Christmas and a cute 'surf' present

I received an email this evening from a surf friend who said that he had been surfing today and that the waves were wonderful. It wasn't just sent to me. The message was sent to several of the surfers who usually hang out in G-town near the 43rd Street jetty. I'm not sure about the motivation behind the email other than to just let us know that he was having fun on this special holiday. He had great waves and the beach to himself. It's Christmas, and I'm sure that most, if not all, in the "to" field had other non-surf commitments related to the holiday. I did. I don't even remember having looked at the webcam on the G-townsurf site, but I can't imagine skipping it either since it is a daily ritual. So, I'm sure I must have looked at it and missed the "fabulousness" of the waves. That happens sometimes. What doesn't necessarily look good on the cam, can look pretty awesome sometimes when standing on the beach. I'm actually glad my friend got to surf, and was also thrilled to hear that on this special holiday, he was able to do what he loves to do and relax. A sharp, north wind, drizzle and gray skies made the day definitely feel like winter, and might have actually kept me from attempting to go surfing even if it hadn't been a holiday. If I had decided to go surfing, I would have been miserably cold; and, I would have had to wear my 5-4, which would have kept me warm for a little while, but not warm enough. Being miserably cold doesn't ALWAYS deter me from wanting to surf, but it might have today. Sometimes, I just feel like I have to get in the water; especially when I haven't surfed in a while. It's only been a little over a week now since I got to surf, and I am missing it, but not enough to leave my family gathering, get into a thick wetsuit and surf in the winter weather. Luckily, I have the week off. I am hoping for waves tomorrow, but the forecast is not looking good for tomorrow or any other day this week. Too bad. Sure wish I could pack up and go surf some place warm this week!  Ummmm....maybe it's something to think about and plan for next year.

Family gatherings are wonderful. Today was no different, except for a little family drama. We successfully struggled through the drama though and, all in all, had a fabulous Christmas celebration. Gifts were exchanged and games were played. We ate and laughed. I was pleasantly surprised by a little gift from my sister. (We siblings aren't supposed to exchange gifts.) Picture attached. This cute little board with a magnet will be great for a photo or even a note. She had noticed a photo of a Robert August surfboard in my vacation photos and had decided to decorate my board (she made one for all of the women in the family and included special designs that reflected our interests) with a miniature picture of the RA board. It was an incredibly thoughtful gift and one that I will cherish always. Now, I just have to decide where to put it so that I can see it often.

Merry Christmas!

Cold water and commencement

Friday morning surf

Finally! I surfed. It had been a couple of weeks since I had been out, and I was dying to get in the water. Waves, wind and the lack thereof has kept me from my usual twice a week, Friday/Sunday schedule. But, this past Friday, a scheduling change at work gave me the perfect opportunity to get in some pre-work surf on some decent north-wind waves. The SwellInfo report suggested that the best waves of the week would be Friday morning since a cold front was predicted to cross the coast late Thursday/early Friday. One of the guys I surf with had sent me and my surf pal Robin an email earlier in the week saying that he had re-arranged his work schedule so that he could surf early on Friday. Commencement weekend could have put the kibosh on my wave time, so I negotiated a scheduling shift with me working later in the day on Friday and all day Saturday and taking off Friday morning. I made it to G-town around 8 a.m. I had been reading all week that the water temp was in the 50s, but decided to brave it in my 3-2. Master surf dude Brian had on a 5-4 and my other friend had on his 4-3 with a head covering and booties. I hate wearing booties, so I left them at home. Needless to say, after about 45-minutes to an hour later, I was freezing. Dude Brian claimed that my lips were blue. I don't know about that, but I do know that while I had some great rides in that first 45 minutes, shortly after that I had a hard time standing on my board simply because I couldn't feel my feet. They were like blocks of ice. As I said, the first almost-hour was nice. The sets were decent and well-defined. I've certainly surfed better waves, but Friday morning was nicer than many of my summer surf days. After about an hour-and-a-half (probably 30 minutes longer than I should have stayed out), I limped in to shore -- definitely a limp since I couldn't even catch white water by that time without wiping out. (I feel certain it was the cold keeping me from doing ANYthing right by then.) Circumstances were dictating that I get out of the water and get warm. I shivered as I tried to remove my wetsuit and get into dry clothes quickly. Dude Brian was forced to pull the wetsuit off of me because I was shivering too much to do it myself. Peeling off a wetsuit is like peeling off a layer of skin, and, when it's cold, shivering fingers cannot peel anything. Getting in the car, cranking up the heater and driving to the closest Starbucks was the only way for me to survive the misery. It doesn't matter though. I would have done it all again today if there had been waves simply to experience that first hour again. Winter surfing can be fun!

In addition to surfing this weekend, I had the pleasure of working at the commencement ceremonies for UHCL. What a fun time! Everyone is happy at commencement: faculty, administration, staff and, especially, students. Speakers at both of the ceremonies offered their advice and provided reminders to people like me -- people who had graduated a long time ago -- that the future is bright and that we all have the ability to make a dream a reality.  As one of the speakers put it, "Who do you want to be? Not what, but who? You get to decide that every day." What a great way to think about our lives. Yes, I get to decide who I am every day. And, I'm fortunate this weekend that I not only got to be a surfer, but also a spectator/worker at a fabulous event that marks a turning point in so many lives.

Winter wash and adventure racing

Oh how I miss surfing! It seems lately that my regular surf days are either plagued by bad surf or filled with other responsibilities. My surf updates this weekend were filled with bad news. When the King Surf Dude calls and says he is canceling lessons 'cause the weather and waves are crappy, then I know it's pretty bad down at the 43rd Street jetty. I probably should use the time to take the summer wax off of my Senator board (Petal), my McTavish (Rainbow) and my JLS (Lil' Sis), and replace it with cold water wax. Not sure what the differences are between the two types of wax, but I guess they wouldn't sell it unless it was necessary. Either that, or I'm just a sucker. I don't think so though because the King Surf Dude Brian mentions to me occasionally when the seasons change that I need to do it.  I noticed on g-townsurf.com that the water temp yesterday was 57 degrees. Brrrrrr! While I've been using my 3-2 wetsuit during the last few sessions, I haven't been extremely cold; possibly because the air temperature was in the 60s and 70s. However, with the last passing of a cold front earlier this week, not only had the water temps dropped a few degrees, but so has the air temp. When the air temp drops, the worst part of surfing is standing on the Seawall and pulling off the wetsuit after a surf session. I can NEVER get the wetsuit pulled off and my sweatshirt and sweatpants put on fast enough! But, I digress. This should be a time of maintenance; a time to get things ready for my winter surf...even if the temps are supposed to be back in the 70s by next weekend.

Although I didn't get to surf this weekend, I made the best of it. I participated in my first adventure race. A cycling/running friend does them often. Both of the people he usually partners with in the team category were busy. I had expressed interest in his adventure races. So, when neither of them could make it to this latest race, he contacted me. I was thrilled. It would be something completely different for me! Adventure races are set up in several different ways. Many of them have a running leg, a mountain-bicycling leg and a kayaking leg. Some offer mystery sports, and some require participants to use a GPS to locate the stamps for their race "passport." My friend said that this particular race would be a good one for me since I was a first-timer. I asked him to explain, and he said that he always thinks of this particular race -- the Dave Boyd Adventure Race -- as a great one for beginners. What a great time I had! Although I've had a mountain bike for a long time, I don't use it much. I'm not a very aggressive mountain biker, and to be a good mountain biker, you have to be aggressive. I like to say that a person has to have the mentality of a 10-year-old boy to be a good mountain biker. 10-year-old boys do NOT think they can die, which is why they take the risks that they do. A mountain biker can't be thinking about getting hurt, he/she has to be thinking only about how to get around the bump in the path. Because the river in Lake Houston Park is low, the kayaking leg for this race was canceled. Instead, this race included a 2.65 trail run, a 14.11-mile mountain bike ride through easy to moderate (for me) trails finishing with a 2.65 trail run on the same course as the first run. We also waded across a low river to get to one of the punch-card stations. The air temp was cool Saturday, but I'm glad because then I was forced to wear long sleeves and leggings. This extra layer of clothing protected my skin from the tree limbs, vines and brush that I had to maneuver through to get to my check points. This particular race included two categories -- a 12-hour course for the diehard adventurers and a 2- to 3-hour sprint course for people like us. We finished almost an hour after the first place team in our category, and probably placed last or next to last in our category. But, I had so much fun! After all, it was my first adventure race AND the first time I've ever run on trails. We finished in 3:19.  I've decided that this won't be my last adventure race. Even if I don't get to partner with my friend again, I might try to do it alone. Of course, if some of the courses require a GPS, I might have to re-think it. After all, I'd hate to get lost on a trail in a race. Ummm...like surfing, I definitely need more practice.

