Session 4036: Unexpectedly Great. The Magic Moment Returns

This morning, I committed to go extra early on a dawn surfing with Ren. She was already ready to go at 6:00 shortly after I just turned to northbound on The 1 to Pacifica. 15 minutes later I arrive. I was warming up and I saw Ren waving at me from way up north. I was not expecting her to be that far up there. She used to "work" at Taco Bell all the time.

Based on yesterday, I was a bit concerned that the waves will be too wimpy today, but with the incoming tide and not much wind, and a good sand bar, we had quite a few good "shoulder level" sets. Once these sets come in, they came in in set of 5 or 6, so there were plenty of them for all of us to surf. Earlier in the session, it was just Ren and me, then other people started to show up.

We were catching and riding waves as if we were in a Surf Classic. Probably we would have done some good should this have been an actual competition.

For me, it was the return of the magic moment where I can take ride and execute turns like the way I am comfortable with.

I am starting to realize the importance of paddling power to catch waves at will. I was reviewing some of surfing text books I have and rethinking about the take off approach. So I am going to apply more power in take off and keep paddling a bit longer. Also on this Sunday David Alexander was giving me an advise on fast wave take-offs, and he said to try taking off diagonally. I knew about this one, but I have totally been ignoring it. I also heard Tim Curren said that on his instructional video too.

In fact, I thought I was doing that on my long board all along, but now that I thought about it for a while, and after one good take off at outside Cowell's last Sunday, what I was doing was doing a fast turn on the top as I took off.

So, there is something for me to work more on!

Stoke 8:


LC:LMN:NW:6F:14S:MIT:NW:2K:A7.6

Session 4035: The Summer "Wind Swell" Fun

It is really like the summer now (except for the wind). We got hot day and
we got wind swells. I ended up going over the lunch time instead of in the
morning. I was up before the sunrise, but what happened was that the Scripps
Institute web page was broken since 4:00 a.m. this morning until 8:05 or so,
and my home page was hung (as it turned out to be). So I ended up fixing my
web software to handle that kind of situations, then I kept on working on
"work work" stuff until the lunch time, had a nice sandwich at San Benito
House then headed up to the usual LM then to work. Actually I am writing
this while I am fixing Microsoft Office on my computer...

Well, I almost did not go. Looking at the beach it looked kind of flat, then
some small sets started to come in and breaking in bunch of sections like in
the summer time. These are actually one of my favorite wind wave breaks
where I take in the hybrid, wait "way inside", sneak up to where things are
going to pop, wait until the very last minute while most outside people
screw up(and they do most of the time) then quickly turn around, then just a
one or two paddles and I am in. At the spot where I put myself, it is
already so steep (but small) that I don't hardly need to paddle. It is
almost like a small puff of a booster fuel explode in the tail, and it takes
off. I don't think people surf in Santa Cruz exclusively probably don't
know what kind of condition I am talking about...

I did this for an hour or so, then had to go back to the office. I could
have caught bunch more if my turn-around is totally good... I mess it up
about 50% of the time yet... pretty frustrating.

So I am glad I went out today. Glad I did not pick the condition, but let
the condition pick me.

Session 4033 - 4034. Sun 3/14 - Sun 3/15 Bonfire & Monday AM

The Saturday morning was a bit nerve wrecking since this was the first big
group outing. We could have communicated the logistics better, as to who to
bring what and when sort of things. But as with anything, practice makes it
perfect. I now know what to do next. Also I lent out my big Webber and I
could not get it back on time so I was wondering what to do about that. Clio
stopped by on the way to the beach so we ended up going to Longs and then
not finding a "camping" type grill, went to Ocean Shore hardware, and there
they did not have one either. But the guy at the store said to lay out some
bricks and then put the metal grill on top which they had. This was a great
idea, as we dug out the sand, made a small fire ring, drop charcoals in it
then grilled bunch of stuff on it. It had a more rustic feel to it and was a
bit hit.

The day started out perfectly and went on perfectly. It was a mini-summer
day in Pacifica, which is a very rare occasion. It seems to happen only 3-4
times a year where the temperature hits close to 80 degrees, no fog, no
wind, and on top of that some decent swells. So it was just a perfect day.
Unfortunately I could not surf too much because I felt like I needed to
round up people, set up the fire site and etc. Also spoke with David
Alexander at length about making him the "official surf instructor" for the
group.

As the outside gotten darker, people surfing got out and gradually gathered
around the fire, finally close to 30 people showed up. It is amazing that
only the June of last year, I created a message board and now we are
gathering this many people!

We had a plenty of wood and so the fire kept burning until close to 10 PM. I
was not the last one to leave.

As for surfing, in spite of the crowded beach, there was a plenty of room
for many of us to surf, and wish I brought out a long board, but on the
other hands, I figured that I would not be able to surf much, so the Hybrid
choice was OK.

Now I have to watch out for myself, or I would never surf again, and might
end up doing other stuff in the name of surfing. I know several people in
that category, like joining an environmental group, or start a surfing club
and coordinating events year around. Though, last night as they left one by
one, just about everyone said that they wanted to do it again.


Session 4034: Monday AM

A complete contrast the yesterday, we had a totally empty beach this
morning. Especially on Mondays, even the morning crowd is fairly thin.
Pretty good set of waves this morning and was really enjoyable, if I can
take off on more waves!

Session 4032: Stoke 8 @ Outside Cowells Today

When there is a decent amount of energy out in the ocean it is very interesting to drive the Hwy 1 from HMB to SC. One of two favorite spots is the high bluff between the section of San Gregorio and Pescadero Creek. You can see swells coming in uniformly for miles, and it is dramatic, especially early in the morning where the waves cast more shadows. This usually ups the stokes.

 

The second section I like is the Pigeon Point. I've read somewhere that usually when this spot is happening, then the west side is happening too. I think I agree.

 

This was a kind of a day where people look down on surfing at the Cowells should have a second look. On the outside, there were occasional overhead waves that connected all the way almost to the beach. We ended up having 8 of our friends meeting and surfing, but all scattered around.

 

It is great to get into these waves and with a ride lasting good 20-30 seconds, you can try a lot of different turns. Of course, when you are done with your ride, you will be subjected a 5-minute paddle-back, which is probably the only bad aspect of it. Instead of paddling, we can walk around the point. This seems to be a popular technique for point break spots like here and Rincon (Rincon means "Corner" in Espaniol, well... OK... Rincon in Espaniol means Corner in English, of course for Japanese, Rincon and Lincoln sounds the same, so why the former president got anything to do with surfing! Now I wonder, which president of the US was a surfer? Nixon with a house at the Trestle?)

 

As for my progress, I really need to work on confident take-offs every time, especially in a place like SC where a mistake could mean a painful collision to the "insiders," and that is a part of the fear that I ended up developing lately and also fighting.

 

~~~

 

Speaking of this, I really don't like people who follow directly behind me when paddling out. This was one of the days last week, and I was minding my way out, and I actually did not know I was being followed directly behind. Now a good chance comes, I quickly turn around to catch it and this guy was right behind me. Luckily I just missed him to the left, of course I had to eat a lot of water. My brain has instantly and automatically executed a parallel search for a good set of words to utter and offered them to my voice cords to execute, but my conscience kept my mouse shut. 

 

Don't you hate it when that happens! I followed him around the rest of the session until he left... Not.

 

~~~~

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Session 4031: Finally Surfed For A Month This Year!

This session denotes my 31st days of surfing this year. As much as I think I am going out, today being the 70th day of the year that comes out to be 44% chance of surfing... a bit less than every other day. Having had a 10-day trip to Japan, stormy days, injury, I guess that's probably OK. I don't even know how Tim Webster guy can claim to have been out every day. There simply are days that you just cannot or should not go.

 

Today was supposed to be an "wind swell" day so I did an experiment and took a hybrid out and actually that was a good choice. Wind swell days bring these soupy whitewaters that I need to get over and ducking is essential. Also the waves were a bit disorganized. Do you know the "battle zone"section in Disneyland's "Pirates of Caribbean" ride? Where they "randomly" pump the air plumes at various locations to simulate cannon balls hitting the water. They pop up all over the places.

