Catching a Few On a Tuesday Evening

A little over a week ago, a front passed the coast at just the right time with just the right energy. Those who had the day off or took a little time off, had some of the best waves of the season so far. Waves were rumored to be 6-8 ft., although I always find that hard to believe when I'm looking at the webcam. Because of the angle of the camera at 43rd and the placement above the coast the waves always look small. The waves looked a little bigger on the 37th camera, and although I couldn't tell if they were 6 or 8 feet, I could tell that they were beautiful. Tons of surfers were out, and I was jealous of them. I've been on deadline with a big project so taking time off was not an option for me. Later that night, many of my surfing Facebook friends talked about their afternoon and it sounded glorious. Although there were  few lingering waves on Friday, I still couldn't make it down to 43rd and, by Saturday, it was flat.

Tuesday night surf session was fun

Monday afternoon started to show promise. And the forecast for Tuesday was even better. It was correct. Since the SwellInfo forecast had predicted such good waves on Tuesday, I loaded my board on the off chance that we would have a repeat of the previous Thursday. Tuesday morning, Galveston once again had 6-8 ft waves. By that afternoon, the waves had gotten quite a bit smaller, but were still well-formed and 3-5 ft. When I made it to 43rd, at a little after 4 o'clock, I found about eight surfers still out. I paddled out and immediately caught a wave. I struggled a little after that because the waves were more intermittent and less easy to read than they had been earlier in the day. I played for another hour or so and had a ball, despite the trouble I had reading the waves. I caught about four or five before it got a little too dark. As I got out of the water at dusk, five or so surfers were still out. But they only had about 15 minutes before it was too dark.

By Wednesday morning, it was flat, and it has been flat for the rest of the week. The forecast doesn't look good either. A couple of fronts have crossed the coast since Tuesday, but the waves haven't built enough for the fronts to clean them up. We need a strong South or SWS wind to build mushy disorganized waves so that the next front can clean it up and build the waves. Maybe next weekend? Keeping my fingers crossed.

Waves One Week, None the Next

Because I don't exactly live in a surfing mecca, I long for some weather abnormality that gives me waves when I least expect it. So much depends on the wind. One of the reasons surfing is so much better in the winter when it's cold is because the North wind cleans up our usual mushy, messy waves. Of course, during the summer when the strong south wind blows, I depend on those mush, messy waves for my fun. This year, we've had some north winds blow through on a semi-regular basis. The timing has been good for me since it has been the weekend. A couple of weeks ago, north winds were forecasted. Friday was a rainy day, so I went SUP shopping with a running friend. I hadn't planned on buying anything that day, but I wanted to look at what was out there, lift them up and see if they were too heavy for me. I'm pretty sure I have it narrowed down to one or two, including one that Brian has that is very reasonably priced. The two I have it narrowed down to both have pink designs. Go figure!

The 43rd Street jetty got quite
crowded two weeks ago when
an unusual summer north
wind brought some pretty sets.

By Saturday (two weeks ago), the rain had stopped and the north wind had blown through bringing with it somewhat nicely formed waves. The beaches were crowded, not just because the waves had finally re-appeared, but because it was July. Local families and vacationers from afar packed the beaches. And, surfers crowded the breaks. 43rd was crowded so I went down the street to 36th. Had a great Saturday afternoon of fun. It didn't stop there. On Sunday morning early, with waves still appearing on the webcam, I headed to 43rd Street. I went out and caught the first wave i paddled for and had an incredible ride. I started on the east side of the jetty, but quickly moved to the west side because the waves looked a little stronger and the east side of the jetty was so crowded. I had a blast. I caught some and missed a few, but I had pretty waves to play in for a little while. I stayed for a couple of hours, and it felt good to be out. As I was packing up to leave, I noticed quite a few more surfers were out. In fact, it was quite crowded, especially on the east side of 43rd. I was so happy to have had a few waves to surf.

The past two weekends, though, have been completely flat. Last weekend, although flat, was too windy even to go out on an SUP, which meant I didn't participate in any water sports. But, by this weekend, I knew I had to get back in the water. Fortunately, although it was flat, the wind was weak enough to make SUPing a possibility. I contacted Dude B. about using a few of his SUPs. I had a couple of friends who wanted to go out on an SUP. Because of the wind direction, we decided it would be better to go out at 25th near the Pleasure Pier. What fun we all had. We began by paddling against the current toward the beach near Murdoch's (the old bathhouse turned souvenir shop). We paddled under the Pleasure Pier and safely made it to shore. Then we paddled back with the current. What a difference the direction made. Although it hadn't been unbearable to paddle against the tide, paddling with it was extraordinarily easy. We floated all the way back to the beach at 25th in no time. It was a wonderful morning and a great way to start Sunday Funday!

