Session 7081: What A Dedication!

I thought that I could own the whole beach by myself this morning, but there was one guy already doing his StokeCHECK and it was one of the local regulars, though I have not seen him in months.

At any rate, I was happy to see that at least one more person would get out with me, especially at this spot, it is a bit spooky when I am just the only one out.

You know what he told me though is even more shocking. He said that his wife is having a baby today! He said that he will put 30 min of session in then head to the hospital!

What the %&$@? What a control!

I am not going into medical details. It is basically routine stuff these days, I guess...

But if I was him, I would not have gotten out today.

I told him that there are many past buddies of mine who completely quit surfing and became dedicated parents. He said that he would never do that again. I would believe him having seen him so committed to surfing today!

He is a really good local surfer and he was just in good control, and sure enough he was there for about 30 min, got out and waved me good bye.

Good luck to you and your wife, man, and see you in the water tomorrow!

Session 7074: Start of the South Swells

Finally the south swells hit the area, while the onshore blew from the west, the waves were decent and so we hit the spot on the picture. The tide was too low in the morning. Wish that was not the case, but otherwise I got a few really satisfying rides.

Session 7071: Morning Surf, Water Still Frigging Cold

In addition to a lot of wind that prevented us from surfing for the past several days, the water this morning was in low 50's and it was cold. Like I wrote just a few posts ago, the first duck dive is the one I just really hesitate... Even with a hood on, the cold water just has to come in from the neck through the back, no matter how tight I try to make my collar adjustments. Once that passes it is OK the rest of the session. I've heard people surf in the winter in great lakes and northern east coast spots, I am not going there! I cannot imagine what it would be like even if you wear the 5 mm stuff all around. And it is suppoed to be June in California.

Once I get throgh this initial ritual through, the surf was definitely doable though, breaking on the outisde at least at high part of my chest. There were several short boarders out there and at least a few people were actually ripping at least a bit. Like I always do at this spot, I wait for the bigger set to come and ride the reforms, or a bit smaller waves that breaks inside that's much less aggravation than really going for the biggest because bigger it gets, faster they closes out, and more punishment if I screw up.

The water looked really clean and deep blue and it was sunny to start with so that added to more excitement of being out there. Tomorrow, the wind is going to reduce further so I am definitely going to check the Pacific ocean out.

Session 7069 Back in NorCAL

Back again at the regular home break this morning. The summer fog is in full swing, but this morning, the wind was blowing SW. I have been shut out of my home breaks.

A lot of wind means there is still a lot of upwelling bringing chilly water. People were surfing with swim trunks or just a jacket. What a difference a 5 hour drive south can make!

I put on a squid head and a pair of gloves, but the first duck dive is something that I still hesitate to do.

This morning, with the offshore condition, there were some small but fun waves to continue to work on the wave selection and more consistent take-off technique. Surfing definitely takes a long long time to become good at, it is a collection of a lot of small improvements in various areas.

Oh, one thing I have starting to realize. I did not look left and right of me well into paddle in. For some reason, I just happened to do that in the past few sessions, and the results were really big. I can figure out the line to take much more confidently. Why did I not think of that sooner! Previously I looked at the wave before paddling in and guessed which way it broke, and while paddling I looked straight ahead.

After having had this experience, I started to train myself to be more conscious of peripheral vision. So even when I am driving my car, I try to become aware of more objects in the side of my eyes while I am basically looking straight ahead.

Session 7067-8

I had a long weekend of surfing in at a town much further south from where I live. The photo is not from this trip but from my September trip last year. On this trip I stayed close to the beach so I ended up walking to the break, so as a result I did not have a camera with me.

At this point of my surfing skills development this is just about the very perfect spot where I can really practice some of the things I have been working on. Trying practice in Santa Cruz has been difficult due to really a huge crowd and also some of the breaks are still beyond my level for careful practice. So it is worth 5-6 hours drive to come here every so often. A change of place is also good because the change in break quality also gives me a bit more insight. Somehow, surfing at familiar spots too much tend to give me a bit of habit, and whenever I out to places much different, I get to realize that.