 

It was sort of like that this morning. Little bumps pop up here and there and disappear and pop again. It was fun catching those.

 

I am also starting to realize though, I am actually don't mind faster breaks, but I really am afraid of big faster waves. Today I got in a rhythm of paddling out, catching, turning around and catching more of these chest high poppers. I probably caught half-dozen small rides in a period of 10 minutes. So exhausted that a 40 minute session was just enough for me. Got out, got a hot coffee and a donut and I was so satisfied.

 

Stoke 6

 

LC:LMB:NNW:8F:11S:LT:NNW:12K:A76

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Session 4030: Need a breakthrough

This last couple of months, I have been feeling that I need some kind of a major breakthrough. Unlike the last late summer and fall, I do not feel like I have made a whole lot of advances in the technique. I do feel that I have been getting incremental improvements, but not a major one. Honestly, the injury was a quite a bit of set-back. I think I became a bit more timid about the power of the waves. Building up the confidence would take some time.

 

My own evaluation is that on a given day, I am probably better than 50% of the people out there, but to be admitted to the next 50% would even be a steeper climb to attain. I am actually setting my life goal to be in the top 20% of recreational surfing situations. Like this morning, I was catching more waves than the most and also paddling out faster than most, but then there still are always a few in almost any lineups that I would still aspire to. Of course, if I go to Santa Cruz or places like I would be outnumbered by those who I would aspire to.

 

I am rationally aware of the fact that I have now entered the next phase in skill improvements that, perhaps, require additional basis for. Perhaps, more knee strength, more agility in weight shifting, much more powerful take offs....

 

It might be pointing to the fact that I may need some additional coaching from a professional. Since I have not done that for a year.

 

Some of the things I really feel the need to do well is to be able to take off on more variety of situations.. bigger, steeper and faster, or even very slow ones. Without it there is no surfing.  I am not desperate, as I know it is a long journey that I have undertaken, especially with me I almost always need to put double the effort of most other people, especially it comes to athletics. But I also know that if I keep at it, things do come together and usually when it happens, it pop up suddenly, and once that happens it usually sticks.

 

Stoke 6

 

LC:LMT:NW:6F:15S:LT:N:15K:V6

 

 

 

 

 

Session 4029: Nice weather but...

Sorry I cannot tell you where I surfed today. But I had nobody in the lineup both 2 miles left and right of me. It was just me hogging all the waves if I could, but I did very poorly.

 

When I arrived at the beach, the waves looked quite good with up to chest to shoulder high sets stuff coming in, a bit on the steeper side but I thought this is something I can catch no problem.

 

But this beach had enormous shore breaks today, so I am timing it to jump in and dash out, but just more and more stuff were exploding right at the shore. Even worse, once you dip you feet in, you get sucked right under so there were a couple of dangerous moment where I am being sucked under and then crashed down at the same time. Going in was a bit easier, but getting out was so much more difficult as the backwash pulled back the board at such a tremendous force that I could not hang onto it to get out. This is a similar situation that happens at Montara all the time, but I did not know it will be like this here.

 

Thinking of Manresa beach breaks, it is much more gentle than this there. I guess the sand is not so sloping steeply there. Well, you can almost tell that because in Manresa there is quite a bit of distance from the bluff to the water than most beaches here (except for Linda Mar).

 

So, what about the waves. Once you are in them, they were really powerful. What I can normally duck under, the board got flipped over and pushed back. They were so much more powerful than they look pushing a whole lot more water through. I did score a couple of rides and they were very thrilling as they push so much faster.

 

It was a kind of day when I tried to get in a bunch of sets came in, and once I was in, none of the sets happened where I was. And when I paddle to other hot section then where I was gotten hotter again.

 

Stoke 5

 

LC:SSD:NW:8F:17S:HT:NW:3K

 

Reflections: Is it really dangeorus?

No surfing today. So some reflections.

 

Today at work, I am walking to the copy machine this morning, and passed by an exec. He says "What happened?" and say "A surfing accident... (you know)"  He says "Mavericks?" and adds "I am amazed that you are still alive." Today, I come home and a letter from my mother in Japan is on my chair. I open immediately, and the letter opens up, "How is your injury, I am very worried about you."

 

So, due to the sport I am involved in, I have attained automatically the status of being a dangerous stunt-man who attempt to kill himself on a daily basis. I should not speak, because there was a time, I thought the same thing.

 

(This is where I would put together an old GE school-house electric clock hand moving rapidly backwards, a B & W sequence, 20 seconds).

 

Back when I arrived to the Bay Area, I went to "The A & W" (most of you probably don't know where this A & W was, if you did, you would know how far back I had been in here.) Anyhow, I was looking at the dudes behind the counter and just about everyone had a bruise on their face or lacking a teeth or two. They could not say the word "Thank you", because the "Th" would not be possible to pronounce. By now, I am sure that most of them had moved onto the North Shore by now. But my initial impression was "how stupid these people are!"

 

Now, I am surfing just in front of that establishment almost on a daily basis and in the water side of it, instead of on the sand side.

 

So, is it dangerous?

 

I have a Braun hand mixer, and I use it often to mash potatoes or mix a batch of potato leek soup. Is it dangerous? Is it more dangerous than surfing. Sure bet. I can lose my thumb with it if I stick it in to the blades while it is on.

 

I have a car. Is it dangerous? Sure bet. All I have to do is to just turn the wheel to the left 30 degrees for 10 seconds and hold onto it while I am driving at 45.

 

So is it more dangerous than the Braun or my car?

 

I will leave that conclusion to you.

 

But in the end, I think that we want to make surfing "look like" a very dangerous sport. It just elevates you and me into another social status. When I say I surf, people are very interested in knowing about it. People will respect you.

 

Aren't you glad?

