Wednesday September 30, 2009
neighbourhood point break
Today we were coming back from Morro Bay, and decided to pull in to Spyglass Park so the kids could let off some steam at the adventure playground there. They have some cool apparatus and the kids were fully-charged for that. We were veryh close to home, so this would count as a neighbourhood park.
I knew about the surf break here at the park, so peeked over the cliff to see what was going on. Below the bluffs, there is a nice point break, and when the swell is right, treats you to a nice reliable wave. Just south of the bluffs, I saw 4 dudes out there sharing these nice waves, which featured a long right-hander that offered a long cruise down the beach. I even saw one dude down there on a long board that he was standing up on and paddling around with a long paddle. He was fun to watch, so smoothly entering these waves, and taking long rides. North of the bluff some dudes were on short-boards shredding it up on a much faster break there.
The sun was so hot out, this being around 1400, and the temperature was somewhere in the 80s. We had no fog today, clear blue skies, and amazing visibility. You could look out across the ocean and see forever. Like you could see the swell coming in from thousands of miles away, to break right here, at this spot....
We had some sort of tsunami warning yesterday, from a big earthquake on the other side of the Pacific. So perhaps that has contributed to the swell around here ? Who knows....this is a break I have never surfed, and do not know. I don't know how it reacts to various swells, what the bottom is like, where the rocks are, whether the kelp beds I see out there are an issue, what type of waves you can get, or whether the locals are friendly ?
As we get closer to 1500, I can see a few more people are showing up to head down to the waves. The kids are still having fun in the playground, and I am fully stoked for getting my longboard out there. I've got my wetsuit in the van, and it is still soaked from being in at Morro Bay boogey-boarding earlier this afternoon. I check with Mommy on going out for a bit, and she encourages me to zip home and get the longboard - so, I hop in the van, drive a mile home to John's to load up the board, and am back in a matter of minutes. A short-haul surf trip. Awesome! No multi-hour westward venture like at home.
I'm down on the beach shortly after 1500, and getting back into the wet wet-suit, and waxing up the board. A bit more wax on the rails should do the trick. Last week at Pismo I was slipping around there a little.
I watch one of the locals head out before me, and track where he goes in to paddle out. Just over the reef at the edge of the beach appears to be a place to go in, so head that way, and end up paddling out over the kelp-beds towards the line-up. Seems to be about 7 or 8 folks lined up next to the sweet spot, so I head over that way, and find a spot to park, and wait my turn.
This break kind of reminds me of a place called Paniau down in Puako, HI, but that is an epic tale that I will seek to tell another time. I still have vivid memories of taking my first drop down there on a hot winter day in 1994. The visuals are still with me, clear as yesterday.
There's a good mix of young kids, older guys, and girls on the waves today. About 9 people total for the time I was out there. A few folks greeted me so that was nice. Back at home, some of the breaks are noted for their chilly climate towards visitors, but I am getting no stink-eye from this crowd. So that's cool. The older guys are on longer boards, while the young guys are on shortboards. One of the girls just went through the kelp beds and had her fin broken off, so she is heading in to fix it or get another board. I am on a 10-foot plank out here, and this appears to be the longest board on the wave right now. I'm set to cruise.
The wave seems to break in 1 or 2 spots over the point, and there was plenty of room to move around with everyone, so we didn't have that crowded-peaks feeling. I wait my turn, and check out the scene for bit, to kind of get my bearings. Not quite sure what the bottom is like, and whether there are any hidden rocks I should be aware of. We're on a wave that is breaking to the right, so everyone seems to be getting these long rides down the wave, which is nice.
I'm still working on finding my feet on this plank, and re-aquiring a feel for how it rides. I was out to Pismo on it last week, and the mushy beach break was fun, but I was getting those under-whelming rides that I wish I could improve. My wave-riding skills are a little rusty, and it ususally takes me a few rides to get my timing back in check, and to find the sweet spot on the break, and the board.
Somehow, I get in line for this sweet peak that has just rolled in, and it looks like this one is mine, as no one else is on it. I paddled a bit late for it, but it picked me up anyway, and I took off like a shot. If I was a bit quicker on the take-off, I could have taken the drop on my feet, but I rode down the first face before I could get to my feet, and by the time I got up there, I was still zooming....this board really wants to ride, given the right wave. Luckily I had no-one in front of me, so had no extra navigation to do as the first surge died down, and then I made a bit of an angle to the right to find the second surge in the wave, and managed to ride the edge of the crest just for that long cruise down the beach. I was clearly riding this wave, taking it all the way I could....
There is something about the passage of time while you're up there. I know it wasn't that long of a ride, not long like on a surf video or anything, but it just seemed to go on and on and on....and not like I was needing to pump for it or anything, the wave was packing enough juice to make riding it a breeze on this plank. Of course near the end of the ride, I was getting hung up in the kelp beds, so decided to bail on the ride and hop from the board hoping not to find any rocks.....made it off OK, and began the paddle back out.....
Nice dude!