I extended my Labor Day weekend during the past week by taking Tuesday off. I made it to the beach early and met my surfing mentor Brian. He and I were the only ones at the beach that day. Waves were not big, but at least there were some. Also, because no one else was on the beach, I had plenty of room to play on my board. I had been learning about taking off at a slight angle so I could ride the wave farther down the beach. Brian told me that I needed more of a Mae West wiggle with my back leg because it looked so stiff when I was standing on the board. I certainly didn't argue since I felt like I was stiff, and because when I saw photos of myself on the board, I looked stiff. Tuesday was a good day to practice. I successfully caught the small waves at an angle, popped up and wiggled. I was able to walk on the board and turn it successfully. Brian thought I improved quite a bit on Tuesday. I won't really know though until I'm out on a real wave and successfully riding it in. I also practiced my knee paddling, which has turned out to be a very effective way of getting out quickly.
I usually surf on Friday too, but, today (9-11), the seas were flat! It was also quite rainy with showers popping up quickly and offering much-needed downpours to the area. However, where there are rainstorms in southeast Texas, there is also lightning. Lightning and surfing don't go together at all.
In my last blog post, I mentioned that I was looking for a poem to share. I'm close to finding one. I believe I located the title and the author, but I haven't read the actual poem yet. Maybe next time...
(The photo posted with this blog was taken Sunday, Sept. 6, before I caught some waves.)