Waves were much smaller than the picture but what's really nice is that even smaller waves hold some shape, and if there is a shape to the wave, then I don't really mind the size whether big or small. In September some of the bigger sets were above my short stature here, but on this trip even the biggest set were just below my chest.

I have been pretty happy lately as I am starting to get enough paddling power these days that I can actually catch waves when previously I was just left behind, and that means that I can actually paddle a bit further outside of the break line, and that means that I can take advantage of more wave. Compared to this, I used to sit much further inside and wait at the spot where it is just after it breaks so that I don't have to paddle so hard into the wave, but a bad part of that is that I don't get to be in the wall of the wave as more consistently, unless the waves reform. I think that it one of the bad habits that I have acquired surfing a lot of waves that close out a lot. There, there really isn't much use in paddling from outside, unless you are on a long board. But many of these close outs end up reforming again in the inside and so I can often get fairly good quality rides. I still do that, but now I am staring to have the outside option as well.

I can also get a bit more speed from the get-go, so even if the waves is shutting down a bit faster, I can go further ahead of the wave, and when that works, then I am usually all set for a longer ride and a clean pull out, the kind that I just immediately lay on the board and paddle back.

The next project for me is to getting this to work more and more consistently. The consistency comes from two angles. One is more proper waves selection. I am still not as good as the top people in the water when it comes to it. Some of the people I observe are always at the right place and always pick the right wave and always ride for a long time. They don't mess around.

For me, I still paddle around a bit more than some of the best people, and I get too excited with any set that comes and often pick the wave that closes out on my both sides.

If I can get more consistent like that, then finally I will be free to experiment with and polish up all sorts of surfing moves on the wave. I can hardly wait, but it looks like still a lot of work curved up ahead of me.

Session 7066, DP

Sorry I have not updated this session for a while. I was a bit busy getting the StokeFORUM restarted on Google Groups.

These photos never look that great do they. Well partly this is my fault, as I just get out of the car, take a quick shot, change and get in the water. I don't wait for the best set etc. Plus these waves always look significantly smaller. I am not a poor photographer, you can check out my photos at the StokeALBUMS section of my home site at StokeMaster.COM

Anyhow, it was not too bad of a session, especially there were some period when things actually got choppy but "big" choppy and riding those on short boards are really fun because chops and breaks overlap on each other making really fun surface and you can make all sorts of turns.

Well, it is getting late and I am going to get ready to hit the sack. See you all soon again here or in the water. If you have not joined my new StokeFORUMs on Google Groups, please be sure to check that out as well.

Session 7065: Monday DP Nobody Out!

With the types of swells in the mix, I decided head north a bit this morning. During week days, I have time constraints as I do have to show up at work after surfing like everyone else does. My boss is understanding that I show up a bit after the normal commute time and leave a bit after a normal commute time as well. I really think that it is good for the environment to time shift and share the road.

This morning turned out to be a fun morning. I was the only one guy out for quite some time until someone else showed up with his Fish board. There definitely were quite surfable waves out there so I don't know where other people went. Well, the tide was on a low side and probably those who can pick their surf time were waiting for the tide to improve, but that was not an option for me.

This spot is notorious for its strong rip currents, and I chose the spot that was easy to get out. I took a ride and tried to plow through oncoming sets, but it was amazing that with a bit of paddle to the side, it makes a world of difference in getting out. It is almost the point of being scary, and that's why I still don't usually go all the way out, but this morning, it was so easy that in no time I was completely outside. Still, some sets closes and some sets are decent and I tend to pick the bad ones!

I wish that I had more time this morning, as when I got out there were some more sets coming in.

Surfing continues to take a lot of time and patience to really learn the best skill set. Lately I have been sensing some progress and I see the door to the next step but I still have not been able to twist the knob to open it. There has been many number of these doors that I had to open, and I am certain that there will be more.

Session 7064, Only One Guy Out, A Bit Challenging

With the super low morning tide, I gave up on the idea of surfing early. Hanged around the house for a bit then headed out at 10:30 time frame. Drove further south today to get out of the fog. It is amazing that as soon as we hit the county line the fog starts to clear.

