Waves with Friends (Dunes)

Dunes was the place to be this morning, offering lots of fun waves up to shoulder high. We had a sizable crew there, including J-Bird, Jacob, Chris and a couple of their East Coast buddies, John and Nate; Luke and Beth; and Heather and her friend Clayton. I got a bunch of nice long rides, mostly rights, working many of them through one or two reforms to the inside. Unfortunately Emm didn't have such a great time; she got bonked on the business side when Jacob wiped out in front of me, and has a several-inch-long dent on the bottom deck near the nose. If only his leash was a little shorter...

Heather and Clayton timing their entry

After I rode a whoopin' good party wave with J-Bird, I filmed from the beach while she went back out and caught one with Luke, this time in the front position.

Surfline: NW-WNW (285-315) fades through the day as small SSW (195-205) energy mixes in. The full tide keeps things pretty swamped initially, with mainly chest-head high waves showing at the exposed areas. Top spots see larger sets on occasion. Shape improves as the tide drops. Light wind now. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 6.2 ft at 10.0 s WNW 18 / WIND WAVE: 2.0 ft at 4.2 s WNW / WVHT: 6.6 ft / APD: 6.7 s / MWD: 303° (Met) WSPD: 10 kts / GST: 12 kts / WVHT: 6.6 ft / DPD: 10.0 s / WDIR: 310° / ATMP: 48.2° F / WTMP: 51.3° F. Tide: 3.5' falling to 1.5'.

Under the Weather (Linda Mar)

I was under the weather today, literally and figuratively. Glowering clouds dripping with cold rain clamped an oppressive lid on the world, and I felt out of sorts and lethargic, like I was coming down with something. I needed to pick up my Insulator wetsuit from Sonlight Surf Shop, back from having the fin cut repaired in just over a month. Rip Curl had to replace the entire mid panel which runs from thighs to chest, but the cost was only $27, plus $12 for shipping.

That's not the sun; it's a water droplet. Or a UFO.

Despite the weather and my own sorry state, I couldn't very well drive to the coast without surfing if there were halfway decent waves, so I packed the car just in case. By the time I arrived I was feeling a bit better. The winds had clocked around to the south as forecast, so some of Linda Mar's usual closeouts were holding up shoulders and looked worth a paddle out. The offshore wind was rather too much of a good thing, and lacking my usual energy, I wasn't getting over the lip against it. Stormy conditions made the surface choppy, and my brief perk-up faded. After barely escaping out the back of a head-high closeout with spray falling around me like hurricane rain, I caught one just-broken wave north of the pumphouse and decided to try the smaller section to the south. While the northern peaks were scarcely populated, the southern parts were clogged with surfers, and I had trouble claiming an empty wave. Finally one came to me, mine all mine, and I landed a nice shoulder-high drop and rode it in. The rain was falling hard and steady as I walked up the beach. I saw J-Bird's car in the parking lot but we hadn't managed to connect in the water during my short time out. Perhaps if I had that flashing light on my helmet...

Surfline: 2-3 feet+. Crumbly, mostly clean lines with short sections and end corners on offer. Short-mid period NW (300+) swell mix and minimal SSW Southern Hemi swell combine for mostly waist-chest-shoulder high surf this afternoon, with a few larger sets working through at top exposures. Onshore winds are on the rise creating textured/bumpy surface conditions and the surf is a bit mixed up and disorganized overall. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 4.9 ft at 12.1 s NW 17 / WIND WAVE: 2.3 ft at 4.5 s W / WVHT: 5.2 ft / APD: 6.8 s / MWD: 308° (Met) WSPD: 12 kts / GST: 14 kts / WVHT: 5.2 ft / DPD: 12.0 s / WDIR: 190° / ATMP: 50.2° F / WTMP: 51.6° F. Tide: 3.5' to not quite 4'.

Eee Coal-Eye Be Damned (Dunes & HMB Jetty)

After missing out on surfing Rachel's Point last weekend due to lack of a surf buddy, I was eager to get out there today, and Surfline was predicting similar swell conditions to the fun group session two weeks ago. Alas, LOLA let me down, and the waves were much bigger than forecast, going double-overhead on the sets. The smaller inside peak wasn't working, and I watched one of the two guys out on the main peak getting repeatedly pummeled. Luke and I decided to hit Dunes instead.

