I should've taken my camera!
The weather has been hot lately and that can mean only one thing.....Fall is here! And as every Bay area surfer knows....that means the conditions for good waves are in effect! It took about 2 weeks of hot weather to equalize the pressures over the land and sea and put those onshore winds and fog to rest. Now we have calm winds and glassy water. Add in some south swell and you have the recipe for happiness.
I had been watching the pro surf contest at Trestles for the last couple days and getting all amped to surf fun waves. That wave is particularly enticing because its shape beckons you to be all that you can be. And watching the masters maximize its potential just heightens my own aspirations.
I usually like to check our local surf report: Surfpulse to get the nitty-gritty of what's happening waveside. Today I kept checking it and checking it, but every time all I saw was the post from yesterday. I could feel it....the surf was so fun that our faithful reporter had bailed the report so he could paddle. Finally, at 2pm my suspicions were validated. He had surfed for 3 hours and then was so deliriously high from the session that he forgot all about posting a report.
As fate would have it I got off work at 3pm and was in the water by 4! When I rolled up to the beach and saw the glassy conditions and peaky head high surf rolling in I felt like a little kid. The joy was so pure and the excitement so full that I hardly remember putting on my wetsuit. I only had one hour to surf before I had to return to family responsibilities. I channeled energy from watching the contest and treated the session like a heat.
I scoped the horizon with purpose looking for any and every fun wave I could get into. After a wave I would sprint back out to the line-up. I had so many waves today! The ocean knighted me a wave-magnet today! I was getting the best wave of the set every time. It was incredible. I actually started feeling a bit guilty and towards the end of the session called a couple guys into waves even though I
was in priority position. And both times that happened there was another wave behind it that was even better. I felt very fortunate this session!
I was just so happy out there! It felt good to hoot for guys when they were getting good waves. It was fun to hear dudes hoot when a set approached. The only thing missing from this session was a close friend.
Anticipation is a tricky thing. It is very easy to feel let down after longing for some outcome over a period of time. Every spring and summer I try to put the expectations for the Fall surf conditions to the back of my mind. I do things to keep me in the moment. I always take my fins with me to the beach so that I know I could get in a bodysurf. I really try to focus on being stoked with one good one. I do a lot of fitness training. But even with these tools the hopes for Fall slither their way to my attention.
I do not want to build up Fall too much in my head. There are infinite ways that it could not meet my expectations. Then there would be this empty feeling that would linger until the next Fall when I would hope for another chance. Yet, I think hope is part of our human condition. It is one of those driving forces that gets us up every morning. And so ultimately, I give in to my inner callings for good surf.
Every barrel when I'm bodysurfing is an opportunity to become more familiar with the tube so that when the Fall arrives I can hunt down some in and outs. I constantly push and refine my fitness training so that I can maximize my time in the water without injury and a body that is strong enough and flexible enough to come closer to my imaginings.
If todays session is a sign of things to come..........Yes!
If it is not...............Well, that was one fun day of Fall!
