SUP Survival Stories

by Suzie Cooney, Naish Team SUP Rider

I’ve asked the SUP community of SUP Connect to write me about any experiences where they felt their survival stories could help our fellow paddlers or for those who may be entering the sport of SUP. I, Deb Driscoll from Maui and Andre Neimeyer take a moment to share theirs too.

Now you don’t have to ride giant waves or tackle huge rolling swells to have something go wrong.  As conditions change or you fatigue or equipment fails, anything can happen. One needs to be ready and take precautions in advance if you can.

I hope that the following excerpts will shed light on how we must keep our heads calm, equipment in check and be prepared for anything and could change your life or someone you know who paddles.

So I’d like to write about what it feels like to have that sinking feeling your friend is either in a better, more peaceful place, or he has found his way back to land safely and you just haven’t found them yet.

My story: Maui, North Shore December 2^nd 2010 was the day I decided to mount my Go Pro on my Naish 14ft Glide for some action video. It was a day with trades blowing 40-50 mph and the waves were topping out with 8-9 foot faces. My downwind buddy Bill, a very experienced waterman and I headed down from Maliko Gulch headed 9 miles towards Kanaha. We’ve done this many times in all conditions. But, today’s launch and direction of swell were enough to force the adrenaline through my body, (don’t laugh) causing my teeth to chatter. This happens when I’m totally excited and nervous at the same time. Keeps me in check I guess.

The easterly direction of the swell made for a treacherous exit of the gulch where one needed to time the sets just so, as not to get pounded on these huge boards.  Here’s a shot of Jeremy Riggs and friend Mike Owens heading out ahead of us. Notice the break AND the size of swell behind it!!

 If any of you have ever done a Maliko run or have entered the annual Naish race, it’s nice and mellow and usually flat until you reach the open ocean.

Bill and I timed it just right, but my teeth were still a bit noisy and I was looking forward to regrouping as we always do, and plot the course for the rest of our paddle. First, passing Hookipa on our left was very exciting and there was a helicopter filming a few of the windsurfers. Big waves formed underneath us, and it wasn’t as bad as we anticipated as they usually rolled right underneath us. The glides were easy and gentle where I was hoping for a little more action.

With the winds gusting to 40-50 mph, all we had to do was hold our paddle up and stand there to get pushed along. Next, approaching Baldwin Beach the swell was getting bigger and bigger and the usual channels no longer existed. The water and wave pattern here is unpredictable and can pick you up and pitch you down so fast you have no idea what happened.  Our plan to cut in front of Camp One in front of Sprecklesville, but on this day that may have not been the best course. The reefs are shallow and plenty and the waves were huge.

Just before Bill signaled a way in, a rogue set came through and that was it. No Bill, no board. I looked around, but did not panic. All around me were now 9-10 feet swells breaking soon on me. I kept looking and now on my knees, for I tried my best to stay on my board; I knew it would be me next. I thought to myself I must get in to shore quick to get help. We were now past the lifeguard station at Baldwin and I can’t imagine they could see us anyway for the waves were so big. Still no Bill and then came the first set on my head.  Camera goes dead. It was dark and I prayed my leash stay attached to me. I came up for a breath and ready for the next beating. That darn paddle was torking ( new word ) my arm like Gumby and the board yanking my leg out its socket. Two more on the head, the board still attached.

By now, I was getting closer to shore, scraped the fin over the reef with winds pushing me hard at my back. Once on the beach, I had to burry my board in the bushes so the wind wouldn’t launch it. I looked back out to see if I could see Bill, no Bill.  But, now I saw his board. It was spinning like a green torpedo parallel to the waves. So now I had to run like hell down the coast to find some help.

I found friends Jeff and Suzanne at Camp One and it was like a bad dream. The words would not come out of my mouth. I was on the verge of crying, but instead motioned to call 911. They didn’t recognize me in my gear and all they heard was get help and Suzie Cooney. So they thought it was I who was in trouble!

Knowing help was on the way, I had to run back to the spot where Bill’s board was last seen and hope by then he’d be spotted. Running into 40-50 mph winds is not easy in the sand. My water pack was heavy and paddle flailing everywhere. As I rounded the point, there was Bill’s board as if someone gently put it down as a bad joke.  It was unscathed but the brand new leash was severed.

