Lake Tahoe, CA (August, 24th 2010) In windy, cold and over-cast conditions, paddlers at the 2010 Ta-Hoe Nalu SUP event still took to the water. As the weather service predicted, a summer storm brewed on the lake resulting in consistent 25 MPH wind gusts. The event coordinators decided that the Elite SUP race would be run in a similar fashion to the world renowned Battle of the Paddle event. Athletes participating in the elite event were required to paddle .5 miles straight upwind, turn 180 degrees on the Quiksilver buoy, and surf their way back to the beach for a 100 yard beach run. This course was completed four times. As one of the premiere paddling events at Lake Tahoe, Vertra’s Paddlesports Team performed top notch!
Vertra’s own Danny Ching paddled to an impressive and comfortable 1st place finish in the men’s elite SUP race taking home 2500$. In his normal fashion Ching got out to an early lead, and built the gap on the rest of the field on each turn. “I just went out hard, and tried to hold on,” commented Ching. Danny is considered by his peers as being one of the sports best and is second to none in paddling in all types of weather conditions. This weekends 25 MPH wind gusts proved to be no different as he powered his way up wind, and used his surfing knowledge from years of paddling the OC1 to build a sizable lead on the rest of the competitors.
The young sixteen-year-old Matt Becker battled his way in the top of the pack throughout the entire race. “It was tough to push it up wind,” commented Becker. Matt who just returned back to the States after a SUP surf expedition in Colombia found the best parks of the race surfing the .5 mile downwind leg of the race. “It was a great event today, a good starting point as I prepare for the Hennessey’s International Race and Battle of the Paddle in a few months.”
On a 5 day trip down south in the dusty desert, the surf was plentiful and inspirational. Here are a few pics from along the drive and the makeshift camp set up. Glad I had extra fins to choose from and plenty of time to try them out.
On the Drive South: The road was a long one and after plenty of near misses with on coming semi-trucks, I was glad to finally set up camp in front of some good looking surf. With dust and desert conditions you begin to feel dried out quickly when out of the water, It’s a good thing the swell kept going and I could stay hydrated in some refreshing long tubing waves that eventually walled up and raced along the inside section.
Day 1: My fins selection on this day was the YU- Fcs
compatible setup. These fins are awesome. The side fins provide nice drive and the trail fin works as a stabilizer. I was able to stay loose on the wave’s critical sections but keep a good driving bottom turn going when I needed to generate speed. Once you get used to this setup you can begin to experiment and get the fins free when you want and hold a solid bottom turn when you need the drive.
Day 3:
When the swell maxed out and sets were pumping I decided to try a bit bigger board and change out to the Channel Islands fins setup, which I felt were much more stable and also maintained their speed through all of the sections. The CI fins were a good choice for these waves and with the swell pumping a perfect combination for fun sessions.
Reeling from a burgeoning fish revival, Hobie surfboards has chosen this twin fin template to fervently guide its Circa ’71 fish model. Just for kicks and industry bravado, we decided to grind off a few extra sets and push the addictive little bastards upon the world. As any drug dealer with good product would say, this s#*t sells itself! With a blunt tip, 7″ base, and a full leading edge, the Hobies are now our most traditionally styled and popular twin template. Also available in RTM composite.
Thanks to all who stopped by the Surf Expo booth to check out our fins. Here is a photo of the booth setup. Looks like the Stand Up Paddle boards and accessories are a hit this season and True Ames is gearing up to innovate and produce the highest quality fins for your SUP. Look for the latest in SUP quad fin setup this year, along with shallow water touring fins and more. For more info on the best surf fins, visit: trueames.com
There is a lot to know about choosing the best fins for your surfboard. Here are a few tips and important factors in picking out the right fin for your style. Remember that the best surf fins are going to be in the right proportion to you and your board.
Construction
All fins are not created equal! We take advantage of a vast amount of fin manufacturing experience to create fins that work in many different applications. Designs are executed using the required materials and foils to create the highest performance fins available today.
Flex
Flex is a very important element in our designs. Many of our fins come with a tuned flex. A fin that has flex can be very different than a fin without flex. The flex concept brings to life an otherwise average ride. Cutbacks have more power and bottom turns have more projection.
Foils
True Ames Fins incorporate a constant foil which means you will not find any flat spots on our fins that may cause water disturbance which will ultimately cause poor performance. Our bigger solid color fins are foiled from 7/16” solid 6oz. glass sheet stock. Smaller fins do not need to be so thick to have the proper foil.
Size
The depth of your fins is measured from base to tip vertically. Adjusting your fin size will affect the performance of your board. Larger fins provide more stability and control, so a larger board will need bigger fins. For example a 9’6” single fin board needs at least a 9.5” fin and if nose riding is most important to you than you will find bigger fins give more forward control.
Template
The outline of a fin is what determines the area and the look. The way the area is distributed on the fin is what makes fins individual and work in so many different ways. A wide base fin with a wide tip is the most stable but not forgiving. A narrow base fin with a narrow tip will be very loose and fast but unstable at slow speeds. The fin’s sweep (or rake angle) affects the board’s ability to carve turns. A more vertical fin will make tight turns and fast directional changes while a more raked fin will carve wider arcs and handle more power through turns. Tail width is also a factor in fin choice. Narrow tail boards do not require deep fins because there is less distance from the fin to the rail. A wide board requires a deeper fin than a narrower board. For example an 8’ egg style board that is on the wide side should use about an 8.5” to 9.0” fin. A narrow tail single fin board that is 7’6” can use a fin in the 7” to 8” range.
These fins were designed to be used primarily as a single center fin.
#1 Best for areas that have shallow water and or any kind of floating grass/kelp. Effortlessly paddle through thick mats of grass. Transition the shallows of your beach without hitting bottom. Great near shore touring ability.
#2 Paddle a course with less effort due to excellent tracking from this design. Glide is enhanced so less side-to-side paddle exchanging is needed. A thin foil section along with a surface piercing leading edge makes this fin fast on all angles. You will find this design to be faster, with less drag than the fin that came stock with your board.
APRIL 10 & 11, 2010 VENTURA COUNTY FAIR GROUNDS