As good as...

My mother made everything a competition when I was growing up. I know I've mentioned it before, but my mother used a "game" technique to get my brother, sisters and I to do the things we needed to do. Because I was second in the line of kids, most of my competitions were with my older brother. When it came to sports, I could rarely beat him, but when it came to him having to learn spelling words or his multiplication tables, I could win. My brother, a sports nut his whole life, needed motivation in school. He was smart, but just not interested. In order to make him do his homework, my mom devised ways to make it a game. Knowing that he was interested in football, she could get him to memorize grammatical rules if she could turn it into a football play. She also knew that if she could get him to compete with me, she could also coax him to learn things. So, consequently, I learned my multiplication tables a year early (since I was a grade behind him in school), and spelling words that were beyond my grade level. I could beat him in those games, and I loved it since I was never quite as good as him at throwing a ball into a basket or racing across the yard. This competitive spirit has stuck with me through the years. I'm not sure that's always a good thing.

What does this have to do with surfing (or running or cycling)? Well, one of the problems with being so competitive is the inability to just have fun sometimes. This week, the water was too rough and the weather too miserable to go surfing. With ESE gusty winds that turned to WSW winds, the surf report was rather dismal. According to G-townsurf.com, a couple of surfers braved the winds to go out, but you could tell they were a little more experienced than me and could dance around on the rough stuff. However, that's where my competitive spirit becomes an issue. When I don't go out, I feel like I'm stepping backward in my training. Yet, I'm not sure what that even means. If I'm surfing to just have fun, what difference does it make? Also, I have a bad habit of comparing myself to others. This can be rough for me, since some people are just more genetically gifted for certain sports that, perhaps, I'm not "designed" for. Surfing happens to be one of those sports. However, like many before me, I refuse to give up. I'm tall for a female surfer. Other tall surfers have succeeded though, so, really, what it means is that I just need to try harder. But, I have to try harder because I want it, and not because others are better at surfing than me. Let's face it, I will never qualify for professional "status" in any sport. 

This same competition problem comes into play with my other sports. I've been cycling for almost 20 years (wow! I just did the math in my head and I can't believe its been that long).  I cycle with a very competitive group of people, mostly guys. So, in years past, I've really pushed myself to be as fast and as strong as some of the guys cycling. And it's hard to tell just how strong a cyclist someone is by just looking at them. I've seen people who don't look particularly fit, ride strong and fast. The same goes for running, which is my newest sport. I go to runs and think I should be able to keep up with or pass certain other runners and then they leave me in their dust. In reality, it shouldn't matter. I'm doing it for fun, not for competition. My running friend M is very realistic about his running. He recently completed his first marathon, and has no great expectation that he will finish in a certain time. He sets a personal time for himself that has nothing to do with other runners. I ran in a half marathon this morning, forgot my Garmin, and then tried to stay with some 8:40 milers for the full 13 when, in reality, I should have just run my race and not thought about the time. Instead I let it bother me when they left me, as well as when another outstanding runner (a woman I know who was running her first half) passed me. Why shouldn't she beat me in? She trained properly, ate the right food the night before (I ate Mexican food last night, which is not exactly the right food for a run) and had the good sense to cycle yesterday with a slower group (not me; I left with my usual gang INTO A STRONG WIND).  She was particularly upbeat and positive for me when she passed; running for the love of it. (This reminds me of the book "Born to Run," which the author notes that the tribe he was following always smiled when they ran 'caused they loved to run.) 

I just need to remember to smile more when I'm surfing, cycling, running or just living. It's not a race!!!

Saturday surf and a post-surf coffee with a pal

I almost always surf on Friday and Sunday. However, since Friday was the day after Thanksgiving, which is enjoyable family time for me, I was unable to make it down to surf. I received a surf report from my surf dude Brian. He said the waves were small, but very consistent and clean; something that only happens every once in a while in Galveston. And, usually, it happens when I'm at work or have some other place to go. After examining the forecast, I decided that I might need to change my schedule this week. A strong front was scheduled to cross the coast some time on Saturday. With it would come a small window of opportunity for some fabulous waves. However, a Saturday morning arrival for the front quickly turned into a late afternoon arrival, which meant I was going to miss the good stuff. But, I also knew that if I was going to surf at all this weekend, it would have to be Saturday because once the front blew through it would be FLAT! I started my Saturday as usual: a 5 a.m.  8-mile run with some running folks (we actually usually start at 5:30, which I prefer), but when I made it back home, instead of heading to Bike Barn for a Saturday morning bike ride, I loaded my 9' Softop and headed to G-town. Conditions were not fabulous, but I was not the only one there who had a now-or-never attitude. I ran into five of the usual guys including surf dude Brian. I even ran into an out-of-town non-surfing buddy who was visiting Galveston, happened to be driving down the seawall and stopped to say hello. It was so good seeing him!

Neil, who had already been out, warned me that it was difficult getting out because the sets were not consistent. And, he was right. I struggled in the rip beside the jetty. When I made it to the end of the jetty, I was pummeled by wave after wave. I'm sure it looked like a Three Stooges (minus two) episode from the seawall. I immediately got swept to the west side of the jetty, pushed to the inside and surfed a white water wave in. However, I could tell that the best waves were definitely on the outside. That's where all the experienced surfers were. I made my way back out, and although it was a struggle, I made it. All in all, I paddled quite a bit during my surf session. The wind and the tides kept pushing me west, but I struggled and made it back to where the guys were surfing on the east side of the jetty. Bryan (with a "y") was in town and he gave me some tips, which are always great to hear. He tried to help me catch one by yelling out moves, but I got shoved under once again. Eventually, though, I caught some re-formed waves on the outside and rode three or four of them. They weren't long rides, though, because I lacked the skills to ride a wave, catch a re-form and catch a third re-form to get a nice, sweet ride like the other guys. (In particular, the T-man was surfing like a pro and walking the board while catching wave after wave.) All in all, I had a great time, but I need soooooo much practice on my surfing. I worked hard, but got very little reward. And, just about all four or five of the waves/re-forms I caught in the three hours I was there were in their whitewater stage. I got a great workout for my arms though since I had to paddle so far out and continue paddling when the current pushed me to the inside.  And, despite the fact that I struggled so much, I can't help but love doing it. While surfing the Internet for some surfing tips/quotes, I came across this one:


"Surfing expresses ... a pure yearning for visceral, physical contact with the natural world." Matt Warshaw, "Maverick's: The Story of Big-Wave Surfing"


I definitely experienced physical contact with the natural world on Saturday!

After surfing, I offered to take a couple of the guys for coffee. However, Neil and T-man had other places to go, so only surf dude Brian took me up on my offer. It was a nice post-surf experience. He told me a little about his younger life -- his life before Galveston. He told me about some of the gals he had fallen in love with along the way, and about some of the unusual jobs he had along the way. He told me about an old friend who is now deceased, and about finding out he had died. He missed his friend. It was a great way to end a morning of surfing. I will definitely have to do it again!

* Brian gave me a couple of t-shirts and a sweatshirt (pictured) to wear around town and promote his surf school. Texas surfer for sure!

Sloppy cool waves and some warm-up moves

I was hoping for more today. Despite an early report from Surf Dude Brian via Robin that said sets were small but clean, the beach surrounding the 43rd street jetty was a washing machine. A surf friend who has been working on his yoga certification offered to lead a pre-surf yoga session on the beach. So, several of us (including some who weren't planning to surf today) made our way to the beach early to "get our moves on." Since the instructor wasn't there when I first arrived, I decided to surf a few minutes before the yoga session. Some of the guys were out already (Neil and Bob), but from the shore, I wasn't impressed with the waves I was seeing. I watched a few minutes from the seawall before putting on my wetsuit and heading out. (The air temp was warm, but with the water temp at 67 degrees, I felt certain that the water would be too cool for me without my 3-2 wetsuit; therefore, I opted out of the long-sleeved 2m top and/or springsuit for the full suit. I'm glad I did. Although Brian and Robin were in shorties, the water was too chilly for me.) It was an incredibly choppy day, which meant rough paddle-outs and difficulty reading waves. AARGH!

