Huntington Paddle Battle 061811

Surf Report: 3-5 feet and mushy

Atmosphere: Sunny

Winds: slight on shore

Water: Cool (too hot for a 4/3)

SATURDAY! IT’S SATURDAYYYYY!!

I always look forward to Saturday surf sessions… but usually get skunked.  Hahahaha

Today, I picked up Nicky, Kai, and Dais to join up Khang and DK at Porto.  When we arrived to Porto around 730, the waves looked dismal at best.  It was just another typical SoCal day, with the high tide filling in quickly.  The waves mooshed out throughout the line up, and we waited and watched for a while.  I even skated down to 26^th Street (about twenty blocks) and everything looked the same.  26^th Street was less crowded but it was definitely a day for a big board. 

I decided to drive down to Huntington Beach so we could score some waves.  I hoped that the SW swell would be hitting HB nicely, and that we could make the window of opportunity to ride some decent waves.

When we got to HB, it was about 0900, and we stared out from our car to Goldenwest.  The peaks came in consistently, and there were a lot of surfers tearing it up on some nice 3-4 foot waves.  The winds were still slightly off shore, and the lip looked pretty mooshy.  Well, if we were going to go surf, now will be the time.  I scrambled to find parking in the residential area and scored one right by our “old house” where we spend many a nights in the car to surf HB.  We three got changed as Kai went back to sleep and be lazy.

We paddled out in front of the light blue tower, but by the time we got to the line up, we were half way over to the dark blue tower.  The current at HB is always strong… Nicky and I have drifted three towers before getting to the line up on numerous occasions when a solid SW swell was hitting HB.  Today wasn’t a solid day at HB, but the current was strong.  I kept repeating in my head that if I ever even fathom about taking my game to somewhere like Hawaii (again) or Bali like Matt, I need to get my paddling power on another level.  I am proud to say I didn’t get out of the water once to walk back and paddle out again this session.

My first wave was a small left where I grabbed my rail and dragged my butt on the face.  It wasn’t all that exciting, especially since I ate it half way down the face.  I can tell my grab rail technique has improved somewhat, but this wave should have been caught without grabbing the rail.

Dais and Nicky were bobbing up and down, waiting for the sets to come in.  I kept paddling to maintain position, and before I knew it, I lost sight of Nicky.  Dais kept up for a good half of the session, but he eventually drifted out of sight, only to reappear like a ninja in the water. 

I hear a contest horn go off and see that some small contest was going on towards Goldenwest with lifeguards on duty, using their megaphone.  I kept paddling towards the light blue tower. 

I took Pab’s advice and started to time the sets coming in, especially since these SW swells have such long lulls in between sets.  I figured that the ones that came in between the sets looked rideable but were unrideable.  They all mushed out and bogged out on us, and we left with blue balls between our legs.  And then the rogue set would appear after about five misleading waves, and clean out the whole line up.  I figured out that about every twenty minutes or so these rogue sets would come.  Not only that, the first wave was the only decent wave, and that the following two waves in the set were close outs and had questionable shape. 

So, I waited.  I waited singing to myself.  I waited controlling my breathing, and waited even more.  A lot of other surfers were scratching out on the misleading waves, and I patiently waited, paddling further south to fight the current continuously.  I think I spent about 80% of this session just paddling against the current. 

I heard in the distance, “Hey, you surfers out there, paddle south or paddle north, but get out of the contest area!” from the lifeguard truck’s megaphone.  Uh oh, better get out of the way.  I kept paddling further south to combat the current.  Other surfers followed and paddled south to get out of the way. 

I grew frustrated.  Did my judgment misguide me?  Was I not sitting in the right place?  Did we get SKUNKED, yet again??  I started to paddle a little bit in, when I see other surfers furiously paddle towards me.  What do they see? 

I look back, and there was the rogue clean up wave.  I started to gun for the shore, doing my alligator wiggle and kicking my feet as I paddled for this left.  I caught it right on the peak, unadultered and uninterrupted by anyone in the line up.  I slid down the left without grabbing rail and made the drop down a clean, azure wave face.  The face bogged out as I redirected to the white wash, but it was too late, and I fell off on the inside from losing all my speed.  I see behind me the second and third wave crashing and engulfing everything in sight with no riders on them. 

I kept paddling out, away from the contest and away from the dark blue lifeguard tower.  Just then, Dais snuck up on me and we regrouped.  He said that he’s only caught two waves this whole time, and that he was called out by the lifeguard people to get out of the contest area. 

I too was only able to catch two waves today.  Apparently, Nicky caught a lot of lefts today.  Go figure.  He and his fish going left are unstoppable.  Both Dais and Nicky took the current all the way north, where they were asked politely to leave the contest area.  They then drifted even further, got out, walked up to the lifeguard tower where we started from. 

I kept paddling further south to fight the current, but I couldn’t position myself for any waves like I did before.  My patience was wearing thin, and I grew increasingly frustrated with myself.  Dais drifted again out of sight, so I was left all alone. 

I started seeing more surfers on the inside taking these short rides on the shore pound.  I decided to give it a go, and caught one or two waves that were not memorable but in fact, quite dangerous.  I decided to get out and start body surfing. 

I body surfed a lot of waves and made some crazy drops, but I drifted down north again.  So I got out, said hi to a nice bodied Asian girl with a meh face, and went out to body surf more.  I drifted north again, so I got out, said hi to her again, and body surfed some more. 

I went back to the car, but Kai was gone.  I was tired, but I couldn’t do anything about Kai not being there, so I went back to the beach to body surf some more.  As I made another round from lifeguard tower to tower, I sat on the sand and rested.  I rinsed off my board to go back to the car when ninja Dais snuck up on me again.  We both recounted our waves and fighting the current, and decided this was a better call than Porto, but we should have come here straight.  Another time. 

Kai and Nicky were already back at the car, changed and riding skateboards.  We all shot the shit and went to the Taco place right by the pier and ate some delicious tacos there.  We then drove to Lee’s to pick up some sandwiches, and headed home. 

We didn’t surf our brains out, and we weren’t stoked from head to toe, but it was a nice day to be out in the water, Just Enjoying The Surf. 

Mahalo Mother Ocean.