Elixir of youth

[stoneaxe]

I finally got wet today. 3 hour session in some sloppy waves in RI...a few fun rides but mostly just a workout in the whitewater and chop. I feel great tonight....clear head, nice burn in the right muscles.....in a good mood.....amazing what a few hours on the water can do.

[surfafrica]

Amen.

[PonoBill]

I, on the other hand, woke up early this morning to get my last day of surf for two weeks. I'm getting a sebaceous cyst cut out of my neck tomorrow--my wetsuit collar irritated and probably broke it.

I made a beeline to Cardiff--and it was nothing but whitewater. Spent an hour driving down the coast, looking at every spot--all junk. Sunset Cliffs came the closest, but the wind was on it hard.

I'm grumpy as hell. Spent the day editing my retirement book. Crap. 

[surfinJ]

..amazing what a few hours on the water can do.

Amen.

We are so lucky to have this holy and sane place to retreat to.

[PonoBill]

True.

[WhatsSUP]

Bob:  Great to hear ya got out yesterday!!  I zoomed up this weekend for a few days and swung by 1st and 2nd yesterday but decided to pass given the water temp is now in the high 30's and a bit too cold for my 4/3.  Bunch of folks out yesterday....proner-fest at 2nd, so I ended up walking the beach with the pooch.  On the way home I stopped by Island Surf thinking to myself..."if they have a 6/5 O'Neil Heat in XL and can match Wetsuit Warehouse I'll bite".....(I just didn't want to start trying on heavy suits and my 4/3 is a O'Neil Heat and fits absolutely perfect). Anyway, turns out they have a Heat in XL and beat Wetstuit Warehouse by almost $50!  So, I went out this morning for leftovers....super fun!!! Just me and another SUP-er and half a dozen longboarder's. 

Like you said, mood meter reset!!!!!  Ahhh........

Sorry I missed ya!  See ya next time!

[TallDude]

Nice Bob. I know the feeling. Something magic about the salt water and waves. It always resets my perspective on life. Even just body surfing will do it for me. If I paddle distance and don't get wet, it feels my like I just went to the gym. Sometimes just floating next to my board after a good beat down feels great  
It's been a month and a half since I've surfed, so I'm 'Jones'n big time!

[surfercook]

The surf, sand, and sky are the all healers. Can't imagine life w/out them. I too got in yesterday. I think my conditions mighta been a notch or two better down here in New Jersey.
SOLOSHOT was working hard once again.

[PonoBill]

Since I'm stuck sitting here with goop draining into a monster bandaid on my neck I'll wax poetic about the water I'm not going to go out into for a week (they couldn't do the surgery because the buggah was too inflamed, so they just drained the swamp).

I can't begin to count the number of times that I've reached the beach, looked out and said "screw that, it's too messy( or too small)" but then went anyway. When you're bouncing around, working your way out and looking at crappy waves, the best thing that can happen to you is that you get knocked in. As soon as you get wet your perspective changes, and the experience turns good. Even when it's freezing and you didn't want to fall.

[stoneaxe]

Conditions were definitely getting better when I left. There were some clean ones that were waist to stomach the last 1/2 hour but the sun was getting low, I was starting to feel a few things creaking....elbow and knees..so decide not to push it. After I got out of my wetsuit and while talking to my wife telling her I'm on my way I'm looking at a set of clean chest high waves roll in......

I love the chill of that trickle into my suit on my 1st fall....the head rush of instant cold....I went hoodless because it was so nice out and my head was getting too hot with it on (large mass to surface ratio,,, ). I do have a bit of a weird problem in that the left side of my face stops working very well when its that cold. I have to clear my eye and even get it open sometime with my fingers and my jaw starts to lock up. That all happens even with my hood on anyway.

It was a great day though. The brilliant sky and clear horizon is what makes it so good for me. I love fighting the beach break. When conditions are like this with real short period wind swell I do a lot of paddling parallel to the beach right at the edge of the breaking zone....  zig zagging in and out. Riding the tops sideways sometimes, all while I keep the horizon in my peripheral vision.

Elixir of youth?....spin around until you are dizzy....have that be 24/7...then find a cure that forces you to do what we do....

[SUPcheat]

Keep at it, Stoney!

You have been a serious source of inspiration for me with your threads and travails, kept me going during those many times of frustration from when I started all this a few years ago.

Now, I see people out there who remember me from when I was kooking on the inflatables and they say they can't believe the progress my surfing has made. I remember when I was so terrified, I couldn't go out on the open ocean.  Even paddling out the the Santa Cruz Harbor mouth was scary

Now, I am 60 percent kook and 40 percent SUP surfer, if I want to hand it to myself.

I have to agree that almost any time on the water is better than no time on the water, even though especially surfing seems to incite some kind of bottomless greed for more and better.  It's "Ocean Prozac".

[Ichabod Spoonbill]

I got out yesterday too for a few hours. The water is still 34°F but the air was 60°! I had a good 6 mile paddle with a friend.


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