Here's to New Year's Eve

Here's to time passing...

Happy End of the Year!

It has been a roller coaster ride. Definitely not the carousel ride. Definitely.

Fake Plastic Stars

Will I ever surf again?

Karen told me that the water dropped to 49 degrees. Since 1979, when I began recording the water temps, the coldest I ever recorded was 48.

God, it is going to be a long winter...

Black Swan

One of the best movies of the year. If you ever wanted to experience what it is like to seek perfection in something to the point of the distortion of all reality, this is the movie to see. Not that anyone in their right mind would actively choose to experience it. But you, at the very least, can walk away from it all after the movie ends. The stress and anxiety captured here is beyond brilliant. Most people will probably find it a bit off putting and hard to understand. If you want a movie where everything makes sense, skip this. You will only be frustrated and confused. This is a portrayal of the descent into madness. And, it is done in a way that is effectively unsettling, yet revealing. Bravo.

The day after Christmas...

A front is moving in. The skies are cloudy and a light but cold rain is falling. The Earl of Cheddar has flown away, along with his girlfriend and her delightful family. Yesterday was a gift, the early morning surf, the family, the food, the revelations, and tears...

Merry Christmas

I got what I wanted!

Woke up early and put the suit on, as soon as I heard the report. Two to three feet and clean. I only had the morning, so much to do with company in town. I had to get breakfast on the table by ten for six. Next, it is Christmas lunch for six just after noon. The California couple would be sleeping at least until ten, so I crept out the door with my surfboard beneath the clear skies of Christmas morning.

The pier was already backing off, so I decided to go to Matanzas. That left was still on my mind, the one I had seen Bob and Andy score a few days ago when I was tied up. When I pulled up to the cliff, my eyes popped. Way out the back was an A-frame peak, and a set of three waves was rolling on in. No one was out anywhere, all tied up with family. I grabbed my board and climbed down the rocks.

It took awhile to get out there, wave after wave tried to push me back, and the ice cream headaches were painful. The air was 46, water 55. Ouch! But, I could see green walls peeling off and that kept me paddling hard. Once out, i could see there were some good ones. It was hard to line up with no one out, but I got it. After a few, I realized how really beautiful it was out there, so clean, and one just peeled and peeled for me, letting me go left and right. There was a lot of sitting, and gradually the tide filled in and it looked like a different place. When I looked back from the cliff after I came in, an hour and a half later, it looked downright marginal.

It was an early morning Christmas present, and it was sorely needed... the stoke is back.

Happy Christmas Eve!

The Earl of Cheddar

The Earl of Cheddar's back in town,
all surfing plans have run aground.

Walking on the beach with him, Katie, and her family in the warm sunshine, the green waves peeling away without me, was as good as surfing. Matanzas Inlet was beautiful yesterday afternoon. The tidal pools were full and crystal clear, brimming with starfish and crazy crabs tucked in their shells. The offshore winds blew spooky swirls of sand across the beach that moved to music inside my head.

Highlight: When Katie and Colby took off running after some zigzagging threatening creature they jumped away from when it moved their way, only to discover, almost to the shoreline, that it was just a piece of paper.

Must go surfing... starting to hallucinate

I am working on getting the spine to paddle out. The air temp is 44 degrees, water 54. Ugh. The absolute coldest air temp I ever paddled out in was 37 degrees. That was when I was way younger. Even then, my hands were so frozen I couldn't open my car door. The key would simply not turn in my stumpy fingers. This memory is making me think I will attempt it closer to noon..

More to come...

There will be beverages

Think Practical

When considering material gifts, please.

Still no waves...

Water temps are dropping... let's look at cool art until the surf returns.

Until there are waves again...

The incredible art of R.S. Connett

Monkey Day!

I missed mentioning it yesterday.

Reflections in my mirror

It is colder here right now than in Alaska, they say.

Me like warmness

A grey day becomes better with friends...

Lots happening today. Someone from the past returns. The sky becomes blue for a moment. I go surfing with friends.

Sometimes life confirms what you believe is really true

I do not like it!

I do not like winter, see? I stay inside and it does me no good. I do not like it, I do not like it, I do not like it, infinity.

WIsh I was in Nicaragua...

Here comes the flatness and the cold artic air. Ugh. Somewhere on the planet, it is quite the opposite...

Back in the water...

Winter is closing in. The cold weather this week has been a real downer.