I'm feeling quite discouraged about my surfing lately. I say "lately," but I think if I looked back on my posts, I would find a discouraging note about surfing at least one out of ever five or six of my posts. I guess I should just chalk it up to inexperience, but I SOOOOO want to be a better surfer. Is it possible I'm spreading myself to thin on not focusing enough on one sport? Since taking up running a little less than a year ago, which was added to an already full cycling schedule, I've started to wonder if I'm trying to do too much. (Not to mention, that my house is a mess, which means that maybe I'm spending too much time on frivolous things. MY INNER VOICE SAYS "NO WAY," LIFE WAS MEANT TO BE LIVED, BUT THAT OTHER VOICE SAYS, "WELL, MAYBE...") However, maybe I'm just expecting too much. I've only been surfing about 2 1/2 years, so maybe I'm at the skill level I'm supposed to be at for someone my age. I wish I could turn off the little competitive voice that always nags at me to want more or to do better or to expect perfection. For one thing, I can't be the best at everything and maybe, just maybe, it's okay to be just pretty good. Or, in the case of surfing, maybe it's okay that I will never be real good. In the book, "Born to Run," the author writes about a tribe in Mexico who are outstanding ultra marathoners. And, one of the things he notes (and I'm paraphrasing) is that they run like children...they run just because they can, and they almost always smile while doing it.

Is okay to just do something 'cause you like doing it? The author of the book suggests that is why this tribe is so good at running, because they like doing it so much. But, I know that is an oversimplification. I can like cycling, running and surfing a lot, but that alone won't make me better. However, maybe if I relax and just enjoy the sport, I'll eventually get stronger. And, actually, that happened with cycling. I got much stronger in my fourth and fifth year of participating in group rides, so, perhaps, in four years, I'll be an even better surfer. I just need to enjoy where I'm at right now and know that the skills will develop with a lot more practice!

**The photo is from my recent trip to Costa Rica. I wanted to take a photo of the sun rising this morning, but it was a little overcast early on, with sun eventually peaking through; however, it was too bright to capture the ambiance of early morning yoga.

Robert August, runs and more

During my trip to Costa Rica last week, I had the pleasure of meeting surfing legend Robert August again. I had met him (and his daughter) several years ago at a local surf shop. In summer 2009, I had read in the local newspaper that he would be in town and convinced my surfing sistah Robin to go with me to meet him. At the time, Robin and I had our picture taken with him and met his young daughter who was just learning to surf. We knew that we would probably meet him again in Costa Rica since the surf hotel we were staying in frequently had him give presentations. Our meeting with him, though, came a little sooner when we bumped in to his now teenaged daughter ready to shower the saltwater and sand off of herself. Robin recognized her and spoke to her and, about that time, Robert came over to get his daughter.  We exchanged small talk; mostly Robin and he did since I was showering off, but it is always good to run into a surfing legend when you are at a surf camp.

At one of his presentations, he discussed how to make a board. We (about eight of us staying at the hotel) followed him into his small shop and watched him take the core/blank and use various tools to measure, cut and shave the board to spec. He was making a performance short board/fish hybrid board. I found it interesting to hear about the importance of the lighting in the shop and why he had it set at waist level (so there are not shadows on the board when he works).  He answered questions and discussed the materials he uses, etc. He's now living most of the time in Costa Rica with his kids and his daughter has recently got hooked on surfing. In fact, he says, she goes surfing at the beach by Witch's Rock surf hotel just about every day after school. How much fun that would be!

I've been back in Texas for over a week now, but I'm sad to say that I haven't been surfing yet. I'm anxious to try out my new pop up and other board skills, but either the surf has been crappy or I've had scheduling conflict. I was out of town this weekend. I ran the half marathon distance in the San Antonio Rock 'n Roll Marathon. It was unusually warm for November (lows in the 60s and highs in the upper 70s and low 80s). I generally like warm weather, but I think I got a little dehydrated during this run. I was hoping to set a pr and finish in 1:55, but I didn't. I finished in 2:01. I think I need a little more practice, and I definitely needed to drink more water. All in all, though, it was a fun day. I looked at the gtowsurf.com webcam and, while it looked like there were waves at the 43rd street jetty, they looked messy and sloppy. I probably would have gone down anyway, but who knows? I NEED SOME NICE CLEAN WAVES TO PRACTICE MY POP-UP! But, I guess I'll take what I can get. Maybe next weekend...

Walking on sunshine

I've been lucky enough lately to pick some of my surfing spots! Since starting to surf, I've surfed in Nicaragua; the east coast/Atlantic side of Florida (Amelia Island to be exact); Miami, Florida; and, this week, Tamarindo, Costa Rica. In last week's post, I wrote about five places I would love to surf and my first spot was Costa Rica. My surfing pal Robin planned the trip through a recommendation from a friend of a friend of mine based on a few recommendations from a friend of hers. Pshewww! That's confusing. Anyway, we traveled to a place called Witch's Rock Surf Camp. It's called a camp because lessons are provided, but, basically, it's a small hotel that rents boards and provides surf instruction to those wanting to take lessons. 

Tamarindo is a sleepy coastal town about an hours' drive from Liberia, which is where the airport is located. Costa Rica is a poor country. However, many say traveling in Costa Rica is much safer than many of the other Central American countries because the infrastructure is more stable. I'm not quite sure I believe it, although I didn't see anything   bad that would make me think otherwise. It's just that things are a bit rustic. Tamarindo is definitely a Surfer's paradise though. The beach at Witch's Rock was incredible, with a shore break that consistently provided some sort of wave action, albeit sometimes small depending on the tide. During high tide and, at least once during low tide, the beach filled with surfers of all abilities ready to catch some pretty waves. The surfing was incredible to watch and be a part of. 

Robin signed us up for intermediate lessons, which was probably a little more advanced than what we probably needed. I felt incredibly uneasy the first few days. It had nothing to do with our resort nor the waves. It was a feeling I've only had a few times in my life; something unexplainable, but something to which I needed to respond. Our first lesson were in the waves out front of the hotel. We we're to meet up with Andre at 8:30. He was quite late, and not very apologetic about it. He was also not very informative. I caught quite a bit of whitewater though and, although I got a little banged up by the board when I I was trying to get out (I missed the rip I rely on inG-town). I had a hard time reading the sets.

Day two included a trip to another surf point (will have to look up the name later) with an instructor named Paco. Ross, also from Houston, and Pedro, from Brazil, joined Robin and me. The uneasy feeling from day one returned at a magnified level. It didn't help that the waves at the other beach looked huge from the shore. I hesitated even going out, which is unusual for me. I'm not easily intimidated, at least I don't think that I am, but I couldn't shake the bad feeling I had about being there at that beach on that day. I initially had a hard time getting out, and after several attempts and getting banged up badly by the board, I finally made it to the outside. However, one big wave later and I decided that my surfing there was complete. Too bad! I'm definitely going to return to that beach some day. At least Robin got a good ride! I saw her whiz by on a huge wave (size is relative, but for us, it was huge). 

By day three, I felt better. I awoke to a bright day. Not sure what had happened to my confidence and mental toughness, but I was glad it had returned. In fact, I had felt alive better later in the evening on day two. I even managed to feel the drop during a couple of my evening rides. However, day three would be my day. The camp had decided that Robin and I needed to surf the waves in front of the hotel. (I sure hope that she wasn't relegated to the hotel break because of me.) As it turns out, day three turned out well for both of us. Our surf instructor was Andres. Note: the "s" at the end of the name reassured us that we weren't going to have the same instructor as day one. Thank goodness! Andres was an incredible instructor. He taught me a new way to pop up and a new way to paddle. He mentioned that he had seen me surf and that one of my biggest problems was looking down at the board instead of looking out. He also mentioned that I might want to reconsider the way I pop up. I listened and followed what he said. Robin did the same. I saw her do the most incredible pop up, and both of us took big waves (again, size is relative, but they were big for us).  It was an incredible day, and I hope I can translate what I learned to my home break!