 

~~~ MB

 

 

Session 4028: Great Conclusion of the Week

What a phenomenal week I had! Almost every day this past week had some great
experience surfing. I think, should I say it, it is attributed partly to the
switch back to long boarding. It looks like I need still a lot to learn on a
longer and more stable board, so my year's goal of nailing down the
"Roundhouse Cutback" may not be achieved this year. Or may be I may get
there sooner?

One thing for sure, I really need to rework the very basics of good surfing
from good take off, line selections ending with a perfect pull-out every
time.

Also helpful is the start of the last "Spring" type pattern like where we
got a period of time where the swell height did not go up significantly but
the period has been consistently greater than 15 seconds, and the overall NW
direction. It looks like the W swell is pretty bad for HMB, as it causes the
closeouts and up in the LM, the swell don't get caught very much. Whereas NW
swells seem to work at the LM, and when the period gets longer than 15-17
seconds, the NW swells also seems to work some magic in HMB. Just very
interesting.

This afternoon, I spent time showing and fixing board damages for Reez and
Aimee. I am gaining more experience in this area as I fix more boards. I
have gotten quite better at handling the 13000 RPM grinder, and now I just
use it to curve out the fill zones and also chip off excess resin after
filling the damages. They are super-fast, but if you hold it steady, you can
actually shave zones off rather delicately.

Overall stoke for this week was 8.
Today I was stoked about 8.

Session 4027: Fun Saturday Morning with Friends: Stoke 7 - 8.

This morning I got together with Ren, Laura, Katy, and Jasmina (I hope I got
that right) at Linda Mar for the AM surfing.
We thought that not much was going on, but we paddled to further north and
we were able to get several soft shoulder high sets, perhaps dozen times,
with some fairly longer rides (for LM that is).

The prevailing NW wind also calmed down all night so the choppiness has gone
down significantly compared to yesterday so getting out was very easy.

The long boarding has worked out very well this week, and so I am continuing
to practice on the long board for another week, it is so much easier to
catch so many many waves! I am getting good practice turning and course
selection techniques with it, and it has been working well. Also we had a
fair number of surfers but we were spread out and taking turns so no drop in
or hogging problems at all, it is really nice when things work out like
this.

Went home and hassled and bustled to go see the Ride at the Asian Film
Festival. We did not think buying advanced tickets was not necessary, but
there was a modest size line and the operator was telling us that it is most
unlikely that we will get in. So we got a lunch in Japan Town and headed
back with a Coffee stop in Portolero Hills.

Stoke 7.5. With it was a bit bigger like yesterday.

LC:LMN:NW:6F:14S:MIT:NW:5K:V9

Session 4026: Great Morning! Finally A Stoke 9 Ride in Pacifica!

I had a 9:30 meeting this morning. It does not really make any logical
sense, but when I have less time in the morning, I tend to visit LM. Though
the Jetty looked very inviting this morning from "The 1" (notice that I am
already becoming like a So Cal Dude with tar spots on my board).

Since I designated this to be the long board week, I took it out and got in
the water, then because of the prevailing winds I was caught inside for a
while with lots of small soupy waves. Returning to the shore and I
reassessed the entry and found a good channel. It is always worth checking
from the shore of the overall situation when a situation like this happens.
There was another guy in the same original spot I was and he still seemed to
have been struggling to get out.

There was a period of time and place though the waves were mashing out, so
for a while I was frantically going N-S and finding spots. But then finally
I saw one spot that was further out but getting about head high with nice
gliding type break. Nobody except me and David (a very great local long
boarder) knew about this break this morning, so that was really a lucky
chance. I caught the first big one as it approached and built up into a head
high roller. "This is it! I started to paddle toward the shore strongly. The
wave is not closing out, but creating a nice slope, I jumped up on the board
right away without a hesitation."

I am starting to understand the judgment of the wave formation, observation
of them as I ride, and making the turns in correct directions to stay on the
ride. It gives me a lot of thrill. Going to Santa Cruz at the 38th and
Cowells have really paid off in this department. It is a lot of fun to make
a judgment, and the wave happens in the way you thought it would and the
board picks up more speed... like, I can extract more power from the waves
so I am starting to get out of stalling situations I used to have. It will
be interesting to build upon these skills to surf like more advanced
surfers! Still, sometimes, actually quite often, I over turn and board goes
vertical while I go completely flat horizontal, and signifies the great
Manabu Exit!

Looking at the watch, the time getting close to the end of the session this
morning.

I was praying "One more before the time is up!" Then it came. I scored
another great ride. It really keeps me happy the rest of the day to finish a
great morning session like today!

As for the meeting, as usual, was promptly blown off when I arrived at work.
Lost additional 30 minutes of surfing!

Overall Stoke: 8.

LC:LMB:NW:8F:15S:NW:10K:V9

Session 4025: Long Forgotten Jetty, But...

The swell period and direction became similar to some of the good times I
had at the Jetty last year, so I decided to give it a try this morning. Last
night the 10 ft swells from NW were pushing up to 20 seconds period. Even
this morning it was like 15 seconds so that usually means that we can get
the Jetty to break further out.

In fact it was breaking further out closer to the Jetty side. But I am still
very confident about going that far closer to the rocks and possibly having
another visit to the Seaton Coastside again in a month. I still have not
even gotten a bill from the last one, so I should give it a bit of space, or
otherwise, you would see a "patient of the month photo" one of the walls at
the hospital soon.

There were several short boarders, and especially one dude getting an air
closer to the rocks and looking from the side of it, it was about 1.5 x OVH
with the usual strong fast wall action. I think that if you are a hot
shortboarder this is really a great spot.

Buy, for me, one of the issues at the Jetty, especially on a day and tide
like this is there are a lot of bouncing waves kicking back out.

I paddled between E and W several times to find a reasonable spot. Also, in
retrospect, it would have been better to have a shorter board there. Days
like this make me further appreciate the nice slow big waves in Santa Cruz
and inside Rincon!

As the time went by the wind picked up (blowing the board) and also the tide
went down. It was time to leave.

So I did not catch only but one this morning!

Stoke Level 4

LC:JT:NW:10F:15S:HOT:NW:15K

Session 4024: Bit more disorganized today, but a lot of fun longboarding

This morning, I worked on "work" stuff since 6:30 through 9:30 then headed
out to the LM. It still amazes me how many "familiar" faces are out there at
that time of the day. For example this one person was there yesterday in the
line up when I was surfing before 8:00. Today she is there again.

Another interesting observation is that, just as many times I see similar
people, it always looks like the good people have always been good from the
first time I saw and not-so-good people (I am in that category), are also
have always been not-so-good. I have not yet noticed very many people that I
can say "Wow, that guy/chick has gotten hot recently!" So I must only
conclude that some people were born with surf boards and wax, and others
have to pay cash at some point in their life. Otherwise my observations do
not make sense.

As for my own surfing, we were getting shoulder to head highs, quite a bit
on a mushy side today and so getting the long board was the right idea and I
caught a bunch of waves, and was very fun. As the tide went out so did the
quality of the waves. On the way back the Jetty looked decent with about hip
high but very clean.

Today's stoke was almost 8. Who can refuse a decent weather day like this.

Man, though, this is already March and only been out 24 times this year. May
be in the summer I put two sessions in a day so I can do some catching up.

LC:LMT:NNW:8F:10S:MOT:NNW:18K:V9

Session 4023: Great Morning Session!

I have not touched on the subject on the skill side of things lately, but honestly, I have not had a good feel of making progress. There were some set backs, such as the face injury, generally poor weather and conditions, bad luck in spot selections etc.

 

But today, I finally had some challenging but fun day out. This morning, the waves were mixed with noticeable amount of wind waves plus 10 ft+ swells coming from N to about 10 seconds. From the last year, the Jetty area starts to "happen" around this time of the year, and also there has been tips lately from my message board, so I stopped by on the way to work. The waves look clean but not quite breaking, so I went up North to the LM as usual.

 

When I got there, the waves look really closed out, and I could not see many people out (but there were fair share of cars parked). I was looking at it for a while but starting to be discouraged about the situation. But the guy next to me started to change so that kind of tilted my decision to go in. But I was not expecting much. Also I kind of decided to keep surfing on the long board until I gain the full confidence back.

 

After a few push backs, I managed to get to the outside, and there were a few overhead stuff coming. I tried to take off several times. I took off on all of them but shortly after the take off I could not get a hold the control, and cannot stand. I was starting to become very frustrated and also getting mad. I thought that the fear is taking over more than the stokes lately. Then a bit bigger one came along, and started to break. I just waited for it to completely crumble and started to paddle into it. I tried really hard to get ahead of the white stuff paddling really hard, at the same time shifting the weight back, then I was up and ahead of the waves a bit. Then with some luck, the waves started to rebuild under.  I was looking behind a bit to see where it is going, and I was adjusting the course left and right and kept riding. At one point I almost lost it but I pushed the knee really hard, the board started to turn and I could bounce right back.

 

This really got me stoked and I had a couple of other rides like that. Felt like a lot of things I forgot had sprung back to my consciousness.

 

So this morning was pretty stoky starting from the Stoke 4 to Stoke 8 rides. In addition, there was really nobody out this morning and that allowed me to feel free to experiment.

 

Another surfer got really good long right ride too, and he was also so smiling and stoked. He said that he had the best ride of his life! 

 

A day like this is what really keep me going.

 

Overall Stoke: 7

 

LC:LMS:NW:HT:12F:13S:NNW:20K:V9

 

 

 

 

Session 4022: El Capitan

I was hoping that the competition would have ended, but that was not the case. We checked it out from the freeway and there were the canopies lined up at the beach, so we went to the Ventura spot, but the waves were about the same as yesterday, so we just turned around and decided to head home with one stop at El Capitan State Park.

This turned out to be a very nice camp ground, so if we are going there again on a camping trip, I think we will want to stay here. Of all the places this campground looked to have the most “natural” looking setup with trees and a mountain in the background and magnificent views of points.

From the main parking we could not initially think that this is any special spot to surf as it looked like standard beach breaks, but we walked further South and there was a little “corner” with a reef and there some people were surfing small point breaks.

The breaking area was a bit too small and there were 4 other surfers competing in this small zone, but there were quick hit to chest size consistent point breaks that were happening. If it sizes up a bit, we could have spread out a bit and would have been a lot of fun.

Glad that we stopped there. I surfed there for about an hour and decided to head back North.

Session 4021: Rincon Day 2 – A Competition

Well, another unfortunate event. Saturday was a completion at Rincon. Compared to Friday, the condition was very good (back to the usual Rincon that I know) with overhead size smooth wave faces. But there was a competition. I went in anyway, but with so many excellent surfers taking waves, there was a very little room for me to maneuver. But when I rode, I really had a great time and very long rides. If I stayed any longer, I would have been kicked out of the breaks for I probably have been getting in the way of the competitors.

Session 4020: Rincon Day 1

Session 4020: Rincon Day 1

This is the weekend that I decided to come to Santa Barbara and Ventura area to have a long weekend surfing. As I was leaving on Thursday afternoon a flurry of news came along via e-mail, IM, and phone calls that the Mavericks contest is actually on. I suspected it would be because of the swells clocking 20 seconds range. I was sort of glad that I got out of HMB since what counts for me is to be on the board on my waves, rather than watching other surfers surf.

As I drove to Rincon I was talking to Reez about the Mavericks event as she was volunteering for it. Arriving at Rincon, the effect of the monster swell was already hitting the area as I noticed the set of the surfers were different than the usual, almost all of them were gearing up with short boards.

I too took out the shorter board (7’6) and headed down the slope. Unlike the usual Rincon that I know, a lot of small white stuffs to get through then to the middle, I had to duck through a few faces. But by the time I thought I reached the middle part, I was already washed down further south. The current was very strong this day.

Since I was not that familiar with the area, I just took one ride and paddled back in. Needless to day, I was bummed out.

I drove further south into Ventura County and tried a spot but this spot was also interlaced with very strong southerly current that I had a hard time keeping myself at a spot, in addition the wave faces were pretty poor, so I was bummed out again and left.

Went back, picked up my wife at the motel and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in LA.

Session 4019: Trial Run After the Injury. Philosophy.

So, this morning, I had to go out because if I miss this morning, it won't
be until this Friday at Rincon as the waves are going to kick ass tomorrow
with over 20 ft swell size being predicted.

The right cheek is still swollen up, so it is tender and soft; nice set of
words to use for a Safeway Select T-Bones. I pull up the rash guard... very
carefully. The neck went through fine. I put on a hood then a helmet (yes).
No problem there. So I am back to almost being a normal surfer. Speaking of
this, on the Mavericks video "Whipped" that Erick Nelson (Mavfilms
production owner) gave me, there is a scene that Jeff Clerk broke a rib and
he was now all bundled up in a full torso cast, and he was going out. So I
think all surfers know where to put the priority.

This morning, the condition wasn't that great. The standard chest-high
semi-closeouts. But I did catch one nice inside reform and I powered through
the face being able to "power the turns" and that was really great ride. I
don't really like big waves, but more like to make lots of turns on smaller
waves with a shorter board, so things like this make me really happy.

