Before the Wind

After a late night outdoor ice skating (yes, you can do almost anything in southern California), I figured I'd woken too late to surf before the wind came up. Happily, the forecast was wrong about the onset of the southerlies so I wolfed down a piece of toast and was out the door.

The breeze and crowd were light at Hennemens but the chop was quite bouncy. Searching for rideable waves, I chatted with longboarder Kevin, who I first met at Tourmaline last year. In an hour, I scored my minimum of three decent rides, finishing with a nice long left all the way to shore as the wind started to blow in earnest.

Next surf: Kauai, where the forecast is 2-3 times overhead!

What the Sea Gives Me

Last night I saw What the Sea Gives Me at Green Flash Brewery with a few friends.

What the sea gives me is stoke, and hope, and fear, and joy - and so much more. It's my oxygen, and I need to breathe it often. One interviewee in the film quoted Doc Paskowitz:

I entered the water that day wanting to blow my brains out. I came out a warrior. Surfing can make that change happen inside a man.

...or a woman. I've had no more suicidal thoughts since I started surfing, because if I died, I would never ride another wave. And I always want to ride another wave.

This morning the sea gave me several long rides before breakfast. And it was good.

Blacks Birthday

The surf has been small, but I was hopeful to find some birthday waves at the local swell magnet. Although Blacks didn't look like this:

it thankfully didn't look like this either:

The waves were chest and occasionally shoulder high, a bit broken up, with light texture and light crowd. I scored several nice ones, including a left that took me pleasantly by surprise when, in the midst of a late drop, I somehow landed my feet solidly on the board rode it out.

Blacks is such a lovely spot to surf, facing the towering cliffs of Torrey Pines, with a view of Scripps pier and La Jolla beyond to the south and the coastline bending to Del Mar northward. Wildlife abounded this morning. There were birds of all sorts, including a tiny duckling-like creature that floated near. Large fish arced above the water, taking a fast line away from an unseen predator at a thankful distance.

The increasing breeze grew chilly but I'd sufficiently satisfied my thirst for surf. With Rocket under my arm and a smile on my face, I started up the long and steep private road from the beach, past a woman walking her dogs off-leash.

"Did you have fun?"
"Yeah!"
"Now you have to keep that with you all day."

That's always good advice about stoke.

One of my best birthday gifts (besides the sweet waves) was a blank book with this quote on the cover:

EXPOSURE Inspires

The EXPOSURE women's skate event was inspirational. It got me to the park in Ocean Beach for the first time in probably a couple months. I'm rusty and out of shape!

Ross Field Skate Park this morning. And that's how skaters do memorials.

What inspired me was seeing other girls of all ages and abilities skating. Groms (if they're called that in skateboarding) were boosting airs, and I can't wait to see what rad moves they're capable of in five or ten more years. Then there were the seniors, a few women over 50, who were taking their first tentative pushes around the flats. And the pro women were absolutely ripping. Truly inspirational.

This little Pink Helmet Posse girl had the biggest smile when she pulled a fakie with the help of a friend.

Front-row seats - this was the view from our Surfrider Rise Above Plastics booth.

Ready, set...

Go!

Commit.

Amelia Brodka

Flying