We stopped at the county line but it did not look too good so continued on further south and arrived at the spot in the picture.

The onshore wind was starting to kick in as the water surface started to roughen up a bit. There was only one guy out and he was not doing too badly. To the right of him was a easier peak than he was going at.

As soon as I approached the water, the ocean was resisting my entry a bit, welcoming me with shore break that was definitely taller than me. But I did see that this was the entry ticket where the channel has ripped wide open beyond the beach break.

I waited for several minutes and then as soon as the lull hit, I leap frogged into the water, throwing the board ahead then landing on the board, then start to paddle really hard. My guess was correct and I was in the middle of agitating water draining back to the ocean. Then it dissipated, but I was totally at a further north break where it would be a bit more difficult. A wave came, I tried to catch but it crushed into white water mess. I paddled back right away and waited to see if I can catch the next one. Luckily it broke a bit ahead of me and I could just ride straight back in.

I walked back up the shore and back to square 1 but this time I aimed left. I was at the dead center of the rip and with not much effort of navigation, the rip took me to the south peaks that was much smaller and easier looking.

It was a bit of wait but when the set cranked up, there was a long period when the waves came one after another. I tried to catch the first wave and I pearled severely; drunk some water, but I went back to the rip and came right back out.

After a few more tries, there was a bump in the perfect shape that came at me and that was a perfect wave of the day. I paddled looking behind, and lifted my face high up to set up the direction. I could see the slope, the initial line and there is no threat of anybody coming my way, and I executed everything right (to go to left) into the little pocket it formed. That was fun because I was just riding fairly high on the shoulder for a while then be able to cut back and ridden out the rest of the wave.

I screwed up the other waves, but this one, I think I will remember for a while. I will make this kind of rides more consistent.

Sessions 7062 and 7063 Speed Continues to Be the Key

On Friday I went to the spot on the picture. It was actually a lot of fun and a lot of exercise. I do not usually like to surf here because there usually is a lot of paddle out required, and Friday was no exception. Most of the times, I just get washed right back to the shore even if I am paddling 5 minutes continuously... It is really amazing that how strong surfers can just plow right through the stuff!

But over the years, I have learned a lesson. I just wait in the middle of the water and let the side current take me to the rip. The it happens is that there are islets of sand bars out there and between these islets there are channels. It is just amazing that almost no effort I can taken away from the shore and the calm outside. I used be very scared about that too, but again, I now have enough confidence and skill to come back so now it is a lot easier and fun way to get to the outside.

I had to share the with some of the best local surf competitors and a surf shop owner in town, and that usually means that the spot was the only game in town. It is always good to get out with these folks because they just demonstrate to you how these waves are to be surfed. It still shows that I have a long way to go, and I probably don't have much chance in getting as good as they are as I have really started surfing late in my life. That does not mean I won't try. I will keep trying, and I did make progress too.

Saturday Surf and Beach Cleanup at Linda Mar

Another real fun surf day on Saturday. Though the waves were smaller, I caught several fun long rides on my Walden Magic. Long boarding is really fun and especially now I am walking on the board that is a lot more challenging move practice I can try.

The beach cleanup was a big success with a lot of StokeMaster friends showing up. Hope that we will do more of this session again.

Technical Update: Speed Continues to Be the Key

On both days, I am still painfully reminded me of the speed. In order to get surf like experts, I need to move more radically on the board to positively produce more power. If there is more power then I have more option to position myself on the wave to extract more power. Executing a cutback is a good example of this. If there is good speed going and I see that the losing the power ahead then I can cut over back to where I came from. I can wait for the wave to build then continue, or simply do a pull out maneuver.

Being not so athletic in nature, I tend to be timid and don't work too hard with the board. Even if I catch a good wave, I just waste most of that just standing on it, or crouched down all the way down.

You will see me working on this this season.

See you out there!

