Ruth Gordon checks in from France where she is on "Cloud Nine"

By Ruth Gordon. Learn more about Ruth.

April 19, 2006

Hello EJ,

Below is my trip report from Lyon and photos attached. Check out the HUGE
air! The photo attached is no the best but I think it gives you a good idea
of the size.

Big smiles,

Ruth

Arriving back in Germany I was both surprised and delighted to find an email
from Tanya Shuman stating that although she had only just arrived home from
Africa she was hopping aboard the next flight to France and if I could make
it I should meet her there. 1000kms seemed like a big commitment, but the
Rhone River was in flood and the surfing was guaranteed to be good.

Less than 24hrs after landing in Germany from Portugal I had a full tummy
and a bag of clean clothes – what more could a traveller ask for? A driver?
Well I happened upon one of those too. The 1000kms went fast with good
German driving, and I was happy to arrive in time for a sunny afternoon
packed with Lyon locals, fellow Canadian Pat Camblin, Americans Tanya Shuman
and Marlow Long and a couple of Irish to boot.

The surfing area is broken into two channels and depending on the level
different waves are better for surfing. That first day it was the left
channel which sees you surf across a hole to work the surfer’s right
shoulder. Intimidating as the surf across to the shoulder was I was able to
pull off a few moves even on my weaker left blunt side. Luckily, I didn’t
have any unfortunate encounters in the surf across, but the surging hole
behind the wave really gave me a wack!

That night Kayak Session Magazine host, Toon, lead us out on the town in
Lyon. Seafood dinner (yes Lyon is inland and no I have no idea where the sea
creatures came from) followed by drinks and live music at a local pub lead
to a flurry of late night seafood flashbacks. A night that Toon threatened
would be epic indeed ended most memorable. In fact, thanks to one unnamed
American I’m sure Toon is still reliving the experience each time he walks
through his hallway.

Needless to say after a late night out on the town the calibre of surfing
seemed to be at a low: at least for those who endured the company of Toon
the night previous. However, local boater and filmmaker, David Arnaud, was
not caught up in these antics and I watch him as he surfed with style from
sun up to sun down. Each time I turned around I was amazed that he was still
going… surf, surf, surf. But as he admitted himself, the wave is large and
at the beginning of each season he knows his forearms will be exhausted. Yes
my forearms were tired, very tired, but I couldn’t decide if it was from the
aggressive rudder position or the ´I really don’t want to lose my paddle´
grip.

My day was moving slowly at best and we had changed to the right channel
which was boasting a massive bubbling wave that was taking some getting used
to. From shore it had looked almost small, but as I paddled to the edge,
where the water drops off the ledge I realized even front surfing was going
to be BIG. The day continued and I accomplished little more than catching
the wave and fronting surf. And then it happened, my moment of clarity, the
moment all surfers wait for… the timing, the bounce, the surge, it all
happened at once and … BAM… HUGE AIR. I flushed upright and assessed the
situation: I still had my paddle; both blades were in tack, my skirt was on,
I guess I was fine. A large smile crept across my face, phew, that felt big,
really big.

I´ll let you be the judge. Check out the photo entitled ´cloud nine´.

This trick was certainly the climax of my surfs that trip. There were many
more surfs, but none as memorable.