~~~~

The Philosophical Corner:

This injury has been very interesting. Let's recap some comments.

My Mon: "I don't want you to surf. It is extremely dangerous. Quit surfing
as soon as possible. Also cut your hair and when are you going to be
promoted to the VP of your company?" ( I got the exact same comment 4 years
ago, except that please globally replace the word surfing with Motorcycle).
Wendy's Mon: "..."
Surfer buddy 1: "Bummer man! Good thing it did not get your eye."
Surfer buddy 2: "Hey that's nothing, look at my..."
Two other buddies: (no responses)
Non surfer co-worker 1: "Surfing, right?"
Co-worker 2 who never read any e-mail from anyone: Uh... What? What
happened? When? (e-mail sent last Thursday to contact me at home if a
server software craps out during the day.)

~~~~

So reflecting these set of circumstances, I have been pondering what all
these responses mean?

Version 1: Manabu Beach, you are so dumb to go surfing and get hurt. Look
what I've told you. Why don't you just go to work, don't let yourself and me
look bad, do what they tell you, go home, retire happily and safely, then
meet me there.

Version 2: "The State of California has determined that surfing contains
hazardous..." (place the sticker on every board you own).

Version 3: Hey, it is part of being alive and participating in an active and
healthy adventure to make it worthwhile. Don't let other people stop you,
man!

Version 4: Hey look at the Manabu Beach dude. He writes all sorts of surfing
advice and solutions on his web site, but look at him, he does not know what
the hell he is doing being hurt all the time like that!

~~~~

I do hope, though, many reader of my column has learned some lesson from
this incident. I did, painfully.

Approach the board only from the back!

Have fun!

Session 4018: After Action Report

Well, I made myself to the work. Of course, starting from the outside "cigarette packs" to people on the way to the cube, a series of "what happened" questions. By now my right eye was half closed and the bottom of the eye is becoming "black." The general consensus at the office was "better see a doctor."

 

So I went to my surf emergency headquarters, the Seaton Coastside for my second surfing accident. After 4 shots of X-ray, it became obvious that I slightly broke the bridge of my nose. Other than that there is nothing needed to be done. Released, picked up some anti-biotic I am writing this now.

 

http://www.culturewave.net/surfing/blogpics/Accident4017.jpg  for the gruesome picture after the treatment.

 

After coming home I attended a lecture held by Wendy, it was educational.

 

For those sent me a note, thanks. I am in a very good spirit and I will be back in the water this weekend for sure!

 

 

Session 4018: The Helment *should have* helped.

A bit of draw back happened this morning. I got in this morning. The was
still pretty rough and disorganized. Nothing really big, not much bigger
than shoulder size. The on-shore wind was a bit strong through, may be 10-20
mph.

I paddled to the out side no problem. I took my first ride and then dipped
down. I saw the board so I was ready to grab it. It momentarily disappeared
then the rail hit my right cheek really hard. My nose was bleeding rather
hard, so as I try to get back in, the board was all bloody mess. There is a
huge hump on my right cheek now with a couple of minor cuts on my nose and
cheek.

If I had a helmet on, it could have helped at it covered the cheek.

A lesson learend. I am always going to wear it.

Another lesson, if you don't see your board, duck under.

Stoke: -1

LC:LMS:W:12F:14S:HT:NW:15K:A7.6

Session 4017: Back to Cowells

It has been a bit of while since last time I surfed The Cowells, and it was
a lot of fun. One thing I love about Santa Cruz and especially the West Side
is that the rides can be very long. One thing I hate about Santa Cruz and
especially the West Side is that the rides can be very long. Sometimes I
start right off the edge of the "Indicators" and you will finally splash
down (note, I don't quite do the clean pull-out yet), close to the Cowell
shore, and then I have to paddle all the way back to the "outside." In our
local Half Moon Bay breaks we have two extremes, normally we paddle for a
minute to get 5-second rides. so to speak and Mavericks surfers can surf the
distance in a day a normal surfer will run in his or her lifetime.

So now I am back home, my arms are just about in the same shape and
consistency of the turkey wings on Thanksgiving.

Frankly, through, I have been feeling in kind of a bit of slump mode lately
and it was a good confidence building day. Especially now I can successfully
negotiate the inside parking lot. Plus the waves were not very big today
even at the outside, and not as crowded like a nice summer day.

I have to give my hat off to a girl surfer without any wetsuit today. Many
of us are freezing our buns off with wetsuit, and she just had a swimsuit
on.

Today's session was joined by Arthur, and his wife Heidi, Reez, Tanya. We
did go to dance afterwards, but it was fairly intense with everyone knowing
the Salsa steps. I said, I have my hands full with learning how to surf.

Today' my stoke was level 7.

LC:C:SW:10F:14S:LT:N:10K:V9

Session 4016: SAT AM with Friends

Glad to see several good faces this morning at the break. Ren and couple of her friends, Jeff, and Rick. Rick I saw you had a nice take off into that steep face. You are doing good! I also saw Ren taking off too. For me, I wish the condition was a bit better. Anyhow, the weather held up and the there were some waves to surf on. Today's stoke was about 5 out of 10.

