OB was giant today, and the swell kept building through the afternoon until it became completely overloaded. Around noon, I saw a couple of guys get cleaned up by a 20 footer on an outside outside bar and washed into double overhead inside bar death wedges, and thought, no, not today. Would be safer at Mavs. At least there are skis and a channel.
Saturday morning was 5-6 ft at 20-21 seconds when I left the house with Stretch cork board (swell kept building throughout the day).
Made it out without much drama, then spend first hour mostly trying to get lefts to aid in fight against the longshore drift. Was moderately successful even with the broad peaks making some rides just drops (with quick hop offs).
Got tired and then decided to save energy for waves rather than for fighting the current.
Had mixed results because I ended up drifting to lower quality but emptier peaks. Further I drifted, the more the peaks became more A-frame-ish.
Stand-out event was after catching 2nd wave of bigger set at the B+ peak. Guy on a foam board caught the first one, a left. I was going to go since I thought he was too deep but since he was committed, set eyes on the 2nd wave. Didn't have to jockey for this one, just paddle out and spin, dig deep, pop up, solid bottom turn, wave walls up, figure I have 50/50 at making a great tube and just as start to commit, see the foamer surface out of the whitewater. How did I not see him earlier? Decide not to risk it, straighten out, and when just past/parallel to him, hop off and take the beating. His board softly klunks me when I surface, and then it is a mad race to the shoulder to avoid the 3rd wave (empty). I get over the shoulder, he doesn't. Don't see him again.
Have some more fun, some great duck dives, and last wave was a little on the soft side but got me through to the inside reform to the point when I finally got bucked off, I was in waist deep water.
Sunday was me looking at the gauntlet at the Beach (SF) then driving south to Santa Cruz where it was still biggish, but much more accessible/fun to someone of my skill level. (Did consider paddling out at a smaller section of the Beach and then taking the current to the waves, but was not feeling it....I blame older-age induced wussness.)
In SC, was fun to be out there with some pretty high quality surfing. Just sitting on the shoulder and watching was pretty good...like being right on the playing field sidelines.
Whenever I could sneak into a wave, had to remind myself how to use the various signs of upcoming sections (knots of surfers and/or boils, and kelp tells) to better negotiate the wave. A few times I got it wrong, payment was getting whipped by the kelp underwater and sort of pushed sideways underwater instead of down. Twice had that unpleasant moment when you feel tangled in the kelp and are low on air underwater....thankfully it is more of a feeling of being "permanently" tangled than the temporary tangled it really is.
Best wave was on a set that swung wide. Two guys go on the first, and I go up over the shoulder (paddling pretty hard). 2nd wave has someone on it( he paddled over from primary peak), and I go up over the shoulder, 3rd wave was looking like it could me just mine, but see that it is going to be contested by another who sprint paddled over. Thinking he might be too deep, I continue to paddle for it, and then he goes, and I back out, and see another wave and this time, there is no one else around. As it builds, have to dig a harder than I thought I would have to get into it (was I really that far out for the set or is this a smaller wave or my positioning that bad, all of the above?), but I make the drop, see the crowd racing for the shoulder, and man, those long Santa Cruz walls..... Get past the first boil, carve off the top, bottom turn, swerve around someone still racing the shoulder (come on buddy, take one on the head for the team!), set up, see the knot of surfers wondering if I will make the next section, pump, go high, release the inside rail and partially side slip down into the pocket, re-engage and zing past that section with people looking down from the shoulder after backing out. Cut back, then it is the roller-coaster pump drive for the next section that I could kick out on or keep going....due to the crowd, figure I can't waste things by kicking out too earlier. So I keep going on the now headhigh/overhead wave, passing by longboarders, moving into the zone where you start to feel a little kelp drag more often. When I finally kick out, I consider just going in. How am I going to top that? Ego has me paddle back out.
As it would turn out, my optimism of an equally good or better wave was misplaced. Didn't catch another like it. Last wave had fatigue written all over the drop, leading to poor foot placement, leading to going straight off into the flats, a thrashing, and then long bouncing belly ride.
Good times!
