SUMMER IN THE SOUTH BAY, TUE 8.02.2011 MOR

Crew: Solo (0/4 showed up)

Time: 0700- 0945, 2 hrs. 7 45 min.

Conditions: Faint onshore wind, average consistency, 2-3 ft., warm, crowded.

     Low tide is around five in the morning, so I give it a good hour to rise a little. I hit the snooze button a couple times, and I get a text from Deathwish Dave. Last night he said he'd roll, but he says he just finished playing video games and is only going to bed now. It's 0539 in the morning. I eat a big bowl of cereal, drink some OJ, take my vitamins, kiss Lauren goodbye, and I'm off to Parks. Again, free parking is rampant. Gawd I love this spot. Fuck the meters. I look at the surf and give a meager report to Khang and Francis. Today I have the full 3/2 wetsuit on because my sleeveless 2/2 is still wet from last night. There aren't many people at at 0700, but Don's already in front of the tower ripping it up with a couple other local guys. I paddle out just south of them. I say good morning, and Don asks about my trip to Bali. Our conversation is cut short by an approaching set. We're both in position, but Don's on my inside. I let him take it without a paddle of my own. Gotta respect the locals.

     I look around for Francis and Khang. Other people near me give me that look like, “What are you looking at?” But I'm not looking at them; I'm trying to find my homeboys. The surf is far from perfect. A lot of waves come in doubled up, some close out, there are small unrideable waves with each lull, and some of the waves are weak. But some of the small waves reform on the inside with a nice shoulder, and some of the bigger waves actually hold shape. It's a picky morning, but there's enough action to keep me busy throughout the whole session.

     The sun makes everything warmer, and the lack of wind brings a heated discomfort in my fullsuit. Definitely a boardshort day, I'm thinking. The waves don't have that shape that make turns easy or plentiful. Instead, I practice going from top to bottom and walking the nose to see how far I can take it. I try to work on my front side turns, but I just can't gather enough speed. Either way, I'm actually on waves with shape, and there are a lot of them.

     I finally give up looking for my people. This session is a lethargic one. I miss a couple waves. I can't flip the switch and get aggressive. I don't know what it is, if my body needs some rest or if I need a break from surfing. Perhaps I ate too much? The line up gets a little more crowded. These last couple days I've noticed that people arrive at the beach late. By 0830 everyone is out there.

     I walk back to my car at 0900. On the way there I pass three chicks and a guy on their way to surf. They all got these flashy wetsuits on. The guy has a thin beard on his cheeks and wears a black wetsuit with green arms and legs. I do a double take. I swear this kid looks like Jeremy Flores. “Oh my God, look how small it is,” one of the girls says. Why the fuck would any pros be here though? It couldn't have been him.

     I change into my boardshorts and walk back to the line up. I was hot and steamy in my wetsuit, but now that I'm all dry, the idea of barebacking it is less appealing. I still paddle out and sit in my exact same spot. My exposed skin has me sliding all over my board, but I feel faster and looser without the wetsuit. I get three waves in a row, each one Immediately after returning to the line up. My arms are working much faster, more like propellers. Even the longboarders are watching me; I'm getting waves that they aren't even going for. They start off small but double up on the inside.

     My wave of the day is a left. It's barely three feet but breaks towards the outside. It's a fast drop, but the inside section is clean. The speed brings me towards the shoulder, so I do my novice cutback and redirect my board in the pocket. The section is still shouldery in front of me, so manage to pull off two top turns. I've been trying hard to work on this, as I'm going for as many lefts as I can. My top turns aren't clean yet, but I'm getting used to the feeling of my tail carving the lip a little. Top turns just feel so different on my forehand. The wave stands up and closes out, but I tuck myself into the face to get slotted when it does.

     Leaving the beach, it's a great feeling to walk away with that small accomplishment. Also, I think I found the problem with my duckdives. Today I gripped the rails lower than I usually do when I submerged my board. I was surprised to make it out the back. Now I can see why people use their knees. I've had wrong hand positioning after all this time.

     I had a good session, and even though everyone flaked it's okay. Two small victories, I'm stoked about them.