Sesssion 7061: It's Fun When A Holiday and Condition Meet

It has been a while when weekend or holiday and fun surf condition come together in a package. It was closed out mostly but definitely surfable, size was good and definitely much better than anything we have seen for quite a while.

Session 7060 and Its Almost June

Sorry did not take pictures today so I am posting some previously filed stuff.

Today marks the 60th session of 2007 hence the number 7060. In terms of number of times out this year, it looks like I am going to hit a low this year, or I need some very serious catching up to do. This year I have been only out 60 times. So that means basically 12 days per month on the average! We certainly had poor conditions this year with both big poor conditions, windy conditions, and no swell conditions.

Last night we spent a night in Monterey where we had some out of town friends, and so this morning, I tried to get into Asilomar. It was not crowded and I suited up and gone down the stairs. As I was walking towards where the creek dumps, couple of surfers walked up to me and said that they have seen a shark. I looked at the ocean a bit and I did not see one, but by then everyone came back in.

As I came back to the car, my wife told me that there was an injured seal. So I figured that it would be wise not to get in.

We went onto Manresa on the way back, and I really had a great time. The perfect summer beach break condition. Not big, not too powerful, but just tons of fun wave after another to short board on. I caught so many waves, and paddled back for more. In one hour session, I was exhausted and all satisfied. I was so stoked that I forgot to take a picture! So this is one of the shots from the last time we were there. But Manresa beach breaks are really fun as they pop all over the places, and you can pick your own peak that you don't have to share with anyone. And if someone paddle up try to share the peak with you, I just move on to the next one.

Session 7059

Again the phone camera photo does not do a justice but you can see how glassy the ocean was this morning.

Locals say that when the fog is out there is no wind. This is almost always true. When I woke up this morning, there was an indication of the first set of SW swells coming in. I looked at the Jetty and it was glassy but every once in a while some set rolled in, so I decided to get in.

As with most S swell sitaution, sets are very few and far in between, but it did crank up every 5 - 10 minutes for about a couple of minutes at a time, and there were some nice curly "Surfrider Foundation Logos" forming in the side of my eyes right while I paddled in for more waves.

There must have been other better spots since there was nobody else but me out, but I was really happy because one wave I caught, I was able to get inside a wave a bit! I would not say I was barrelled but I knew that it was coming and plan to steer my board into it, and I courched down really low (well I am always low anyway as you've seen my surfing style).

Session 7058: Finally I Was Wet

Finally I was able to get in the water. The wind stopped, and weather was clear. It was still disorganized, and when it broke it was either closed or mushy but nothing in between, but, I paddled hard for 45 minutes, and felt like I am getting back into the rhythm of a thing.

Session 7056-7: Came A Long Way With My Friends

We had another StokeMaster surf camp at Sunset beach near Santa Cruz. This used to be an event that would have only 4 or so people participating. But this time, we had over 15 people participating.

Many of us know each other for 4-5 years, and it is great that so many of us stuck together for this long, and I've realized how good people have gotten surfing! When we all started, we did not know much about surfing but we now go out trim on long boards and walk the boards and the whole number!

I will look forward to years to come and see more changes.

Please check the photo album from the event.

Session 7055, Have 90-min A Day of Own Passion

I did not go to the spot in the picture because I would have been alone, and I really don't like it when I hear the barking of a seal. It freaks me out that I could be entering a food chain drama already taking place. It is best left alone and move on where there are more people so there would be statistically lower chance of entering the eco-system. Though if the nature says "Today you are going to be a food", then I would certainly hope that it would be a fast-food customer rather than on those 2-hour meal customer. Measuring 5'6 at 140 lbs bearing a plastic and rubber I would think that I won't be a Neiman ranch quality...

~ ~ ~

O...K... Sorry about the diversion. Yes, I had another fun morning. Especially early on the waves were fairly good shape. My F4 Quad worked out good, though, I really should have had a long board, or even a full fledged fish. Why? Because I think that the initial glide and speed is very important for keep going. You could sit inside, but most inside waves get bounced off the the backwashing waves and just simply do not happen. The outside waves are mushy enough that I just don't get that last jolt of the impulse power that I need to get going... surfing is tricky in these regards.

