huge waves

What exactly do you mean by "seriously rough water" and "Breakers"?

I have done several OWS with what I consider rough water (wind chop and currents that provide a consistant 6-8" chop ontop of the water).  I usually try to find a way of protecting my mouth when I breath with the rest of my head.  Either breathing on 1 side only (downwind side) so that the rest of my head it protecting me from the chop or if going directly into the chop I will try to tilt my head as far forward as possible when I come up for air.  The other thing I do is use the rest of the pack to protect myself Either stay on the down wind side of the pack or in the middle depending on the course may provide significantly less issues with waves.

Now, If you are talking about what I consider "breakers" I can't help you!

Michael

The thing to remember is that the weakest part of the wave is directly under it

Different waves carry different levels of energy and it is really just dependent on how far away the waves came from. If it is short period wind chop (From Local Winds) it will look a lot worse than it is. A longer period swell (Like from a far off storm) of considerable size will definitely have more energy concentrated in each set.

Ultimately, the pace to be is directly under it. I "Duck Dive" in time for the wave to pass over my head and then glide back to the surface. The speed of the wave matched with your speed moving forward will make it a fairly quick process.

The only real tricky part is timing shorter period waves (So you can catch a breath between each of them)

I find that the bigger the surf, the easier it is to get through them.


Of course, approaching the beach is a whole different matter. If the waves have enough energy, try to time it and catch one in. (You will pass a ton of folks) I look under my armpit (And back) when I breath so I can watch for an incoming wave to catch.

Just remember to stay stretched out and long as the wave passes over you. If you ball up, your gonna get tumbled

No advice for swimming through the chop, but the only way to get through waves efficiently is to go under them.  Whether it's the whitewash or a wave that's just breaking, dive down, keep your hands and arms extended in front of you until you grab sand and swim as hard as you can under it.  The deeper you go, the farther you are from the force of the wave.  Come up, get some air and do it again until you're past the break line.

I would also add that you maybe shouldn't be too worried about your stroke until you're out there.  Keep your head up and be aware of the waves that are coming at you, and always swim TOWARDS them to shorten the distance between you and the breakers, and use the force of any back wash to your advantage. Once past the break line, get into your groove ... and think about how much fun it will be to body surf these killer waves on the way back in!

 Thank you.  Great advice.  These waves were what you would call a longer swell, related to Ike.   I see now that I should have gone under, rather than over, the swells.  I saw people doing that but was afraid that when I came back up I'd be directly under another one and wouldn't be able to breathe.  If I understand correctly, when heading back to the beach I should do the opposite?  Try to ride on top of the wave?

Thank you, everyone.  I wonder where you all live that you have so much experience with rough water.  I forgot to mention that I got kind of seasick and felt like I was rocking for the entire rest of the day.  Does that happen to you as well?

I really appreciate the advice and feel much more prepared in case I ever face this again. 

Like these?    LA tri couple years back

What Tim and PN said.   You want to be careful going under.  If they are below waist high, consider going over and dolphining them, unless you are very familiar with bottom contour.  You dont want to face plant into an unseen sandbar.

Bigger waves/deeper, yeah, all the energy is in the whitewash, dive under (before the whitewash reaches you), superman your arms, grab sand, you'll feel the wave pressure go over, use that to bring you back up to the surface.  And yeah, another wave might be there, just be ready for it.

As for coming in, I was always taught keep swimming for shore.  Even if a wave hits you and/or you get tumbled, keep swimming, you're going in the right direction

Catching a wave (IE: Bodysurfing) is the most fun you will have out there.

As the wave approaches (Breaking or not) you will feel it roll over you. (Your feet willl rise first)

As it approaches you, stay level and straight and give a little extra umph in your stroke to try and match the speed of the wave. Then you feel it start to catch you, put your hands together out in front of you and kick hard. (Like your doing Kickboad drills)

The wave may pass over you but still give you a nice boost of speed or if there is enough energy in the wave, it will pick you up and take you for a ride. Hold your body position and you will pop out of the front of the wave and your on your way. (It may even take you all the way to the beach)

Just stay relaxed and hold a flat body position (relative to the Bottom) and it won't take you for a tumble

I bet the waves from the Hurricane have more than enough energy to get some great rides. I know at a lot of Triathlons, folks will go out during the warmup and catch a few waves to get a read on the current conditions. (This is not so much about having fun as it is getting a read on the amount of energy in the waves)