A Windy Weekend, but a Well-formed Wavy Weeknight

I was just sure that I would be able to surf last weekend. However, that didn't work out like I had hoped.. It was incredibly windy. I went down on Sunday just to take a look. When I got out of the car, I knew I wouldn't be paddling out. The wind was howling and the sand was blowing. Everyone was

Last Sunday was a windy, messy
day on the beach.

covered in sand and those not wearing sunglasses were definitely rubbing their eyes. I ran into B. and another friend, Susan. She warned me about the waves. They were quite unruly because of the wind. Several surfers were out, but they weren't having a lot of fun. They would catch a wave every now and then, but they weren't catching them consistently. My guess is that they were like me, a person who could only surf on the weekend and was willing to do anything to get in the water. Of course, I guess I wasn't that desperate last weekend because I wasn't willing to fight the tide or wind. Just standing on the Seawall was hard enough. I'm glad I didn't go out.

By Tuesday, surfers in the Galveston area were heading to the beach. A late spring cold front brought north winds that would turn the windy mush into well-formed waves.  The best waves started appearing at about 11 a.m. I just kept my fingers crossed that they would last until I got off that afternoon.

I left work a little early and, even though the wind had started howling, I could see some potential fun. Two other guys from work met me at the beach, as did the surf "dude." Quite a few people were still out despite the fact that the best waves were earlier in the day. It didn't matter to me because these were the BEST waves I'd seen in awhile. I paddled out and caught a wave right away. I caught a few more after that and had a spectacular session. My friends from work seemed to have fun too. However, I have to say, once again, if I had been a better surfer, I'm sure that I might have had even more fun. Actually, I'm not even really sure I would have. I had a ball anyway. I surfed until the sun started setting. I look forward to some evening surf sessions for the rest of the summer. I'm just so glad I went out this week.

Promises, Promises

A north wind was forecasted this weekend! Surfline gave Saturday morning a positive review offering first a blue forecast that changed to green (cleanest of clean waves) later in the week indicating big, beautiful waves. Unfortunately, not only did a north wind come through but another weather system stalled and came in from the south meeting the north "cool" front causing quite a bit of rain for southeast Texas. Surfers from all over were ready to descend on Galveston. As long as the lightning stayed away, surfing in the rain wouldn't be a problem.  However, not everyone was expecting the crazy wind. Yes, the temps dropped just enough to make it a little chilly for wet people standing on the beach, but that didn't stop anyone as they planned for Saturday.

Friday first though! Friday afternoon is my usual surf day of course. The weather was stormy though

Saturday was just plain sloppy!
(A view looking toward the
Pleasure Pier.)

and the waves were a bit of a mess. It just wasn't worth it to go surfing. No one was out. They were all waiting for Saturday. I had already decided that rather than cycle on Saturday, I would surf because of the forecasted waves. I thought I would do a short 6-mile run at 5:30 a.m. and head down. But when I woke up, it was raining at my house, so I slept in. Early reports from Dude B indicated that the waves were big, but rather sloppy. He said he would check a little later, but if he were me, he wouldn't make the drive down. I visited a couple of webcams and saw crowds of surfers, but I had to agree that the surf looked sloppy. Because it was raining, I opted to go to spin class at the gym rather than bicycle. I popped Roxanne in the car though just in case I received a text from Dude saying that the waves had cleaned up and the surf was calling. The text never came. I later spoke to another surfer I knew who said he paddled out, but after about 30 minutes, came into shore because the waves were impossible to catch. I journeyed to G-town later that night for supper and drove along the beach. It was still a mess even at 5:30 in the afternoon, so I wasn't holding much hope for Sunday.