All good things must end. I'm writing this from the airplane on our way home. We were scheduled to surf early this morning, but neither Robin nor I felt that we really had enough time before our shuttle ride back to Liberia. I'm confident that we will be returning to Tamarindo. 

Note: The photo was on the wall of my hotel room in Tamarindo. Witch's Rock hotel was definitely created for sufers!

Top 5 destination beaches

G-town surf this weekend was a bust! Friday waves flattened after the passing of a cold front late Thursday/ early Friday. I probably could have gone SUPing (Stand-Up Paddleboarding) with Brian, but it was partly cloudy and chilly, meaning that it wasn't worth it to me. (3/2 wetsuits will probably be needed until next spring.) I was hoping that the Swell Info forecasts were correct and that choppy, small waves would be possible today(Sunday). However, they were wrong. The north winds, which shifted to the east late Saturday, flattened my hopes. In my Sunday morning update from Surfer Dude Brian, I discovered that he found some small, manageable waves to surf late Saturday afternoon. However, I must admit that the wavecam did not do them justice, because when I went to the page in the afternoon, the waves looked unsurfable.  So, sadly, I didn't get to surf this weekend, which is really too bad since the weather was gorgeous. Chilly definitely; but still gorgeous. And, because it was so beautiful, I ran and biked. I was about to say that I ran and biked instead of surfing, but I can't really say that since running and cycling are equally part of my regular weekend routine. I'm also bummed a little that I didn't get to surf because very soon I will be traveling to Central America for Witch's Rock Surf Camp. I'm very excited since I will be in Tamarindo, which is one of the top 10 surfing destinations on many of surfing lists, and definitely on mine since I took up surfing 3 1/2 years ago. Thinking about my upcoming trip, I decided to list five places I wouldn't mind surfing some day.


1.) Tamarindo, Costa Rico -- I decided to list this first since, although I will be there soon, I still haven't officially surfed there, which means it should stay on my list. Tamarindo, Costa Rica definitely makes the top 10 lists for many surfers and has shown up as #5 and #6 on two lists I just googled. I'm really looking forward to this trip, and I hope to improve my surfing while I'm there. However, I'm not sure location is my real problem just yet. I need a lot of work on form.

2.) Canary Islands/Madeira Island -- These two locations just sound like fun. The Canary Islands made both of the top 10 lists I just googled, but Madeira Island did not. I realize the Canary Islands are part of Spain, while Madeira Island is Portuguese, but they are very close to one another geographically. Reports about Madeira Island say it is a very difficult location to surf, which means I would probably only ever watch the surfers. But, my oh my, what fun!!!

3.) Gold Coast, Australia -- I have had a couple of friends travel to Australia and New Zealand lately and post wonderful surf reports and photos. Australia has always been a placed I wanted to go. To get to surf there would be incredible too.

4.) Huntington Beach, California -- I've been to California a couple of times, but have never surfed there. It made some of the lists I looked at as one of the top 10 surfing destinations. I may get the opportunity to surf there in February if I participate in the Surf City Marathon/Half-Marathon. I haven't registered yet, but I'm seriously considering it. The medal for participating is a surfboard. I already have one friend who has registered for it, and I think I might have been the driving force for him to register. So, I'm feeling a little obligated to run it.

5.) Jeffrey Bays, South Africa -- I had a hard time deciding between this beach and any of the beaches in Hawaii. After all, who wouldn't want to travel to Hawaii. However, South Africa has been on my mind lately since I read a book about waves and surfing earlier this year. Recently, I saw a person's photos of the place, and the waves looked nice; however, the photos I saw were thumbnail size, so I had to do some more investigation for larger photos. In the photos I found on the Internet, South Africa looks rustic, but beautiful.

Other notable beaches include Panama (yet another friend just returned from there with some beautiful photos) and Hawaii, of course (a good friend surfed there and gave it rave reviews). In Texas, I still need to make it to Surfside, Corpus Christi and South Padre. Wow! Will I ever fit them all in? Probably not. But, I can dream!

**photo is from a trip I took to Barbados this year. (Barbados would have made my list if I hadn't already traveled there.)

Surf lingo and more

Since I decided to make a trip to Louisiana this weekend, I knew my surfing time was limited. I wouldn't have time to surf on Friday, and I knew I wouldn't be home in time on Sunday morning to meet up with the usual gang. So, when I made it home from my trip today, I made my way down to the 43rd street jetty alone. And, I sure was alone. I made it down about 3:30. The waves were rough and small, but manageable. A couple of people were playing the water near the shore, and only one other surfer was out. I, basically, had a large portion of the beach to myself. I could practice all I wanted. I took the rip out on my first trip to the outside. I was quickly pulled in and caught the first wave I went for, which was definitely on the inside. I decided that pushing my way through the rough rip wasn't any easier than just making my way out in the middle. And, that's what I did for the rest of the afternoon. I caught mostly whitewater, which was okay since the small waves allowed me to practice my pop-up, stance and turns. I'm not sure I improved any, but I sure had fun playing. I stayed about an hour and outlasted everyone at the beach except for the lifeguard. It was as if I had my own surf spot, and it was a great way to end the weekend. And helped me sort out some of the thoughts I was having about a particular situation.

Lately, I've been thinking about some of the surf lingo I hear or read. I'll either hear someone on the beach use the term or read it in something about surfing. Part of me wants to use the term(s) myself so that I can sound like a surfer; however, I feel silly doing it. Not sure what I will do about that. For now, though, here are a few of the terms I will concentrate on either using correctly or not using at all.

1.) Dude -- I've decided that I will only use this term with the king surf DUDE Brian. I never used the word before I started surfing. I would hear others use it and even see it written sometimes, but it never felt "right" coming from my mouth. Lately, I've been slipping it more often into my vocabulary, but it still leaves a funny taste unless I'm talking about Brian. So, I will probably only use it with him.

2.) Sesh -- One of the websites I frequent is Billy Blues' G-Town Surf site (http://www.g-townsurf.com), which not only provides a webcam of the 43rd street jetty, but also gives Billy's forecast on what is to come wave-wise and offers a daily array of pictures from the beach. He often speaks of the day's surf sesh, which is an abbreviation of session. I've heard a couple of other people use it, and I've seen it in print when speaking of a specific time on the beach. However, I just can't use it. It doesn't roll off my tongue. I want to use it, but when I do I finish the word: "Sesh...ion." The "ion" part just comes out. Maybe one of these days...

3.) Cowabunga -- This term is an odd one. I never even realized it was a surfing term. I remember it from approximately 20 years ago when my then young nephews were watching the Teenage Ninja Mutant Turtles cartoon. One of the turtles always used the term "Cowabunga." However, for the past four years, DUDE Brian has been using that term to talk about waves or a particular ride or even one of his lessons. I just looked it up in the online urban dictionary and found a listing for it that stated it was a surfing term from the '60s. Go figure. I don't think I'll ever use it, but it makes me smile when I hear others say it.

Those are the only three that have been bothering me lately. I'm sure I'll think of more, but that will be in another post. For now, I'll just go to bed and dream about a yelling "cowabunga" had a local surfer dude during my next sesh.

*photo above taken at the 43rd street lifeguard station last week. It will probably be moved out soon when the beach patrol quits staffing lifeguards for the winter months. I don't remember that happening last year or the year before, but Brian says it will. Ummm...I'll be curious to see when it does.

Pretty little waves in October

Lately, the 43rd street jetty has either provided choppy waves or no waves at all. Forecasts predicted the latter for today, so I was ready to either use a SUP or just sit on the beach. I was planning to go down because Brian had specifically requested that Robin and I come down to pose in photos for a possible new ad; a winter ad that would show us in wetsuits. Robin suggest we shoot early so that the sun wouldn't be quite as harsh, so at 7:30 this morning, I found myself at my Sunday morning surf spot with Robin, Brian and Neil...the usual Sunday crew.  Neil came early to help take photos and, also, to surf. We all were ready to get in the water since we could see nice, little, surfable waves waiting for us. And, we were ready for them.

