GOOD THINGS DON’T LAST LONG, SAT 29OCT2011 MOR

 

Location: South Huntington

Crew: Khang, Dais, & Klaude

Time: 0700-1030, 3 hrs & 30 min

Conditions: Clean, light offshore, clear skies, 1-3 feet, weak, crowded, inconsistent, long lulls with random pulses.

            This is my sixteenth surf session for this month, and I’m still chasing surf like I barely get it. I think I should take a break come Sunday and Monday. Of course, I say that now . . . and next thing you now I’m in the water again. I need to do my homework.

            Last night I asked Klaude where he’s surfing on Saturday. He said he had to stay local, but that Khang and Dais would be heading to HB. I hit up Khang and learned that they’d be hitting the road at 0630. In hopes of reduplicating yesterday’s score, I have to be there at first light.

            It’s 0500 again, and I hit the snooze button until it’s 0530. Fuck, I’m late. Lauren doesn’t move as I propel my body upright. I went to bed around one in the morning, but I still muster the energy to get things going. I’m rushing again like I’m behind schedule. I meant to be on the road by now. 

            When I’m on the road I get a phone call from Klaude. “Where are you?” he asks.

            “Man, I’m by Carson right now. What’s up, I thought you were surfing local?”

            “I was, mannnn. I’m at 26^th right now.”

            “How’s it look?”

            “It’s dark. I can’t really see that well, but it looks baaaaaad. I can tell from the whitewash. No one’s here too. I was sooo looking forward to surfing today!”

            “You should call Khang and see if you can ride with those guys,” I say. I go to the same parking spot and score on a space that some guy in a truck can’t fit into. I look in my rear view mirror happy to see that the sun hasn’t risen yet. I walk along PCH to my destination, and I can already see that the river jetties are smaller than yesterday. Once I’m on the sand, I see that my spot isn’t doing much either. It’s looking a little laky and weak at this point. Oh well, I made it out here; time to surf it.

            It’s barely past 0700 when I paddle out. Surprisingly, there aren’t many heads in the water. I hope it will stay like this, but HB is the spot with the best surf today, so I expect more people to show. Even though the crowd is thin, I really don’t want to be next to anyone. I sit at an empty spot and catch some dismal rides. I paddle south and invade a bearded guy’s territory. After he catches a wave, I move into his spot and catch the second one. I paddle further south for some isolation and score waves to myself. It’s about a foot smaller than yesterday and less punchy. I’m not generating the speed I need, so I’m mostly trimming and pumping. A long lull occurs, and I view my surroundings. Besides the river jetties, everyone is sitting just like me. Yeah, it’s gonna be one of those sessions. However, In between these lulls there are random sets that give some fun, little rides. I catch a couple waves back-to-back, but it unfortunately attracts a group of surfers on the sand and to my north. Now I’m surrounded. I keep looking around for the fellas, and it’s not until I see a longhaired guy on the sand that I spot Khang. They are sitting where I was earlier, and I want to tell them it’s better where I’m at. I paddle just within yards reach of them, but they can’t see my face because of the glare. It’s not until Dais returns from a ride that he sees me and says wassup. 

            I tell them it’s better where I was, but . . . it doesn’t really matter on a day like this I suppose. The lulls here are even longer, and I feel bad the guys came out to these present conditions. Again though, some random pulses come through, and we’re all scrambling to get some of it. I take a closeout going right. I try to pull a Francis and go for a backhand pinch in the tube, but instead the lip crashes right on top of me. It gives Klaude a good laugh. Oh well.

            Klaude has the right board for today, which is Rick’s Zippy Fish. Every time I think he’s gonna scratch out, he gets the slide. Today’s just not a day for turns, at least for me. One thing that kills my session is this kid that gets in my way. I’m in perfect position for a right. I have no idea what he’s doing, but he turns and sits right where I’m dropping in. He lets out a worrisome, “Whooooa!” because I’m about to drive into him. I have to slide off my board. “Which way were you going?” he asks.

            “Right,” I say with a pissed off look on my face. He says something after, but I don’t comprehend. He takes the situation like it’s no big deal. I carry this negative energy with me for about a half-hour. I want to kill him, but I want to give him the benefit of the doubt. It ruins my energy in the lineup. I remain quiet for a while. I’m not a tough guy, but I can see myself just taking him to the sand. And for what, I think to myself. I don’t want that bad karma. I think about my life and all the good things in it. I let it go as the next pulse comes by which leads to more rides. 

            It’s play time again. I watch Khang on a left. Dais paddles into it too but falls. When he’s next to me he says, “My hair got in the way when I popped up!” He mimics the motion with his hand, indicating his hair was between his palm and board.

“It’s a small price to pay for looking sexy,” I say. No sooner than we complain about the conditions, another pulse comes to eradicate it. Small, fun, and enough to say that today was worth it, we finally leave around 1030. 

            We stop in Fountain Valley for some Vietnamese food. I order the chicken pho which is only a whopping $3.50. I want to eat more, but I’m ashamed to say that I have no cash, and I don’t want to make splitting the bill difficult. If I had more cash I would have easily ate at least $15 worth of food. Klaude rides back with me because he parked by my apartment. Klaude says that Dave’s in town tomorrow, and he wants to surf. We don’t commit but say we’ll talk about it later. By tomorrow the swell will taper off even more to the point of an all out “lay day” for most surfers. Good things don’t last long. Bring on the next swell, please.