~ ~ ~

Is surfing an obsession for me? This topic comes up a lot. I also get questions from other people about "How can you go every day?", "Are you not married?"

So, I must say that surfing for me is a passion. It is a passion for me to be healthy, and it is a passion for me to find out more about myself, and how I can really relate to the nature. These are actually fairly difficult thing to articulate but this blog is one way for me to really reflect on that sort of things.

In terms of how I can stay being married, I must say that I do have a very understanding wife, but then it is not a one-way thing. I also understand and support her passion too. We each respect that. I support her in all respects, and we respect each others passions too so when I am engaged in my passionate activities she does not need to get involved, and vise versa. But then we also do things that would accommodate both our needs. When we go to Orange county or La Jolla, I surf then we also go to museums and restaurants.

After all, I cannot be surfing all day. In fact for me surfing is a 90-min a day thing. Kind of like the daily prayer a buddhist priest would do in the morning in front of the alter. Once in a water I will do my best to catch as many waves as possible. Try to be focused at the same time let the nature take me to where it let me go. I am exhausted at the end, but then happy too.

When that's over then the rest 22.5 hours are for both of us. So when I go to, say, the Trestles, we both go down the path and she would watch or read her books. When the 90 min is over then we head out to go lunch, go to museums, go to Balboa park or the Zoo or do things like that we both enjoy. In the evening, why not go see a movie or just go have some drinks! If I am back at home, she can go shopping at Pacific Ave in SC. Or when I came back from surfing we eat lunch together and head out for MoMA and then a movie at Metreon. We have plenty of time and plenty of things to do together. Surfing does not get in the way, really.

Also I must say that I am fortunate enough to live within a waking distance from the ocean therefore, even if I need to drive to a surf spot it is matter of 10-15 minutes and not hours. But I also made a choice to live close to the ocean and made every effort to the goal. It took me about 30 or more years to get to the stage where I can say that I am a part of the coast side community. But I did make that effort.

So I think that you can be creative and arrange your life around your passion as its core driving force of your life.

Session 7054: Spring Glass Off and Wave Quality Stuff

Great "glass off" session with my friends and very fun condition, again, wish I brought a long board, but I was actually thinking about wave quality in the last couple of days so I want to share with you some of the thoughts that have been developing.

First, there is no doubt that I do want to get into more hollower situation. It is a bit frustrating when other people with longer boards are catching waves, and I am not. But then in order to do that I have to be in the condition and/or places where such wave is supported. Definitely, the place we went in Mexico had the quality and the size of the waves challenging enough for me, and at the same time I could definitely say that I had fun with these waves. These waves do happen, especially south of Half Moon Bay and a select "secret" spots. And definitely at The Lane or San Diego. I've either seen them, and I've actually been in them and surfed but in most cases to get to these waves, I have to go past a lot of white stuff and then battling with huge currents, compete with other surfers... none of which are still not a big forte I have.

But some of the Mexico waves did not require as much effort to get out (though it was at the upper limit of what I would consider comfortable), and when a wave broke, it broke in this thick slow movement, but once I got in the wave, it got increasingly but really hollow and kept pushing and pushing me along the line. Combined with the speed and the cutbacks I can make now, I could keep myself in sweetest spots much longer than I could ever have been able to. It really was a great fun and also a practice.

So I think I now know what the quality waves are and what are not much better than even from my experience a year ago. It was kind of preview for me to catch hollower waves that we encounter around here often, and that means that things can happen much faster pace and I need to have enough skills to keep up with them.

Session 7053

Every once in a while the devilish punchy spot becomes a very delightful surfing spot. We wait all year around stopping by and checking the spot to see "just in case if we can surf." And this morning, it was a delightful surfing morning. Should have brought a long board. The water temp came back up to 55 F. I was actually hot for the whole session and had to dive under the water to get cool.

Session 7052

Wouldn't you hate it when everything is right except for the super low tide at a time when you could only go. It one thing "everyday" pre-commute surfers need to contend with. We truly are at the mercy of the nature. Also notice the absence of the fog. This is extremely unusual. It has been hot and clear for several days in a row here in California, and there were some brush fires etc.

