The Wrong Place at the Right Time

Dawn moon

Surfers are some of the luckiest people in the world. We regularly experience moments of exquisite beauty, like this morning's sunrise tinging the rustling silk sheet of the sea with oranges and pinks, as a line of pelicans glided low overhead.

Steve, Christina and I planned to surf Ocean Beach at dawn, but the low tide was closing out short-period waves that were bigger than expected. We caravanned south to Sunset Cliffs and paddled out at North Garbage.

I was barefoot and brought my shortboard, not the right gear for the Cliffs. After ten minutes of failing to get into any soft outside waves, I sat father in and caught them after they broke, hoping to work my way to the shoulder. The initial blinding roil of whitewater made it hard to pop up until the waves were nearing their end, but I still had fun. I'd rather be in the wrong place at the right time to get many rides than spend most of the session waiting to be in the right place.

The shifty outside sets were going slightly overhead. Patient Steve got a nice wave on his 7' board. He said the window for catching them was narrow because they were so soft except at the peak, but then they would jack up for a steep drop.

Right place, right time

I was in the right place twice, on smaller inside waves about head high. I rode a short left that had a long rampy entry. It was good while it lasted! Later I caught a green right and instinctively dropped into a pig-dog, but didn't hold it well enough, or maybe my hand was too far forward. Check out these tips on the stance, which I seem to have to have absorbed by reading/watching and practicing once (rather surprising as usually I have to actively concentrate to do anything new while I'm riding).

Windswell lines down the coast