Today, a window opened. The wind turned offshore, the water became mint green, and although the swell wasn't much, it was the warmest waves we will probably have for months to come. I had to get out there. I took the 6'10" out at the pier, right around noon, an hour before dead low tide.

As I walked up the steps to check it, I could see the emerald green lines, took one glance and bounded down the steps to go change into my fullsuit (first time for that this winter) and grab my board. I called Karen at work and told her to come straight to the pier when she got off. There were perfect little A-frame peaks coming in and rifling off with not a soul on it.

I had it all to myself at first. Little by little, more and more people started showing up. TJ paddled past and said,"The waves are super fun!" It was so gorgeous out, the sunny skies, the warm offshores, the sparkling green almond eyed little barrels that you could tuck inside as they raced toward the pier! The water still felt warm compared with the air...

Soon, it began to get crowded and it wasn't worth jockeying for. It had been nice with just a few of us, but with ten it began to feel stupid. I went in and when I walked up to the showers, Bruce and Karen were checking it. She had been held up at work, but we looked back at the ocean and it was still pretty, green little lines filtering in. "Go out!" I said, "It is still worth it." They headed off to get her board, and I told her to call me later and let me know how it was.

The forecast calls for a week to ten days of freezing mornings and highs only in the fifties.

I hate winter.

Tip of the hat to nature...

Time to Start the Christmas List

Today was like this

You know how it is, those days you feel pulled in a million different directions and wonder how much you can take? Today was one of those days.

The kid is finally free

I saw T.J. on the last day before Thanksgiving break, standing at the bus stop. He called out my name, and it took a minute to recognize him. He had gotten even taller, his face had matured, and it seemed like only last year that I was tutoring him after school in the homework lab at the elementary school down the street.

I asked him if he had gotten any of those waves last week, and he said he hardly ever got to surf anymore. Basketball practice was taking up all his free time. I just couldn't believe it. This was the same kid I had seen last summer, almost every time I surfed at the pier. T.J. stands out. He is the tallest, skinniest kid around, and I could always recognize him from way down the beach, hanging five on his longboard. So, it did my heart some good to see this picture of him out surfing yesterday. The waves sucked, but the kid was finally free...

Thanksgiving day fun

Another day of fun. I really didn't expect much, and at first it looked a bit lazy, looking at it from the overlook at Matanzas. Mark had called early, was already there and getting ready to go out. He didn't have all morning, had commitments, and was going to take what he could get. I said I would be there in an hour and would see him there. Andy was on his way, too, having missed yesterday, inundated with work and ready for some sunshine and surf.

I met Andy on the beach and we surveyed the scene. There were about six guys out, but all of them were on short boards, a good sign. We paddled out together as Mark caught one and rode past us. The waves were a bit more angled from the north today, a bit wobblier than yesterday, but fun looking. We all caught some and then Mark had to leave. As soon as he left, it began to turn on. The downside: the crowd was growing by the minute. Bob showed up, and we all caught some fun sparkling peelers. I saw Andy sitting in the sun and he looked so happy. The water was mild, and he wore baggies and a 1mm long sleeve shirt. This fact was not lost on us: Can you believe this gorgeous day? The sky was blue, the wind was blowing ever so lightly from the WNW, veering to the south near the end of the morning session.

There were a lot of people out that I hadn't seen in awhile, The Claw, Flea, and Frieda. It was a good vibe in the water, overall, lots of fun little peaks for everyone. Andy and I moved to the outside at one point, and snagged some peaks that were really fun. One right I had was super fun, peeling all the way almost to the beach. Another good one came in that I was in the perfect position for, but Bob was sitting on the inside as I took off. I whined "BOB!" and nearly fell off trying to get around him. It was all in good fun, and it was another gift of a day that none of us took for granted.

Afterwards, I walked up the beach and talked to a rep from long ago, sitting on the beach with his wife in the warm sun, and we talked about our current situations and recalled surf industry memories. Both of us agreed that we didn't miss those days of retail, not even one little bit. But, the good part is this. I made a lot of friends that I might never have. That is the silver lining, and if you look hard enough you can always find one at the very least.

Little miracles are the best

Sure didn't think I would be rushing out to the surf this morning. With the reports saying it was only a foot to a foot and a half...

But, the wind was right and the sky cleared, and that was enough to get me out to check Matanzas. High tide was around 9:30 am and as I walked up the boardwalk and looked out to see green glassy lines about waist to chest high and only about six guys out, my pace began to pick up.

This is an unexpected little miracle, was what I was thinking as I paddled out.

