TO FISH OR NOT TO FISH?, MON 13OCT2014

Loc: PV

Crew: Bri

Time: 0730-0930

Conditions: 4 FT+, consistent, glassy, warm.

     From the top of the cliff, the waves look small. I should have known. While Manhattan Beach is a great wall of closeouts, this place is tiny. Fuckin’ A. Though it’s a pristine morning, the sun still below the hills. Soft smooth lines creep into The Cove. I grab the fish. Might as well paddle out.

     Bri and I stash our sandals and make our way to the jagged paddle out. The main pack’s out there at the top of the wave. The air is cool under the cliff’s shadow, but as soon as I hit the water, I feel that it’s warm. Wetsuit jacket and shorts, it’s the right call.

     The inside is always soupy. Nothing breaks here. Halfway towards the lineup, I get a glimpse of a set breaking. It’s a little bigger than I thought. I look to my right, landmarking where I am. I’m just past Little Reef. There’s still a ways to go.

     Duckdiving, the fish feels huge and overbouyant. Outside, a huge wall stands up. I know I’m in the impact zone. Motherfucker. I have the WRONG BOARD.

     The primary swell is supposed to be backing off, but it’s still working. There must be a lot of west in it. Bri and I sit wide of the main pack more towards the center of the cove. It’s less consistent than the top of the wave, but when the cleanup sets roll in, we have the shoulders.

     I get my first left, and it’s a solid five feet. Solid, but clean and racy, a fast peeling shoulder that’s down the line and tapered. I pop up on my huge fish with ease—the fish that’s great when it’s small—and I find that I have way too much board. Like an abused dog with the gate open, the Zippi just fucking TAKES OFF. Holy shit. So much speed on this twin fin. I’m flying down the line. I try to top turn and nearly face plant. I pump further down the line and bring it back for a wrap. I pull off the cutback but do so awkwardly.

     And that’s how the whole morning goes. Perfect waves but too much board. I have to be conservative on the turns. Can’t be too aggressive or I’ll lose it. It’s not a depression session by any means. I’d rather surf conditions like this than a day that’s too small. The Zippi excels in other areas. When I’m behind a section, I climb the face and pull off floaters, touching the cloud and dropping back in with grace. Still, I imagine how much fun I would be having if I had brought a shortboard, the Becker, maybe even the Motorboat Too.

     Bri leaves for work, taking the waves with her. The surf turns a little inconsistent. I sneak up towards the main pack and find it hard to compete.

     I still got more than my fair share of waves. Driving home, I have Jazz music on blast with the windows down, cruising through Hermosa on the way back to El Segundo. If someone asked me what serenity means to me, it would be this. 

THE LEFT (PT. I), 12OCT2014

Loc: Trestles

Crew: Bri

Time: morning

Conditions: 2-3 FT, consistent.

     It’s been a while since I’ve caught Trestles with good shape and firing four feet plus. When we arrive, Churches looks like a lake. Once a set arrives, we see that the surf is subpar to the forecast, but it is still rideable.

     With the small conditions, I leave the Motorboat Too in the car and opt for the Zippi. There’s a left that my friends and I have discovered here that, for some reason, usually remains uncrowded. On this very morning, it doesn’t look that great.

     I opt to trunk it with a wetsuit jacket and get surprised with how warm the water still is. Upon paddling out, a set appears. I duckdive the first wave and have the right mind to turn and go on the next, but I wait until I make it all the way outside.

     Even though the surf is smaller than expected, it’s consistently three feet and rippable. Occasionally, there are some waves a little bigger.

     There’s something about the way that the waves break here. It’s a perfect setup to experiment with your equipment and your surfing. Down the line open faces with varying sections along the ride. I practice my layback snaps. They’re more like layback carves, but I have problems riding out of them without hitting the brakes, a similar hindrance I had when learning how to do frontside snaps. So the whole morning, this is my mission. I don’t walk the board much. Aside from my practice, I get a couple of roundhouse cutbacks.

     Today’s goal is to surf our brains out so we can splurge on AYCE sushi afterwards. The whole session, only three guys end up sitting by us before moseying off to other peaks.

     Instead of splurging at Sonics, we pick on the snacks that we had packed from home.

#

THE LEFT (PART II), 12OCT2014

Loc: Trestles

Crew: Bri

Time: afternoon

Conditions: 2-3 FT, onshore, inconsistent, sectiony.

     Our spot’s not so pretty for the second go out. Onshore wind has the waves much crumblier and more lined up. Thank goodness I have the fish. Aside from practicing laybacks, I get some long racy sections that allow me to pull off deep swooping pumps. Yet, the water is textured and triangled. The top of the wave at Churches is choppy. After an initial flurry of waves, the lulls get long. Sushi opens at 1700. We surf as hard as we can to make sure we will have an appetite.

THE MOOSH, SAT 11OCT2014

Loc: Brookhurst

Crew: Bri

Time: morning

Conditions: 1-3 FT, crowded, high tide, inconsistent.

     We both needed a day to sleep in, so we took our time getting up and heading out. In an effort to mix things up, we headed to HB to catch some south swell.

     It was a little overcast upon parking, but we could already see whitewash exploding over the sandline, showing the swell’s potential. Cresting over the sand, we see that there are heads out. Normally this place is empty, but since it’s a weekend . . . sure. People. Uncharacteristically, there are funboarders and longboarders. A set breaks outside, super soft from the tide. Mooshy but rideable.

     We head back to the car, and I bust out the 6’0 Zippi. When we paddle out, we duckdive a set. Positioning is hard. Peaks are semi scattered. I move around the lineup, missing the good waves every time or get outpositioned. Afterwards, there’s a long lull. Waves look like they’re going to break, but they roll all the way inside and turn into shorepound. Little by little, all the longboarders move way inside.

     A decent window opens up where there are more waves, but after getting an initial turn, the rest of the wave mooshes out. We try. I have the right board, but it’s not enough.

     It sucks to drive this far to get mediocre surf, but it happens. It’s part of being a surfer, getting skunked like this. And it probably was good earlier. If we hadn’t slept in, we would’ve caught a better window.  

     The good thing is that there’s $3.50 chicken pho before getting off of the freeway. It makes up for the session.