Before the fire department came and my all time favorite lifeguard, Tony Colletta on the ski, I could see Bill above Sprecks. I could see that his paddle was in the air and he was using the wind to help bring him in! Genius! He later told me he was sitting on the handle like one would sit on an old T ski lift to help him keep his head up and get him in.  I was relieved.

He was a bit in shock but was not mad at me for calling or help! He was more concerned that he scared me and that he did.

Here is a photo of Bill’s severed leash next to mine, the stretched out coil.

Now here’s a photo of my new leash next to my old leash:

 

Bill is doing well and I’m glad he’s okay. He’s glad his board is okay.  I hope I never have to experience that again, but I thought that was pretty cool how he used that paddle blade to get him to safety!

Now, here’s Deb Driscoll’s story. I might add that Deb goes quite deep and I’d put my life in her hands any day!  She is my assistant safety sweeper at my clinics here on Maui. Thanks for sharing Deb:

Deb’s story: Aloha Suzie, my friend, its me, Deb ;-)…not sure it qualifies as a survival story but here goes. Last winter, out at Pier 1, I was SUPing with my friends in triple overhead surf (with some bigger sets). It was DEFINITELY the biggest surf I had been in to date. Double overhead was the largest surf before this day. I had caught a couple waves and was feeling pretty confident because I had made it to the shoulder each time without getting caught in the impact zone. It was only a matter of time before Murphy’s Law took over.

I caught the next wave and, not really knowing the line up (we are pretty far off shore), I took off kinda deep. The wave closed out and I tried to straighten out my board but the huge wall of white water caught me. The next thing I know I’m being put through the spin cycle…held down, ears starting to hurt, getting hit by my paddle in the shin….I opened my eyes to see which way was up but everything was dark. I knew if I just relaxed that eventually I would come up. My only thought was don’t panic.

I had a quick thought back to a time when I had free dived to 100 feet at Molokini, holding my breath for 2 minutes. During that dive on the way back up I got an awful urge to take a breath and thought, “you better relax you idiot, or you’re gonna drown”. I think that experience helped me in that moment.

Anyway, I came up, board still attached, paddle in hand, only to take a few more on the head, each time diving down as far as I could and each time getting pulled backwards hoping my leash held. I think it was the third wave that broke my leash. Luckily, our friend Frank Forbes (supsonic.com), had just caught a wave and heard me yelling for him. He saved me a long swim in the impact zone by saving my board and getting it back to me. That ended my surf session and I had a long, lonely paddle back into Kahului Harbor. All I can tell you is that it was totally worth the beating I took

And finally, our Andre Niemeyer of SUP Connect writes:

 Hi Suzie! It looks like people are shy to share their close calls, hopefully not for fear of embarrassment! It could be that not everyone has the extreme surf conditions of Hawaii. Now, I’m in California, but here goes my “survival” story.

On Jan 19th, 2010 (I think that’s the correct date) surf was well overhead and there was no one out at Windnsea, California. Tons of people in the parking lot – I guess thinking that Windnsea was maxed out. There were a few people surfing Big Rock (south of Windnsea) and others surfing Simmons (north of Windnsea, where the legendary Bob Simmons drowned during a surf session). The tide was incredibly high and the surf was pounding against the rocks.

The danger of getting knocked out on that inside was probably one of the reasons that no one was out there. Well, the idiot here decided to go out – and what’s more, on a stand up paddle board. There were no channels and one small shore break wave could have send me straight into the rocks with overhead high waves. Not fun. If you sup surf, you know how much drag those boards have and, plus, not being able to duck dive made it all the more challenging. To make the long story short, I lucked out on my timing and made it through the lineup, and eventually rode some pretty fun waves. My surf buddy, who also made it safely but on his longboard, said that some of the waves were higher than a street light poll. I don’t know about that, but it was certainly no ordinary day. I thank God for graciously dealing with my stupidity and safely bringing me back home.

Wow Deb and Andre, those stories remind us all to keep everything in check. I think more tips like this can help us all.

I have a friend here on Maui that now wears a helmet on big days. Not a bad idea! I’ve been hit pretty hard and wish I had her helmet. I also think I’m going to wear 2 leashes on days like for back up.

Glad we all survived and are here to tell the story. Feel free to share yours too. Who knows who you may help one day?

A healthy and Happy New Year,

Suzie Cooney, Maui

Suzie Trains Maui