We went to the west side of the jetty. The waves looked a little more organized on that side. And, they were. All four of us went out, and we all caught waves and SURFED! I can't speak for the others, but I had a blast. I'm pretty sure they had fun too. I practiced paddling out, but realized that on days like this, it was always easy to do. It's on the rougher days when I'm trying to use my 8'1" that I struggle to get out. AARGH! This should be getting easier. Days like today make it seem like it is. I caught just about every wave I tried to catch. I practiced turning and riding the wave down the line. I even took a few steps and walked on the moving board. I experienced one small hiccup, however, when I tried to use Neil's board. I slid all over the place. I pearled and slipped. Neil's board is pretty, but instead of using wax, he uses some spray on substance for grip. I find it difficult to use. Of course, part of the problem could have been that it was at the end of three hours of surfing. All in all, though, it was a great day. I got in a good workout surfing.

I've added a photo of the waves.  Note: The surfers in this photo are not me since I'm the one taking the photos.

Thursday night surf, but no good weekend waves

Since Thursday was surfer dude Brian's birthday, surfergal Robin and I decided to surf on Thursday afternoon and then take Brian and his main "dudette" out for supper. The evening was a blast despite the crappy waves. Of course, at least we had waves! Brian had warned us that the surf was really rough, but we decided to head down anyway. Once there, I understood exactly what he was talking about since high winds and a strong current made conditions difficult to manage. Several surfers were out. In fact, so many surfers descended on the 43rd street pier after Billy's G-townsurf.com's recommendation to surf despite strong currents that we decided to find another place to surf. We hopped in Brian's surfmobile and moved to the 39th street pier. Although a few surfers were already out there too, we chose to stay. I didn't feel like fighting to get to the outside (IT WAS SOOOOOO ROUGH), so I opted for whitewater waves on the inside close to the jetty. I struggled some, but I also had some good, although short, rides and managed to practice turning the board. Robin took a few pictures, and I was happy when I saw them since she caught me in the start of a pop-up. I finally saw that my pop-up was done properly. In the pic, you can clearly see that I have air between my knees and the board!!! I'm not sure I get it right every time, but it was refreshing to see it this time. Unfortunately, I still need to work on where I'm looking. I should be looking out in the direction I want my board to take but, instead, I'm looking down at the board.

I was ready to go surfing again on Friday, but Brian warned that the conditions were as bad, if not worse than Thursday, so I opted not to go down, thinking that I would go to G-town Sunday/today after my race. However, heavy rain and lightening squelched that idea. I'll just have to go next weekend.

On another note, I did get to run my race during a brief reprieve of heavy rain this morning. I decided to participate in the USA 10-mile race this week, and I'm glad I did. I haven't really found proof in writing yet, but I can't help but believe that strengthening my cardiovascular system through running and cycling will boost my surfing and, in particular, my paddling. I meant to look it up on some surfing sites, but haven't yet. But, how could it hurt? I had a great run. I finished in approximately 1:28 with an 8:54 pace (I think...I'm relying on my memory and the results haven't been posted yet, AND I forgot my Garmin this morning.) I believe I placed 13 in my age group out of 32 or 33 other runners in the category. I was pleased. I don't run often, and I haven't run more than seven miles since the end of July, so this 10-miler was nice addition to my weekly running schedule.

More time needed

Wow! When trying to come up with a title for today's post, I couldn't come up with anything. I almost used one I had used before, but decided to look at my past posts and found it just in time. So, I was thinking about my past week, and realized that a recurring theme for me has been lack of time. I had someone tell me this week that he didn't know how I found the time to do all the things I did. I found it funny, because I had been thinking the same thing about him recently. It seemed that every time I spoke with him or exchanged emails with him, he was taking a trip or going to an adventure race. He had gone surfing or gone skydiving. He's now training for his first marathon, which takes much more discipline and a more agressive training schedule than a half marathon, which is all I've ever run. And, this was discussion we had while preparing for an intense high mileage (Me 72 and him 100) bicycle ride we did in hilly East Texas. We both did fine, but I wished I had trained a little more (spin class just CAN'T prepare you for 72 miles) and had a different gear set-up on my bike. But, what does this have to do with surfing? Well, I wish I had more time for surfing. I guess I could give up something, but I'm not sure what I would give up. And, sometimes, I need more than time, I need waves at the same time I have time. Does that make sense?

All this leads me to something I wanted to add to my schedule and that is skydiving. I've now completed two tandem jumps. I've attended the four-hour STP (Skydiver Training Program) also, which means that, hypothetically, I could jump alone on my next jump. I'm not sure I will be ready to do that, but it's an option. Several things make me think that "surfing on air," which has multiple meaning to me now, may or may not be something I pursue.

First of all, skydiving requires a major time commitment. It would take 18 jumps to get my certification and I don't want to give up anything to do it. Secondly, I don't want to die. During the STP "ground" school, my instructor "Kritter" told me about all the things that could go wrong. About halfway through the class I thought to myself, "What the heck are you doing Karen?" Then, when looking at the photos of the screwed up chutes, I thought it again. Once I get away from the airport, I think that it would be a fun thing to do, but when I look at the books as well as the stats about how many people die, I have second thoughts. (Statistically, it's really not that many, but still...)  Can I react quickly enough for this sport?

I should look up statistics on surfing. I'm pretty certain that surfing would be considered a safer sport. What's interesting is that I read about all the things that could go wrong (i.e. sharks, killer waves, board injuries), and I still don't feel unsafe doing it. I feel like I have more control over my destiny. Waves sucked on Friday, and, even today, while some friends went down, Brian told me not to bother. He said it was rough and quite cool. He thought the water was actually warmer than the air. Brian had a lesson, but he said he wouldn't be out there if it weren't for that. I probably should have gone down anyway, but I changed my mind. After skydiving school and a 72-mile bike ride out of town, I was ready for a rest day. I didn't even run this weekend, which I will pay for Wednesday during my next scheduled run. As for surfing, I will definitely pay for not surfing this weekend the next time I go out and wipe out on my first two waves. AAAARRRRRGGGHHHHH!!! I need more hours in the day, minutes in the hours, seconds in the minutes...

Even more chop to surf

I didn't get to surf on Friday and, of course, heard the waves finally built to a reasonable surfing size and offered fun to those who made it down. So, I was determined to make it down and least one day this weekend. I chose Sunday since it was the only free time I had this week. Saturday was a busy one for me and included an 8-mile run, 13-mile bike ride and five hours of babysitting my 10-year-old nephew. (I had the chance to find out if I was smarter than a fifth-grader when I helped him with his homework. It was tough!)

This morning I made it down to Galveston at about 7:30 a.m., parked and walked over to Brian, Neil and Bob. They were discussing the waves. It was windy today, with winds approximately 20 mph out of the southwest. The water was a choppy mess. I realized that I had parked a little out of my designated zone, so I thought I would move it. However, I quickly realized that the car wouldn't start. The battery was dead, which required Brian to go home, get his jumper cables, drive back and then jump the battery.  We got the car going, so I moved it to the proper place. I also decided to surf for a couple of hours, jump the car and then drive to the closest dry goods store for a new battery.

The waves were a mess! Paddling out was a struggle because the waves were beating in so strong. Taking the rip current provided a little comfort, but timing had to be perfect to find the right spot. Even good timing, though, couldn't always get you to the outside. Sometimes, I was pushed back toward the shore at the end of the jetty. And, although, you could catch a wave occasionally on the inside, to get any long rides, you at to be ever so slightly on the outside. All in all, I had some fantastic rides. Neil and Bob did too. One wave would pick me up, while a second wave would carry me in. I also had some serious wipeouts, which is never fun. I got caught up in a bad one that included wave on top of wave just as I was trying to catch my breath, only to realize that I had sucked in part of the ocean. Not good. However, it didn't last...just long enough to remind me that surfing can be dangerous, and that I need to be more aware.

In other surfing news, I went for another surf in the sky and completed my second skydive. If I sign up for the class, I could go solo on my third jump. I'm not sure I'm ready. We'll see. It won't hurt for me to take a third tandem jump just to see if I want to do it. My friend D, took his first solo, but failed to pull the chute cord. Needless to say, they pulled it for him and he failed test jump #1. Too bad. I hope he doesn't give up!