When I surfed the Jetty on Friday it had already been raining lightly for a while, and there were bits of small brown flotsam (shards of kelp?), so I had reason to suspect the water quality. Surfrider SMC collects samples every Friday, and on Saturday confirmed that the ocean was unsafe for recreation at Surfers' Beach (the landlubber name for the break). Yesterday it rained and rained and rained some more, so I had no reason to believe the water had gotten any cleaner. I mentioned this to Luke as we suited up at Dunes. He said all the rain probably flushed out the contamination, or so he told himself, but anyway, what did it matter: Would knowing the water was dirty keep me from surfing? To which I answered no, without hesitation. As a confessed surf addict, I needed my fix, as did he. Perhaps we surfers rationalize playing in dirty water in similar ways to drug addicts using dirty needles. Sure, there's a risk, but... (Or perhaps I'm stretching the analogy too far and it's going to snap soon.)

Dunes was head-high plus with a handful of surfers scattered on various peaks. With the mix of short- and mid-period swells, it posed a bit of a challenge getting out. I followed Luke along along a weak rip current, and almost made it to the outside before being pulled over the falls on a turtle roll, run through the spin cycle and held down. I tried again, got a somewhat gentler rinse and spin, and attained the outside. I watched Luke paddle for a wave, then disappear behind a tall wall of froth. I wondered if he was rolling underneath, but then saw his head and shoulders appear as he rode fast to the left. Next it was my turn. I paddled as a sizable wave formed up behind me, unable to judge if it wanted to break right or left. I'm not certain now which I chose as I popped up and dropped down the 6' face, although I can guess I picked frontside. But the answer was both; I was on a section, with the wave breaking on either side of me. Remarkably, the section held up, and I turned right, left, right, tacking back and forth to stay in the green zone, until finally the whitewater converged and tossed me off. I turned to paddle back out, but I seemed to have landed in Closeout City far from a rip, unable to make much forward progress against the onslaught of breaking waves. I decided to escape to the beach to find a better path back, and rode a little whitewater in. It deposited me near, but not close enough, and head-high shorepound was threatening to smash me and Emm. A couple of times I moved away from the beach to avoid a beating, then finally found a lull in which to gain my feet and run for my life up onto dry sand. Heart pounding, I sat down to rest. Luke didn't see my OK signal (hands clasped over the head) and came in to check on me. By mutual agreement, we decided to relocate to the Jetty. I took off my gloves, put on my new waterproof Surf-Fur coat over my wetsuit, and drove the few miles north.

There was a bit more breeze on the water at the Jetty with a little crowd, and the waves were a notch down in size, but the paddle out was not so punishing. Regular-foot Luke was complaining that he was only catching lefts, but I seemed to be getting only rights, including a fast fun one with a nice drop. Finally I bagged a good left myself, riding it in close to the roadside rip-rap wall with a couple of sight-seers at the top of it looking on admiringly (or so I imagined).

Alamo Square

Then on a whim I drove into San Francisco to have lunch at yummy Herbivore with my husband, postponing a shower and leaving that possibly dirty water to soak in for a few extra hours. As I headed homeward from the City, I felt the pull of the ocean calling "come back and play!" but a third session was vetoed by my tired paddling muscles. Besides, my stoke tank's pretty full right now.

Surfline: New WNW (260-295) swell tops out early as a minor S-SSW (175-210) Southern Hemi blends in. Shoulder-head high+ waves are common early, while standout WNW exposures go a couple feet overhead on the best sets. Light wind early, although conditions are kinda mixed-up and funky overall. A nearly 6' high tide swamps things out around noon. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 7.9 ft at 10.8 s NW 17 / 9.2 ft at 12.1 s NW 16 / WIND WAVE: 1.3 ft at 3.4 s WNW / WVHT: 9.2 ft / APD: 8.8 s / MWD: 313° (Met) WSPD: 8 kts / GST: 12 kts / WVHT: 9.2 ft / DPD: 12.0 s / WDIR: 320° / ATMP: 49.1° F / WTMP: 52.0° F. Tide: 4' rising to 5'.

Cherry Blossoms on a Sunny Sunday

Surf-Fur Water Parka Review

I ordered a Surf-Fur reversible waterproof parka through Matuse before winter solstice, and had to wait a long, long time for it to arrive. It seems it was "stuck in Customs" for more than a month, or so they told me when periodically queried. The long hooded coat is billed as being waterproof, and several opportunities for its use came and went while I waited. My MINI Cooper S may be 3 years old already, but I still don't want to get seawater all over the cloth seat when I drive between breaks in a dripping wetsuit. It's bad enough that I've got half the beach on the floor.