 

Looks like things will get uglier next week, but I will have to see about that one

 

LC:LMS:SW:10F:17S:S:5K:A7.6

 

Session 4015: Dawn Patrol

Well, the 6:50 idea went out the window. But I pulled into the parking lot at exactly 7:00 a.m., and sure enough, there is a woman just getting out and ready to go to work. I asked her, "Excuse me, how long you have been in the water?" "Oh, about an hour or so, I need to get to work, what a bummer." She replies. So that means she had been surfing since it was very very dark out. I think that she could not have surfed for more than 30 minutes.

 

This morning was kind of fun with waves taking shape a bit with the tide a bit higher during the session was helpful. Right at when I got there, when I was talking to the woman, the wind started to kick up, but then as soon as I got in the water, it stopped. I said to her, "the wind is kicking up!" and she said that "It must have just started now."

 

My old trusty 7'6 hybrid was a good choice this morning. There were some good "inside" breaks that were chest highs and I just caught one after another while some set lasted. Unfortunately though, they just crumbled so no chance of really hitting the side with my rail.

 

When I got out, someone must had a coffee and left an empty cup on my car. I was so mad.

 

Then when I got back and ready to throw them out to the trash, they were brand new cups.

 

Oh, I see! Rick must have been here and gave me the small resin mixing cups he talked about. Well, as it turned out he was just getting ready to go in. I thanked him for them, and also he also left me the Lockheed Martin calendar on the space too. 

 

Should I not have started my web site, I would not have been in this sort of situation. I am so happy to be surrounded with so many nice surfing friends!

 

 

Session 4014: Dawn Patrol... Finally scored some closeouts!

Last night, while taking a bath (it is actually my daily ritual at the end of a day), I was reading the latest "Surfer" magazine. Since I am not all that interested in reading about professional surfers, due to an envy, and also no hope of becoming one, I usually skip right over to the "Surf Tip", and "Design Forum" sections, then flip back to other pages that interest me.

 

Anyhow, in this issue, the Surf Tip section is all about Dawn Patrol. It goes on to talk about how your life needs to commit to the lifestyle... Things that I brought up often on my WaveLog were there... like "Don't play with computer to check waves", "You don't pick people up nor wait to be picked up.", "giving up bars and discos", and it was interesting to read about the philosophy of becoming a "dawn patroller." So I suggest if you are interested in this, either borrow a copy from a bra or buy one and read about it. 

 

The article stoked me even more to get out early. I packed tomorrow's cloths in to the duffle bag, tied down the board on the care and went to bed.

 

So, this morning, I was promptly at the beach at 7:00 a.m., and it was already quite bright. So I am going to see if I can do 6:50 tomorrow. There are always some committed faces, like Jeff from San Francisco who show up almost anytime I am there. A few minutes of chats as we transform to surfer animals, and we all disappear into the crimson Pacific.

 

Morning is really a magical time, as the color of the sky and the wave change by the minute, and it is a solitary quiet space I call it "my own" where I can either relax or contemplate the life, distant friends, new algorithms I am going to develop, or think about what to write on my log today.

 

Back to surfing...

 

One of the things I have been working on is to ride the closeouts... well sort of. So today finally I was able to ride on top of the breaking white section all the way. Not much turning I could do, but it was quite a bit of challenge to stay inside the beating whites. That made me really happy.

 

Though the rest of the time, it was the usual either too much or too little power kind of a day.

 

STOKE:5

LC:LMN:NW:3F:LOT:17S:NE:5K:NC7.6

 

 

Session 4013: More Dumpy Morning. Cold Day, Warm(er) Water. Stoke Level 4

I have an outside temperature gauge in my car. This morning, it was indicating 41F outside on the way to the beach. But once in the water, it is 53F. So it is sometimes warmer to be in the water than being out of it.

 

This week, I made a commitment to myself to use the 7'0 board. So this is the third day out with the short board. The swell was 6 ft 14 sec from NW, so I was a bit hopeful, but the condition was still dumpy and with a few of us out there, most of us were not taking off, or even after taking off, immediately eaten up. The sky was clear and no wind. But the tide was low that did not help improve the condition from being dumpy. Even though I didn't catch many waves, it is so nice and quiet, and so paddling around was very good.

 

Looks like the similar sell condition to hold for a few more days. Tomorrow, I should start earlier since the tide would be higher then.

 

STOKE: 4

LC:LMM:NW:6F:14S:MOT:N:5K

 

 

 

 

 

 

Session 4012: More "Eaten by the Closeouts"

Man, sometimes it is hard to keep up with my own commitments, but here goes. The WaveLog for the session 4012. No, I have not been surfing 4012 times. It just means that it is the year 04 and I was only out 12 times! SHAME, Shame, shame...! I need some catching up to do "on" myself.

 

The Mystery that I Need To Solve:

 

Sometimes, I just don't get it. I get there at 7:15 and some people are all wet with their boards in their arms, getting out and taking shower. The Sunrise is at 7:10, folks! So would that mean... allowing that they have been surfing at the crack of the dawn, for just 20 minutes. Yesterday, I surfed for a mere 30 minutes, and I thought it was like a bird taking a bath (a Japanese expression on doing something very quickly).  So, if you are the one doing that I need your version of the story here! The only other possibility is that they either have a night-vision or their sunrise is, for whatever the reasons, different than mine. May be the whole world now has turned Quantum on me, and that's OK, because that means I can personally create any size waves just by looking at the beach.

 

Back to My Surfing;

 

OK, you probably did not understand the Quantum bit. That's Okay, let's touch on that subject on my next session log.

 

So how was it this morning; you ask... The tide was still a bit too low. I was paddling, paddling and paddling, and a guy next me stands right up and there, a huge sand-bar on the bottom. Duh!  Duh is right...!  I could have walked all the way. But I am being forced to use the ducking technique to get through, so I am getting better and better at it. My 7'0 is a lot easier to both push in and push back that the ducking is becoming so much easier. Of course, once you get out, I'd need to take off (and some better people were taking off even in these low tide, "what I call as" closeout conditions!

 

Did I get to ride on my 7'0? Yes, indeed. I did score one nice ride but the rest was the standard dumpy crashes plus waves and waves of white stuff.

 

I am starting to doubt now if or I ever get to do this year's my resolution of doing a complete "roundhouse cutback." Well, one thing for sure, nobody is sticking a gun at my back to do it, and of course, that is the fun of being a recreational surfer.

 

Let's see what tomorrow will bring!

 

 

Session 4011: Cristned the Beach For The Week, but Scored None!

Usually I do not surf on Mondays, because usually I surf so much on the weekend, and also on every other Mondays I am volunteering for water sampling for the Surfriders leaving lesser time to put in surfing in the morning before work. But I decided to put 30 minutes in, work it out like a heat in a competition then get out...

 

As for Monday surfing, I guess the same goes for most other people, since I was the only one in the entire mile stretch of the beach this morning and also most other times, usually you see less cars on parking lots, especially in the morning. 

 

This morning the condition wasn't great either, really nothing that I could surf on. Also, I made a wrong decision of taking my shortest board thinking that it would be lot of white stuff that I would need to duck through... Which was true, but then there was no good breaking spot that I could find... at least from where I was. I was paddling all over the places to find a take off spot for 30 minutes and the time was over to get to work. Quite a bit of workout though especially on a short board.  

 

Quite a contrast to yesterday. Well, you win some and lose some. At least I burned a lot of calories, and that's the reason why I have taken up the sport, so I should be happy.

 

LC:LMM:NW:8F:11S:LT:NE:10K

 

 

Session 4010: Fun Longboarding Sunday in SC

We had a great afternoon session in Santa Cruz. We are always afraid of the
crowd when we go to SC, but due to the "small" day, that wasn't a problem.
Most "locals" decided to not to go out, I guess. The condition wasn't too
bad though as we were getting good chest to shoulder size wave faces
occasionally.



