THE FRONTRUNNERS, THU 03JUL2014

Loc: Bolsa Chica

Crew: Bri

Time: 0645-0845

Conditions: Overcast, light south wind, consistent, 2-3FT+.

     Walking on the sand, out to the shoreline, we see small two-foot peaks rolling in. My initial reaction is to push it a little more south where it will be bigger, but then the set shows up. Scattered peaks everywhere, solid three feet plus.

     “Let’s paddle out,” says Bri.

     There are only a few surfers out. We can have this to ourselves.

     Changing at my car, a couple cars pull up. Surfers get out to check the surf. They leave.

     I sample the old school Tokoro that my brother had given to me years ago, my primary board before I got the Motorboat Too. I’ve been dusting off my old quiver lately, and I’m hoping to reestablish a relationship with my beach-break Tokoro, hoping that this morning’s surf is big enough to get redialed.

     I’m antsy and so impatient to get a wave on it. I move around too much, going for a small wave when a bigger one breaks out the back.

     This board is thin and narrow, but it has more rocker for waves that stand up more. From what I remember, it works well in punchy HB surf. I go left on my first wave, and right away it feels sluggish. I don’t have that drop-in speed that my groveler gives me, that extra volume, compacted in a short thick board. I’m slow going down the line. I try to turn but fall backwards. On my next wave, I go down the line, trying to keep up with it.

     I hold my rails and feel something jagged on the right side. The fiberglass on the rail is broken like a shard from a bone. I must get out.

     On my MB Too, I screw in the AM2 Futures setup to see if they work better than my Black Stix for these punchier HB waves. Truth is, today isn’t big enough to really make a difference. There’s the occasional four footer, but for the most part, the waves are three feet and playful.

     It was empty earlier, but by 0730, the place is packed with mostly longboarders. I still manage decent rides, getting some frontside carves and a decent rotation on a spilling white-wash section. Heat winner today is Bri, though. After said wave, she catches the second wave of the set, taking off next to the peak on a bomb right, four footer easy. Her popups aren’t lightening quick, but she’s getting much better, and if she’s getting up fast enough to ride these waves, then she can probably surf south Huntington where it’s a little bigger.

     She had even called out a wave that I had tried to take from her earlier. “I want it,” she said, and so I backed off. I admire her for that. She’s getting aggressive. She’s getting better.

     Before the wind gets stronger and makes things choppy, we had scored a decent window for surf. Bolsa likes the low tide right now, and when we had first shown up, it was clean. The waves were lining up all the way to shore, not big enough to barrel but for sure rippable. And to think, these are just the forerunners of the incoming swell. We’re expecting more size too. It’s gonna be a good weekend.