Newport Paddle
Five of us, "Dublin" Dave, Joe "Carnivore," Sandy Mayuga and Don Gilbert, launched from Newport this morning at 8:00 a.m. It was cloudy but calm, and we had a nice paddle down to the main beach at Laguna, where we landed for a break. The surf was around 3 feet.

The only carnage to report was from Don. A wave caught up to him, and he broached and braced into the wave beautifully. Then a few seconds later he let the hard chine on the beach side down and was capsized.

We arrived back at Newport Harbor at around noon, completing the 12 NM paddle. Joe, Sandy and Don left, while Dave stayed to practice some paddle skills and I went for a lap around the harbor to add 8 more miles to train for the Bay 2 Bay Race (20 miles) in San Diego next weekend.

    Duane Strosaker
    www.rollordrown.com

Submitted on May 25, 2003