Wave Height: 2-4 feet
Atmosphere: Sunny with patchy clouds
Winds: Off shore
Water: Cold
I woke up late today... super late!! At about 6:30 AM, I got out of bed, and started doing my morning routine. It's been a while since I woke up this late, but I was in the study zone last night, and needed a bit more rest for my weary head.
I really wanted to travel too, but I didn't muster up enough reasons to go north by myself. I knew Dais and Tom would be out at 26th, and then my friend Mellie Mel texted me asking if I was surfing 26th. I texted her back "Yea."
Matt was saying that he couldn't surf too long since he had to drop his brother off at the airport by 8:30 AM, and so he could only surf until 8:00. He was already on the road and looking at Porto.
"The winds are stroooong off shores... but there's no shape," he said.
Well, if I see ya at 26th, I'll see ya there, I told him.
I got to 26th around 730, and saw that the lot was pretty empty for my late arrival. None of the locals' cars were there. Only a few scattered faces like Bruce were perched on the parking lot. The winds were still off shore, but the waves were dumping.
I couldn't quite catch any good waves this day. The rip current was so strong that I was pulled out of the impact zone on my initial paddle out in record time. I was actually amazed that I was able to read that while other surfers struggled to make it out.
There was a left peak right in front of the brick house north of the Mons Pubis, and Davey was tearing it up. Davey always rides thick, wide boards, and is probably the most skilled surfer out of all the locals. He knows how to do it all: carves, floaters, and airs.
He kept blasting the lip off of these lefts that would warp and wedge in front of us. They were like small slabs where the Ocean just seemed to fold under and explode in a curtain of white water twice the size of the wave face.
There were a lot of people that didn't belong in the line up out today. There were a lot of surfers that didn't know how to paddle, or those who had a weak duck dive, or would wipe out on the worst choice of waves. I wasn't fearful of their safety, I was more fearful of my own. They could really hurt someone out here, but they probably don't notice that. They are fully enthralled in their own struggles as they get pounded by the Ocean.
Tom came out and I was super stoked to see him. Up to that point, I was bickering to myself if I had made the right call to stay local. I was questioning and doubting my choices, and wasn't having a fun time. But, since a friend of mine showed up, the mood lightened up.
Dais showed up too, adding to my better mood. He was saying that CC and Mellie Mel were in the lot, changing. Another plus too!
It took CC and Mellie Mel twenty minutes to make it out into the line up. They got caught on the inside shore pound, which wasn't really a shore pound, since the waves were just folding over themselves. They were more like dangerous guillotines.
I remember having to keep paddling in because of the rip current. But oh no, how the Ocean just punishes us for reading her incorrectly. Out of no where a three wave set would show up, and just destroy us.
I suppose the one memorable ride for today was Dais, Tom, and me sharing a single wave. We only went straight, but it was very fun just to catch it with the three stooges on it.
My legs were starting to cramp up.... no doubt because I didn't hydrate enough before coming in to the arena. I massaged it out, and tried to catch that last wave that was never coming.
I saw Christina get pounded on the inside, and she finally made it over the last breaking wave. But, I saw from the corner of my eyes that there was another rogue set approaching. I signaled to CC of another wave, and started to paddle out. Little did I know that I was going to get pounded by this one.
I was in the worst position ever. I was right where the lip was going to land, and so I ditched my board (sorry, Randy. I know this is a big no no) and dove under the wave. I felt the wave pull me up and shoot me down. I felt my leg being tugged by my leash, and then a sudden jolt and release.
There goes my board, I thought.
I resurface, and luckily no one was around me. My board was no where in sight. Another wave pounded my head, and I dove down once more. I looked around to see if CC was ok, and she was paddling back out with a look of exhaustion. She must have gotten pounded like fresh veal.
I started to paddle in, and my right leg cramps. I stop paddling, and look around if I could hitch a ride from anyone. No one in sight. Fuck. So, I started to paddle again, without kicking my right foot. My paddling power felt weak without one foot, but I kept trucking through the waves, looking back occasionally to see if there was a wave breaking near me. I had to roll under a few times from waves breaking on my head, and eventually made it to the shore. A guy was nice enough to lay my board down on the sand as he exited the arena.
There were some guys on the beach, board to their side, with a look of defeat on their face. They probably couldn't make it out. There were some groms that were wet but were disinterested in the surf. They probably got pounded too.
We were all victims today of the Ocean. I hobbled up the beach with CC. My cramp had lasted a good minute or two while swimming, and so it was going to last me a few days to recover from it. I probably paddled a good thirty yards in the impact zone since it took me so long to get to shore. Not even a cramped leg could slow me down that significantly. Luckily, the leash of my board didn't break, but rather the little string that connects the leash to my board.
CC, Mellie Mel, and I went to Pho afterwards. It was a warming experience, and a cherry popper for CC. She had never had pho before. We parted ways and headed to our individual destinations for the rest of our Saturday morning.
Mahalos Mother Ocean!
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