Loc:
Manhattan Beach
Time:
0645-0845
Crew:
Tom Y.
Conditions:
5 FT, soft.
Board:
Lost Mini Driver
Before leaving for drill, it’s imperative
that I get a really good surf session before I take off. In this case, I’ll be
up north the whole weekend, so I really want some memorable waves that I can
froth over while I’m gone.
Rick had told me to surf Porto because it
will be bigger there. He didn’t even need to mention how the shape there will probably
be better, too. Regardless, I’m not surfing there. I don’t want my pre-drill
session to be a frustrating one against a crowd.
Parked at the top of the hill, I see that
there’s some decent size, a little bit bigger than expected. However, the tide’s
on it. Also, I haven’t seen a clean shoulder break from the outside all the way
in. It’s soft and walled, if that makes sense. Of course, I hope for the best
anyway and paddle out.
You know it’s a bad sign when barely any
locals are out. Actually, barely anyone is out.
The size seems a little harrowing, but
since it’s swampy, duckdiving isn’t an issue. It’s more like a duckdive
training kind of morning, when you can just work on your technique and not get rolled.
Before long, I’m joined by Viet Vet Mike.
Stocky Jon paddles out, too.
We’re constantly faked out, paddling for
waves that look like they’re going to break, but they don’t. When I finally do
catch a wave, it mooshes out after a couple pumps. When all seems like it’s
gonna get worse from here, cleanup sets start appearing. If it wasn’t for the
tide, we’d all have some mean hold downs. Instead, it’s just a lot of paddling
and a lot of duckdiving, but nothing critical. But the outside waves lack
shape. Just a nuisance to the already soft regular-sized waves.
I spot Tom Y. by The Brick House, so we
paddle up to each other and catch up. Turns out he’s just gotten back from
Denver on a vacay from work. “I haven’t surfed since I last saw you,” he says.
I think that was two weeks ago.
I take the next right, and the wave bogs
out on me right after my topturn. Tom takes the next wave and disappears as it
breaks. He paddles back with a sore look on his face, saying, “Fuck, I’m so out
of shape. I’m getting good waves but my paddle sucks!”
We get separated, and I find myself by
Stocky Jon. For the first time this morning, a shouldery left comes through. I
pump down the line, trying to set up for a good carve, but the wave is weak. I
check turn and then pump some more for a strong finishing move. I put as much
weight as I can into the turn, even torqueing my board so hard that the nose is
almost facing the other direction, but the turn lacks “umph.” I’m forcing my
board to do something that the wave isn’t made for.
Stocky J. gets the next one. Instead of
turning, he rides it all the way to shore, just pumping down the line.
The whole session, Don K. is on the right board,
a gunny shortboard that looks like it has a lot of foam. He catches every wave,
surfing well, his rides are long, precisely doing what each wave calls for.
I leave the beach not quite unfulfilled but
not satisfied either. There were waves out there, but I just didn’t surf that
well. Maybe I should have used the Zippifish? I don’t know. Driving back to El
Segundo, I have to be content with this being my last session of the week until
I can surf again when I come back home.
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