Finally the coat arrived last week. Although the Matuse rep assured me that Small was my size (I fit various criteria for either XS or S), the arms are far too long, and I have to roll up the thick cuffs. On the plus side, there's ample room for changing into my wetsuit underneath, using the through-slits inside the large pockets. The amount of time I spend shivering in the cold is reduced, for less pre-surf pre-chill. Finishing a surf session yesterday in the rain, I decided to test the coat's waterproof claim by driving home without changing into dry clothes. It's a half an hour drive, but the waterproof parka lived up to its name, protecting the car's interior from my drippy self.

So far so good, but there are a couple of quality issues with the coat. There's an interior pocket meant for an iPod or key, but my coat came with the velcro closure partially detached and a hole in the stitching of the pocket that looks unintentional (and through which a key would fall). I examined the rest of the coat carefully and found no other defects. Since I'm not planning to use that add-on anyway, I opted not to send it back (after all, how many more months would I have to wait for a replacement?!).

I think the Surf-Fur will be a useful addition to my regular surfing gear, especially in the cold months. I just wish it had arrived at the start of winter instead of near its end.

I Heart Dead Presidents (HMB Jetty)

Inexplicably, my company gave us a 4-day weekend for Presidents' Day. Hey, I ain't complainin', since I had the opportunity to surf at the right tide, which was smack in the middle of everyone else's workday. We've had a run of storms that made the ocean angry and unruly, but today the wind finally calmed although the sky still gently weeped.

From the side of the road, where I hid a little longer from the cold steady rain, the Jetty looked at least rideable. It turned out to be surprisingly fun once I was in the water. There were only two guys out, a shortboarder on the first peak and a longboarder a bit farther down the beach, so I staked out my own peak to the right of them. Not long past a very high tide, the waves were mushy, and shoulder high +/-.  From the start, it was a bit like an amusement park ride with no lines - paddle out through persistent but not too punishing lines of whitewater, catch a fast fun ride in almost to the beach, rinse, and repeat. I took the video during a short rest break before moving back inside to ride the waves again. I was only out for about an hour, the most my leaky Hotline wetsuit would allow, but my wave count was high. Stoked!

Surfline: WNW (260-320) swell fades through the day today as some small SSW-S (210-175) swells mix in. Conditions are trying to clean up, with much lighter winds out of the NE on tap this morning. Better breaks are good for chest-shoulder-head high+ surf, with top WNW breaks still offering some 2-3' overhead sets. A deep high tide (peaking at a nearly 7' high just after 10am) keeps most breaks on the jumbled/wonky side through the morning. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 6.9 ft at 12.1 s NW 15 / WIND WAVE: 2.3 ft at 3.6 s NNE / WVHT: 7.2 ft / APD: 7.4 s / MWD: 306° (Met) WSPD: 12 kts / GST: 16 kts / WVHT: 7.2 ft / DPD: 12.0 s / WDIR: 60° / ATMP: 46.8° F / WTMP: 52.0° F. Tide: 4.5' falling to 3'.

Wait (HMB Jetty)

With the swell forecast similar to last Sunday but conditions looking better, low wind and a lot less chop, I'd hoped to surf Rachel's Point again for some overhead fun. I beat the bushes for someone to join me but came up empty, and I just don't feel comfortable surfing there alone. It's likely that not only would no one be in the water (except for some shark snacks, a.k.a. seals), but no one would be on the beach or bluffs either. It's a pretty lonely spot, despite being not that far from the beaten path. So instead off I went for a solo session at the Jetty, where I could find solace in the company of strangers.

There wasn't much of a crowd, only half a dozen guys in the water, a mix of short- and longboarders. Waves were shoulder- to head-high but the swell was disorganized and inconsistent. The lulls were so long they were hard to bear, given the cold air (41F). With shoulders scarce and fleeting, it was mostly about the drop, and I nailed some fun ones with short rides. I love it when a drop make me hoot!

Waiting for waves

Surfline: New NW groundswell tops out around mid-day with plenty of head high to overhead surf at the better exposed breaks. Standout NW spots produce occasional sets running a few feet overhead to double overhead. Modest SW groundswell mixes in with 3-4' sets at well exposed breaks. Peaky for beachbreaks that have a good balance to the combo. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 5.9 ft at 13.8 s W 14 / WIND WAVE: 0.7 ft at 2.9 s NW / WVHT: 5.9 ft / APD: 11.3 s / MWD: 277° (Met) WSPD: 6 kts / GST: 10 kts / WVHT: 5.9 ft / DPD: 14.0 s / WDIR: 320° / ATMP: 49.1° F / WTMP: 52.5° F. Tide: 4' falling to 2.5'.

