gift waves

I surfed so much this past week I am loosing track of how much I paddled out. The gift of surf is priceless to me and actually having time and waves align is a very good thing. Saturday was choppy and drifty but this size was good. Sunday, my birthday, was a little smaller but much better. I woke early and took off leaving various in laws and my family asleep. Only the visiting pet dog took notice as he lifted is eyes from his comfortable sleeping spot atop my couch. I surfed til I could surf no more and left good waves behind for those arriving with fresh paddling muscles. Monday, Christmas Eve, another early surf gift. The waves lined up nicely and though smaller the conditions were very clean. Riding my trusty 9'6" Will Allison, I managed several nice noserides. Still not perched over the tip of the nose with ten toes, but I am getting there. Any time I am spend on the front third of the board I count. As I progress I suppose I will whittle that down. I figure by the time I can shed the extra 10-15 pounds of wetsuit this summer, I will get there- at least to cheat five...Christmas was a good day on the ocean from what I read on the local report websites, but it was better spent with my family and I figured I was pushing my luck anyway! Yesterday was a great way to end my days off with a great little session on small longboard waves. I rode the Weisbecker Board and with a new, larger center fin was able to get on the nose of that board too...by my current definitions anyway.

The Half Life of Stoke

Scientists use the term "Half Life" to describe how things decay or diminish most commonly for radioactive materials. I have come to find my own surf stoke half life. Imagine the last wave you caught and that thrill and the euphoria. The last ones I rode were on Sunday- Big, windy, cold surf. I did get beat up a few times and bailed out on more waves than I rode. At the end of the session I only had a handful of rides, but each was intense. Those feelings fuel my love of surfing and that rush embedded in my core may diminish over time, but it will never really go away.

On windy days like that one, the crest of the waves get blown around, in this case blown back by the offshore winds. From behind those peaks its as though a mini rainshower is falling. That same spray often creates personalized rainbows as the bright daylight pierces the mist of sea water.

Walking down the street the next day, I felt the same cold and wind and pulled my coat tighter and tucked my chin down to stay warmer. I don't remember any of the cold of surfing the day before, but do remember most of the other things going on in and near my spot. Like all my surf sessions, this one has a half life, it will diminish in memory and the thrill of the glide will too, but it never goes away completely.

bump in sight

Its been so flat lately that I not surfed in over a week. I know this not because I keep track on a calendar when I surf, but I can feel the absence, feel the itch, the urge and the thrist for riding waves. There is a bump in sight however! Things are shaping up to be a nice week of medium period waves that will be just right for fixing what ails me. As I have continued my search for my 40th birthday present board for myself, I found a deal on a beginner softop longboard that I couldn't pass up, so that may be my present to myself--- a board that others can surf or learn to surf on. The only stoke near to riding a wave and surfing, really surfing, is that of seeing someone else learn. So, my focus turns to two things...getting priority projects done around the house, and getting my garage ready for the other project- shaping and glassing my own board. I am going to get my blank later this month, maybe next week ...if I am not too busy surfing.

Weekend Surf

Thanks to an understanding family, I can almost always get some surfing in on the weekends. I have long realized that I can't schedule surfing around days I have available without missing some of the best waves, so I usually get a day in during the week before or after work too. And yes, sometimes I just have to use a little vacation time and surf when there is surf.

This past Saturday I picked up a used soft surfboard. The local surf camp was selling of the seasons used equipment and I have a few people wanting to learn, so this is a good board for that. Of course I had to give it a try! It floats really well and its light, but when I went for some turns it sort of just fizzled out and stopped. The rails are really thick and rounded, and it has three small fins, so maybe it just needs to be ridden straight...

Sunday was better, and I had my regular magic board. The waves were bigger, but the conditions were choppy and there was a southward drift, but overall I caught some good fast rides. Of course this time of year you catch the folks walking along the beach eyeing you like you are crazy, and some old lady started to scold me for walking around without a shirt and shoes as I was still halfway in my wetsuit getting my board strapped in for the trip home. When there is a couple walking, the men usually look at me and with there eyes seem to be saying "show off" , or "i could do that"..and the women seem to be more in wonder and often tend to smile. I don't know what this says about people or me or anything really, but I am a good people watcher and its what I sense. And of course its December now, so everyone asks me if its cold,or if I am cold, or do you get cold. I want to tell them that its just a latex fetish I have! Seriously , the suits work, but there is a price to pay in how you move, and how much quicker I get winded. Occasionally, like on Sunday, you catch women checking you out. I never thought of this as a reason for surfing mind you, after all I am happily married, but even my wife seems to like that I surf. And then there was the attractive red head at the beach that day. She too asked my if I was cold as we passed, but I like to think she was just flirting! Hey- I turn 40 this month, can't a guy have his ego boosted a little!?

Lastly, I went to the Wrightsville Beach Longboard Association oyster roast and Christmas party. It was fun and really the first function as a newly minted member of the club. My wife was impressed that I initiated doing something social (typically I just show up where I am told), but this was all me. Food was good and the company and conversations were better! Next weekend on Friday is the Hope From Helen fundraiser. This non profit is centered in the local surfing community and started as a way to help a local surf shop manager's mother through her illnesses. Now in her memory , the group raises funds for surf related charities like Surfers Healing and other worthy causes. So, I will go to that too and look forward to more camaraderie with fellow surfers.