House of Cards

Surf's rising up! This morning was probably the last time with any waves under head-high in San Diego for the next week or so. My back continues to trouble me, not just with pain but with weakness. It feels like a house of cards that could collapse if I push it too hard. So I won't be charging any of those well-overhead waves that are forecast. While I could talk myself through my normal trepidation, right now I lack the confidence that my body is physically up to the challenge.

From my pre-parking surf check, I thought the corner right next to the pier might be a good spot for fun-size waves, but as I started down the stairs, a 6-foot closeout set rolled through and I wanted no part of that action. I walked north a bit and found an easier paddle-out between the pier's left and the next sandbar's right. It seems that maybe, just maybe, my duck-dives are getting better. I didn't have any disaster dives today.

The bigger waves were mostly closed out, and the smaller ones hard to get into on the rising tide. I didn't fight the northward drift long and the current finally let me go almost at Law Street, about 4 blocks away. An older dude and I exchanged pleasantries until his buddy called from the inside, and we saw him waving the nose of his broken longboard, still attached by the deck. Oh, no!

I was cautious in my wave choice, riding only three in less than a hour. Two closed out immediately while the third, a fast shoulder-high left, gave me a flash of facetime before sectioning. I'll take that stoke!

On my long walk back, I saw a couple guys get almost barreled. The big surf and the skilled surfers riding it will be fun to watch this week, even though I'll have to find smaller waves for myself somewhere else.

What is the greatest thing you have learned in your life? Well, in regards to surfing, I’ve learned that there is always another wave coming. Translated that means there is always tomorrow. (Gerry Lopez on Liquid Salt)

Summer in January

The weather continues warm, sunny and dry; it feels more like July than January. Unfortunately California's had so little rain this winter that the governor just declared a drought emergency and is asking everyone to try to cut back water use by 20%. Here's last year's snowpack compared to now:

It's a good excuse to not wash the car. And perhaps means more surfing, fewer showers?

There isn't much going on swell-wise right now, though bigger surf is forecast next week. I waited until the tide started to fall from its morning high before heading to my local beach. The peak against the pier wasn't working at all, though sets broke occasionally up the beach. Dolphins cruised by on the outside.

A better sandbar was working just south of the building with the Surfline cam. A small pack of longboarders were dominating but I snagged some waves that were out of their reach. They were a friendly bunch, and one of the three dudes pointed out that there were five women in the lineup. "Yeah, that's why there's such a nice, mellow vibe," said a woman on a floaty Firewire, "There's none of that aggro stuff you get with a bunch of guys."

I scored a few fun rides, including one where I forced Nemo down a couple feet of roiling closeout to get to the bottom, and another that held up for a swish. I'm liking the original fin setup on the fish better than the Pro Tecks; it's got two bigger outside fins and a small center one. Hard to describe exactly why it's different, but it's just better somehow. 

Fun Waves and Free Wax

The San Diego Surf Ladies Wednesday Wahines met up at Tourmaline early this morning so I had no excuse not to join them, although I thought the high tide might swamp out the surf too much for even my fish. Happily there was enough swell left to keep lots of fun waves rolling in anyway. The Point was head-high but oh-so-far away.

While the rest of the group suited up, I hit the water with Ashley and Eva, who were on longboards like most everyone else. They paddled farther toward the Point than my back would allow, so I found a nearly-empty peak just in front of the cliff and caught a wave immediately. Yay Nemo! The waves on that peak were rarely chest-high, but plentiful. My best ride was a bigger right with a shoulder that held up for some of that swish-swish Nemo does so well. Stoked!

As I walked up the beach, a blue-jacketed woman with an iPad and a clipboard intercepted me to ask if I'd participate in a Surfer Health Study. Their brochure explains:

State, local and federal regulatory agencies are interested in determining if there are any links between marine water exposure during the winter, infectious illness, and beach water quality. They are also interested in finding ways to more quickly and accurately determine if there is a health risk to
beachgoers due to pathogens in the water... This will be the
first prospective study to measure the health risks (if any) associated with surfing on the California coast.

I think we all know there are health risks from surfing, especially after rain, so I was happy to answer her questions about my surfing habits and recent health. She gave me a bar of wax for my trouble, and said I'll be entered in a prize drawing if I complete the rest of the weekly surveys online. If you're interested in participating in this worthwhile study, find one of the blue jackets at Tourmaline or Ocean Beach (chosen because they're popular and have storm water discharge into the surf zone), or go here: http://sccwrp.org/shs. Now we just need some rain.

Mission Accomplished

Distant photo from last summer

I surfed Mission Jetty for the first time today. There was a sweet overhead left peaking up fast off of the riprap wall. A pack of pretty good surfer dudes were all over it and fun to watch, but I wasn't about to get in that mix. At negative low tide, the leftovers off the main peak were mostly closed out. I took off on a head-high left that slammed shut before I reached the bottom and spun me ass-over-teakettle, with my leash pulled taut over my neck at one point. Whoa. Then I got caught in a rip current, sucked beyond the farthest guy before the choppy water registered the threat. It took what seemed like too much paddling (parallel to shore, of course) to get back to stiller waters. By then I'd had enough and dodged closeouts while looking in vain for a hint of a shoulder until I was far enough in to belly-ride the whitewater back to the wide beach. While the surf brought me little joy (although it certainly makes me feel alive to finally surface after a pummeling), the sun was shining and the air was warm, like July in January. I can't complain.

My Backyard

Today there are waves! This video shows Pacific Beach, from Tourmaline Surfing Park nestled next to La Jolla all the way down to Crystal Pier at the center of town. I took it while standing on the grassy bluff near Law Street.

I waited for the tide to drop from high before paddling out at Tourmaline, this time with a more appropriate fish. Sad to say, I'm not fit to charge the bigger breaks at the moment* and had to turn down a tempting offer of Swami's from Ian. Serendipitously, Allison texted that she would be at Tourmo a bit later, riding her 10-foot "beluga" longboard. The breaks were packed despite it being the middle of a workday (don't these people have jobs?!) and we never did find each other, a task made more difficult by a strong current sucking south. Back issues kept my session under an hour, but I got into a few fun waves. The last was best, with a fast shoulder-high drop and short left shoulder before I turned against the section and rode the whitewater in. Stoked!

*Long-time readers will remember that I hurt my back in a bad wipeout in July '06, and have never fully recovered. After yet another futile round of physical therapy, I put my trust in one more specialist last month. He injected cortisone into my facet joints which, contrary to expectations, made my back pain worse. Fortunately, the effects are temporary, and - fingers crossed - I'll return to my old normal within a few months. For now, my back feels weak at times, and I can't endure paddling for long. I overdid it last week at Del Mar with a 2-hour session and have been paying the price.

Soft Shoulders

Surfline's Pacific Beach cam showed the best shape at Tourmaline this morning, so I went there instead of Crystal Pier, my usual local break. When we arrived in San Diego a year ago, Tourmo was initially my go-to spot, until I got over my unfounded fears of being too incompetent or unwelcome to surf with the shortboarders at the pier.

Besides the constant crowd, there's another good reason why I moved on from Tourmo: the wave is soft, a point I'd momentarily forgotten. It wasn't as closed out as the rest of the beach, sure, and there were shoulders aplenty, but the waves were challenging to get into on my shortboard. Longboarders were snagging them on the outside, and the lucky stayed on past a flat section till they reformed. Still, I was able to play on a handful on the inside, and enjoyed watching a shortboarder more skilled than I work them for all they were worth. Someday that'll be me.