Cold Pleasure (Pleasure Point)

In view of the tides today, I was open to surfing either Santa Cruz before work or Half Moon Bay after. Two of my buddies voted for the former, and we were to meet up at the Hook at dawn. The new groundswell hadn't come up as much as I'd expected, so the Hook was small, 38th had mere traces, and distant Pleasure Point looked like the happenin' spot. Quite a difference in the weather from my last session: both days were sunny, but on Sunday I stripped down to my bikini top as we walked to check the surf, whereas this morning it was a chill 38 degrees when I changed under my new Surf-Fur.

Neither of my buddies made it out, but I had a fun solo session on my own inside peak near the main one. The waves were inconsistent and mostly around shoulder high. They were all rights, and decently long with good push. The funnest had a nice drop, flattened out and reformed for another downsized drop, then did it again, and I bailed off the back as it closed in the kelpy shallows. Woot! I came up smiling, tee-hee-hee, that was so much fun!

Surfline: 2-3 ft+ occasionally 4 ft. Clean, lined-up, inconsistent peaks working through this morning. There are a few okay corners if you're in the right spot. A new longer period W-WNW (275-300+) groundswell is on the rise this morning as old WNW-NW swell-mix mixes in. Conditions are looking fairly clean through town with light NE winds 3-7kts. For the dawn patrol most breaks are good for knee-waist-chest high surf, with top exposures pulling in some inconsistent shoulder-head high sets. More size builds through the day. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 6.9 ft at 16.0 s W 13 / WIND WAVE: 1.3 ft at 3.3 s WNW / WVHT: 6.9 ft / APD: 8.4 s / MWD: 270° (Met) WSPD: 4 kts / GST: 6 kts / WVHT: 6.9 ft / DPD: 16.0 s / WDIR: 20° / ATMP: 51.4° F / WTMP: 52.2° F. Tide: 2.5' falling below 1'.

Confessions of a Surf Addict

Hi, my name is Cynthia, and I'm a surf addict.

My addiction began over seven years ago, when I rode a gentle knee-high wave on a waterlogged 10' foam surfboard in Florida. I was instantly, irreversibly hooked on the feeling, bought my first surfboard the next day, and spent the summer floundering around in the ocean, teaching myself to surf. My occasional successes in wave-riding fueled my addiction and kept me coming back for more. Even an inland move to the upper West Coast, where the 48°F ocean was almost 3 hours away, could not dissuade me. I bought a thick wetsuit and made the trek on weekends whenever possible, which wasn't often enough. Serious water time at a week-long surf camp in Costa Rica was fuel to the fire. Then nearly five years ago I moved to NorCal, a mere 50 miles from the real Surf City, U.S.A., and began to surf regularly about twice a week, the most family and work commitments will allow. It's close to the minimum needed to sustain my habit. If I'm out of the water for anything approaching a week, I start jonesin', needing a fix bad. Surfing is so much more than a hobby; it's an essential. And like any junkie, I've found that over time, it takes more to get me high: bigger waves, more challenging maneuvers. The easy rides on little waves don't pump me with stoke anymore, but landing a steep drop on an overhead wave rockets exhilaration through my system that keeps me smiling for days.

What is it about surfing that makes it so addictive? It's all about the brain chemicals, specifically dopamine, a neurotransmitter that stimulates the brain's reward and pleasure centers. Cocaine triggers dopamine, and so can riding a heavy wave. Scientists have found that the brains of risk-seeking athletes have some things in common with those of drug users, including the experience of withdrawal symptoms. Studies also indicate that thrill-seekers and risk-takers may lack "brakes", auto-receptors in their brain cells that limit dopamine, and thus will feel its pleasurable effects more intensely.

The very nature of surfing plays into the way dopamine works. If you're constantly satisfied, dopamine stops firing in your brain, but if you're only rewarded some of the time - a few good waves in the midst of a bunch of wipeouts, or closeouts, or other on-the-water disappointments - your dopamine cells will be pumping after the good rides, shooting you up with jolts of pleasure.  

Professor Marvin Zuckerman has spent decades studying what he calls "sensation seekers" who pursue novel and often risky experiences. Surfers qualify high on the scale. Are you a sensation seeker? You can take Zuckerman's test here. Not surprisingly, I scored 32 out of 40.

