Mission Bay Paddling: There's a lot to see!

This weekend I decided to support the Row for a Cause- unfortunately, the race started really early and I'm not such an early riser on the weekend. By the time we got to the race site there was nothing to see but tired outrigger paddlers and race canoes resting on the sand... or was there?! Check it out: 

It's the Sitting SUPer!!!

This guy had a cool set up- he had a seat bolted to his stand up board! He was cruising too- doing laps around one of the islands in Mission Bay. Paddling is cool - and if you need to sit down to get your fix... more power to you. Paddle on Sitting SUPer, paddle on.

IB Surfin'

Yesterday I didn't have a whole lot of free time in the morning before I had to head to work for a training in the afternoon. I had to settle my craving to surf and decided to surf local. I guess I could have hit the usual nearby destination-- Coronado Shores but I was ready to try out Imperial Beach. I've never really surfed IB by the pier. I've open ocean paddled past it to surf the Rivermouth. I used to be intimidated by IB's reputation of having a hard, fast wave. And I was ready for the challenge. I wanted it.

On my drive there, I was a little nervous. I arrived to nice, clean, waist-high glassy waves. I was stoked. Ideal conditions for me, especially in IB. Lefts?!-- good time to practice I thought since I favor going right.

I caught my first wave and found the speed exhilarating. I'm enjoying faster, steeper waves than the slow-rolling waves in Dogpatch (but DP is always fun no matter). I'm gaining more confidence in surfing more challenging waves and thinking about all the sweet places you can surf around the world excites me! Look out, I'm on a mission. Once I get rolling, nothing can stop me.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:IB

Caught on Film

Just saw this...  Someone caught a photo of me after the Tahoe Nalu Race.  You can tell that it was a beautiful, hot summer day in the mountains!

The caption read:

Liza Edralin Flowers demonstrates paddleboarding, which is just about as close as a person can get to actually walking on the water.  (So true...)

Happy 1 Year Anniversary BOGA

If you haven't ridden one, you need to give it a try!  I love riding my BOGA raceboard on flatwater as it cuts right through the water like slicing butter.  And I always have fun on the surf with my BOGA Bullet, whether it's knee-high waves or over-head waves.  The BOGA team has a great crew, lead by an awesome couple-- Dave and Trish.  Congrats BOGA for a successful year!  Watch out everyone, BOGA is on fire!!

The Family

My BOGA family always keeps me happy!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Surfing Ain't Just About Standing Up

Surfing the Dogpatch, you're bound to share the waves with a few surfskiis, aka butt-boarders.  I was always curious about it but never really was interested in riding one.  The only reasons why I jumped on a  tandem surfski with Steve Boehne was that the surf was mediocre and it was Steve Boehne, founder of Infinity and tandem surfing world champion.  

I'm so glad I did!  What a blast!  It's a different type of high than SUP surfing.  I was a little nervous and excited at the same time.  It was so fun riding the waves, doing cut-backs and especially going off the lip. It was neat sitting at the base of the wave.  You get a different perspective of the waves.  I felt like I could see everything and Steve taught me how to read the waves. 

I enjoyed surfskiing and will definitely do it again but it still doesn't beat riding my BOGA! 

Back in the Water

Surfed today on my 9.5 Boga- reminded me how much I love the surfing side of paddlesurfing. I only had an hour so a local session was the call. I'm digging the shorter length on the Boga- beach break grinders are now surfable. Oh yeah, I also got my first nasal flush- just like a real surfer... Right when I least expected it.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Coronado shores

Home Sweet Home

Man, it's good to be back home.  After 15 hours on a plane and a few hours of sleep, it wasn't soon enough to go surfing.  The two tsunamis that hit the Philippines during our 2-week stay put a damper on our plans to go surfing.  So I was revving to go as soon as we arrived home.  Of course I had to go to my spot-- the Dog Patch in San Onofre.  Surf wasn't real big today and I was mainly chasing waves, rather than catching them (I was pretty sluggish today) but it was a beautiful day and I was just happy to be back in the water.

I had a fabulous time with the family in PI but it's so good to be Home Sweet Home!