It is one year since I completed one of the greatest, most humbling events of my life! The M2M Sup Race. We went from north Maui’s Honolua Bay/Slaughterhouse Beach all the way across the Pailolo Channel to Molokai’s Kaukanakai Harbour.  43k! 6 hours almost exactly of some of the most challenging waters I have ever stood on! I learned a lot that day about my surroundings, paddling, life and myself. It was a truly humbling experience and adventure. I am sorry to hear that they cancelled this years event. I hope Handsome Buggah is able to produce this event next year as one never knows. I also wish everyone the best for tomorrows M2O!! I hope it is pumping for you all. Cheers and safe travels!! ps the photo is of me training a few days before the big race. You can see Molokai in the background. I am in the Kihei area of Maui so you can see how far it is!!!!

 

Some may have heard the news but most haven’t. We have said our last good byes to our sweet little girl Momo!! She was the love of our lives and the smile on our faces! We were completely crushed at her sudden passing but will always remember her for the memories she left us.

 

We met little Mo when she was just a couple of months old. Thats when she first stole our hearts. Like any greedy parent wanting a pup we took her home right away and started life with her then. We had such wonderful times growing up with her and relish those moments dearly.  Even the struggles were joyus.

 

I would like to thank Melinda Lopez from Twin Trees Vet for her love and devotion to her profession! You are the best and a wonderfully compassionate women!! We thank you from the bottom of our broken hearts!! You and your staff are amazing and I would suggest that no one go anywhere but to see her!! thank you so much.

 

Now we must say goodbye to our little angel and let her run with her other friends already waiting for her!! Rocko, Vinney, Tika take care of our girl and we will see you some time in the future!!

 

Love you to the moon little Mo!!

 

From Dad and Mom.

RIP Little lady.

We will never forget you.

Thank you.

My wife recently asked me what it was about Anvil Island that I like so much. It is a interesting question this time of year as I don’t visit her much in the summer. Right now I am ramping up my k for the rest of the season and with Whistler Lakes still frozen I find Anvil the perfect training ground for early season missions. She is far enough out there and enough that I have to have my wits about me but not far enough that I might get in real trouble, though, that could happen anywhere and anytime on the water, particularly the ocean. I also like it a lot as I can do it solo. Anvil is a great 20 to 25k paddle that throws just about everything at you and usually makes you work for it.

Just getting there one often has to paddle the full distance on one side, while coming back usually sees you doing the same thing on the other side. If your not ready for paddling at almost full tilt for over 4k on one side, I would probably suggest against this route. Though, if you are you may be rewarded with many sights, sounds and smells along the way!! If your really lucky and time it right you might be able to surf all the way back to Porteau Cove from the south point of Anvil.

This journey saw me start at the usual Porteau Cove. I decided I want to do at least 25k on this route and thought going around the Defence Islands would be a great idea! Then from the backside to Anvil. While I was there I knew I was going to go around Pam Rocks which are at the south point of Anvil, but, Gambier looked so inviting. Going in between islands I started making my way to Gambiers east most points. Once I touched her shores I zipped across to Pam Rocks. Then, from there a somewhat straight line back to Porteau. 27k and four hours of almost non stop paddling and bam, another box ticked off. Solo.

I am pretty lucky this week as I have circumnavigated Anvil twice and I will try for another mission tomorrow if the weather looks good it will be my third this week which would be awesome. As, accruing 75k in a week at this time of year is great!! Wish me luck and stay tuned for upcoming news.

Have a great day and remember to always!! be prepared and ready for everything and anything on the water!! And…. don’t forget your sunscreen.

#kinesysactive, #ryderseyewear, #backendgear, #blueplanetsup

#sup, #anvilisland, #howesound, #bc,  #doit, #didit, #goingtodoit,

Case in point! Some of you know me to be a very cautious person, while others know me to be a rebel. In reality I like to be pretty safe but take some chances. When I am dealing with water, I try not to be to fool hearted. That wasn’t the case the other day!!

I made one of the most basic, simple errors one could make in regards to paddling this time of year!!

I had decided to circumnavigate Anvil Island in the glorious Howe Sound. I was planning on doing it solo for the first time. It is not so much the distance but as anything solo, one has to plan. I did all that but the one thing I did wrong was almost a costly mistake and it could have turned out really bad very easily!!

So, what did I do wrong that could have cost me much pain and suffering?