I had a phenomenal ride that lasted from the "outside" all the way to the
"inside..." probably lasted for 30 seconds. Plus so many other fun rides
that I lost the count... at least more than a dozen. My hard work on "ups
and downs" has just started to pay off. If I lose a speed, I point the board
more straight down and then push the board with my knees as I turn the board
back up again. Of course, the waves are breaking at a slow-motion speed so I
had a plenty of time looking behind to see which way the power is moving.



Since last week, I had been in a short board and beach break mode so it
really was a nice change of pace fighting the waves, ducking under to get
out with a certain "death" by closeouts. This was like being in a heaven. It
is so relaxing by getting on a longboard; paddle totally relaxed, and taking
off gradually. People in Santa Cruz have this treasure.



To add to this, Reez, Aimee, and Jocelyn shared the breaks that added more
element of fun under clear blue sky and no wind to speak of. Everyone was
got a bit chilly towards the end of the session. I had a helmet (a hood
underneath), gloves, and booties plus the hollow fiber rash guard (sweater).



You should have been there!



Stoke Level 8



LC:38:NW:8F:11S:LT:10K

Session 4009: Difficult To Take Off Day

There are some days that wave faces were big enough, but it is so difficult
to take off. Today was a kind of a day like that when the sets were mixed
with fast closing ones and also thicker ones and peaks were shifting to all
over the places.



This is when some real good people can show their wave and location
selection skills. As being on a nice weekend morning, there were tons of
people out there, but some good surfers were skillfully choosing spots and
still making the best out of it.



It was also good to see Ren and Carolyn back in the water.



Stoke Level 5



LC:LMS:WNW:HT:9F:14S:15K

Session 4008: More Fun Condition. Back to Daily Routine

Today is probably the first day I felt being almost completely back in business. I got up early, and did not fiddle with the computer and went straight to the beach and in the water by 7:30 a.m. The sun is coming up at 7:10 so that’s one more reason to get started early. Got up, checked and there was no wind, clear sky with all different kinds of clouds like some impressionist paintings, and nice clean beach. Also saw some familiar faces like Jeff and his friends. We don’t engage in any lengthy conversations on the water but we are just so happy to see each other on the water, and back to the stokes of catching waves, almost like we are back to surfing organisms.

 

Today the period has gone up a bit to 17 seconds and so the faces gotten a bit bigger and also steeper today, but that’s when shorter boards get more fun. But still I had problems catching consistently. I would really be a bit less fearful in catching these steeper waves, as when I do catch it, I can ride them, but often I just give up and pass up the chance.

 

I am going to surf both this weekend days, and I am really stoked about it.

 

STOKE: 7

 

LC:LMM:WNW:MIT:9F:17S:--5K

 

 

Session 4007: Finally Some Good Beach Break Surfing

I was very hopeful since yesterday, as the weather finally cleared out for
the first time this week. As I woke up this morning a clear moon was on the
western sky telling me that we are all ready for this morning. I waited for
the Sun to come up, and then stop by at a local coffee shop to pick up a
coffee. The sun is now up in the sky, no cloud and no wind. such a nice day.

The ocean was calm and my favorite size shoulder level breaks sets were
coming every 3-4 minutes, and they were somewhat thicker and slower so there
was a plenty of time to take off. The first dip into the water was very
cold. This is the bad part of surfing. there is a moment of painful
adjustment to become a marine mammal as the water seeps through the rubber.

Today, I felt myself being a bit rusty. Especially there were some lefts
that I tried to get into but totally lost them a few times... But I scored a
few good ones, and my bottom turn was starting to come back to where it left
off several weeks ago. After suffering through a week-long cold, every
stroke of paddle was more exhausting than before. It is amazingly so easy to
get out of shape, and so quickly.

You should have been there!

STOKE Level: 7

LC: LMN:WNW:MT:8F:14S:SW5K

Session 4006: The Jetty -- Sat 1/31

Well, I almost forgot to log the last session at the Jetty on Saturday Jan 31. We originally planned the BBQ for our surf group but earlier the week, I called it off mainly because of the turnout, the swell etc. Honestly, I still in a state of disbelieve that I have started a group. As I was growing up, it was not my forte to do something like this. There usually were other kids that were leaders of some small group in a school or whatever. But, anyhow, this is not to say that I am not enjoying, but I am a bit challenged to keep the group going and make everyone as satisfied and fulfilled as possible. I guess this is why eventually a group become formal and have presidents and treasurer etc. One side of me think that I should keep it as loosely knit as possible, but on the other hands if we want to events, I sometimes draw a line like asking people to show up at the sessions on-time. Now I know clearly in my mind that I did not choose politics as my main job.

 

Back to surfing, so I had an opportunity to speak for a while with David Alexander, our local surf instructor, on Friday afternoon about various options for learning surfing etc., but he told me that the Jetty was starting to be good because some sandbars have been forming. Also our Ren called me about the Linda Mar really getting junky on Sat morning. So I sent out my buddy Nick, who lives only 2 minutes fro the beach, to scout out the section. I really love it when these chain of communications work, and that’s one thing I am much stoked about getting this group of surfers started. Some of us really communicate tight and know where and when to go and not, and we are in constant communications.

 

I sort of rambled on about people aspects on this log, but the reason for that is that I want to remember later on that I did have some surfing buddies (if I don’t at some point in the future). Also the condition at the Jetty was “fair” as when I arrived the tide was good but quickly went down and all the good stuff faded out and so not much to report on the surfing department.

 

It remains to see by the next year this time how our group of surfing friends would be. I am starting to wonder, if some of us all progress to the expert level all together, or we would go separate ways. Well, at least, I can come back to my WaveLog and compare.

 

 

 

 

Reflection: Awareness of the Surrounding - What differentiates the beginner from experts

Recently, we have had a discussion on our message board about getting in each others ways. Since this topic came up, I have been thinking about this off and on. So I must share some of my findings on this specific issue.

 

There has been quite a few (and mostly the same) etiquette written in all surfing related literature about taking off on other people etc.

 

So looking back, I think that the main problem that the people get into trouble with other surfers is the skill in of itself. I started surfing in the spring of 2002, so I consider myself not an expert yet, and that is the main reason why I am chronicling my progress so that I can laugh at myself later on. So please follow along with me. Next year, I might write a totally different view than this.

 

So, what used to happen? Well, I used to have a fair share of near-misses with other surfers, and at the same time I did not get any rides. These days, I hardly get near-misses (unless… I will write about that one later on). And I do get rides. So what has changed?

 

What has changed mainly is the awareness of the surrounding, and also being aware of it at all times. This is a skill that needs to be acquired. Everyone knows and would be taught that they would need to look left and right when taking off, but beyond that I think I am making and adjusting my strategies dynamically as I get into the lineup.

 

Nowadays, I spot other surfers in the vicinity and gauge their levels, and see if they are aggressive, or not, or some are surfing way beyond their capabilities and positioned themselves in the lineup where they should not be. Then I would adjust my position accordingly. I watch their take off pattern and also I watch how they go.

 

I also used to bump into other surfers when I am padding out. I know why I did that. I was completely unaware of other surfers and not where they will go next. So I would continue to paddle out straight into their lines.

 

So now I am starting to be standing on the other side of the coin, I also look for those surfers that are likely to be unaware and continue to paddle into my line if I were to take off.

 

Here is another demonstration of how more expert surfers are aware. I took a semi-private lesson last year with Richard Schmidt and when he says not to take off, a 20 second later, sure enough someone will be right in front of me zooming across the wave. These people are taking off from the Peak far and far away from the Indicators. I don’t think I can tell that yet. But when he says to take off, sure enough there isn’t anyone on the face!

 

Also these days, I can more confidently gauge if I was to take off I can execute a immediate turn and not hit someone straight ahead with a reasonable confidence. In fact, in such case, I would position myself during take-off that if I make a turn I would not hit someone 5-10 seconds later to the right (or left) along the line.

