Be Here Now (Montara)

A surf was required this morning, since I was already getting anxious about a phone interview this afternoon with the company at which I'd most like to work. I knew being in the ocean would settle me. There's nothing like surfing to force me to just be in this moment; everything else fades away.

J-Bird, Beanstalk and Luke were already in the water when I carried Rocket down the steps to the sand. I could've used more board this morning. The waves were mushy and hard to get into, even sometimes for my longboarder friends, but then steepened up and pitched as they broke.

After a number of false starts, including a backwashy left that bounced my board sideways on takeoff so I only landed one foot on the deck, I got into a speedy head-high right - woot! - but wasn't fast enough for it. I think I needed to turn sooner to stay mid-face instead of dropping down to the bottom - thrilling as that was - where the racing whitewater blew my board out from under my feet. I paddled back hoping for another chance, and hooted as Luke caught the next set wave, the lip starting to curl behind his head. When he rejoined me, grinning widely, he said he'd gone deep and gotten barreled although he didn't make it out. For the better part of a minute, he was all, "Oh, God, that was so good. Ooooh. Aaaah. Sooo good. Wow." I asked if he wanted a cigarette.

Tracey and Chris joined us, along with a handful of others, including some shortboarders. On my 6'2", I was already sitting farther inside than my bigger-boarded buddies, but eventually the other shortboarders moved even closer to the beach, where they were essentially catching quick rides in the shorepound. Daring the shallows myself, I launched into a shoulder-high right and this time rode it out, dropping off near dry sand. Yeah! Mission accomplished.

Still blooming

Surfline: Small mix of SSW groundswell and NW windswell today. Most breaks offer surf around the 1-3' zone, while the standout spots produce occasional waves/peaks up to belly-chest high. Conditions this early morning are fairly clean, with just a very light surface texture for many areas from the light SW wind. Mellow tide changes today, take note of the tides for your local break and what it favors. Buoy 42026: (Wave) SWELL: 3.3 ft at 8.3 s NW 72 / WIND WAVE: 0.7 ft at 4.0 s W / WVHT: 3.3 ft / APD: 6.9 s / MWD: 308° (Met) WSPD: 0 kn / GST: 2 kn / WVHT: 3.3 ft / DPD: 8.0 s / ATMP: 55° F / WTMP: 56° F. Tide: Around 3' rising slightly.

A beautiful day on the coast (Princeton)