherforecast was too bad to go out with a group of 20 kayakkers: wind NW 5Bft ; showers accompanied with gales of 7Bft and hail and thunder.
So HAns cancelled the tour; with pain in his hart. It was however for the safety of the participants.
Because I discussed with Hans the day before to participate, he called me, knowing I work on the test of the VestVika, if I would like to go out anyway, but in a small group.
I said yes because I always want to test a kayak on the dim border of "to paddle or not to paddle"
So there we are: saterday 10.00h in the morning. Hans and I stand there looking out over a windy sea. On the horizon we see the breaking surf at the Aardappelenbult.
First thing Hans did, interessted as he is in the speedmachine Vestvika, to lay down his Pintail next to the Vestvika. We are amazed how much slimmer the Vestvika is, compared to the Pintail; which also known as a slim kayak.
We started against wind and waves in the direction of the lighthouse., knowing we could meet the current in the opposite direction. This was however the safest route as we could easily go ashore in case of approaching thunder.
The other advantage was, with the NW-wind blowing in the narrow passage between the sandbank and the shore, that we could find quite a lot of waves there.
Going there we changed our course regularly because I wanted to investigate if the Vestvika leecocks with a headwind coming from "10.00h or 14.00h". Something she did in another session in short waves at 6 Bft.
Coming to the narrow passage we took a brake first at the shore before we traversed to the waves at the other side.
Until now there is no trace of showers and the other predicted misery.
While Hans tried to shoot nice action photographs I paddled through the breaking waves and surfed them.
Where he photographed, I was not able to take the camera before my eyes; showing the difference in stability between both kayaks.
Next thing was to paddle through a soup of irregular standing waves next to the zone with breaking waves. All went very well and I enjoyed these waves, my passion.
Only at a certain moment, just like a switch was pulled, I felt somewhat uncertain in the waves and from that moment it was necessary to perform low braces now and than allthough nothing changed in wind nor waves.
It appeared to me that I had gone tired (head and hips) of the continuous hip-work and required alertness until now. Before this the balancing of the kayak went almost without realizing that I was doing so.
Probably the hips reacted from now on a little bit delayed, causing the uncertain feeling.
The way back brougth us, once we left the sandplate and entered open water, an iregular sea with 2 wave-patterns from behind mixing up. Both Hans' Pintail as well as the Vestvika were pushed and pulled at the stern by the waves. The Pintail just took the waves as they came and Hans paddled happily next to me; the Vestvika however needed low braces now and then, which is not strange for fast kayaks like this. I noticed the same thing happening at the "also fast" Bahiya in an irregular sea.
All this did not stop me playing in the following sea trying to catch a surf on the biggest waves.
Paddling we discussed if it had been a good decision of Hans having canceled the tour. Looking at today the wind did NOT exceed the 5Bft neither did we see any hail nor thunder; Something which realy occurred (we learned later, looking TV) in the center of Holland; but we were lucky.
However we both did not like to see a group of 20 kayakkers paddling in this irregarlar sea (some persons could have done it) with the predictions as they were. So Hans still thinks it was a good decision. I agree!
Back at our starting point we both practised eskimorolls: the first I did in this kayak. Mine were not very fluently. I noticed that I did not use my hips at all and bent far backward while rolling up. Probably this is the best proof that the hips were tired of the continous balancing this nimble and slim kayak. This balancing thing is more or less a suprise to me because former tours in a 6Bft-wind did not show any of this balancing and tiredness. Probably because the conditions had a much more regular wavepattern which is easily to be anticipated while balancing. But I will not trust on todays experiencies alone and will investigate this further. May be I am lucky in finding a simular sea again.
Fighing sleepiness while driving home I enjoyed the warm air coming from the heater of the car.
Todays conditions: Wind NW 5 Bft; temperature 10°; watertemp.9°C; distance ± 12 km ; waveheigth ±40cm & in surf ± 90cm (at mid sea 1,3-1,5 m).