Limited Time Surfing

One of the problems with not living directly on the beach or in Galveston AND holding a full-time job AND being actively involved in three other sports is that time on the beach surfing can be limited. I'm fortunate to have a schedule at work that allows me to work four nine-hour days and one four-hour day to fulfill my week. Because of that schedule, I have the opportunity to surf on Friday afternoons. Unfortunately, the waves aren't always in agreement with my schedule. I was fortunate that there were enough waves to play in this past Friday. November had been extremely flat, but by the end of the work week last week, waves were building. Although they were small most of the time, an occasional thigh- or waist-high wave would come through.

One last Costa Rica shot!

I hadn't been to my home break since returning from Costa Rica a couple of weeks ago. So when I heard there were surf able waves, I headed down after work. Although I thought I would go out at Flagship, I decided that 43rd would be better. The surf dude met me there. We first went out on the east side of the jetty. Because of the way the wind was blowing, I felt like I couldn't get far enough away from it to feel safe. In fact, I pearled on the very first wave I went after simply because I looked up, saw the jetty and freaked out. I decided to go to the west side where I had much more fun. I caught some great little waves and had some fun rides; however, I still had a couple of mishaps that caused me to pearl. I felt like my wetsuit was getting stuck to the wax on my board. I'm not sure that is even possible, but it's exactly how I felt. I also felt like my pop-up was slow. I had a couple of small bruises on the inside of my right knee that definitely suggested that, at least a few times, I was getting on my knee during the pop-up. (Yikes! Not sure why I would be doing that...except that the wetsuit was slowing me down.) I need to work on that.

Sunday is the other day that I usually surf. However, today I had already committed to a run. Not sure why I committed to doing this particular run since I'm already registered for two others during the next seven weeks, but I did. The dude called to say the waves were spectacular, but I needed to do this run. So, I missed out. I'm hoping that next weekend will also include waves. In fact, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will.

A Flat November and Board Storage

Gosh! I'm itching to go surfing again, even if it means a 3-2 wetsuit. This week, a cold front pushed through returning the temps to the 40s for lows and low- to mid-60s for highs (water is a chilly 65-67 degrees). When the air temps are cold, getting in and out of the wetsuit is awful. Once I'm in the suit and make my way into the water, I'm okay until I have to strip out of it to go home. However, the discomfort is not enough to keep me from surfing. I have a friend who probably has finished surfing until next April. She just can't take the cold and would rather sit out until the warmer weather returns. I, personally, can't wait to get back into the water regardless of the temps. I hate being out this long because of my fear of getting "rusty." It's only been two weeks since returning from Costa Rica, but it seems like an eternity since I've been at my home break. I've been checking G-townsurf.com regularly and people have been able to find some rather small surf on long boards, but by the time I would be able to get there, I would definitely be too late. Seems like that small surf is only around early in the morning. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for next weekend. According to the Surfline, I might have surf next Friday afternoon. Yippee!! Of course, we're definitely too far out for Surfline to be able to make an accurate prediction. Possible waist high sets? Yes, that's enough to get me a little excited, even though the conditions include the word "choppy."

My surfing might be a little irregular for the next couple of months as I prepare to move...which will be a major step for me. The new place has a small place in the garage that I might be able to adapt for board storage. For the past five years, I've been keeping them in my dining room, but I'm hoping this new spot will be perfect for storage. They should be easy to access too. Hmmm....we'll see.

It was fun watching the local
surfers skate across the tops of the
waves. This guy was about
to go out!

I'm still thinking about my trip to Costa Rica and wishing I would have made a commitment to at least TRY to surf one of the head high waves. I know I've said it before, but I chickened out when I was paddling for the wave and looking back over my shoulder. There's just something a little intimidating about being in prone position and seeing a huge, fast wall of water coming toward you and knowing that timing has to be perfect. But the only way I will ever get better is if I go for it. I definitely will next time...that's right...definitely!

Living, Loving and a New Year's Resolution

Oh my! The north wind this week has blown out all the waves. While most surf reports indicated either incredibly small or no waves at all, I still depend quite a bit on first-hand reports. I know that the north wind can flatten things, but I also know that if a slight east wind gets tangled in with the north wind an occasional knee- to thigh-high wave will be generated. Surf Dude B said that it was flat Friday and Saturday, but he thought there might be enough of a wind for a knee-high wave to have some fun on Sunday mid-day. However, I never saw that wave form while watching all the webcams. Another friend of mine who recently purchased a home in G-town told me that he thought it might be surf-able on Saturday. Since buying his home in Galveston, he has purchased an SUP. He took it out Saturday after a fast bike ride. His assessment of the waves confirmed that there might be a few, small surfable waves for me and my longboard. However, the cold air temp coupled with the cool water temp made it quite easy for me to excuse myself from a surf session for and occasional, small wave. In fact, even the "dude" said it wasn't worth a drive from the mainland on Saturday. His optimistic opinion for Sunday afternoon however didn't prove true, and I'm glad I didn't bother packing the wetsuit and the board to get down there. I must admit, though, that I'm missing the surfing BAD. I'm dying to get out even if it means I'm in a 3-2 wetsuit. Maybe one day this week, I can squeeze in some wave time, although I'm not sure how or when. Busy week ahead for sure! But, despite the lack of surf time, I'm certain it will be filled with lots of fun, family and laughter.

A huge Costa Rican wave at sunset

I'm still thinking quite a bit about my fabulous trip to Costa Rica. I'm not sure I offered enough positive information in my last post. Surfing in Costa Rica is wonderful! They almost always have waves and it's warm all of the time. Hotel Casa Cecilia's break was a great experience. Even though the waves were bigger than I had expected, I still had the opportunity to push to the outside and watch the really good surfers take advantage of those fast waves.  I wish I hadn't pulled out of all the big ones, and taken my chances at being pounded into the bottom. I'm glad I had the opportunity to surf the outstanding, fast re-forms, but I sure hope to be able to surf the really big waves some day. Or, at least some bigger waves. I've surfed chest-high waves in Galveston, but the waves in Galveston are also a little more gentle. Sometimes I think that the only way to really get better is to surf the bigger, stronger waves of the west coast every day. However, I don't have the luxury to do that. I think I mentioned the book "Kook" by Peter Heller. He was determined to surf the big waves and lived in a van on the beaches of Baja and central Mexico so that he could get experience surfing the waves every day. And, it made a big difference. Within six months, he was able to surf some bigger waves on a short board. I don't think he was ready to compete, but he was able to get some decent rides. I don't have the luxury that Heller had, so I will just have to make do with the G-town waves and an occasional trip to the Pacific. I just hope it's enough to take me to the next level of surfing...to get me to stop pulling out of the big waves and going for it! Maybe I should make it a 2013 New Year's Resolution. I think I will.