This post also appears on TheInertia.com, "a web-based media publication that features insightful commentary from the global surf community’s most prominent and thoughtful figures."

My Chin Won't Dry (Rachel's Point & HMB Jetty)

Last night I had the surf posse over for a fun evening of pizza and surf porn (Modern Collective, Scratching the Surface, and the classic Endless Summer). This morning the plan was to meet up at Rachel's Point for a surf check. I arrived first and to me, it looked marginal. The break was sheltered from the steady breeze and the waves were overhead (shoulder-high in Luke's wildly inaccurate estimation from the clifftop), but mushy with short shoulders that seemed to peter out quickly. When the gang arrived, my judgment was overruled, and I'm glad of it.

Luke, J-Bird, Jacob, Chris and I were joined by Dugen and Kyle, who sadly broke his only board in half on a heavy day at Dunes last week, and we were the only ones out. Everyone was on a longboard except me and Chris, but the slightly smaller inside peak was working just fine for us, and it had a more consistent take-off zone. With my chin cut glued together only yesterday, I did my best to follow the doctor's instructions to avoid prolonged submersion. Even with an easy channel paddle out, the heavy surface chop made it difficult to keep my chin dry.

Chris, Jacob, J-Bird, Luke and Kyle

As always, Rachel's required that I set fear aside and get close to the peak if I wanted to ride any waves. Fortunately, that's getting easier to do, and the wave wasn't pitching as much as during previous sessions. I got a bunch of fast, pretty long rides with fun drops, all lefts. The chop made it interesting, The first time I encountered a mogul as I made the drop, it threw me off. But the next time I rode over one hump in the face, then another, and another, like surfing down stairs. Chris saw it from the front and said it looked pretty wild. Stoked!

It's interesting how differently surfers can experience the same session. Luke had a couple of bad holddowns, and J-Bird got skunked (read her report here), but I had a blast! It was the best of my surf sessions this weekend. Jacob also got some nice rides, from the outside. I followed J-Bird in to check on Luke, who'd gone to sit on the beach after a nasty wipeout, and could've gone back out for more.

We drove in our wetsuits to the Jetty for a second session, since J-Bird needed to get some waves. It was windier and of course much smaller there, with a little crowd on the cleanest peak near the rock jetty. I caught a few anti-climatic closeouts and called it a day, still basking in the stoke from Rachel's Point. Good waves, good fun, good friends, good weekend!

Surfline: We have a mix of old WNW (270-295) swell mixing with a dose of S (180-190+) energy for generally smaller surf today. Shoulder-head high waves are common, while standouts go slightly overhead on the best sets. Breezy northerly flow adds some weird side/offshore bump/texture to most areas (N wind protected spots stay much cleaner). Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 7.5 ft at 11.4 s W 12 / 5.9 ft at 11.4 s WNW 11 / WIND WAVE: 5.2 ft at 6.7 s NW / WVHT: 9.2 ft / APD: 7.0 s / MWD: 278° (Met) WSPD: 17 kts / GST: 21 kts / WVHT: 9.2 ft / DPD: 14.0 s / WDIR: 320° / ATMP: 53.6° F / WTMP: 53.1° F. Tide: 3.5' rising to 4.5' high then falling to 4'.

Better Than Stitches (HMB Jetty)

I was looking forward to a less-crowded surf session, at the Jetty on a Saturday at dawn. Sadly, there were already a couple of guys in the water when I arrived, and the number of surfers swelled to six, then nine, then more than a dozen, as the sun rose higher. Since my 4/3 Hotline was still wet from surfing yesterday afternoon and the Rip Curl wetsuit is out for repairs until the middle of the month, I took my 5/4 Hotline, along with 3 mil gloves and 5 mil booties, figuring it would be cold anyway in the early morning. To my surprise, it was a downright balmy 61 degrees at the beach. In February, go figure!

