OC SESH- HITTING THE ROAD: FRI 1.28.2011 MOR

A beautiful morning at HB.

CREW:  Solo Bolo
FLAKES OF THE DAY:  None
RAN INTO:  Jim and Adam (Randy’s HB friends)
TIME:  0800 - 0945, 1 hr. & 45 min.
CONDITIONS:  Sunny and gorgeous morning.  Crowded, but not like Porto.  Tide was unfortunately going from mid to low, chest high, and fast.

This was how it looked when I got there, but it started to get worse once I paddled out.

    My first week in school was over, and I needed time to unwind.  I didn’t have school on Friday, so I thought I’d take a drive down south.  I could’ve chosen between Trestles, San Onofre, or Del Mar, but I had a lot of errands to do, so I decided to keep it an OC sesh.  I woke up kind of late, so I hit the road as the sun was rising. 
    It was my first solo road trip for a surf session.  Usually I have my brother, who’s in Bali now, or I roll with Rick, but he was at work.  I loaded up my car and watched the sky go from dark blue to orange over the road ahead of me.  I was listening to my favorite music, and I highly anticipated some good waves.  The drive was really nice because I had time to think.  I love the feeling of driving in the morning with a destination, especially on a work day.  All the other commuters were heading to work or to their obligations.  Me, I felt like I was playing hooky or going AWOL, like I shouldn’t have been on the road at that time, but I was.  I was on the road for myself.  I was on the road for surf.
    My brother gave me his state parking pass before he left.  He wanted me to use it to surf HB, as much as possible.  It meant a lot to make it out there.  One, to make good use out of it, and two, to follow my brother’s guidance to surf better waves whenever I can.  It doesn’t take a gynecologist to know that HB is a better spot than Porto.
    El Porto can be good sometimes.  It is so rare, though.  But when it’s good, you forget that it was shit, and just enjoy the moment.  Lately, after the MLK holiday, El Porto hasn’t been good at all. 
    There were a lot of cars scattered throughout the HB lot.  I made my way to Brookhurst and parked at a familiar location.  I walked out to take a look at the water before I changed.  I saw three to four foot sets that were clean and peaky.  From my experiences surfing there, it was probably one of the smaller days that I’ve seen.  I changed and ran into my brother’s friends, Jim and Adam, that he introduced me to before.  We talked for a bit, and then I paddled out between towers three and four. 
    It was a short paddle out because of the tide.  I wish I would’ve got there earlier because, despite how good it looked, the lowering tide made the waves a little too fast and closed.  Long story short … I didn’t have a very good session.  I caught waves that were just too racy.  By the time I popped up, the section was taking off ahead of me.  The waves got a little dumpy, and I got pitched over a couple times.  To my north and south were crowded peaks that produced some better waves.  I saw guys getting nice long rides and small barrels.  Actually, guys next to me were getting some good rides, too.  I also saw guys eating shit like me, so I wasn’t alone. 
    I didn’t feel confident out there.  It was my first time there without my brother.  He’s such a good surfer.  It always motivated me to see him doing so well out there.  The HB crowd is different.  I’ve learned that where the waves are better, there are better surfers.  I didn’t want to look like an idiot out there.  I don’t know if I looked like an idiot, but I know I didn’t look like I belonged.  I had to use my brother’s Tokoro again.  That board is an inch shorter than my DMS, and much tinier than my JS.  I guess that could be part of the blame but only a small part. 
    I was on a damn paddle mill machine, meaning that the damn current was pulling strong.  The whole session was a burning work out just to keep my place.  Everyone was drifting.  Only another guy and I opted to fight the current.  I was so tired, but I remembered that my brother told me I needed the training, so I took it for what it was worth.
    Well, the session ended a bit unfulfilled.  The morning drive was the best part of the day.  Even though my expectations weren’t meant, it felt good to hit the road and clear my mind.  I hope to do a little road surf trip every week.