BIRTHDAY STAYCATION, FRI 30NOV2012 MOR

Loc: Churches to Middles

Crew: Bri

Conditions: 3 FT, light onshore, drizzling, overcast.

     There was a big swell coming in, somewhere around six feet. Briana wouldn’t have been able to handle Porto, but her birthday was the day prior, and we didn’t get a chance to surf, but where? Initially I was thinking Palos Verdes, until I got the morning recon report from Rick. “It’s gonna be too big for her,” he said, “even for PV.”

     I had woken up early, but I kept a close eye on the cams until the first reports came in. It was wet and overcast outside—miserable. I wanted to take Bri out for a good time but not at the cost of getting worked all morning.

Southward Bound:

     I hate using surf straps, especially when it’s drizzling outside and they’re wet, but we got everything packed and loaded and headed out. The whole drive down south was wet. Rick called again, and asked where we were going. When I said Churches he said we made a good call. As we exited Basilone Road and looked at Lowers, there weren’t many people there, which is always a bad sign. We did see some waves breaking towards Middles, but it was hard to tell if it was good or not. When we drove under the Trestle, entering Churches, we weren’t sure what to expect. Fears of the skunk were hard to suppress, especially when the surf was pumping in the South Bay. The first thing I noted was the high tide, and the empty lineup, but when we rounded the corner further, we saw about a dozen guys out, scoring long, three-foot rides. The trip would not be a waste.

    

     I couldn’t contain myself, nor could I change into my wetsuit fast enough. The surf wasn’t pumping hard, but it looked consistent and fun. Since I gave back the Zippy to Rick, I felt that the surf was good enough for the Tokoro, since my JS was broken down too. The rain was no longer a factor.

     There were two peaks working, and since the longboarders had a monopoly on them, Bri and I sat in the saddle between, hoping for some waves to swing wide.   

     It’s one of the worst feelings: seeing good waves break around you and not being able to ride them. Bri still doesn’t have the experience to compete in a pack, and I was severely under gunned to battle at the top of the wave. Eventually, patience prevailed, and we got some waves every time the sets rolled through. Some of the sets were walled, coming in just under five feet but still manageable because of the break’s gradual slope. The best I could get was two-turns on a wave, but I struggled getting down the line. The Tokoro was not beefy enough for the shape, even with the size.

     Since I’m writing this blog weeks later (because of school), I can’t recall everything, but we hung out here for almost two hours before paddling north towards Middles. It was a long paddle for Bri, but I always make her paddle her ass off. She hates me for it, but I know it will pay off in the long run.

     I had a hard time paddling past my famed spot: The Battle Position. Reason being because waves started coming in. I couldn’t believe it. Middles . . . I haven’t seen it work here in . . . about a year? For some reason, this WNW swell had some solid, three-foot plus, classic, down the line waves. Only four guys were on it when we arrived. Even though I could’ve used a bigger board, I still managed some fun rides, but nothing over two turns.

     Bri was catching waves, but she was a little outside of her comfort zone . . . and exhausted. A random wave just under four feet popped up. She watched it form in front of her but hesitated to paddle for it. I yelled, “GoGoGo!” as I paddled back to the lineup. She turned her board, paddled towards the shoulder, but couldn’t paddle hard enough to get the drop. I knew what she was going through: fear, hesitation, a lack of confidence, intimidation. She needs more time in the water, but for a beginner I’ve taken her out in some challenging condition, and she’s done really well.

     As good as Middles was, we were approaching our third hour. Bri was done. I still had some fuel left; I could’ve stayed, but I didn’t want to be a dick, so we left.

     From there I took Bri to Pipe’s Café in San Clemente for the first time. It was still drizzling and wet out, so the café was empty. After we ate, we went back, parked, spread out the blankets, and took a nap in the wagon. With the sound of drops pattering on the roof of my car, the view of gray skies out of every window I looked out of, and under the warmth of our blankets, we fell asleep, as cozy and comfortable as we could possibly be.