Surfing on air

Friday was a bust this week! I spoke to my super surfing dude Brian at my usual time Friday afternoon and found out that, while there were waves, the current was really bad due to a strong east wind. I really wanted to surf since I wasn't going to be able to surf on Sunday. (More on that later.) I contemplated going down on Saturday after my early morning run and ride. I ran my seven miles and rode 45 miles, and was quite tired when I finished. However, if my Saturday morning call from Brian would have included a more positive outlook on the waves, I would have definitely headed down. He said it was choppy and windy. He also said some of my regular surfing buddies were down though. But, since they had all already left the beach, and conditions weren't great, I opted out on Saturday too.

Sunday was beginning of a whole new experience for me. The reason I was going to miss surfing is because I was going skydiving. It had always been something that I had wanted to do, especially when I was much younger. I had realized lately, though, that if I didn't do it soon, I was going to chicken out. I had mentioned my dream of skydiving at a family party this summer and two of my brothers-in-law had said they wanted to go with me. As fall approached, it became obvious that they wouldn't be able to go, since one had work conflicts and the other had back surgery. But, another old friend invited me along. So, that's what I did today. The experience was incredible! I was, literally, surfing on air. Watching my video was eye-opening. I know I have much to learn about skydiving. I've already committed to doing it again. However, I must admit that adding another hobby to my list will make my crowded schedule even more unmanageable. I'll have to think about that. I just can't imagine, though, not living my life to its fullest.

Sunday 9/11/11

A somber mood filled the air this morning. We had been prepped for it for the past few days. It was the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and memorial services, memorial television shows, memorial op-eds and much more and reminded us about the horrific day 10 years ago when planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, in a field in Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. While I remembered and offered my thoughts and prayers to those victims, I paid homage to those victims in solitude, shortly before making my way to the beach. I experienced the beauty of it all before unloading my Senator 9'6" "Petal" and making my waves into the already crowded waves at about 7:50 a.m. Robin and Brian were already out. I had slept in because of my previous action-filled night (more info later -- see photo above).

The waves looked nice, but it was already crowded. I'm guessing that so many people had been disappointed in the waves lately that the first sign of any bump in the water had caused the all to pick up and make their way to the shore. Once I took the rip current into the line-up, I looked back, saw a wave and immediately caught and rode one in. I was inspired! However, my surf experience went downhill from there. I got in the lineup and waited my turn, but some of those guys stole every wave that made a ripple. One, in particular, was very annoying. I wasn't the only one who noticed. I shouldn't complain, though; I just need to get better at staking my claim to waves. Brian said that he saw me get to my knees, although I hadn't noticed I had done that. In fact, I felt like I had some of the best pop-ups of my surfing "life." I need to pay closer attention though and, perhaps, practice my pop-ups in the living room like I have in the past. I questioned Brian about it, and he said he only noticed that I ddi it once. I HOPE SO!  I stayed out about 3.5 hours. It was a good workout.

In another non-surfing note, yesterday, the Galveston Historical Foundation held their third annual Galveston Revival Race, with proceeds going to revitalization projects caused by Hurricane Ike (Sept. 13, 2008). I decided to run in the 10K race. I was a little nervous at first for being in a "race" per se, but had decided that I would run the 6.1 miles just like I had the two half-marathons I had run -- at my own speed.  The run was in the evening (7 p.m.), and it was quite warm. I finished second in my age category. I'm not sure how many were actually in my age category. I'll be looking at the "official" finish times once they are posted during the next couple of days to see my exact stats. I made a couple of tactical errors I think that might have made my run a little better, although I was surprised to have finished second. First, I probably shouldn't have cycled 65 miles in the wind yesterday morning. However, I love my cycling and hate to ever give that up. Second, I should have placed myself better at the start. I got mixed in with much slower runners and was "caught up" in a mass of others and wasn't to break free for the first couple of minutes. Third, I need to always to remember to hydrate a lot before a big ride or run. With that said, I'm still quite pleased. I think I finished the 6.1 miles in about 55+minutes. (I accidentally forgot to stop my Garmin when I crossed the finish line, and I'm not sure how much time had lapsed before  I stopped it.) I am very fond of Galveston. It might be one of my favorite places in the world. I know it sounds silly, but I understand why Glen Campbell sang about it. I love Galveston and all it has to offer ... especially the waves!

(Somber note: My dear friend Ray from the nursing home is probably dying. May you rest in peace Ray! You will be missed.)

Saturday surfing and another surfing ad

I knew after Friday's surfing session that I would be at the 43rd street jetty at least one more time this weekend. I was hoping that the howling north winds would die down just a bit and that waves would be perfect by Sunday morning. However, the north wind kicked up the waves on Saturday and the window for opportunity was going to be slim. I have a pretty tight training schedule these days. I have to...to be able to fit in all of the things I want to do!! People probably think I'm a little neurotic about this stuff, but really, I just want to have fun doing many different things. Therefore, I don't usually surf on Saturday because it is reserved for running (5:30 a.m.) and cycling (7:30 a.m.). This past Saturday, I completed at least part of my "regimented" training. I was able to run 6.3 miles, but realized during the run that any cycling would be treacherous because of the wind. It was blowing out of the north, which means that the ride would be going to the San Jacinto Monument -- not a favorite route for me. At best, it would be very difficult because, for some reason, the cycling group doesn't work well together during that particular ride to the monument. So, I opted for spin class, which was a good thing because as soon as I finished my run, I received a text from my friend Robin saying she was at the beach. She said that while the conditions weren't perfect, just about every other surfer was out, and that the waves were consistent and semi-big for Galveston standards. I finished the first spin class, loaded up "Sunshine" and made my way down.

Needless to say, by the time I made it to the beach, I was just a tad tired from running and cycling. I shouldn't use that as an excuse though. I was glad I brought my 8'1" board because it was so windy and unloading my two bigger board ("Pedal" and "Iris") would have been difficult. I definitely had to carry any board inside because taking it off and putting it back on the rack would have been treacherous. Either I or a passerby would have probably been decapitated. I need to figure out an easier way to hold it down while strapping it to the top. I spoke with Brian briefly and then paddled out. Brian thought the wind was blowing too hard to have a good surf session so he opted out of surfing, which should have probably been a clue. (He had already tried to discourage me.) However, Robin had been out as was T, M and Houston A, as well as N and B.  The wind and rip current was taking everyone west. Robin mentioned that she had gone out on the west side of the jetty and that getting out was easier there, but that she immediately got pushed halfway down the beach. She recommended going out on the east side. I did. That meant that I got pushed toward the jetty, making it a constant battle to get back to the center point between 43rd and 42nd (?). In the end, I paddled a lot, but I only caught two waves, only one in its formation -- the other being whitewater. I wish I had done better. There were several guys out catching everything they went for, as did Ang and T. I think M. caught several too. I just seemed to be having an off day. Oh well, I had done quite bit before actually making it to G-town, so I probably shouldn't complain. I'm trying hard not to be discouraged. I should definitely stick with just one or two sports on a single day.  There's always next time.

On another note, I found out this morning the new issue of The Parrot is out. I'm in a brand new ad with Brian. One of the writers did a wonderful write-up about taking a surf lesson from Brian. He's doing quite well with his self-marketing. The new ad is fun too! (Story on page 6 and ad on page 18. Note about the ad. It's under the regular surf story by Kris Hopkins. He's a local surfer who also attends UHCL. I wrote a story about Kris Hopkins for our university magazine. He was a fun "dude" to interview.)

TS Lee and the possibility of waves

Galveston-area surfers get a little excited when there's a storm brewing in the Gulf. Although we don't want any devastation for anyone, when something is churning in the Gulf we can at least count on waves. It's been so flat lately, that just about any ripple is appreciated. And, you could tell that everyone felt that way today. Brian convinced me yesterday to pack my board and surfing gear and take it to work today so that I could head straight to G-town when I got off at noon. So, when he called today at noon and told me that the current was way too strong and waves too rough and inconsistent, I explained that it was too late. I already had everything packed was ready to go.