I left to late!!

The wind, tide and outflow were all against me from the start, I knew that, but, my problem was starting off to late. This time of year we don’t only have to worry about cold but the early setting sun. I was procrastinating to long at home and didn’t start till 3pm from Porteau Cove. It doesn’t seem like a issue but it was.

Right from the start I had to battle the outflow and 15-20k winds with one foot waves. I paddled mostly on the left hand side of the board for almost an hour to get the back side of Anvil. Once on the backside it was so still and beautiful that it took my breath away, though, I knew I had to hurry and couldn’t spare any time as the winds picked up!! By the time I got to the south point of Anvil and I had to push across Howe Sound and make my way back up to Porteau Cove, the wind had picked up, the swell got bigger and so did the waves!! I quartered all the way back, paddling almost entirely on the right side this time. The worst part was the fact that night was almost on me and I wasn’t nearly back! It was over a hour from the south point and the last half a hour was paddled almost in pitch blackness!! If you have never paddled in the dark with high winds and waves and tide I would suggest not to!! For your safety!

I put my big boy pants on and put my head down. I had to get back. For some it would have been a nightmare and a major issue. Fortunately I had the cars headlights from the highway direct me back. It was a daunting paddled that was riddled with uncertainty and a bit of anxiousness. I could not see the bottom as I stayed very close to shore once I made it across the Sound. Every once and a while I would hit bottom with my paddle!

I made it back to Porteau at 7pm! This was a couple of weeks ago so you can imagine how dark it was. When I got back I immediately called my wife, I wanted to earlier but I just couldn’t stop. She was worried a little but she knows me. After the paddle and for 48 hours I had a touch of vertigo/nausea because of the sensory depravation. It did subside, but the realization that that could have turned nasty very easily was strong in my mind.

Lesson learned.

Be safe out there. Even if you think everything is under control remember that you are playing with mother nature and she doesn’t really care about you and what time you get home for diner.

arne

The photo of me getting to the edge of Anvil Island. Just the first quarter. whew

#sup, #supbc, #squamish, #howesound, #backendgear, #kinesysactive, #ryderseyewear, #wintersup, #getoutthere,

I awoke with a nice surprise today!! Boardstars.com is 10 this year!! So many memories in those ten years. So much fun, art and adventure. I would like to thank those of you that took the time to check out my page. I thank you. I hope you stay tuned or share it with friends. The new year holds a lot of promise and I am excited for it! I ended the year with three great sponsors and a new column to write about paddle boarding for, which I am super stocked about, thank you so much Chris Quinlan for the opportunity!! You rock, as well as your page! For the moment I am focusing on a upcoming art show this summer and paddling, yup, just a lot of paddling and art, thats it, nothing else, hahahaha, just kidding. Lots of hugs, belly scratches and wishes for everyone that 2019 will be a awesome year for everyone!! Whatever it is you want to do or achieve. I don’t like to steal lines from anyone, but, Just do it!! I would like to give a big shout out to my sponsors and again thank them so much for their support!! Thank you Markus Samer from Ryders Eyewear! Thank you to the gang at Kinesys Suncare Products! Thank you Gary Yip from Backendgear! Thank you and most of all I would like to thank my super awesome, patient and understanding wife, Aki for always being there and also, the sweetest little clam Momo!! Love you all!! cheers!!   #ryderseyewear, #kinesysactive, #backendgear, #whistler, #bc, #wintersup, #gooutside, #outsidemagazine, #standupjournal, #supthemag, #natgeo,

 

Super excited to spend a long weekend in Tofino, BC doing my Level 1 Ocean Touring Instructor course with Emery Bosut from T’ashi Paddle. The weather held out for the days and we had a great group making for a really unique and fun experience. The surroundings were as always, surreal. Had a chance to sup surf MacKenzie Beach and got a few biguns there! As well as a few washing machine wipe-outs. Felt great, cold, but great. Now I gotta decide where I am going take this too. I have some ideas so stay tuned for some interesting news? Get out there when you can regardless of weather! Arne Gutmann Level 1 Ocean Touring Certified Instructor!  #ryderseyewear, #backendgear, #thesupjournal, #thesupmag, #standuppaddleboarder, #tofino, #westcoast, #suplife, #awesome

