CREW: Solo
FLAKES OF THE DAY: None
RAN INTO: Dais & Klaude
TIME: 1900 - 1945, 45 min.
CONDITIONS: A little onshore wind, choppy, crumbly, gradual, 2-3 feet.
I got home from school at about a quarter to seven. When I exited the 105W onto Imperial Blvd., I couldn’t help but notice the stillness of the palm trees. It was the same in front of my apartment; I couldn’t feel a breeze in the air. The thought of clean and glassy evening surf marinated in my mind. I told my girlfriend that I’d be rushing it for an evening session, and she wanted to come along.
On the way there, I saw signs from the American flags displayed throughout my town that there was onshore wind. When we pulled into the El Porto lot I noticed a lot of surfers around 45th. I decided to park by the bathrooms because there were only a couple people at that peak which was a big surprise.
On the way to the sand I saw that Klaude’s van was parked close by. I hurried out to the water to see if I could find him, but when I got to the peak he wasn’t there.
The current was strong, as the surfers sharing the peak were either drifting away or struggling to maintain position. I wasted no time. Those guys were probably out there for a couple hours. I . . . I barely had any time to surf, and I was well rested.
The sky was still overcast with the sun only making a short appearance before it sunk in the horizon. The waves would form off of a slight bump, but the peak would break as soon as it hit the sandbar. If it wasn’t for the wind, there would’ve been clean little waves, for the swell still produced consistent rideable waves with a manageable lull in between. I bogged out on a couple of rides, but I did have one memorable wave. Everyone else was out of position, and I had the inside of the peak all to myself. I caught the wave early. All I could really do was pump and go down the line. A surfer tried to drop in on me, and we both locked eyes as I approached just mere feet away. He pulled out. I pumped and continued to shore as I passed another guy that waited on the inside. I caught it all the way to shallow water, so far away that I walked all the way back to Lauren in order to paddle out at the same place again.
When I got back to the line up, I noticed Klaude and someone else heading towards his van. I motioned to Lauren to let them know we were here. It was about 1945 by that time, so I caught a close out to shore. It ended up being Klaude and Dais. We stopped to talk for a little bit; I was happy to have run into them. They said that this morning’s write up gave them a little itch to surf. They weren’t the only ones.
I’m beginning to change my mentality of how I conduct my surf sessions. Before, I had a hard time surfing less than two hours. Now, I realize that even an hour or forty-five minutes is manageable if you’re on a time constraint. I hope to sneak in these little hit and run sessions in the future.
one hour sessions are great. 30 minute dawn patrols... not so worth it. hahaha or is it? well not in my books these days. Maybe that will change?
ReplyDeletegreat running into you too! funny how all three of us got the itch..
less than an hour dawn patrols suck.
ReplyDeleteless than an hour sunset surf is worth it in my books - especially once it gets warm, just park and grab board and run out!
i think with a busy schedule, sometimes just getting out in the water in between weekend sessions may not seem worth it, but for me there's some sort of "reset" and "cleansing" that goes on when im out there. there may not be one great wave, but in that 30 minutes, i've forgotten about work, traffic, and all other shit that could've been running through my mind if i hadn't gone out.
Hmmm, one hour should be the marker for a "hit and run" sesh. 45 min. at least, and that's 45 minutes from when you touch and leave the water. Dais, you hit the nail on the head: "'reset' and 'cleansing.'" You're absolutely right. What's one hour, anyway? As the sun is going down the crowd is thinning out. Seems like a no-brainer. As long as there's something that's rideable.
ReplyDelete