Oregon Coast Derby (Pacific City Sept 20th) -Planning

A snug belt around your waist will help keep the water out of your waders.

Along those lines for those who are new to surf launches and more importantly landings... It is not hard and PC is protected and easy, and I am sure myself and others will take time to help you out.
 BUT keep in mind the relationship between your head and your yak if you dump in the surf zone.  I have had my bell rung several times, once hard enough to draw blood, when a loaded yak came down on my head as I came up from under the water.  In my opinion this is one of the most dangerous parts of yak fishing offshore.  I now stay under long enough to gather my wits and come up protecting the brain bucket with my arms and can see why may surf kayakers wear a helmet. Other than that if you  are a comfortable swimmer and don't mind getting wet, dumping the surf is fun and nothing to worry about.

I am assuming a lanyard is required, what type(s) is used?

for your paddle yes.  between yourself and your yak no.

I  do have grab lines (3-4ft) off the front and rear of my yak so when I find myself swimming in the surf I can have something easy to get ahold of.

Latest Forecasts:
WooooHooooo!!! It's on Boys and Girls!  We're looking at small surf and smooth seas!  Even if you're not in the tournament, Saturday would be a great day to paddle out!


NOAA
TODAY
S WIND 5 KT...BECOMING W 5 TO 10 KT IN THE AFTERNOON.
WIND WAVES 1 FOOT. W SWELL 5 FT AT 12 SECONDS.

TONIGHT
W WIND 5 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FOOT. W SWELL 5 FT AT
11 SECONDS.

SAT
NW WIND 5 KT...BACKING TO W IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES
1 FOOT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 11 SECONDS. SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN
THE AFTERNOON.

SAT NIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FOOT. W SWELL
4 FT. SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS.

SUN
W WIND 5 TO 10 KT...BECOMING NW 10 TO 15 KT WITH GUSTS
TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT. W SWELL 4 FT.
SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS.

MagicSeaweed

Sat
09/20      SW Swell 4ft   @ 15secs     West Wind  9mph      59°F


Wetsand

SW Swell 3ft @ 14seconds  N wind 4knts

Looks like you will all have a great time, the water has been looking quite calm the last couple days around here, wish I could participate, maybe next time. (I'm still lacking some essential gear) however, the wife an I are going to try and ride up there to view the action. Looking forward to hopefully meeting many of you.
Limit Out! Have Fun!
              Curtis

gotta love that long period,  should be nice!!  headed over in a few hours, will swing by this evening to say howdy..

He approached the surf with confidence, knowing he'd been here many times before. The launch was routine, if a little salty. Paddling out he was strong and able, ready to do battle with those pesky bottom fish.

However, it was not to be. The 4 foot swells quickly began to take their toll on our hero. Shortly after passing Haystack Rock, he began to feel the weakness creep throughout his body, his stomach betraying him.

An early bottom snag proved to be the turning point. Drained of energy, the paddle to try and free the snag sapped his final bit of strength. Cutting the line and turning for the beach, he announced that his day was over...before it had really begun.

Paddling meekly towards the shore, he must have looked like crap. His 2 mates decided it was better to call it a day and follow. A few minutes later, our hero turned and said "here it comes". From that moment on, his name was CHUMMER!   

The tow back to the surf was apparently much easier on an empty stomach. The surf cooperated and eased our defeated comrade onto the sand where he was met by a sympathetic fellow yak fisher.

I hope everyone enjoyed the calm seas and the fishing on Saturday. Congrats to Spot on the shiney new ride and all the other prize winners!!!

Thanks to Pole Pole and Z for the assist...

LOL, nice, if sad story.Welcome to the wonderful world of seasickness. I got one word for ya'...DRAMAMINE. If you ever want to get some good time on the Big Blue come on down to Sunset, I always have time to fish and some extra D's...

Thanks for the advice from everyone during the adventure, Mybuddy and I had a great time taking part in the derby.  Beach launching and landing was awesome.  Catching fish, seeing whales, sealions, jellyfish, and great weather.   Good times.  Having only 3 hrs of sleep before the launch finally caught up- and we crashed for much needed sleep after the last visit to camp 29.  Drove home and talked about what we learned -and when the next trip will take place.
-Scott 

Sorry to hear your session was cut short Jay!  I swung by the beach on my way out of town and saw you guys less than half way to the rock....Thought to myself "man I wish I was out there"  But, the kids were hungry and the girlfriend was tired.....

I get seasick pretty easily if I'm not carefull.  If I'm tired or the seas are big, Dramamine is a lifesaver.  Otherwise I just make sure to keep an eye on the land so my brain has a point of reference for the motion. 
The worst thing for me is tying knotts.  Usually, deep breathing, staring at the land and if I have it, the smell or taste of something citrus will bring me back.  Hooking into a big fish will shake you out of it too.
 

it was great meeting everyone this weekend, including the family members who came along.. even nicer to see some familiar faces from our event at Drano this spring.

my 1st surf launch was an adventrue i'll not ever forget. sea lions and whales cruising thru our little flotilla, one breaching and spinning just beyond Spot, who was one of the farthest out. really hope somone had a camera and got it on film. btw, we caused a minor sensation by having about 10 of us launch at the same time saturday morning.. seems they have a playboat or two hit the surf once in a while, but having a group of hard core , rigged out fish yaks launch and hit it for haystack rock isnt something the locals are used to seeing.

not only did we have a great time out on the water, but those of you who left early missed a great pot luck get together that lasted quite a while.

thanx to Sue, amb's wife, for telling the beach patrol that we had launched boats and left our vehicles where they were. she told me that next time, we need to leave a note or something for the patrolman or we'll get ticketed. again, thank you, Sue for defending us while we gone.

when i left this morning during the downpour about 1130, our intrepid duo of Z and polepole were back out on the salt after more fish. sure hope they came back loaded up on rocks and lings.

btw, anyone know where i can get Skrat and pe'pe' le pew stickers for my yak?? i'm thinking they might help get the rest of the skunk off my boat.

One word on sea sickness...  Scopace.  Need a docs script, but for me nothing works better.  I use the pill form (instead of the patch), which allows me to dose according to conditions. Dramaine is good, but for me scopace is the only way to go.