Big Waves Sit Well With These Athletes

Ventura resident Eric Borgeson and his 14-year-old son, Logan, share a love for the ocean and riding waves. But they aren’t traditional surfers.

For eight years, Borgeson has been using wave skis, a combination surfboard and kayak with footholds, a seat, seat belt and paddle.

“It’s easier to catch waves on them than board surfing,” said Borgeson, 44, who brought his son into the sport. The paddle and curve of the board give riders more speed and agility, he said.

Logan said wave skis are easier to balance and maneuver than surfboards.

“You can do so much more stuff,” he said. “On a surfboard you have to lean your weight,” whereas on a wave ski, a rider can simply dip a paddle to make a quick turn.

The Borgesons will be among dozens of men and women taking part in a two-day wave ski and kayak competition that begins today at Surfers Point in Ventura. Contestants will compete for up to $2,500 in cash prizes.

The four categories of competition are wave skis, sit-on-top kayaks, standard international kayaks and closed kayaks, which conceal the lower half of a rider’s body.

In each competition, riders have 19 minutes to catch three waves and show their stuff. They are judged by type of wave, maneuvers and length of ride.

Competitor Nick Fisher of Port Hueneme, who has been surfing since he was 7, stumbled upon kayak surfing. He bought a kayak in 1994 but didn’t have surfing or competing in mind.

“I got it, frankly, to paddle around the harbor and drink beer,” he said. One day, while out at sea, Fisher felt too fatigued to paddle to shore. Instead, he caught a wave, rode it back and discovered a different kind of sport.

He said he prefers kayaking to board surfing because he is “closer to the wave.”

“I honestly feel it’s the intimacy to the wave,” said Fisher, 53, who will compete in the sit-on-top kayak category. “When you’re sitting down and you pull a barrel, it’s fun.”

Roger Adams of Ventura will compete against Borgeson in the expert wave ski category. He applied his skills as a white-water kayaker to waves on the Atlantic Ocean when he lived on the East Coast.

“For the effort that you put into it, you get so much back,” said Adams, 46. “You get more bang for your paddle stroke. . . . It’s like riding a bobsled.”

The competitors take a laid-back approach to events like the one this weekend.

“They’re more like a get-together,” Borgeson said. “I’ve done it mostly to see my own friends.”

With this weekend’s event, kayak and wave ski riders hope their sports will gain more popularity.

“When you first paddle out, everyone thinks you’re a kook,” Fisher said. But “some of these guys in the little boats are going to be able to rip it.”

FYI

The 2002 West Coast Waveski Championship competition runs 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. today and Sunday at the west end of Surfers Point, adjacent to Seaside Park at 10 W. Harbor Blvd. For details, log onto https://https://www.hightideusa.com