Session 7051: Sunday, Reflection on Speed

I did do a local session. No wind but tide was super low. But riding crappy waves require a kind of diligence and commitment.

By doing this, I am starting to have more satisfactory rides even in these dismal conditions than before, and I have been thinking about how I can even extend this. Because I do not have the luxury of picking the place and especially the time in my most sessions (that consists of 90 minutes before going to work or even on weekends before going on to do some other stuff), I am purposefully choosing the way to horn my skills to surf a wider range of surf conditions, and not the other way around.

Through last couple of months it has became much clear to me what my next hurdle is to accomplish this goal.

I have wrote off and on about how the waves look so good when some good people are out in the ocean even when the condition is poor. This is especially notable when there is a local contest going on. More than a few times, I thought "the contest holders know when to choose to have contests." But often the next day has the same condition at the same spot and it is now back to looking "so so condition" again. So the foregone conclusion is that it is the level of the surfers that make the waves look good.

And today, even though most waves were, what I consider to be close outs, there were several that were catchable and I did catch a few from those, took off, injected myself to the right or left early on, got in proper line and did execute the bottom turn to get up to the turn number 2. What I could clearly see was that should I have had more speed, I could hop over to the next section and continued to go up to the next lip or shoulder, and if I did that I could have had much much longer ride.

This basically seems to mean that I should really work on gaining more speed during the first turn, and that probably requires me to put much more weight or exert the force on the board, if necessary to pump or step on it harder. I know I am starting to do that, but what I am doing is still much inadequate to build the necessary speed. Partially this is still a fear that I have. Sometimes the technique works and the board goes fast but then it seems to be going so fast that I just get scared and wipe out.

Sometimes, and often, I am not on the board fully and it slips away. This is probably a precision issue.

So for many of the sessions this season, I will be working on both the take off and the speed. If I nail both of them down, I think I can then really make much better turns.

Session 7050: Miracle M - Stoke 10!

Tomorrow through Friday, I will be out of town, out of ocean and will be locked in a deep maze of a major hospital in Pacific Northwest. I will be seeing happy people with a good news of an addition to their families, and I will see people in despair, and some preparing for the ultimate departure. When I hit the ocean, I think about these things, my friends, and myself, people who I've met and people who moved on. It is a good place to contemplate these life issues alone. From this stand point the ocean is a spiritual place for me, and that's the part of the attraction that compel to bring me back, every day, if possible.

When I got up this morning, the wind was blowing still, and I had to cancel the down patrol routine. I was looking forward to it, because missing it means I could not get back to the ocean until this weekend. Sounds rather selfish, but on the other hands, I made a life commitment to lead a surfer's life and planned everything so that I can keep surfing. I am sure many of you can related to that, and there are many of my coast side buddies who are doing the same.

Occasionally throughout the day, I was looking at my forecast tool on the StokeMaster.COM home page that I have built; yes, I even build a tool to make my surfing life easier. As the day went on the wind started to come down. The hope returned, and I did take off exactly at 5 PM from the job to do some last-minute wave hunting. And I found the waves! And they were perfect size and shape. Not too big, but not too small either and I know the place can be punchy. Which could be fun.

I now know the place. I know where to hitch a ride to the rip current, and where not to paddle back out. I even know that where I will be caught inside if I paddle back out. So I just get out and walk to the channel. Even though it is relatively calm, paddling does require some effort, and with some backwashes it was a bit bumpy. But I've even learned to like them as they cause all sorts of big bumps that you can surf on and around!

I surfed really hard for just over an hour. Kept moving, kept paddling and kept getting into as many waves as possible, and some waves were thrilling and really fun to ride. The F4 board worked really well.

It was very satisfying when the waves, the weather, and the possible disappointment turns all the way around. Miracles do happen.

While I don't hear from many of you, I do appreciate you taking a virtual ride with me through my WavLOG all this time, and I hope that you will have sweet rides too!

Surfz Up!