2012 BEATINGS, SUN 01JAN2012 MOR

Crew: KK and his pops

Time: 0810-1010

Conditions: Sunny, warm, clean, offshore to sideshore, shoulders diminishing with lowering tide. Closeouts.

     I meant to go to bed early last night; Lauren and I were barely able to stay awake to watch the ball drop on TV. It was funny to see live performances of artists that I don’t even listen to as well as the people in the crowd. It’s just not my cup of tea I guess. We wanted to play a little bit of Modern Warfare 3 before going to bed, which turned into an intense two-and-a-half-hour team death match gun battle. It’s official; I’m addicted. I went to bed setting the alarm at 0730 wondering if I’d be able to surf or not.

     It’s 0720 when my phone wakes us up. Lauren rolls over, as she usually does when I get my calls early in the morning. It’s Klaude. Am I late? He said he couldn’t surf because he’s sick, so I answer the phone to say what’s up. I do my best to make it sound like I’m wide awake, but my “Happy New Year, guy,” comes out grogged and cracky. 

     “Hey, I’m at ____ right now.”

     “I thought you weren’t surfing?”

     “I’m not. I’m with my dad.”

     “Ohhhh. Is anyone else there? Nah, just us, but it’s coming in pretty clean!”

     “I’m getting dressed.”

     I brush my grill, fill some hot water jugs, and I’m out the door. I thought it would be another foggy day, but I’m surprised that the sky is clear, although it’s still a bit nipplie. My car temp gauge reads exactly at 50 degrees, but I still have to wait for my windows to defrost. I can tell it’s New Year’s because traffic is so light, but finding beach parking is a bitch because everybody’s still home. I get lucky on a spot further south on Highland Ave.; send a text to Dave, CC, and Francis, and then I head on down the beach. 

     I don’t see Klaude, but I see his dad with his camera and tripod mount. We wish each other a happy new year, exchange some small talk, and then he says, “I have pictures of everyone except you!” I’m caught by surprise when Klaude sneaks up from behind. He says he has a sore throat and wishes he could surf on the New Year. From there he fills me in on the Lakers’ victory from last night. I feel the guilt trip of not being a loyal follower at the start of this season. I thank them for hanging out and taking pics but tell them that I can’t promise anything as far as quality pic-worthy surfing. 

     The crowd’s pretty thin, but everyone is sitting on the main peak. I catch a couple waves which are closeouts to start the sesh. I look back at Klaude and his dad and feel the pressure to get a good ride. A couple guys in the main pack get waves, so I venture towards them. The first wave of a set forms in the distance; it’s a left with a long peak, but I’m right where the shoulder tapers off. I rush towards the shoulder, but a guy on my inside takes the wave. I watch it from behind as it rolls away; I draw a blank. It was a good wave, not sure how many more of those will come by. As I turn to face the outside I see the second wave of the set, and it’s just as good. Since that other guy took the wave I’m now sitting the deepest out of everyone else. The peak looks walled, but I’m on the shoulder. It looks like it’s going to be fast but makeable. After yesterday’s O-Side beat down, I’m already nervous about purling on this drop-in. The wave’s barely three feet, but the short drop is steep. I don’t know how I manage this, but I get on my rail early which prevents the purl. I’m still going faster than I’m comfortable with, and I almost lose my balance on the bottom turn, but the momentum shoots me back up towards the lip. It’s not as deep of a carve as I’d like, but I pull off a pull off a little top turn, pump, get a second turn, and fall on the third as the wave bogs out. I wonder if Klaude shot that wave, but if he’s watching right now, I’m all smiles. As I paddle back, one of the local rippers, Randy, says, “Hey, that was a nice wave.”

     “Yeah, I didn’t think it was going to open up like that!”

     “Yeah, Happy New Year.” 

     “Happy New Year, first wave of the new year!”

    

Curse of a good wave:

     There’s something about getting a good ride, where you should be satisfied, but it also sparks an unquenched thirst. You must, by all means necessary, get another wave just like the one you just had. I try. I get a ride that doubles and walls up—nothing. I kick out on another wall. I get a left that pitches as I hit the lip, sending my board flying in the air. In the midst of all this, bigger sets form beyond the lineup, chomping down and weeding-out the weak and unprepared. I try desperately to get another wave for the camera, but Klaude and his dad pack up and leave.

     I feel a little relief; now there’s no pressure, and I can just focus on myself. 

     With the tide lowering the shape is getting more walled. I blow the two last good lefts that I have a chance at. On one, my front foot slips towards the nose, and I fall. On the second, there’s a guy on my inside. I spend too much time waiting to see if he’ll make the section, so I end up dropping in late and off balance, watching the good shoulder roll away from me. 

     I see a big, empty right break further north, so I paddle away from the crowd. I pass Don and say hi. I’m all by myself here, and that’s because there is absolutely no shape in this spot, nothing but closeouts. I eat shit for the next twenty minutes straight: late drops, air drops, bad timing, and getting pounded on the inside. In the shallows I look back and tell myself that I can at least get one more good wave, but I paddle back out only to receive more beatings. 

     As I’m leaving and going back to my car, I hear someone call my name. It’s Nicole, she and Francis are parked in the metered lot. I give him my morning report, and we make plans to surf together next week. 

     It’s not quite the way I wanted to start the New Year, but I still got that one wave to take home and rave about. It was nice running into my friends and just being out there on a nice, clean, and beautiful morning. Now that I got my lickings out the way, I hope to get more good waves to start the new year right.