Big Days

Hurricane Noel brought lots of grief to many, but it also brought surf and with that joy to others. Saturday was big, a little chilly (full suit for the first time this season) and fun. I has some trouble getting clean rides because the steepness of the wave faces and my relative lack of higher surf skills made it hard to get past the drop. My pal with his board, 2 feet shorter, had similar problems so maybe it was just tough conditions. I think I had as much fun watching others get good rides on Saturday. I have not seen, with my own eyes in person, that many surfers get barrelled. By this I mean a true, inside the tube and back out again legitimate "getting shacked" experience. That day I did see this happen and more than once. I also saw a local board shaper and was impressed how he maneuvered his longboard on these same waves. Its a little frustrating, but mostly inspiring. I may get a board shaped by this guy one of these days.

Sunday was a different story. It was cleaner conditions, smaller, but plenty big for me. I found myself wishing I had waited and not gone out the day before. My body- arms, shoulders, stamina- was lacking and I found myself having to quit sooner than I wanted to end that session. At the next public access north of me, I could see the kite festival going on and the colors pulled taught against the sky provided a change in scenery. As I stopped I passed along the good news of promising surf to the fellow surfer just getting ready to walk down to the beach. It seems I made him happy even before he got wet.