Ocean speed

Hi!
I'm a new member on this site, age 41 and just about to start paddling a brand new surfski on a great lake nearby.
I've had a couple of years in a wider K1 and hope to improve my times on the longer runs (30km+).
English is not my native language so i hope it's ok to make up sentences like a real foreigner.
A quick question: somebody says they are faster on the oceans with waves than they are on flat water, how come? If it's because they ride with the waves i can understand it but not if the track ends where it starts.
Just wanted to say hi and i hope to learn a lot from you guys.

RightImBad wrote: A quick question: somebody says they are faster on the oceans with waves than they are on flat water, how come? If it's because they ride with the waves i can understand it but not if the track ends where it starts.

Welcome!

You are right, it's because the ski can ride the swell and smaller wind generated waves we refer to as "runners". While headed directly downwind will be faster you will be slowed by falling off the back of these runners. The trick to going much faster is once you are on the runner is to chose a direction, left or right and move across the runner so as the runner degenerates you dont fall off the back of it ( which can often fill the bucket of the ski with water) you carry that speed generated off the runner and with experience you will pick the right direction to head and link the end of that runner with the beginning of another runner which accelerates you again and allows a high average speed.

While it is slower going upwind it wouldn't necessarily balance your downwind speed, it would depend on how big the seas were, but I would guess you will still have been overall faster than if on the flat in my opinion/experience.

There are guys I know who I can beat on 20km flat water races no problems but put them in the ocean and they will paddle away from me, purely because their choice of which direction to to go on the runners is so much better through lots of experience.

Flat is faster for a rountrip or out-and-back. Almost always if there are runners it's because it's windy and beating upwind always slows you down more than you benefit by surfing back. The faster the wind and bigger the waves, the slower your roundtrip time compared to flat. Eventually there comes a point where you cannot paddle against the wind/waves at all and you come to a standstill. (30+knots?) However paddling downwind in those same conditions your speed would not be doubled from your flatwater speed.

I do a TT out and back, and my fastest times are always when there is no wind or chop.

Ah, i see.
Thanks a lot for the replies guys!

One afternoon paddling with a mate on the Swan River gusts were recorded by the Bureau of Meteorology in Perth at 35 knots (64kmh). We were heading west-sou-west directly into it off the Narrows Bridge when that squall came through. Garmin speed went down from 5kmh to 2kmh (!). It was as much just trying to push the upper blade through the air as anything. Wind onto upright body sort of held you up, but it took enormous effort just to push the boat forward - almost stationary. What a blast.

Anyway, backs up patrickswitz 30+ knots for coming to a standstill. Round-trip time in that crazy wind vs flattish day would have easy day miles (k's then) faster.