The wind was near perfect and the water was gorgeously clear and green... and pretty warm. I had my 2mm spring on, and that ended up being perfect. Tom was out, and eventually Bob came out, too. He hadn't expected much either and we were stoked! We shared the peak for a couple hours before the tide began to back out. Even as I walked away, it looked good. It was glassy still, even with the new light onshore wind, and as I watched Bob snag a little left I almost wanted to paddle back out...

The first 100% electric car!

The Nissan Leaf

Slosh Session

Checked Matanzas early, hoping for some early high tide good luck. It ended up looking smaller there than anywhere, broken up, with no distinct walls to be had. On a lark, I decided to check 16th street and it looked like a different day (see photo). It wasn't great, but it looked like there were at least some sections to be had. I had my wetsuit on already, so...

I paddled out with no one in sight. The waves were bigger than they looked, about chest high on the sets, but not too much length or power. I was hoping, when I heard that the intervals had jumped from six to ten seconds, that there would be more of a swell. In the end, I caught one good one, a right that I got to do an actual bottom turn on and fly up to the lip and make it down, but the rest were trash, mere comedy, as the cold I have been fighting and the lack of power in the waves made me feel like most of my rides were more like circus stunts.

On the way home, I was talking to Andy about the whole Firewire disappointment. I am so glad I am out of the surf industry and all the politics that are inherent in even surfing. FIrewire is unhappy with their North Florida sales, apparently, and are opening up practically every shop in our town. Blue Sky stocks 18, and Dave is the most informative source for them in our area, but exclusives are not set in stone and well, it feels to me that now the magic is tainted. The boards are now being mass produced in Thailand, apparently, and I can't make an intelligent argument for that either way, but, still, if you don't support and take care of those who have been there for you, it can only bring bad karma in the end. I discovered, with Bob's help, that the originator of the whole parabolic rail thing is with SUNOVA surfboards. I am in contact with them, and there will be more to come on this.

As I was getting FIRED up about this, talking to Andy, I neglected to see a big palm frond lying across my path as I walked up to my place. Next thing I knew, I was on the brick path on my hands and knees, my cell phone flying through the air to land in three pieces as I yelped in pain. My knee throbbing, all I saw was my phone, its guts on the ground, and was thinking that I had really done it this time. I got the thing back together and called Andy back. It wasn't as bad as I initially thought when I held my throbbing knee and wondered, seriously, if I had cracked it. Luckily, my knee pad on my wetsuit took a lot of the blow and all I had was a bit of bleeding knee cap. Melissa came running out (hearing me gently cursing as I went down), and apologized for not picking up the errant frond earlier when she had seen it.

Oh, Melissa, I said, don't even think about it! It would not be a normal Sunday if I didn't get a least one injury.

Some days are better than others

Waves would be nice, please.

Sometimes the bull says, "Enough!"

Another Epic Day

When I pulled up to the pier this morning, it looked like a dream. Perfect tapering walls were pouring in, and no one was on it! The wind was perfect! Light WSW. There were about six guys over around 16th street, but that was it.

I so wanted to get out there right away, but I had to get the kids to school and get my board and wetsuit...

By 8:27 am, I was paddling out. I could see that a few guys were on it, but the crowd wasn't too bad. Mark B. shouted hello, and I settled into it. Then I saw Andy! At first it was a bit inconsistent. I watched as everyone caught some, and waited for the ones I had seen before earlier. I wanted a good one. It came after a wait. I was a little sore from yesterday's escapades, and was surprised I even had the energy to paddle out. But my bumps, scrapes, and bruises felt soothed by the cool ocean.

There is was, a big left. Mark told me to get it, and I was in the perfect spot sitting a little outside. What a way to start, the thing just peeled off perfectly all the way inside. Mark was smiling as I paddled back out, saying it looked like a nice one. The tide was still bottoming out, and the best was yet to come. Andy said he was going to go in and eat a Nutrigrain bar after about half an hour - and then I never saw him again. I worried that he had given up because the crowd was growing. We both saw Steve B. paddling our way on his eleven footer, never a good thing.

Turns out Andy went back out, moved down the beach a few yards, and was scoring some gems of his own.

I hugged the pier, since Mark and I were having so much fun there with the lefts, and this right kept heaving up, bigger and throaty. One I had just sucked out and I could hear Mark hooting as I dropped into it. I raced along the face, trying to make it and it opened up so nice and let me have a couple fun turns before I cut out as it approached the pier in a heaving mass.