When I arrived at the 43rd street jetty at about 1:30 for my regular Friday afternoon surf session, I saw in person what I had seen on the web cam (g-townsurf.com) and exactly what Brian described. But I was committed, so I unloaded and went out. I decided before entering the rough waves that I would stay on the inside and just catch the ones breaking closer to shore.  Because of the storm, the tide was being pushed to the shore making the tide higher than usual, even though it really wasn't high tide. The wind was blowing strong from the east, which meant that in order to surf without getting pushed into the jetty, we had to surf on the west side. Probably six or seven surfers were already out. Only one was doing what I was going to do and surfing on the inside. The rest were taking the rip current out and going to the outside before catching waves that seemed to offer rides lasting forever...or at least a minute or two. I was in awe. Brian paddled to the outside, but I remained intimidated by the roughness and stayed right where I was. All of the elements were in place, though, for me to catch some really long rides even if it was whitewater. I was on "Sunshine," my 8'1", so I enjoyed the practice. I had some terrific runs. I even managed to turn the board a little and stay with the wave down the line. However, I still have the problem of looking down instead of where I want to go. I mentioned that to Brian. He said I was being too hard on myself. He eventually had to leave after about an hour, but I stayed another hour and got a good two hours in of surfing. Rumor had it tomorrow the waves will be 8 feet. I find it hard to believe. However, the wind is howling and with the storm still out there spinning around (forecasted to go into Louisiana tomorrow), anything is possible. Hopefully, either tomorrow or Sunday the waves will calm a bit and, yet, still be out of the north so they will be clean.  I am glad I went today though!

"Beach Blanket Bingo" is on AMC tonight. I just saw a scene where a guy went out to surf, caught a wave and then, for some unknown reason, fell into it and bumped his head on a rock. A mermaid rescued him. I just did a google search for male mermaids and found that, according to a couple of sources (ask.com and Wikipedia...what sources! :-), mermaids in the male form are called mermen. (hee hee) I just hope that if I ever crash and hit my head on a rock, a merman will save me!

Flat, Flat, Flat and Flat

Welcome to the end of summer! A person wouldn't know it by the heat, but summer is coming to a close and I can tell because it is soooooo flat. Actually, I think the flatness last year was a little earlier in the summer...July or so. But this year, it's been flatter in August. In fact, this weekend has been the flattest of the year. I didn't bother even going down on Friday, my usual weekday surf time. It was quite flat, and I had other things to take care of, so I opted out. I was working later in the afternoon on Friday because of an event scheduled for the new fall semester. If there had been waves, I would have definitely headed down to the beach right after 5:30 a.m. spin class. However, without the waves to help lure me down, I just stayed on the mainland.

I decided to head down today despite the flat conditions. I was lusting for the beach, so I thought I would do some Stand Up Paddling. Brian graciously brought his SUPs to the 43rd street jetty so that he, Robin and I could play around in the lake-like Gulf. He also brought a small kayak, which was a good thing 'cause surfer Bre joined us. We all had something to play around on. We had a blast and, during the first half of my time on the beach, I never fell off my SUP. On my second round, though, I had trouble with the current a couple of times and forgot to use my core to stay steady and fell. (I used my legs instead, which just doesn't provide enough stability.)

Although nothing exciting happened in the water, I experienced a little thrill when I bought today's Galveston County Daily News. A couple of weeks ago, a reporter with GCDN interviewed me and Robin for a story in the newspaper's Coast magazine. She had been approached by Brian to come take a lesson and learn to surf. She took him up on it. While taking the lesson, Brian told her about me and Robin. (I believe she even met Robin during the first lesson; I met her during the second lesson.) It was a fun interview and, eventually, "photo shoot." (The story begins on page 29.)

A Buddha quote and a day at the beach

Last week, just as I was about to get in the water with my board, a woman and her young daughter stopped me. They wanted to know if there was someone who could help the young girl learn to surf. I was meeting Brian and Robin, who were already in the water, so I called them in. Brian spoke to the "mom" and had asked if I had time to teach a lesson, but decided against having me teach it right after asking. He asked the "mom" and young girl to come back at 11:30, and then had one of the guys (V.) teach her. I jokingly gave him a hard time about it, asking if he didn't think I was good enough to teach a young gal how to surf. Although I was teasing, I think he took it to heart and, wham, lo and behold, the young girl (Jenna) came back today, and I taught her. At first, Jenna said she was supposed to have a lesson with L and I questioned Brian who said that he wasn't sure why L hadn't shown up. He seemed legitimately upset by it, and asked if I could help with the lesson. So, I did it and HAD A BALL! Basically, Jenna just wanted to surf. After her lesson last week and despite her wariness of the water, more specifically the animals in the water, she decided that she loved surfing. She is adorable! Jenna didn't actually do the pop-up as it is often taught. She got to one knee first, and, although that is not the way it is typically taught, some people...especially youngsters...need the extra help with the pop-up. One of the gals at the beach said that is actually how she was taught during a lesson in Hawaii; to get to one knee and then bring both legs underneath. I actually think that, while the most effective pop-up is the one traditionally taught at C-Sick, any way a person may adjust to get up, will work when it comes to riding waves. I noticed lately that I need to work on my pop-ups. I'm getting up rather sloppily...although it is working for me. Even though I'm a goofy-footer, as of late, I bring my left foot slightly up on the board before bringing my right foot all the way forward. Not sure how important it is, since I seem to be getting good enough rides on the small, sloppy waves that are available in G-town during August. I will continue to practice on an imaginary line in my living room. Despite, the waves breaking close to shore, the small wave size and my odd pop-up, I had a ball.

After a fun day at the beach, I met my family for lunch, and a stroll down the Strand. I came across a Buddha quote (at least, the attribution was to Buddha) on a refrigerator magnet. I loved the quote, and I have been thinking about it all day. "If words are both true and kind, they can change the world." Ummm...I hope my words on this blog are always true and, especially, kind. But, I'm not so sure they will change the world. And, that's okay! I just love writing about my surfing experiences.

*The picture is from the seawall near the 43rd Street jetty.

Changing things up!

Although I usually surf on Friday afternoons, I decided to surf on Friday morning this week. Robin and I have been interviewed by the Galveston County Daily News and today they wanted to come take pictures. The only time they could do it was this morning. Fortunately, I discussed a schedule change with my boss and she was okay with me working in the afternoon rather than the morning. The pic was at 8 a.m., so I had a couple of hours to surf and still get home, clean up and make it to work by 1 p.m. As a matter of fact, I actually made it to the office by 12:30. Pshewww...it was hard leaving the beach though when everyone got to stay behind and surf.

The surf itself wasn't that great. There were waves, but they were rough and closed out fast. I pearled only once, but I also missed some waves that I should have been able to surf. Surfing the waves today was like trying to surf in a washing machine. Waves were small and rough, coming from many different directions. One surfer, however, seemed to be doing great. He was going to the outside and riding these strange-forming waves a long way. When I was on the outside, I couldn't find a wave that would stay a wave long enough for me to ride six inches, let alone halfway down the beach. He had no problem. I chatted with him, and he told me he had been surfing 35 years. Wow! He seemed to hop from wave to wave. I hope I'm still surfing in 35 years! I have fun now, but sure wish I could get better at this.

I returned today (Sunday), for my second regular weekly session and found the waves quite small...if possible, smaller than Friday. However, the ripple was just enough to give me something to play around with on my board. On Friday, I had taken my 8'1", but because of how flat it seemed on the webcam today, I took my 9' Softop. I caught a few, but Robin said the waves were better the 30 minutes she surfed before I arrived. I think I got down there at 8:05 this morning rather than my regular 7 a.m. Isn't that always the case? The waves are always better when the surfer asking about the waves isn't there. Today (Sunday), that was me.

I stayed for about three hours anyway and had a ball. I got extremely frustrated at the beginning though. I was in a grumpy mood to begin with, then I went out on the west side of the jetty and, although Travis, one of the C-Sick instructors, and Brian were catching the occasional wave, I was having trouble catching one. I went to the east side of the jetty and caught them, finally deciding that I might need to stay on that side. The waves were breaking fairly close to shore, so I had to move in close, but once I did, I caught just about every wave I attempted to surf. Thank goodness! I hate getting so discouraged when I'm having a rough time. I start re-thinking every aspect of my life -- maybe I should give up surfing, maybe I should just stick to cycling and running, maybe I'm really no go at anything, maybe I've made all kinds of wrong decisions... But, after surfing a couple of small waves, I decided that I just need to practice more. Travis told me to move up on my board in the smaller waves so that I could get propelled forward. I usually pearl when I move forward, but it worked for me a couple of times today. Change. I just need to change positions depending on the wave. I guess changes are sometimes needed to make things right in all circumstances, whether surfing, working or just living!