 

So being aware of the surrounding is an important skill to have in surfing, and it is a two way thing. If all of the people taking off and not taking off are well aware of what is happening, it will make even semi-crowded beaches very well surfable.

 

 

 

Session 4005: Santa Cruz

This morning, I scheduled to hook up with a Japanese long board surfer living in Santa Cruz at 7:00 AM. Clio also joined a bit later at a Santa Cruz location.

 

On the way to Santa Cruz, in the cliff section just before Davenport, I almost hit cows! There were a lot of cars parked some of them look like rangers, then a horse trailer, some pickup trucks. It was still dark so I could not see what was going on. After I passed these set of cars, I started to speed up again then suddenly there were a small herd of 4 cows walking in the middle of the highway. I swerved to avoid them and the ABS also kicked in. I was successfully be able to avoid them but that was a close call. So, apparently the ranchers and the rangers were doing something to contain these loose cows! On the other day, I got a speeding ticket not too far from here, so this section of highway, I should be careful especially when it is very dark.

 

Back to surfing, I did hook up with Soji, so we exchanged various conversations about surfing, but he is a student and he has started surfing in SC and started a web site for Japanese surfers in SC. Since he posted a classified ad to lure people into this message board, I have been exchanging a few messages now and then with their members. Sounds like he really wanted me to come to a Japanese surf competition that will be held at the San Onofre spot (near San Clemente) in October, so essentially I said yes. He also asked if I will show my "round-house" at the competition, and I said to him that it is a goal for this year and October might be too early! Well, but I think I now set my next bar, and should get there sooner.

 

Since Soji is a dedicated longboarder, I showed up with my 9 ft Velzy and again it worked a magic. The board turns so well. I also swapped with Clio's Arrow 8'6 egg (which is the same kind I used to have) and it also did a magic! So after all it is not the board that does the magic. I can equally set the rail on the wave on both boards, with the Velzy a bit better due to its length and float. One thing I noticed really well today is my initial motion during the initial turn. I am really crouched down and even before I am fully up on the board, the rail is already on the face. So I am executing the weight shift as a part of take off and it happens so fast. But today, the wave sets were really mellow so I could really analyze. Today, I was too greedy to continue to ride until the water turns white so I did not do much in the way of clean pullouts.

 

After a 4-month of hiatus, Clio is still surfing great.

 

After the session we went to a brunch at Paula's on Portola Avenue that's near the 41st. Long line, long wait, but great breakfast. There we ran into couple of more friends of Clio.

 

Another Santa Cruz kind of a day.

 

LC: CJ

 

 

Session 4004: Back In Water, Smarter Short Boarders

Finally I am back in the water. I was afraid that even after just over a
week of non-surfing, I would feel rusty, but that did not happen.

Nice sunny day, not much wind and set were coming every 4-5 minutes going up
to head high. Many people were waiting further out, but I joined an "inside"
lineup that consisted of "harder core" short boarders and I had a blast.
They were catching way more waves than those on the outside. Of course, the
inside is usually less crowded too.

With a bit more confidence under my belt, taking off "inside" is more fun
again because I now can get a longer ride even from the inside, thanks to
the ability to get into initial turn sooner.

Now, I am starting to study the outside lineup so I know who will catch and
who would not under what size set, so I line myself up with those that do
not catch very well. Often these surfers would form a shield and prevent
others from taking off from the outside and then I catch the one inside with
my shorter board as the shoulder start to get steeper. Sometimes though they
completely close out then I have to eat it... Often I can duck through.

It was so nice to get back into the water.

... And There Goes the PM Surf Plan

Low -1 ft tide at 3:42 PM. I drove by the beaches on the way to home and all locations were really low.

Back to Work. Never Fails!

Smooth operation at work for the entire time I was on vacation.
Yesterday, a huge data corruption stops one of the systems at work affecting
everyone.
There goes the AM surfing plan!

:-( MB

Reflections: The Word "Stoked"

Among many terms the surfers use, I really like the word "Stoked." I like it so much that I use it like a product name in my own surfing web site and its message board. For example, instead of saying "Surfing Log", I use "StokeLog, "and instead of "Surf Forecast," I use "StokeCAST" etc.

When I was a graduate student, there was a popular TV show Cosmos by Carl Sagan, and he popularized the phrase "Billions and billions of..." and I have heard from a colleague of mine at the school that someone wrote in a comment to the PBS suggesting Dr. Sagan from not saying that so much, and there was a response from the doctor himself explaining precisely why he uses this. He was clearly and carefully saying this.

Of course, I am not in the same league as he is in anything I do, but when I use the term "Stoke" I am rather careful and deliberate about it, and so I am writing about it.

According to the Webster dictionary, the word "Stoked" is defined as;

Main Entry: stoked
Pronunciation: 'stOkt
Function: adjective
Date: 1965
slang : being in an enthusiastic or exhilarated state

While this is a slang word, I think that there are not very many other words that describes the state of being "Stoked," yet I also feel that this word is something so essential to everything in life. For example, my wife's mom is stoked about her patch (Quilting) work. If said that to most surfers most people will get it what it means. The feeling to me is not just plain enthusiastic or exhilarated, and it is not necessarily being "happy" while you are being stoked.

One of the things I like to do a lot is to observe other surfers. Surfers come in all ages and shapes but one word unit them all.

One of the things that I noticed earlier on is that some people are extremely cranky or at least cranky looking when they are surfing. I used to think that why they want to continue surfing when they look so angry. But later on I realized that they are extremely stoked about surfing, almost like they are in a sword battle of sorts. Somehow "being in an enthusiastic or exhilarated" do not fit in this description. Stoked people can be really really serious, and my wife's mom can be extremely cranky when she is at a sewing machine commenting about some imperfections in the machine, stitches or whatever, but immensely focused and enjoying the activity.

It is definitely not in a sad state.

Back to surfing, I think that the movie series "The Endless Summer" and especially "The Endless Summer II", the director Bruce Brown has refined the stoked part of the story where surfers around the word are united with the feel of the stoke involving, and that continues to the latest "Step Into Liquid" Interestingly enough Roger Ebert in his Chicago Sun Times Review was not so stoked. But then I was not so stoked about the latest movie "The Cooler" where he gave much higher rating.


So, "Stoked" to me, is in a very focused state, almost meditative to accomplish something and the expression of it in a performance. It drives my mother in law to create beautiful quilts, drive Tiger Woods to be one of the best golfers around, and some people to strive to open "the best restaurant."

So it is the word that unite us all.

I am certainly stoked about using this word!

Reflections: Flying Over The Path of Swells

Our flight to Osaka takes a great circle path. This is generally the reverse of the direction of the storms and also the swell directions. The flight takes along the coast of Oregon then on to Alaska, a bit south of Anchorage then right over the Aleutian islands. It always boggles my mind that the most direct direction takes us so far up north. Of course, this time, more than any time else, I have swells and waves in mind. On my B777 flight there was a monitor screen on my seat that showed current location throughout the flight so it was also very helpful, and also the map was by now very familiar one of the gulf that I read every day. I brought several surfing magazines to read, but I am keepting them for the way back.

From the 32000 ft in the sky, it is always sunny but below the entire Alaskan gulf was covered with cloud (and I know there is some storm developing) so I could not see the ocean surface.

I am already looking forward to get back and surf again soon. There was a strong head-wind of 150 mph up at the altitude so the way back should be swift if it keeps up.

This morning, I posted a Japanese surfing message board if there are any surfers showing the way to me, I am waiting to hear.

Session 4003: LM Penalty for Morning Dilly Dally then High Wind, Low Low Tide

I should not really fiddle with computers in the morning before I go.
I usually end up doing something after I get up, check waves then e-mails and then... 20 min goes... 30 min then an hour.
I should just shut the damn thing off, pack it, get in the wetsuit and go.

