He had just lowered himself into the cockpit of the kayak, and was adjusting his sitting position when a wave picked up the front of the kayak causing it to break in half. He continued with the launch into the water, immediately getting rolled off the kayak cradle in the small surf as the cockpit section broke apart from the bow and crumbled around him. He recovered the remaining bow section in front of him attempting to paddle it, though it quickly flooded with water and disappeared beneath the surface. Determined, he returned to the stern section of the kayak still laying on the cradle, and rolled it into the water. This last conical piece floated, then partially submerged as it filled with water through the bulkhead openings trapping an air pocket in its top. He wrapped his legs around the kayak bobber, and then began paddling it towards the Golden Gate Bridge.