After about 20 minutes I still hadn't caught any waves, which were shifty, mixed up, often closed out, and ranging from waist- to shoulder-high. A steady breeze blowing offshore textured the surface. The clot of surfers was on the best-shaped main peak close to the Jetty, so I was on the next one down in front of the drainpipes, trying for the left. Deciding I was too far out, I paddled closer to shore, only to see a wave about to break right behind me, or so I figured. What the hell, I thought, I want to ride something already, so I paddled for it, only to find I'd misjudged; the lip crashed down on my head, slamming my chin hard into my board. When I surfaced and sat up, I was surprised to see the water turning red in front of me; I touched my chin and the glove came away bloody. Crap. It was a lot of blood, more than when I'd hard snogged my board numerous times before. I called to a surfer paddling by to ask how bad it looked, but he didn't hear me. I think I've read that facial cuts always bleed a lot, even when they're not that bad. I couldn't go in, not having ridden one wave! Just then, a promising wall formed up behind me, and I rode the wave in close to the beach. The blood was still dripping. Should I go? If only I had a mirror... but wait, I have a camera on my wrist. I took a few pictures of my face, but couldn't make out enough detail on the teeny LCD screen. (No, you don't need to see it.) Well, if it doesn't stop bleeding soon, I'll go in, I thought as I paddled back out for another.

The bleeding stopped shortly after, and aside from a little ache, I forgot about my chin while riding a few more waves with fun little drops and short shoulders. But I had a tennis lesson to make, so I couldn't linger, and back at the car I took a look at my chin in the side mirror. The still-oozing cut wasn't long but it was wide and offered an uncomfortably deep view into my body. Stitches seemed likely. Crap, crap, crap! I googled for the nearest urgent care, which was just up the road in Moss Beach, and drove myself there as soon as I'd struggled out of all that thick neoprene. The wait was mercifully short, and the nurse speculated that the cut was clean enough that glue might close it up instead of stitches. Although I've previously self-medicated lip wounds with the drugstore equivalent of Super Glue, I didn't realize an official version could be used for a more substantial laceration. But sure enough, after the nurse cleaned the wound with saline more pure than the ocean it had been dunked in, the doctor had me tilt my head back while he brushed stinging Dermabond into the cut and pushed the edges tight. He told me I probably should stay out of the ocean, but then specifically cautioned about prolonged submersion until the glue drops off in about 4 days.

I think I can manage to keep my chin out of the water most of the time while I surf. But I'll wait until tomorrow.

Surfline: WNW (270-295) groundswell fades with smaller surf on tap this morning. Small-scale SSW (180-190) energy mixes in as well. Shoulder-overhead+ waves are still common, while top exposures go several feet overhead on the best sets. Light NE wind early, although many spots (especially the S facing areas) see some minor bump/crumble to the surface. A late-morning 5'+ high tide slows things down as we move through the day. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 8.9 ft at 13.8 s WNW 10 / WIND WAVE: 2.3 ft at 5.0 s NW / WVHT: 9.2 ft / APD: 8.1 s / MWD: 298° (Met) WSPD: 10 kts / GST: 14 kts / WVHT: 9.2 ft / DPD: 14.0 s / WDIR: 320° / ATMP: 53.2° F / WTMP: 52.7° F. Tide: 2' rising to 3'

Third Derivative (38th Ave)

J-Bird picked up her new surfboard today from shaper Ward Coffey. It's the third derivative of Beth's 8'3" Petty hybrid longboard. The first two are my 8'3" Magic, an epoxy clone by Arrow, and Emm, a 7'0" also shaped by Ward. J-bird was so excited to try her new board that she dashed ahead of me and Luke to get in the water at 38th. By the time we paddled out to join her, she was already sporting a big grin from her first good ride. It was fun to share her new-board stoke.

I'd earned early release today by working late on Monday, but apparently a lot of other people had also found a way to be out surfing in the middle of a Friday afternoon. There was heavy competition for the shoulder-high set waves, and since I was on my 7'0", the longboarders had the advantage. So mostly I stayed on the inside and nibbled on smaller table scraps, although after the first few waves of a set thinned the lineup, I did manage to get a bite of the entree.

On the whole, a fine way to start a long weekend of surf!

Pelican in Flight

Sand Sculpture

Surfline: 2-3' occ. 4'. New WNW swell builds in this afternoon as old WNW swell fades. Better exposures are offering shoulder-head high+ surf, with some 2-3'+ overhead sets for top spots. Winds are out of the NNW for fairly clean conditions for most breaks through town. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 8.2 ft at 13.8 s W 09 / WIND WAVE: 1.3 ft at 3.7 s NW / WVHT: 8.2 ft / APD: 10.2 s / MWD: 278° (Met) WSPD: 6 kts / GST: 10 kts / WVHT: 8.2 ft / DPD: 14.0 s / WDIR: 320° / ATMP: 49.3° F / WTMP: 53.2°. Tide: 2' falling to 0'