Jason Diffin’s three day pass:
What a score. Dude was three for three and caught the Cape fairly pumping considering it’s the middle of Summer. Indeed, it was a total gift for this time of year and the conditions were so good I was having a hard time taking time out from the sailing to shoot very much.
And I’d like to extend my apologies that I didn’t do him better justice with the photography I did do. For these shots are only faintly reminiscent of how hard everybody was ripping. And the very best of the swell somehow went unshot all together. That and the stuff I tried to capture on the water was pretty much a total loss as I was no where close to the zone. My timing was laughable and my experiments ill-advised. My sailing seemed to suffer as well. I must have been trying too hard and definitely not very well prepared or practiced. Yeah, it’s been too long since my last rather lame attempt at shooting POV with the gopro and it shows.
Ahhhhh but it sure was madd fun when I wasn’t out there trying to shoot on the water. And while that 3’ @ 18 sec south swell seemed to take it’s sweet time getting here, it delivered large when it started to fill in Tuesday afternoon. And sure, it was admittedly not that far out on the epic scale by local standards, but I’m hopeful it was good enough to have Jason considering coming back next chance he gets -- like to catch the place really going off. It was such a joy watching him sail and there certainly is much I want to draw from his sailing strategies and style. The insights he was sharing about the sail designs are so golden as well.
A three day pass in July.
8/2/15
Yeah, the dude must be living right. Scores a three day pass, leaves predawn from Hood River and is already pulling up to the Cape as I’m coming off an early insurance session on 4.7.
He wasted no time stretching a 4.2 Fringe on a 370 superlight Goya mast by NoLimitz and was just totally ripping the place with it.
That seemed to be his rig of choice this trip, though he did resort to some 3.7 when it piped up large later that Monday afternoon. And he broke out a 4.7 Fringe on his 95 when it lightened up on Wednesday, for yet another impressively efficient and stylish display of wave acquisition and riding.
Yeah, but I have to think that breaking out the gopro to try to shoot some handheld POV on the wave turned out to be less than my most ideal use of time and energy. Sure I need the practice but my timing, the quality of my sailing and my luck weren’t even close to being in place for that. Then on a second attempt, just as I was getting the feel of it and enough wind to get around better, I got worked so hard that my inhaul snapped as I went over with the wave. A momentum killer for sure, though the shots of the takedown are kind of fun:
Here’s one of Whit Tuesday afternoon shot from behind the wave. Dude sailed upwind from the Rock for this sesh as his crew was kiting the Rock that day.
So while I’m embarrassed about what a poor showing I made photographically, and the degree to which I let it crash my sailing, I’m still committed to sailing with the camera on a far more regular basis. So look for more on this as I get closer to the groove and maybe even have a stab at shooting more video as I move forward with my resurgent POV project.
But at least I didn’t loose the camera. Here’s some fallout from before I rinsed it off, put it away, fixed my boom and got back to the freesailing.
So yeah, let’s pin all the photo credits for this report on Max Shredroom, shooting for Boardhead International. The slacker missed the best of it though. And much gratitude out to Jason, Ben and Whit for letting me get in the way out there with my gopro as we shared a couple of those most excellent waves.
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And permit me to submit these parting shots of a very committed, though perhaps slightly late, off the lip by Mr. Diffin himself. And I should add that this was the only false move I saw him make the whole time he was here.
So apparently, I wasn’t the only one out there taking gas while working on photos. And I wonder if Ben has the footage of this little smackdown on his gopro. Yeah I didn’t realize he was wearing it on his mast until I was doing my photo edit and noticed it hanging out there on the third shot:
My biggest regret, apart from not doing better with my photography or calling in someone on the staff besides that slacker Max Shredroom to help me cover, was that I didn’t work Jason for an interview for Boardhead -- or even take him up on his offer to let me try the boards he was rolling with. A 85 quad and a 95 thruster. Both custom and they both look unreal. Madd light and they certainly seem to work unreal too.
I’ll have to put that on my list for next time. Along with some serious practice on my camera management and settings -- key to turning up the yield I’m sure.
Yeah and I’ll just have to deal with all my gear envy. Wow, what a kit.