favorite surfers

Southeastern North Carolina has produced many great surfers and if you pay attention or are the type that follows this kind of thing then you can likely name them as well as I can. I have a lot of favorite surfers, but I can’t name most of them. I recognize them out in the surf and you might too. One favorite surfer is the little kid not quite strong enough to paddle out or into a wave, but once someone gives a little push they drop down the face and make turns like a champ. Imagine how good they might be one day. Another is the old guy (and I say this in the most respectful way) who managed to get his 10 foot log out past the big, churning impact zone and caught good rides while meanwhile I got put in my place and was left bruised, breathless and wave less. I also have a high regard for those in our midst that that shape and glass those works of art that carry us and move us across the waves- our waves. Not only can they surf, but they can magically transfer that feeling into a thing, a shape. You may know their names, but if you don’t be sure to ask around and then go buy a local shaped board when you have the chance or the means. One of my favorite surfers pops up now and again at my favorite spots and I like to think we watch each others backs when no one else is out. I will never forget standing on a foggy day facing a wave that I could only hear and not see. That favorite surfer showed up just when I thought donning a wetsuit might not be worth the hassle. His soul standing there next to me provided an invisible push that morning and I had one of the most memorable sessions ever. Other favorites are of the fairer sex. I don’t tend to segregate surfers as men and women otherwise, but the truth is that women surfers add a grace and style that I just don’t have. Then there is that group I always see around. Sometimes just two show up, other days maybe five or six. They always catch the right waves, follow the best lines, and then effortlessly are back out for the next set. Yes, these favorite surfers are my friends the pelicans. I have another favorite surfer. With the exception of maybe my kids, he is no one else’s favorite. I admit that one of my very favorite surfers is me. I am my own favorite because when I am in the act surfing, I can’t think about anything or anyone else. And in that moment, I doubt you could convince me otherwise.

See you in the water.

Secret Spot

I submitted this to a local surf publication. I am not sure it will be published, but it is one of the reasons I decided to start this blog....

I realize its taboo in the surf culture to discuss secret spots but I will try not to reveal yours, though I might just. Secret spots are by their nature a little mystical and hold some magic for their owners. You read about them on your local online surfing forums especially when they had just been firing off with chest high barrels just minutes away from the sloppy, pond like conditions that I was enjoying at the same time. Apparently there must be some secret time element to this thing too as it never fails that those most desirable of waves occurred in the past and less so in the present. Some spots have names which I don’t dare reveal in ink, but even not so secret places are treated as such. Perhaps if they remain secret to even just one person maybe they retain their magic.

I have a secret spot. The lay of the land there is such that the ocean isn’t revealed so easily, and the walk down to the wet sand where I pause to attach my leash is farther than some spots I visit. I have never gotten barreled in my spot (ok, this is misleading since I have never been barreled anywhere yet), nor is it always chest high, glassy, A-frame lefts nicely lined up. Really, its not even secret, actually it’s right at a public beach access. You can go there right now and if you can find an empty parking spot, it’s all yours. If I see you at my secret spot, then you will be my secret surf soul sister or brother for that little bit of time though I will not likely know nor ask your name. I will give you wide berth not because I am unfriendly, but more likely I need it to keep my fin safely out of your tail.

This secret spot I speak of is really more than the “place”. Truth is, my secret spot lies deeper within and exists wherever it is I happen to paddle out. No, that isn’t really true either because I don’t even need my surfboard or be within sight of the ocean to go to my secret spot. I carry this feeling around with me always and it’s easily accessible. Surfing has graced me with a secret spot that not everyone gets to have. I worked hard for this spot over the last few years. I wake early when others are still sleeping so that I can weave surfing with the rest of my life. I paddle out in the cold of February and I paddle out even when it’s flat sometimes. I fix my own dings and bring life back to old boards. I kindle the stoke I find in others, and I try to leave the beach and ocean better than I find it each time.

Sometimes I glide across waves as I sit in traffic, take a moment to stretch at my desk, or when I doze off to sleep at night. Of course I have visited my secret spot in my dreams on those nights I am lucky enough to remember… but I still haven’t gotten barreled there either.

See you in the water.

Starting a Blog is a little like starting a journal, or a letter as much thought will occur before the writing starts. Most of this will be related to surfing- not the internet mind you, but surfing the ocean waves. More about all of this later...