Yup, wanted to cross that baby off for a long time!! Mostly full circumnavigation of Gambier Island. It was a little more than full because of my start and stop location. Lions Bay was my start. Such a nice little beach. 10hrs and not a lot of help except maybe a bit at the end were all the boisterous water between gambier and bowen pushed me home, through the red tide! It also happened to be one of the largest algae blooms in a while! yikes, great day!! #ryderseyewear,  #suptouring, #sup4life

Can’t believe I haven’t posted this yet!! Well, I became the top placing Canadian at this years M2M!! It was an amazing experience that was insanely challenging for the first 22k. It was humbling and painful. I buckled up and got it done in the second half and even passed a few people. Not that that is what the race is about but, I had the desire to be the best Canadian! Lucky. Thank you so much to my fantastic wife Aki and Marcus from Ryders Eyewear!! Bart and Dagmar, Elle from M2M, Pete and Lincoln for letting me hang of your coat tails and everyone else on that beautiful island! Ohhh, and my captain, Joe,Thank you.#m2msuprace, #m2m, #ryderseyewear, #sup4life, #suptouring, #supracing, #thatguyarne,

Who would think that on a lovely over cast rainy day that one would ride waves let alone more than one in Howe Sound, B.C? Yup, surf sess in full affect. With a 14foot race/touring board. It wasn’t your normal session as the winds were 20 to 30k and swells were a foot or two and it was raining and over cast. My plan was to zig zag all the way to Watts Point once we got out of Blind Channel but we had to much fun running the runners to the beach. We would turn around and head back out a couple of hundred meters and do it again! It was back tiring, shoulder burning awesomeness!! I got a bunch of nice runners but one really good solid wave? picked me up and carried me right to shore!! In the immortal words of Luc Benac, “I stepped back, then back, and back again again and all right!! or there a bouts from a few weeks ago. Same thing, gotta step back, and I did. So much fun!! #ryderseyewear, #andylogan, #blackfishpaddles, #suplife.

The wind rips across the near frozen water with temperatures nearing the devils ball sac of pain. The biting reality of darkness approaching before your last break and all you want to do is paddle. Well, its winter in the north 40.

All that may be said but one thing I learned for sure about paddling in the winter is to still have the same fun I had in the summer but with a heck of a lot of specialized clothing.

To start with if your planning on going in the ocean in the middle of winter there are many things to consider before you even go out. I always check my weather sites and check out that  days report because it can change without notice and once your out there you have to fend for yourself. I always let my wife or text a friend in the area my intent just so they have knowledge on what I plan on doing. Timing is super critical because of the short days also. I like to train with a partner if possible. A route plan is another helpful idea.

The gear as well as a fit body is also helpful as winter is much different as far as fatigue and the cold together. If the conditions are not good it seems to get amplified in the cold. Hence, why I love my drysuit!! They are the best! If you encounter rough conditions there is nothing better than knowing you have the suit on. I never like to fall in but that piece of equipment is paramount to staying safe out there. I also always use a PFD in the ocean, solo or with others. Its just safer. Like a leash, which is just a standard necessity. As far as layers or specifics, everyones body is different and reacquires a wider range of options. i run cold usually so I like to be warm. My mantra is, ‘I rather be warm than cold!” I use micro tights under neath the suit with wool or synthetic boxers. I love micro fleeces as they are great layers. Poly-pro and specialized companies making specific first layers are breaking ground and allowing us to stay warmer longer. Smart wool is amazing and almost odour free. Foot wear is one of hardest to peg as I wear thick wool socks with my 8mm booties, and, on long paddles I put reflective insoles in my drysuit to help stop the cold of the board from transmitting that said cold, though, sometimes I still get cold! I haven’t spent the money on the heated sock thing but many love them. As I mentioned, they are finite and if you are doing a long paddle the batteries might die, which sucks. For my hands I use 3mm neoprene gloves which are good up to -10 celcius and moderate wind. Though, I find I can paddle in colder weather as long as the output is strong. I always wear a ball cap  or toque but I might throw on a micro fiber neck warmer that I can pull up if I need it. The last things that I wear are a exterior micro shell and my surf shorts. Reason being is that the shell will give me an extra layer of wind stopping ability that helps keep me warmer longer. The shorts I use have many pockets and zippers for all my needs. Like water, energy food, my id, camera, money and phone. Which is also a must, in particular if you are solo.

There you have the basic list of what I wear when I paddle in the winter. Everyone is different and has unique requirements so let this be a good start point and go have some fun!!

cheers!!