Lucking Into It

I picked Saturday morning and lucked out, no doubt. Dawn patrolled with Nash straight to this spot at 7:30, nobody out. A perfect a-frame was firing at low tide, no wind. The picture above is of a wave that only tells half the story. I parked myself on the left side of the peak and grabbed one long left after another that just fired on the inside, kicking up into a consistent shoulder-high tube. Every time I'd paddle back out, I would stare down the barrel of an almond shaped green cavern tumbling toward me. Of course, I would try to squeeze into it again and again, getting throttled in the process... but there was this one:

I dropped in really late and almost pearled at the bottom. Had to turn hard off my back foot to avoid losing momentum in the trough and getting clipped. As I got back up to the pocket, the lip whizzed over my head and I heard this splashing echo. Bracing myself for another beating, I suddenly felt the board accelerate and before I knew what was happening, sailed out onto the open face. Confession: I may have closed my eyes. Before I could assess what had just happened, I saw the whole wave start to throw in a 25-yard section. Tried to turn again off the top, but should have kicked out. Got pitched, but it was worth it. I'm not going to claim "tube ride" here, but damn whatever happened felt good.

At around 11:00, the wind began to ripple the surface. In 15 minutes, it completely killed the surf. I stayed out for another hour anyway.

Top photo via Nash and picture above used without permission from Raw Waters & Cedar. If you look closely on the outside (two over from the janitor), you'll see me angling for the next set wave. Thanks, Gaz!