I received a text early from Dude B on Sunday saying that he would be giving lessons and that the winds might have lightened a bit. He warned that it was cool, but could possibly be worth a paddle out.  I packed Roxanne and drove to the 43rd St. jetty. It was just as he had described it: a little messy, but if a person didn't mind waiting, a set would roll through. I paddled out and caught the first wave I paddled into and stayed for about an hour-and-a-half. I had a ball. The waves didn't last very long before fizzling out, but if you took them at just the right angle, it was possible to get a decent ride. I didn't have the best rides ever, but I did catch a few that made the trip completely worthwhile. I was a little chilly while waiting on the board, but I wasn't as cold as I thought I might be. Sometimes I just need a clean wave or two to clear my head. Things in life can get so confusing and catching a wave can help clear the cobwebs! So glad I had the opportunity to do that.

Top 20 Surf Destinations -- an Article to Make Me Dream

Blah! That's what the waves have been like lately when I'm off.  I was planning to go surfing Friday, but received a call saying that the waves were not worth it. In addition, since the Fourth of July is just around the corner, vacationers have invaded G-town for a few weeks. If I couldn't get there by 7 a.m., then it wouldn't be worth trying to squeeze my way in. The waves were wishy-washy and what ever surfable waves there were, they were loaded with surfers. I was bummed I didn't get to go on Friday afternoon, but it was probably for the best since I am also still fighting a cold I picked up in San Francisco. (I've since read that running a marathon can weaken a person's immune system.) Although ill on Saturday, I still managed to run three miles and cycle 45. I've had at least two people suggest that I'm not giving my body enough time to heal itself, but I think that if I feel like doing it, I should do it and that my body will recover on its own time.

On Sunday, I was looking forward to some pretty little waves. In a strange turn of events for June, the wind shifted out of the north. I wasn't sure that it would be strong enough to make a difference, but when I woke up that morning, I looked on the webcam and saw pretty little peelers with approximately five or six surfers already taking advantage of them. I had some early morning commitments, but hoped that the waves would hold until I could make it down around 10 a.m. However, a 9 a.m. phone call suggested that it was NOT worth a drive down. The waves, while still coming in pretty sets, had diminished significantly. Most of the surfers were gone. And, the beach was packed! I definitely could tell that it was the beginning of a holiday week. So, once again, I DIDN'T GET TO SURF. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for this week. I might even try for an early surf session on the 4th as long as I can get down there really early and get out before the crowds get too big. (Surf reports don't look good for waves though.)

I really like Twitter for a number of reasons. One of the things I like about it is that I can follow many surf sites and receive information about surf equipment, trips and more. On Sunday I was looking at my Twitter feed and saw several of the surfing sites post a story from CNN about the Top 20 Surfing Destinations. I've posted about lists like this before...possibly even a list CNN put out last year. But, I never get tired of reading them and dreaming about some of the places I'd like to go. I've been to two of the destinations on the list this year (Freights Bay, Barbados and Tamarindo, Costa Rica). I hope to go to some of the others during my lifetime.

Happy reading!

http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/30/travel/50-surf-spots/index.html?iref=allsearch

Finally, some waves!

Waves have been inconsistent lately! Just when I think there might be something to surf, I look on the Galveston webcam and it's flat. Or, I look on the webcam just as I'm preparing to head to work, to a meeting, to a wedding...to a fill-in-the-blank, and find the waves are wonderful, but I can't make it to Galveston. It's been flat for the past few weekends, with waves only appearing mid-week. I was off the entire week of Christmas, but it wasn't until late Thursday that the waves started picking up again. The surf dude Brian called on Friday and said that the waves were messy and the current was bad, but I was so desperate to get in the waves again that I decided I would take my chances. In fact, I had been keeping up with several surf forecasting sites and the prediction for Friday afternoon was clean surf after yet another norther blew through. The current would still be strong, but the surf would be a little more consistent.

Pretty, clean sets were forming by
mid-day on Friday!

I made it to the island and into the waves close to noon. Because of the number of surfers already at 43rd waiting for the wind shift to occur, I listened to Brian's suggestion and surfed at 39th . Things were still a little rough, but I could see waves forming and filling in nicely. The current was strong, and I knew that I would have to paddle hard to make it to the outside. That was an understatement. I was able to time the waves, count the sets and make it out past the jetty, but I couldn't make it out far enough where the waves were building. Every time I almost made it out, I would get swept back in by a wave. I would then see a well-formed wave and think that I was far enough, turn and surf it. Usually, once a person gets past the jetty it gets a little easier, but not Friday. I made it quite a ways past the end of the jetty, but still couldn't make it all the way out where some of the waves were forming. Don't get me wrong, I had a few fabulous rides. I didn't even have to paddle much to get into the waves. The ones I caught were not real big, but very strong and fast. I had a ball, and I sure was glad to be back out.