The reason why I am frustrated toady is because, so, I made an effort to show up at office for the 9:30 meeting with a vendor. As a result of my morning dilly dallying, there was no more time to surf, so I head straight to work for the meeting. This vendor screwed me over yesterday too by setting up a morning conference call at 8:00, because she wanted to be convenient for the "East Coast folks." Excuse me, who is the customer here? We are buying several million bucks worth of stuff from this outfit. Fortunately yesterday, I just sat here completed a few more things and headed to surf at 10:00.... Now back to this morning. So I get to work (about 5 minutes late) the vendor is late too. So she had to meet with other people and now it is almost 10:30, so finally it is my turn to see her. So, I could have surfed this morning!

The Penalty Phase:

I was still stoked to go all day (like almost any day). So I headed out to LM around 4:00 PM, by now the wind is gusting like 25 MPH and blowing paper and plastic bags all over the parking lot. Fortunately the direction is kind of side/off, so I decided to go out anyway, but when I hit the beach, the tide was getting ready to go to -1 ft. So I go in and walk and walk and it was knee deep for so far out. Then the swells come in all at once across the entire beach all closing out. As I was going out, I was saying to myself, "I am gonna break the board... I am gonna..."

Finally I get out, then looking back, nothing is breaking. So I could have waited for a few more minutes and could just have dashed out?

I paddled for about an hour and left all disappointed. Did not break the board.

So you did not miss much today!

WaveLog Session 4002: 9'0 Sweet "Wind Swell" Session at Linda Mar, Starting to Know How to Pull-Out

What a difference a day makes. At 1100 this morning, the swells were generally from W going at 4 Ft 10 seconds mixed in with the wind swells 8.5 Ft at 6.7 seconds at Half Moon Bay. Drove by the Jetty and it was stormy and nasty, but as I drove further up, Montara started to look cleaner and, in fact it looked like it was giving off 1.5 x OVH across the entire beach and not closing out. We had quite a bit of SE wind though and as I was preparing, my gloves and hood blew away.

The LM was quite roomy this morning and I had a lot of fun, caught many waves and was not much of an issue to get out. Thought due to the prevailing strong wind, all of the lineup was being blown towards the N end of the beach, and the 54F water was a bit more piercing through the suit. Waves were going at shoulder to OVH, and not hard closing like it does usually. We often talk about the wind swells being not so good, but I think I should correct that. No matter how we try to forecast, it is just so difficult to predict what will happen!

Today, I did not take my 7'6 out when I should have, but instead I took out the 9'0. I really felt rusty, falling backward off after the take off. Speaking of that it is interesting to note that I am more often falling backwards than pearling, which often happened earlier last year. But towards the end of the session, I became back friends with my long board and I had a few very smooth runs. Also today, my weakness in the backside surfing were very evident, some of the waves were lefts, and could not turn so well. Could not build stronger turns like the rights.

A stokable advance today to report. Yes! I did start to get the hang of "pull outs" and I am almost back on the board in paddling position after a run. What appears to be the key is the turning, and I was putting too much weight in the back essentially stalling the board before so it never crossed the ridge of the wave but with a bit more forward in weight, I was able to continue the turn. In addition, when the board crossed the line, I just lifted my weight off by bending my knees a bit straight up. I would say I upgraded from a "D" to a "C" grade on pull out today.

All in all, it was a happy 90 minute session especially with seeing a rainbow in the background across the ocean, probably welcoming back to home in this weekend!

WaveLog Session 4001: A New Board, Cowells and The Lane

Yes, I did buy the board from December M. It is a 7'6 Nor Cal Fun board. She wanted to get rid of it so she can move to Hawaii with only a suitcase. I said OK, I will buy it, and I can even sell it.

I got this as a backup quiver so that I can continue to ride a 7'6 length board when the Arrow Hybrid is out of commission.

Today I talked December to come with us to SC, and we ended up at Cowells so that Reez and Aimee can also surf there. But unfortunately there were not much waves even though it was a -1 ft tide at 3:00 PM. I was hoping that Aimee would paddle out to the Indicators, but she did not want to go, So I decided to paddle out to the Indicators myself. Still nothing. So I kept paddling out to the Lane. There was some shoulder high stuff going here but there were only 5-6 surfers. So much kelp here and could not do much, so after 30 min, I gave up and gone up the stairs and walked back.

So not much to report today in terms of my progress. It was impossible to catch knee high breaks with my Arrow 7'6 at Cowells, that's about all I can say today.

More on the riding impression on the NC 7'6 a bit later on.

WaveLog BLOG is back!

Starting 2004, the BLOGGER is back and all my features will be posted simultaneously to the SurfingHMB Yahoo Group as well as on the Blogger. I hope that Blogger folks also worked out on the stability issue by now.

WED Surf Wrap Up: Stoke 7

My StokeCAST has been quite OK lately, the NW swells are still continuing and we are getting some good shoulder to OVH level sets. Days like this makes surfing at LM a lot of fun. Today, Ken and I stayed mostly in the center and the S sections as N sections were seemingly closing out and also the Shower got the set height allright but not breaking until further in. Days like this makes S end to break a bit better.

 

There were some phenomenally good rides today, and we both enjoyed it a lot. It was on the edge of closing out so it was a good practice to get a hold of the board control quicker, and that means that there is a crucial moment of strong paddling, and you are on.

 

The sky was sunny and we surfed just until the sun has gone down.

 

As for my progress,

 

- I feel that I am finally starting to get a hang of duck diving now. Success rate has gone up from 1 every 3 or 4 to about every other tries.  Even I screw up, I get out to the other side then fall off the board. The real key to this is not the sinking of the front (which most people can do), but how to push down the tail of the board. There are two hurdles surrounding this, first one is the timing on when to push in. The next is to keep the good balance on the board while pushing the tail of the board down hard with the toe (and not the knee).

 

- I am getting a bit better at taking off on faster closing waves, and get up on the board sooner. Key here seems to be that you need to paddle rather hard and continue to paddle a bit longer even after you think you have taken off. Then get up on the board really quickly, and low. Now, good people are already in steering, but I can still go straight down at this point, but can execute small bottom turn to keep going a bit longer. Here the INDO has been helping quite a bit as I can feel what board wants to do better than before, so I can react to it.

 

 

 

 

 

Afternoon Surfing Wrap Up - Stoke = 7

I had a great Stoke 7 this late afternoon in LM. While the surf started to get junkier and toward 1930, earlier it was so great and everyone was having a lot of fun. It was one of the best days in a couple of months I can recall. At the spot I was in, the bigger sets were shoulder-head size, but were gentle.

 

Oh, and I managed to catch a good rip current going out here. It is so great, I felt like a champion paddler. It actually fell like being on one of those moving walk at airports. You are walking (paddling) but feels like going so much faster.

 

I think I finally understood why those fishing people tend to be standing right at the rip currents today. I saw one fishing person actually walking along the beach as his string was being pulled on side currents, then he stopped. The spot he stopped was where the rip was going out. Because of the way that the string is dragged with the beach current they tend to automatically find a spot where the water is going out. So next time you go out, find a standing (but not moving) fishing person, and that marks the outer rip spot!

 

Back to surfing, it was so much fun so I give a Stoke 7 today.

 

Again the spot that I go to usually gets head to double-over breaks on outer section then there is an inside section when you catch the outer one (if it does not break on the outside, it will not form the second break BTW, then you have a lot of fun riding great lefts and rights since it is a peak. These are often big and scarily and more powerful waves and if they eat you, you'd be tubing under for some time, so they are definitely for everyone but if you know how to deal with them they are so much fun! 

 

Today, I was able to practice a lot of bottom turns, but still I stall a bit so I cannot climb back up. But I had several "longer" rides that really were so stoking! I heard many other people screaming out with joy every time a big one came in and people catching, and so did I. This kind of day makes me feel something very wonderful about the gift of the nature. Outside of wearing man-made suite and riding chemical board, everything is pretty much my biological composition against the nature, and I get to fully engulfed and participate in it. There are only a few other sport you can be this close to being with the nature, and I appreciate it so much.

 

By 1930 the wind picked up and it was a good time to finish up the fun session.

 

Also I saw many girl surfers, I think they were all getting ready for the competition this weekend!