Nor-easter, Clam Jam 10, and 60

[surfercook]

Saturday we had our first nor-easter of the season and it was a doozy. Then on Sunday 10/28 I attended my 12th Clam Jam here on Long Beach Island. Competed in all but two so far. Was skeptical this year as to entering but decided wth. At 60 surfing is not quite as "second nature" as it used to be. I think I was the second oldest competitor. It's a really cool contest pairing the older and younger surfers into teams.
   This year I drew a young surfer who I've known for at least 15 yrs. I was so stoked to have him as a partner and the feeling was mutual. Always got along well w/that young fella. And he rips too.
As luck would have it our first round went really well and we advanced to round two. Sadly that was as far as we got. So far my record is five rounds which almost put me in the finals last yr. This year my first round was the total opposite of round two. I caught five waves and completed each one. And three of em were solid gems. At one point as I was paddling back into the lineup and passed my partner I said "I'll save ya one, Nick". He laughed and looked at one of our opponents and said "Marc's getting all the bombs". Warmed my heart so dearly to hear that. It was seriously one of the most perfect heats I'd ever surfed. I would never set up the SOLOSHOT at a Jam and always concentrated on the competition.
 I did get some shots from round two but the waves I got were like 1/2 the size and lacked the intensity I had experienced in round one.
I wanted to share the joy I have been feeling being able to still do this at 60. And to top it off the next day 10/29 was still super pumping and I had a great walk up sup sesh at my local.
 LIG, Zoners. 

All the deets and pics in da links.

Clam Jam, 2018 Press Release
https://bit.ly/2yCYYSP

https://bit.ly/2PuR0oh

Pics
https://flic.kr/s/aHsmuTXZUT

https://flic.kr/s/aHskH5VhWP

Clam Jam Drop, 10/28
_31A4873 by surfercook, on Flickr

Bombin' Leftovers, 10/30
vlcsnap-2018-10-29-15h35m15s728 (2) by surfercook, on Flickr

[surfercook]

This is the only picture of my partner that has surfaced so far. Hoping for a few from round one from a guy who was shooting while we were out.

Nick-Rossi_Clam-Jam-cutback by

[TallDude]

A lot of stoke there. This morning I was standing on the beach with a couple guys, we were all in our hoodies and our legs were freezing. It was about 50 deg with some off shore wind chill. The swell has weakened and with the off shore winds, catching anything would be tough unless you were prone surfing. We hung for about an hour, and the wind died and the sun came out in full force. I was thinking full suit an hour before. Glad I waited. Just trunk'd it, and I was hot.

[PonoBill]

Wait, are there clams? The thing I miss most about the East Coast are clams. We have clams on the west coast--sort of. But cherrystones, littlenecks, steamers, fried clams--when I'm on the east coast, that's about all I eat.

[surfercook]

Glad I waited. Just trunk'd it, and I was hot.

Nice you trunked it. Most natural way to surf for sure. It'll be 4/3s boots and gloves here for about 6 more weeks. then the heavy 5/6 hooded full will come out for the duration of winter.

Wait, are there clams?

lol...every year. If you're ever in NJ in October try and make it to the Jam. Free half shells, chowder, pizza, and Red Bulls offered to the competitors and attendees alike. Cool you like our clams. They are definitely way tasty and a great source of protein. 

Half Shells
half-shells by surfercook, on Flickr

Round One Action
Heat-One_Donahue-logos-framed by surfercook, on Flickr

[Badger]

Cook, you should come up here to NH. A lot of us are already wearing 5/4's with hoods, boots and gloves. Mornings have been below freezing and the water is 53 degrees.   

.

[PonoBill]

Four cherrystones aren't even a warmup--they are an appetizer to the appetizer. I may just take you up on that. As my brother will attest, I can eat a lot of clams. A. Lot.

[surfercook]

Cook, you should come up here to NH. A lot of us are already wearing 5/4's with hoods, boots and gloves. Mornings have been below freezing and the water is 53 degrees.   

I would love nothing more to do than discover NH. Always felt drawn to there.

Four cherrystones aren't even a warmup--they are an appetizer to the appetizer. I may just take you up on that. As my brother will attest, I can eat a lot of clams. A. Lot.

lol...It would be amazing to see you here. There are not a whole lotta HI folk round these parts. But it's always cool to meet em. You might even be impressed by our waves. 

Check it out. Day after the contest this sailboat had to be beached from takin' on water. Crew sailed it in from 3 miles offshore and beached it to prevent it from sinking. Was gone the next day when I returned. I shot it from about a mile away from my street before paddling out.
A local surfer I know went right up to the boat and photographed it. He got a great shot of it w/a barrel in the background.

Beached_Sailboat_Mid-tide (2) by surfercook, on Flickr

boat_beached-barrel by surfercook, on Flickr

[TallDude]

We had one of those last year. Some drifters would moor it here an there. Big swell stuck them on shore. They wanted to wait for a high tide and drag it back out, but the county said that was too dangerous and broke it apart with a tractor. Bummer.