For the first time this year, I had to wear my 5-4mm wetsuit. Water temp is approximately 57 degrees, which is quite chilly. Although I had my booties with me, I opted not to wear them. Fortunately, my feet didn't really start getting numb until a couple hours later, which was my cue to get out of the water. Of course, by the time I got out, the front had swept past the coast and the air temps were about 55 degrees. And, getting out of a wetsuit, especially that 5-4 which is so darn hard to peel off, is COLD. Brrrr...fortunately I keep my sweats real close and have managed to disrobe and re-clothe myself quite fast. By Saturday, the waves had disappeared and on Sunday, they weren't much better. However, this evening they look like they are building again as another front moves in. I might be able to squeeze in a little surf time tomorrow morning. Here's hoping!!

Adventure Racing and a Few Little Waves

my t-shirt from the race

Several months ago, a friend I bicycle with sent a notice to a few people asking if any of us wanted to participate in an Adventure Race taking place in Tyler State Park during September. I had heard him talk about his fun at adventure races before and had expressed an interest, so I'm sure it came to no surprise to him that when he posted the note, I was the first to respond. Adventure Races can be different from one to another but, for the most part, they usually include trail running, mountain biking and kayaking. I had done one short one with him last December, but this would be a longer one and would probably be a four-person team that included two of his male friends and me. I am nine years older than my friend, 12 years older than one of the friends and, finally, 25 years older than the youngest guy on the team. I wasn't sure they would want me on the team, but I didn't hear anyone complain. And, I'm so glad they didn't! I had a ball racing with team Dazed & Confused. The race was unlike anything I've ever done before. I left the navigating to them since it required using a topographical map and a little plastic tool that helped locate coordinates. It was nice to have them lead in that area so I could relax when it came to directions. I realized that I need to strengthen my mountain bike skills and my orienteering skills if I want to compete in another race. I know I can do that with practice. I have to say, though, that I had one of my best days ever on the mountain bike. Just as the size of the wave can be frightening when looking over my shoulder, so can a descent look scary when looking down a path from the seat of a mountain bike.

Because I drove up with my teammate to Tyler on Friday for the race, I didn't get to go surfing. It didn't look great on the webcam, but I'm pretty sure there were ride-able waves. By Saturday, the wind had shifted out of the north and the waves were beautiful. Of course, I wasn't there since I was competing in my race. I wouldn't have changed a thing other than to wish the waves would have gone from frumpy to fantastic on Sunday instead of Saturday so that I would have been home to enjoy them. From the webcam I looked at after my race, I could see quite a few surfers enjoying the fun.  A couple of friends sent Facebook notes or emails describing the fun. I was just hoping that there would be a few left on Sunday morning.

I was glad to get a call from my surf dude Brian who said there were still some small, surfable waves this morning. I loaded up Roxanne and headed down. I'm sure glad I did. When I first arrived, I struggled catching them. In fact, I got angry and almost packed up and went home. Because the remnants of yesterday's waves didn't pack a lot of power, paddling had to be fast and strong. Brian offered me his 10' board, but I knew changing boards wouldn't help. A couple of other guys were out trying to catch waves also. One young guy was making it look easy. I studied how he was doing it and realized that I wasn't paddling soon enough. I needed to go out a little farther in the water and start paddling the minute I saw the wave form. So that is what I started to do. I caught many waves after that and managed to turn a little. However, because the waves were breaking so close to shore, the rides were short. I prefer if I'm able to catch them out past the jetty. But, that just wasn't possible with the waves we had today. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that next weekend when I'm IN town, another front will push through so that I can surf some nice waves on the outside.

