KKs Vacay VLand Fun 010515

Surf Report: Junky 3 - 5 foot faces
Water: Warmer?
Atmosphere: Sunny
Winds: Trade winds

I didn't do much on the 4th - Met up with my homegirl Joyce and her friend Tu to have breakfast, got my rental car, ate, met up with my homegirl Emiko whom I haven't spoken to in over ten years, marinated, and packed for the North Shore.

Vland

My first day on the North Shore, I am greeted to on shores, shitty surf. Shitty, shitty surf. There are people out at Freddie's, but it's so junky I am turned off by it. I bike down to Sunset, Monster Mush, and Pipeline, and they are all the same. Blown out, junky surf.

Pipeline

I get into my car, and check Haleiwa at Ali'i Beach Park. Same story... shitty surf. And it's crowded.

Monster Mush

So, I go to Haleiwa Town to grab some breakfast at Lanikai Juice. Low and behold, I see the one and only John John Florence there. I contained myself from gushing out, but still snapped a pic.

JJF!! He's tall as fuck

After breakfast, I go back to my place and check the surf at Velzyland.

Puppay Dawg #1

Puppay Dawg #2

The waves at V-land look doable now. I mean, it’s not the epic, clean surf I remember from yesteryear, but there are rideable waves, unlike this morning. I go back home and grab my Fred Rubble. I screw my fins in and attach my leash to it. The doggies here are chasing after me, as if to stop me from going out. “C’mon, play with us! We’re so much more fun than waves!!”

I walk down to V-land and Freddie’s, throw my sandals under a bush, and start stretching. I haven’t eaten lunch yet, so I’m trying to keep this session short. I want to eat sometime soon, since it’s about 100 PM already.

I paddle out in an unconventional spot, south of the channel. The paddle out isn’t so bad, just had to be weary of the duck dives early on since the tide has dropped out and the inside is shallow. As I make my way to the V-land channel, I watch the long boarders paddle into waves at Freddie’s. They are getting short, sweet rides. Mushy lefts break towards me, and I am tempted to play with them, but I have my goal set - surf V-land again after a year of surfing experience and eye surgery behind me.

There is a grom who is probably 11 or 12 years old. He is sitting wide of the usual line up of V-land. There is a bald guy with a bright yellow board, and older goofy footer with a blue railed surfboard, a Mainland surfer in a short wetsuit, and two older surfers on bigger boards. The water is still cooler than I remember, but at least the sun is out today, warming up our bodies.

First wave I go for is smooth and easy, and I get a glide in take off. The speed I get from the take off is immediately fed into the cut back, and the wave turns into mush. Some sets start to roll in, and I take them on the head. I open my eyes under water, and see the reef stare back at me. It’s not so shallow after all, I think to myself. I take about three waves on the head before getting back into the channel.

I watch the others catch waves - the goofy footed surfer takes a rare left, while the grom pulls out of a late take off. The others are out of position to catch any waves. I assess the skill level of the field, and determine I am able to be on the top of the pecking order.

The bald guy goes for a wave, but he is too far out. I put my head down and paddle for the wave, and I can see him back out by not paddling anymore. I catch the wave, and do a cutback. I slide so hard out of my cutback that I am laying back into it now. My body is falling, and I am desperately trying to hold on to my board with my feet. I can feel the wave try to push me back to my board, and my heels are digging into the wax. However, I can’t get back to my board.

I watch the grom take an air drop on a set wave. He sticks it, draws out a long bottom turn and gets around the section. He goes completely vertical on the section, sticks it, and continues his ride to the inside. This kid can surf!!

There is a stocky surfer that joins us now, and he gets a wave on his backside. He cutbacks twice before kicking out on the inside.

The winds have calmed down a little more, and it feels like the waves are a little more clean than before. I get a bit more aggressive on my take off spot by sitting deeper. I paddle for a wave that no one wants, since they are out of position. I am way too late for this wave, and it’s hollow from the take off. I can’t make it. I fall head first into the flats, and keep my eyes open. I can see the hollow face of the wave just take me under water. The reef tumbles over my head, and I am in the washing machine. Well, this isn’t that bad, I think to myself. It’s not even that shallow today. I feel like a Humuhumunukunukupua’a under water, just going with the flow of the current. I get released early, and come up for air. There are a few more coming at me, but it ain’t no thang like a chicken wang.

I get back into the channel, and wait for my turn to paddle for a wave again. The older guys with bigger boards are on the outside, and are out of position for the mid-sized waves. The bigger waves are all closing out from the outside, and they have to duck dive or turtle the wave. Today’s swell has a lot of west in it, and so the waves are breaking wider than what I recall. I remember last year I would line up myself a little further north of the wall, in between the two palm trees that are bunched up together, where the two palm trees line up into one palm tree. But today, I am lined up with the wall itself.

I catch another right, and do a wrapping cutback. V-land really allows me to practice my cutbacks, and I feel more and more confident putting oomph into them. My right foot starts to ache from the bottom turn + cutback combination, and then my left toes start to cramp up. It’s probably all the biking and walking I did all day today that finally caught up with me.

I try to massage it out, running my fingers through my toes, massaging my calf muscle, but nothing works. I catch another wave, and my cramp is temporarily gone while I ride the wave. However, once I kick out the toes curl up into a ball once again.

C’mon, just a few more waves, I tell myself.

Nope, says my toes. You’re done, dude.

I see the sets roll through again, and I give in to my body saying “No mas.” I paddle back in, and get washed onto shore right over the reef. I walk on the reef as carefully as I can with my cramped up toes. I finally get out and look back at the line up. It’s still looking like shit, but the winds are still light compared to the morning. More people are making their way out through the woodwork, surfboards in tow. Guess it was a good time for me to exit.

As I walk back to my place, the two dogs that belong to the owner of the house greet me. They are barking loudly at me, and then run up to be petted. The Chihuahua actually comes into my room and watches me shower. He is sniffing around my whole room to figure out who I am, and what I’m doing here.

I heat up left over chicken as he runs around the room with the other dog. I eat left over fried chicken for lunch, and take a nap. This is the life, I think to myself. North Shore, biking to check the surf, surfing, grinding on some fried chicken, napping… this is the life. This is my vacay.

I head to Town that night since Justin wants to take me to a new spot in Town. He swears it is an impressive place to eat Chinese food, and that I will absolutely fall in love with the place. However, turns out he has to stay later than usual for work, and so I can’t grab any dinner with him. So, I go to one of my favorite ramen noodle places, Yottekoya, and eat ramen. I should have ordered the large instead of the regular.

Yottekoya's Paitan Ramen - da beeeest

I drive back to the Country in the dark, satisfied and tired from the days’ events.

Mahalos Mother Ocean!!