The day was classic, just a classic North Florida fall day, with perfect size and shape, green and glassy, and with enough of a light offshore wind to make it near perfect. I think this is the first day in months I heard David say "excellent shape" on the surf report.

Highlights to remember:

That wave that ledged up, green and glassy, and Mark said "Classic California!" as I stroked for it thinking I might be too far outside, but it jacked up more than I expected and I was in the perfect position out the back and it sucked up and I went left as it pitched and rolled as I tucked inside a bit on the drop and then it opened up and let me hit it three or four times as high as I could go... all the way inside.

Remember that one right! The one that Mark was paddling for, but I was a tad farther outside him (I know he didn't think I would catch it) and being more in the peak, I knew it was mine. I had given him so many. He had a look on his face like 'no way you are taking off on that wave there - you will be pitched.' But, I had confidence in the Dominator and just went. The thing ledged up so fast and steep, and I had a moment of fear where I thought the drop was too critical and late, but I just went and free fell, looking at the bottom so far down there, with him looking at me as he backed off with his mouth open like I was going to die. I made it, and the thing just threw as it hit the shallow sandbar and all I had to do was slide down the face and stand straight up as it opened up as I touched the face and it just went and went all the way to the pier. When I paddled back out, Mark said it was INSANE, the biggest wave of the day!

Jason H, paddled out, and what fun, that lunatic! I saw him get the most insane wave today and told him he was my hero. I was on the inside and saw him take off on this huge green left, two feet over his head, get covered up on take off, come out, go vertical backside, throw a huge fan into the air, fly straight back down, and surf right into the pier and make it into the middle of the thing!

That barrel Woody got, remember? I saw him to the south of me as he stroked into it, just gorgeous. sparkling in that morning sunshine, the lip throwing out mint green, and he got covered up and came out. Everyone was hooting, and this one young guy said,"Did you see that? That longboarder got so tubed, that was nuts!" I relayed it for Woody, to his complete delight.

Near the end, when I was so tired, sore, and hungry, three longboarders paddled out to invade the spot that Jason, Mark, and I had been enjoying all to ourselves. One longboarder made a fatal error and dropped in on Jason. You do not drop in on Jason. Ever. I watched as the guy naively rode along and Jason approached like a bad dream behind him with much more speed and just overtook him. It was a bit funny to watch, but would be my total nightmare if that had been me. Jason said something like YEAH! KEEP MOVING! and then Jason did this sort of purposeful fall all over the guy and they both disappeared in the white water. I shuddered and told Mark that I was going in. Too much testosterone in the water, I said. "Come on, Nance," he said, "he won't do that to you!" But, I was so satisfied and surfed out and happy that I only needed that one little excuse to go in. That, and I could feel the wind was beginning to change.

This was THE day we live for.

Funny how, once more, the best waves come NOT when you expect them to, but in the aftermath of expectation. It is, after all, during those times when you are not searching, where you find the things worth remembering, when you gather up those unexpected gems.

Action Packed Sunday

Bob was calling before the sun was up, he couldn't sleep and was already in St. Augustine. He had it in his head that Crossovers might be happening this morning. I was so glad when I heard this. He was nearly there and I had wondered the same thing (despite my doubts that the sandbars were working again). He would have that report within minutes.

Our addiction was fueling our infinite hope for uncrowded surf and favorable winds, driving us to insanity once more. The buoys at 6 am were reporting seven feet at thirteen seconds, enough to drive any surfer right over the edge. Yesterday, you had to be on it early to score, but every day brings something new and different, doesn't it? Today the spoils went to those who decided to sleep in a bit.

Bob called back to say it wasn't happening at all. At least now we knew. It will take some time to get those bars back, but at least now we know. He decided to go to Matanzas and take his chances there. Mark called then, and I said I was almost at the pier and would give him an update. Oh, crap. The Christian Surfers are at it again, another weekend contest at the pier! It didn't look that great there, anyway. It had a warble to it, and most waves looked like they were breaking in sections all along the line. The water looked murky, too. I told him I was going to tenth street and paddling out no matter what. I was tired of chasing it.

I tried calling Andy, but he must have been sleeping in so I left a message on his voice mail. It sure didn't look like the size it should have been for the buoy report being what it was. I saw photos from late morning, though, after the tide had come it a bit, and it looked like it had more size than when I was out and looked a bit cleaner too. It is so hard babysitting the surf!

