Humbled

Prone Paddling has been a an amazing teacher to me over the past couple of years but it’s not always been a simple relationship. I was first introduced to the sport when my best mate, Nick said “We should paddle the Molokai2Oahu as a team” and whilst it seemed like a big challenge, I was excited to explore it but as with most things I’ve decided to chase, I underestimated what that challenge would look like. When I started out I thought "I've surfed all my life, it can't be that difficult". How wrong I was... The very first time I jumped on one of these boards was one of the most humbling experiences I've had in the ocean.

For reference the shape and size of this board is nothing like a surfboard I’d been used to riding all these years. This thing is 12 foot long (so it’s cumbersome), extremely light for it’s size (so it’s easily thrown around in the waves), has a hollowed out deck to lay in (not at all comfortable) and has a rounded hull-shaped bottom (unstable as anything!). Needless to say, the first time I laid down on it and attempted to paddle, it didn’t go as planned.

Since that day I've loved being able to learn about the board, the ocean and my mind. It's truly one of the sports that tests you every time you're out on the water whether it be through the conditions, the physical challenge or just the fact that it's only you, the ocean and a 12 foot piece of foam.

The conditions are interesting as when I first started paddling I was looking for ‘Ideal’ downwind conditions where the wind and the waves both go in the same direction as you. It might be hard to believe but when you’re ‘down-winding’ you can actually catch waves out in the middle of the ocean which helps you move in the right direction. When the conditions are ideal I can honestly say it’s some of the most fun you can have in the ocean. But conditions change. I’ve had some paddles where it’s been amazing wind/swell direction then all of a sudden the wind drops and you have to grind out the final part of the paddle with no assistance. It not only teaches you to pay attention to the forecast but to not take the good conditions for granted because the weather is always changing.

The ocean is enormous and when paddling, you can pretty much choose to paddle as far as you like. The only real limiting factor is logistics. If you’re doing a loop of some sort it’s pretty simple to plan but a loop means you probably won’t have the best conditions the whole way. The alternative is to paddle downwind where you have to choose 2 points, a start (where you have yourself and the board) and a finish (where you’ll likely need a car, change of clothes, water/food etc). There’s been lots of times I’ve messed up the logistics but the thing to think about here is you must choose how long you want to paddle before you set off. Depending on how you’re feeling this distance could seem easy or incredibly difficult by the time you’re halfway so you have to be mindful of how your body feels and try your best to forecast the perfect distance because if you get it wrong you can’t exactly head into shore or turn around. You’ve got to finish where the car is.

And the mental factor of it all. This probably makes a lot of sense for someone who’s had an incident with ocean wildlife before but at the end of the day when you’re paddling a couple of kilometres off the coast, no matter how good you are with your self talk, you’re always going to have ‘those’ thoughts come across your mind from time to time. What’s that big flock of birds over there? Was that a shadow I saw? What if I fall off and lose my board? The mind games are really where this whole sport comes into its own because at the end of the day there isn’t too much of a difference between paddling 10m off the shore and 3km off the shore but when you’re by yourself (which is a given because this is not a popular sport and there aren’t too many people to paddle with) you have to find ways to be okay with what you’re doing, the risks involved, and what you’ll do if things do go pear shaped.

So… Paddling. Not what I expected and no doubt not what you expected as well. My love for the sport is difficult to describe which is part of it’s beauty. At it’s lows it’s challenged me, beaten me down and humbled me but not beyond a point of wanting to give up. But on the other hand it’s upside is extremely valuable and now I run the risk of turning this reflection into a love letter by saying I’m grateful for everything this sport has given and taught me in such a short amount of time. Truly one of the best things I’ve decided to do.