Quick weekends, even quicker waves

Sunday (4/15) didn't look much different than Friday (4/13)

Watching the weather during the local news broadcast has become even more important to me since I've started surfing. I've watched the weekend forecasts since I started cycling about 20 years ago, making sure that the Saturday morning "atmosphere" was the right one for a good 60-mile bike ride. When I started surfing approximately three years ago though, one of the first things I attempted to learn was what kind of weather would be the right weather to create waves for surfing not just for the weekend, but for any day/afternoon. In Galveston (like most places), waves are very dependent on the wind. If Galveston has a strong south, east-southeast wind, we will have waves. If the wind is out of the north at just the right speed, we will get perfect waves in nice sets. Usually, a north wind blows through too strong and flattens the waves, but sometimes, the wind is perfect. This week, the forecasts on Surfline, network weather, etc., say that the really nice waves might be on Tuesday (4/17) morning. I'm not completely sure it will play out as predicted, because some of the wave prediction sites are changing the winds back to strong east winds. We'll just have to wait and see. All the forecasts for this past weekend, though, were right. Strong winds caused some bigger waves, but forecasters cautioned surfers that the really strong currents would make getting out to the waves (or even staying the whitewater) tough. Since Friday is my day to go surfing, despite some forecast warnings, I loaded my 9' Softop and headed to G-town. I was originally going to take my 8'1" because I didn't want to have to struggle with the wind loading and unloading my board as well as carrying it down to the beach. However, I also didn't want to have to worry about the gusts picking up the board while I was out in the waves and either pushing me off, or, while I'm in the water, the wind picking it up and causing the board to hit me in the face. So, at surf dude's suggestion, I brought my 9'. It was the right choice.

Because of the G-townsurf.com report about the waves, the 43rd Street jetty had six surfers already fighting over the waves when I got there at 3 p.m. So, I went to the 39th Street jetty. Dude B. had recommended it, and I think he was right. The really big waves were on the outside. In fact, one wave-caster suggested that only expert surfers should go out in the waves. I'm not an expert by no means, but I felt comfortable on the outside. The waves made getting out -- even in the rip current -- challenging, but once on the outside, waves definitely offered surfing opportunities. I caught a couple from the outside (and wiped out a few times), but I also chose to practice my turning and board positioning by catching waves in the whitewater. I successfully turned the board multiple times. I still have a lot of work to do though. I need to turn myself on the board much quicker to be able to ride down the line. I've made a lot of progress, but I still have quite a bit of work to do. I need more consistent waves on a regular basis to help me practice. (Today was too rough, so, unfortunately, I was only able to surf one day this week.) Not much I can do about this, but wish...for bigger waves...for more chances to surf.

I love G-town!

Friday floating

Light north winds have flattened the Gulf again making my Friday surfing day a bust. Well...I should say it was almost a bust. Robin and I still went down to Galveston with our surfboards to have some fun. Although I'm sure we looked quite foolish, we took them out and swam out past the end of the pier. We floated and swam. We practiced our knee paddling, which will help us a little. However, how we swim out when we have real waves will be a different matter. I'm sure we will be a little less certain of ourselves the first time we confront a 4- to 6-foot wave as we're swimming out past the breaks. We got a pretty good workout today though, swimming from pier to pier. Because the wind was out of the north, we also got pushed out quite a way from the shore line. Brian joined us eventually and talked to us about catching waves, which seems to be a problem these days for both of us. Once we catch the wave, we know what we are supposed to do, but actually timing everything just right and catching the wave is the hard part. That's something that will just have to come with practice I think.

Tonight, I went shopping for a springsuit, which Brian says we will need probably by October. I had been given a $50 gift certificate by my fabulous office mates for my birthday in August. Although I went by Sun & Ski last week and couldn't find a springsuit or wetsuit, I decided to give it another try. This time I found a very small selection. I'm guessing the store drug them out of their storage area hoping that they would sell them during their bike sale. I questioned their small selection of springsuits only to be met with a very rude, "We're not a surf store," to which I wished I would have answered, "No, you're a SPORTING GOODS store," hoping that the sarcasm would tell him that as a sporting goods store they should be able to cover a variety of sports. But, alas, I said nothing. I just picked up a couple of springsuits and took them to the dressing room. A young female clerk from Germany came to help me. She was delightful. Of the two springsuits, one was a little loose, but comfortable, while the second was like...well...a second skin. I was assured that the second one was how it should fit. With it being on sale for $75 and me having a $50 gift card, I was able to buy it for $25. The price was right. I decided I could make it work. It was a men's small. ummm...Hope I can get it on when I need it! It certainly fits like a glove; a little tighter than my 3-2 wetsuit. Note to self: DON'T GAIN ANY WEIGHT BETWEEN NOW AND OCTOBER!