Tenth street turned out to be a good call, despite everything. It didn't look spectacular by any means, but it was uncrowded and the winds looked light WNW. I went on out and was surprised to find that every single wave I caught was a definite keeper. It seemed to get better and better there, but I got chilly and wished I had worn more rubber after only a half hour. I kept reminding myself how it was only going to get colder now with winter closing in, and the water felt relatively warm compared to the air. I was amazed, really, that the waves were as good as they were. Gradually, the wind began to bend a bit more and I decided that today would be the day I would finally take Sean up on that offer to go mountain biking in Ocala. I caught a few more and, satisfied, came in.

At 3 pm, I came out of the woods in Ocala National Forest beat up and dazed. Some lady passed me on the way to the restroom and asked me how I was doing. The way she said it seemed rather odd until I looked in the mirror and saw my hair matted and flopped all over like a helicopter had just landed 50 feet away. I ended up doing 25.75 miles on the Epic Trail, which is pretty stupid for some one who has never really mountain biked before.

The last time I was on a mountain bike was over a year ago, and I have never done it for more than a mile or two. I added that .75 because that was the partial mile that nearly killed me. I was so tired by then, and was getting sloppy. Before that I was swearing that it was nearly as fun as surfing. There were some Hobbiton forest trails that had turns like surfing and you had to weight and unweight with perfect balance and predict your track, tucking into leafy tubes that felt so stealth like and dangerous that it was amazingly fun! I had one crash near the end where I hit some rocks and stumps and my bars caught a tree and whipped me around like a amusement park ride and I ended up flat on my back. Geez, I was glad I had a helmet on, but it didn't help my forearm that looked like someone took a scouring pad to it. Sean was up ahead and heard my little shriek of cursing terror and it was great entertainment, I am sure, to see me lying there on the ground staring up at the clear blue sky taking inventory of my wounds. A few more feet farther along and I had grazed my shin, OWWWWW! in some kind of twisting move around a bend in the path that had me sliding around like a greased bowling bowl in a bathtub.

You see, I was avoiding my brakes after years of brain washing on the road bike. On the road bike, you avoid the brakes and move on through potential disasters that braking will only intensify. With mountain biking, the trick is to gently USE those brakes now and then to corner and wind around stuff. I decided to rewrite the book and slide through every turn full speed ahead.

I learned a lot today.

Thanks for the pizza afterwards, Sean! I guess I provided so much entertainment that he felt like he owed me that. Now it's off to soak in the Epson salt bath so I will be ready to surf in the morning.

Nine feet at nineteen seconds???

I thought for sure I was dreaming when I heard the 5 am buoy report.

I can't recall having ever heard such size and duration, but of course when I got to the beach at dawn it looked like nothing more than an average NE swell. You'd think I would learn after years of this, but I continually psyche myself up when there is the possibility that an epic swell is waiting...

On the phone with Andy, Bob, and Mark - we compared notes. What to do, what to do...

The wind was already a tad too high and had too much north to it. The swell looked 3-4 feet, but was already becoming bumpy. Then M.A. called from Jax with a report that Poles was "thundering," and epic and overhead a-frames were pouring in. I called Andy right away and after a second of hesitation, he said, "Let's go."

Mark drove to Andy's and then they picked me up. We raced up A1A, and 50 minutes later, at 9am, we pulled into the parking lot at Hanna Park to see it filled with surfers. We speed walked up the boardwalk and looked out on the sunny beach as we passed 45 surfers coming and going. What a crowd scene.

I was already resigned to this not being what I had in mind.

The waves were getting a bit bumpy, even here. All the way up A1A it had looked like onshore crap. At least it was a little cleaner here, and there were some bigger sets every now and then, but with so many people out luck would determine your share. Mark and I opted out, and Andy decided to take a chance and paddle out. He came in after about fifteen minutes and three waves. Too many people that didn't know what to do with the swell, plus one crazy kayaker, and you know the end of the story. We decided it was worth doing the drive just to scope out the scene. We had been wanting to come up here so many times, and now we had a better idea about what it would entail for the future. It was fun, just riding with friends and talking, just like in Costa Rica this summer with Mark and Andy and all those road trips to Boca...

We drove back, checking Sunrise Surf Shop along the way and the DOMINATORS! Saw a nice El Fuego 5'7" that I may have to try out next...

Please wind, die and turn more offshore for tomorrow?

Babysitting Weekend

People actually trust me with the care of their children.

TIme out for rally signs!