Wishing

"If you can't be with the one you love, honey, love the one you're with." If you can't surf at a place with waves, surf what you've got. Hmmm...waves have been bad lately. Friday they were too flat to even play on and today wasn't much better, but I still loaded up my board, as well as a board for a friend who wanted to go out and practice, and made my way to the 43rd street jetty. Brian and Robin wanted photos of the three of us with dry hair, possibly for his website or for a story that is going to run in the Galveston County Daily News. So, I definitely had to go today whether I wanted to or not, or whether there were waves or not. Lately, I've been doing quite a bit of running. And, on Saturdays, I run and bicycle, which makes them pretty rough days physically. I'm not complaining though. It's what I enjoy. I'm not sure why, but I really like the way I feel after it's done. By afternoon, though, I must admit that I'm dog-tired. Fortunately, I got a good night's sleep last night!

I had a few short rides today. I pearled once though, which is odd when the waves are so crappy. But, I just swam back out and waited for another small little curl to come through. My arms are sore tonight from paddling so much to catch the waves. Not only did you have to be exactly in the right position, but you also had to have incredible patience. The waves would look as though they were coming in sets, but just as I would get into position to paddle, the wave would dissipate. I would get pushed closer to shore, have to swing the board around and paddle back out. I didn't have to paddle far though since the waves were breaking so close to shore. I'm sure Brian thought they were perfect for lessons. He had several sets of lessons and board rentals going on today. This of course can also make surfing difficult on days like today's. I constantly had to be aware of other people watching for the same waves or in front of the wave. In addition to the people taking a lesson, other swimmers/vacationers were in the water. Usually, if I get down early enough (by 7) I have the waves to myself for the first three or so hours, but when I get down at 8, take photos and don't make it out into the water until almost 9, I don't have much time before the beach is filled with other beach goers. Before long, little ones are in the water. Then when the waves don't break until close to shore, I have to watch out for youngsters who might be bobbing along in the water. Oh well, at least I get to surf. However, I might have to find real surf soon!

I'm contemplating another half-marathon even though I thought San Fran would be my last. I'm liking this running "stuff." In particular, I like running with a group. Training runs are the pits, but I'm even getting better about making the most out of those. A friend suggested they should be more meditative, which really helped me with consistent breathing during my last run. The next half I'm considering is in Huntington Beach, purely because of the medals. They look like surfboards!!! I bought a new pair of running shoes today. So, I guess I should never say never.

Half Marathons and more

I usually post on Fridays and/or Sundays, but this past weekend was a different kind of weekend for me. One of my newest hobbies is running. Actually, I think I wrote about it back in the fall/winter, but running a half-marathon is a bucket list item. Although I had run one in February (in Austin), I wasn't pleased with my finish time, which was considerably slower than I thought it should be. I ran injured back then, but by April, was injury-free and, by May, started training for another one. I chose the San Francisco Marathon/Half-Marathon in July because it was the only place that would be cool that time of year. The time snuck up on me, and all of sudden this past weekend, I found myself in San Francisco. I thought I might be able to surf a little while I was there, but when I planned the trip, I guess I didn't really give myself enough time. I flew out there on Friday, completed a little sightseeing on Saturday, ran on Sunday and was back on the plane for home Sunday afternoon. psheewww... It makes me tired reading it. It also makes me wonder what I was thinking to pack in so much activity in such a small amount of time. So, needless to say, I had no time to surf. I did, however, have time to read about surfing.

Several days before when googling surfing books, I found a book called "Surfing's Greatest Misadventures: Dropping in on the Unexpected." I downloaded it on my iPad in iBooks and chose it as my travel reading. Although I didn't get a chance to finish it, I am more than halfway through it. The first few chapters dealt with sharks, and more viciously and precisely, shark attacks. As a new surfer, I probably shouldn't read about shark attacks, but I felt a strange kind of "distance" from these stories. I guess everyone thinks it won't happen to them, but I'm pretty realistic in thinking that if, by some odd chance, it happens to me, there is nothing I can really do about it. The stories were gruesome and quite frightening, but I can't let them frighten me. After the first four or five essays, the stories became a little more lighthearted. Perhaps "lighthearted" isn't exactly the right word, but it's the only word that fits right now. The stories included some tragedy, but mostly self-imposed tragedy. One of my favorite essays so far, is one written by a Houston Chronicle outdoor/fishing writer named Joe Doggett called "Baptism with Bradshaw." Doggett apparently surfed at Flagship before deciding to go to Hawaii to surf North Shore's Sunset break with Ken Bradshaw. Bradshaw also came from Texas. His native surf beach was Surfside, before he eventually made his way to Hawaii and became a sponsored big wave surfer. In the essay, Doggett goes to visit Bradshaw, gets taken out on some waves -- real waves and when faced with a huge wave, can't follow through.

"I sat with my head down and exhaled with a whoosh. Then I turned again. My initial reaction was: I'm a dead man." He ended up "turning turtle" to get to the inside. "'I'm way out of my league," I said, gagging and choking, pulling myslef back onto the board. 'I need to get out of here.'"

Ummm...I found this story interesting. I've felt that way before even on just the small waves in Galveston when a storm was coming in and the waves were only 4-ft. I've also felt this way other times in my life when things seemed beyond my control. I've worked real hard to regain control, but have come to learn that some things are out of my hands. Sometimes, no matter how bad I want something to happen, I can't make it happen. Sometimes, other people decide. Those times can be difficult and sad. Surfing, running and cycling can certainly help me through it as long as I know my own physical limitations.

Good days and not-so-good days

I guess no day could be really bad that included surfing (or running or cycling for that matter). However, today was quite trying for me anyway. I didn't really feel like I had my game on when I made it to Galveston bright and early this morning. I had a fantastic day yesterday. I participated in the Saturday morning run in Kemah with a great group of positive, upbeat runners and got in a 5.2-mile before heading over to my cycling club ride and cycling 60 miles. It was fantastic! I had a pretty decent run and ride. I opted out of the 25 mph group at mile 40, but I can honestly say that I chose to leave the group. I might have been dropped after that, but I didn't get dropped at that time. I dined with some good friends last night, which ended the day in a wonderful way. However, Sunday was a slightly different story.

I woke up ready to surf. However, I was quite sluggish in getting ready and didn't make it down until 9 a.m., which is almost two hours after I usually make it down. Once there, the waves looked weak, but rideable. They were quite sloppy, but I made my way out. Brian had some lessons, Robin was helping with photos and all of his assistants were at work, so I was out without the others. A few people were already surfing, including some annoying shortboarders. I tried to take the rip out, but it was difficult, which should have been my clue. I could never find a break in the waves. In fact, no matter where I tried to get out, I had a hard time. Once out, I had even less success. I caught a few and even managed to successfully turn to avoid some swimmers. (I still need a lot of work with turning.) But, my mind wandered! I watched another young girl catch wave after wave successfully. However, I was feeling discouraged about surfing as well as some other frustrating events in my life. I didn't have a clear mind. I wiped out several times, which is something that hasn't happened to me more than once every third session in a while. In one particularly bad wipeout, I got hit by "Sunshine's" fin. It was disastrous. I surfed the next wave, but decided that the wipeout and subsequent "finning" was a sign for me to call it day. After all, I'm running a half-marathon next weekend, which won't be good if I can't even walk. I'm a little bruised, but it could have been much worse. I'm also a little bruised mentally. I want to surf better! I also don't want to look like an idiot when there are so many others at the beach.

I decided to investigate/google "mental game." I just haven't had a good mental game lately. I've found a website from a life coach, but other than a few testimonials and a Mental Game Power Quotient quiz, I don't really see anything useful. I found several golfing sites also. I found one thing on one of the sites, that I thought could help actually. It said: "The most important thing you can do mentally to give yourself the best possible chance of success is to focus your attention on what you want to have happen." I guess it's similar to some surfing advice I heard, which is " Look where you are going and you will go that direction." I need to keep my attention and my eyes looking down the line of a wave and imagining that I can surf it.