I'm Gonna Feel It on Monday

It's been so long since I surfed a decent wave that I thought this swell would get the best of me. I'm happy to say that it didn't. I stayed out for about two and a half hours in a 3/2 with no booties. Yeah, I was damn cold, but it was well worth it in terms of being able to paddle freely and feel the board under my feet.

At around 5:30 this morning, my eyes popped open. I was ready to head out. I was ready, yes. Nevertheless, I stayed in bed. I knew it was too early, too dark. So, I waited. I wanted to go back to sleep, but that's a hard thing to do when, first, you're a consummate morning person and, second, Soul Brother #1 is snoring loudly in your ear. I think I finally allowed myself get up and dressed at 6:15. For once, I wasn't antsy. I'm often agitated before I head to the beach. I think it's the result of not living close enough to the water to make a quick check. Lately, the lack of swell has caused me immeasurable irritation. I get to the beach only to find nothing. And then my small window of "me" time is shot. I go home unsurfed and disappointed. I used to take skates or something with me. I don't know why I stopped doing that. Anyway, I'd end up standing around at the beach waiting for waves that I knew wouldn't materialize. Then I'd go home and workout indoors. I hate working out indoors.

Well, today, I was prepared. I had two surfboards, my speedskates, my skating clothes and a helmet. If I couldn't surf, I was going to skate myself into the ground. Luckily, RPB (my first stop) was breaking when I got there. It wasn't firing, but I saw lines. I saw shape. I saw waves. There would be no driving to other spots. What I saw out there was good enough. I haven't seen waves like that in over a month. What made it even better was that there was a short window when it did fire. I kept saying I was cold, that I was getting out. Then I'd catch a wave, make my way toward the shore, change my mind, and paddle back out. I did that probably six times. My "one last wave" became "six last waves".

I felt a bit out of sorts today. I caught waves without problem, but I was forced to go backside the entire time. No lefts popped up. I can easily find trim and stay high on a wave going frontside. It's hard for me to do that consistently going backside, especially after a surf drought. It was still a good session. One wave stands out and it's not the ride that I'm thinking of. I was a bit surprised by my reaction to what one guy did to me. I am generally laid-back and generous in the water. Note I said "generally". I really didn't know I had it in me to get a "take no prisoners" attitude when someone pisses me off. Well, this guy pissed me off. He was sitting to my left when a bomb approached. All of a sudden, he paddled around me and then sets himself up to take the bomb. Oh, no! I told myself there was no way I was going to let him snake my wave. I'm not sure why he positioned himself directly behind me. Perhaps he thought he'd scare me out of his way? He was wrong. I started paddling, waiting for the skeg up the ass, but it never came. I was going to take my wave. If it had come down to a paddle battle, I was ready. That was my wave and I wasn't going to let some asshole try to paddle around me, especially since there was some semblance of order in the lineup and everyone kind of knew that one was mine. After that, the guy went and sat elsewhere. Good.

I planned to surf tomorrow. Unfortunately, it's rained enough today to make surfing out of the question. I guess that means I'm back inside for my workout. That sucks.