Double Bof (Montara/HMB Jetty)

Manabu surf-checked the Jetty ahead of the appointed meet time, and said it was mostly flat with a surf school on the only peak. He drove north and reported that Montara looked better with more waves, so Luke and I planned to meet him in the water. Manabu said he'd be in his hard to miss (and seldom worn) yellow wetsuit.

Walking the golden sands of Montara with my shortboard under my arm, I searched the sea in vain for a yellow-clad surfer. Luke and I paddled out on a crowded mid-beach peak, both of us having to wait for a lull to get through the head-high surf. The waves were clean but sadly closing out a lot, and there was too much competition; I had no joy. Caught inside again, I took a whitewatery wave just to ride something. Then I walked northward and tried to go out near an empty peak, but closeouts kept crashing down in front of me in waist-high water, and I was spending too much time tossing my board and diving under them. Not fun. As I walked back on the beach to tell Luke I was going to the Jetty, I saw him ride a closeout that was slightly over his head. He said it was one of his biggest waves yet, but he was ready to go too.

As it turned out, Manabu had also decided to retreat to the south, and I passed him leaving the Jetty after surfing with Steve. The waves at there were shifty and messy with the occasional shoulder. It would seem I've overcorrected from being too cautious in wave selection to being too indiscriminate; mostly I just wiped out and put myself out of position for better waves that followed. Somehow, I need to find the balance. My best ride, and that's not saying much, was a short-shouldered right I caught in at the end. Earlier, I'd taken off on a better right, but turned too sharply up the face and dug my inside rail. Bah! This is why my turns are tentative; I have such a fear of "wasting" a wave by screwing up a more agressive move.

As I changed in the parking lot, two guys approached with wetsuits half on, and one asked with a distinct French accent if this was the Jetty dirt lot and "how were the waves?" I told him yes and meh, which in hindsight was probably not a word he learned in school. Rebecca tells me the analogous French word is "bof." Double session, double bof.

Surfline: A new WNW groundswell fills in further and tops out, becoming the primary swell, while the SSW groundswell eases some. Breaks that are better exposed to either swell will offer surf mainly in the 2-4' zone. Standout winter spots will produce occasional WNW sets up to shoulder-head high. Good combo spots will also see occasional waves/peaks up to shoulder-head high. Buoy 46026: (Wave) SWELL: 3.6 ft at 14.8 s W 86 / WIND WAVE: 0.7 ft at 3.7 s NW 85 / WVHT: 3.6 ft / APD: 9.5 s / MWD: 278° (Met) WSPD: 4 kn / GST: 6 kn / WVHT: 3.3 ft / DPD: 16.0 s / ATMP: 55° F / WTMP: 57° F. Tide: 3' rising near 4'.