Session 7024: How You Surf with Friends Changes Over Time + A Tip

How You Surf with Friends Changes Over Time

Surfed the Jetty in the morning.
Some fun swells, spread out,
and a bit disorganized.

In my early days of surfing, surfing with friends meant that we set up a session, get together at the same place and same time and we all go paddle out.

But more and more, surfing with friends, and especially locals, take more of an "organic" form of coming together and ending. They "just happen" to a greater extent.

We start to find that a certain group of people favor certain spots, certain time of the day and even some conditions. So I can almost guess who is going to show up given the condition. And that usually avoids needing to call up to set up a session, and also that also avoids situations like who's been included or excluded from an invitation. You just go and hope you run into someone you know.

But even when you do show up and there are someone you know is there in the water. We say just "hi", but as we all know with surfing, we actually can't surf together, and especially a lot of serious surfers, they don't fool around but we just catch waves, not really engaging in conversations etc.

Sometimes you meet someone just getting out of the water. We usually do some quick surf report. "Hi. How's it?" "It was not good here but you see over there... what the tree is... there is a channel and right next to it there is some fun surf. Have fun, man!"

Then when a session ends, we just go on to respective "next things" in life.

It all appears to be not that friendly sort of things, but I think that goes with the sport, it really is an individual sport, and because of it, the sport attracts the type of people who are into being individuals and value the time being themselves. Which, I think is actually a healthy way of leading life.

We are, however, bonded with this common interest, and at important times we do come together. Like helping a surfer getting injured or moving away to a far place.

Watch Out for the Velcro Collar Tab on the Neck

Ouch! This is the second time that happened. I did not completely align the little Velcro collar closure tab that wraps on the collar yesterday and surfed. Actually I did not realize a bit of the teethy part of the closure was exposed. After the session was over I got a big rash. I ought to be a bit more thorough, perhaps use the mirror on the car to take a look next time get in the wet suit.