Farmer!!! It's damn good to hear from you bro. Since I moved to Kansas I haven't been hittin' it as much as I like. The quiver waits in the rafters of my shop. My last two trips to the east coast didn't include waves.
God Damn. There was no warning music either, huh? Duuuhhhh duh. Duuuuuuuuuuhhhhh Duh. My Best friend still lives in Enc. I guess that since I left Stand Up Paddling has become all the rage. He was telling me about someone he knew that competed in a SUP event from Malibu to Long Beach. The fastest way is to "Cut Across" the open water. Well a couple hours into the event his buddy notices a shark tailing him. After about minutes the thing actually rubbed the board, I guess it was a love bump, cause it didn't knock him off. He stopped paddling and sat there for a while knocking the thing in the head with his paddle every time it came close. Another paddler came into view and they doubled up and turned inland. The shark stayed around til they came within a mile of shore. Guy said the hardest thing to do other than hit the shark without falling off his board was holding his shit in, he was that scared.
The picture is from Sturgeon Falls in Manitoba... it's basically where one gigantic lake flows into another gigantic lake with a shallow bottom and creates about a half mile of really good waves. It's been paddled and played for years. I was the first to ever boogie board it. Rides can last as long as you'd like. The video is from '04 on the Ottawa at Garb... and yes... that's an open canoe. What's your home river? And for you boy's and girls messin' with the big fish... "hang loose"
I had a 9' Stewart with three skegs, it was fun, I never got good at it but I didn't care. I surfed in Wilmington and Panama City.
Here's a shot of me in Panama City Beach back in May riding a really lame, spongy-foam decked rental board. Went up there to visit with my uncle not expecting any waves, and woke up to chest to head high sheet glass conditions with no one out. So I tore-ass down to the local surf shop and rented a board, and surfed it like this alone all day. I've been surfing for about 21 years. I currently have a 6"5 hybrid fish & a 6"10 short board, both shaped by Brian Tudor (B.A.T.) in Indian Harbor Beach, a 7"3 egg shaped by Mike Benke, and an 8"6 Stewart Hydro-glide. I'll probably buy either a 9"0 to 9"6 Stewart or O'Hare longboard next. I've mostly ridden shortboards for the last 20 years or so, and more or less switched to longboards this year. Essentially I only ride my shortboards when it's overhead now. I actually had one of the best days of surfing all year this past Sunday. Head high, maybe a foot overhead, glassy, and peeling forever. I must have had like 20 waves. I'm still worn out. Anyway, my uncle took this shot from the balcony of his condo.
Trying to be a Great Lakes Surfer in Lake Huron. Started learning a couple years back on a buddy's longboard, paddled out 5 - 6 different times, stood up 1st time out and got hooked. Haven't paddled out since my son was born (2yrs) and now have a daughter (6mths) as well. Unfortunately we have more consistent light wind days than waves, so Kite-Surfing is more common. My wife and I are heading out to a surf camp in Costa Rica the 1st week in Jan. and I can't wait to surf in the ocean! Plan on having a long board that I can throw in the back of my '57 3100 when it's done.
Went to kindergarden in Waikiki, ChopPop would pay me $.05 every time I caught a wave. I was a "pro" surfer at 5 After college I lived in Venice, CA and would body surf every morning before work. Mrs. Choptop had a job a few years back that took her to Oahu every Dec. for a week or so. I'd tag along and head right out to Ehukia and surf for a week. NICE. got rid of all but one board... I miss my old Nectar tri-fin thruster.
Dude, I totally know the feeling. We don't have whites here in Florida, but we do have big tigers, and I've had a few encounters that left me absolutely scared shitless. One time about a 12 foot tiger was hauling ass down the face of an overhead wave that was coming at me that I had to duck-dive through, and it was seriously looking for a few seconds like we might collide with each other. I jumped off my board and dove for the bottom just shitting myself. I repossessed cars in the field for 8 years and looked down the barrel of more than my share of firearms, but nothing on this earth is as scary as being in the water in the immediate vicinity of a 10 foot plus shark. Nothing.
No shark stories, but I have touched many dolphins in the surf. There was one summer (about 1986) when they were around almost everyday for a week. They'd come up and nudge you and then sit there. It was like a dog that wanted to be pet. I had a friend who stepped IN a dead cow. We ditched school to go surfing (a regular occurrence) because it was head high outside and glassy as hell. The inside break was mushy, so we'd bail before we got that far. It was about five feet deep at that point. My buddy Chris takes a wave as my other friend, Todd, and I watch from outside. We turn to assess the next wave in the set as we hear this horrible scream from Chris. He's flailing in the water, but clearly standing on something. We paddle in and he's freaking out like he's being attacked or something. We look down and can see a blurry brown cow. He stepped off of his board and sank INTO the side of a dead cow! Don't ask me how it got there, but it was there. We had to pull him out because his feet were stuck between the ribs or something. That was in Huntington Beach. Come to think of it, that's the same day we saw an absolutely silent black helicopter. The thing came out of nowhere and had to be going in excess of 150. It buzzed over the water at about 50 feet and about 100 yards from us. The thing was solid black and made ABSOLUTELY NO noise whatsoever. That was before the cow. Wait, dead cows...black helicopters? Sounds like an X-Files episode of something.
Been surfing since I was 10 years old. 30 something years ago. Started on the Gulf coast. Then Va Bch . Decided to join the military to continue surfing all over the world. Managed Hawaii, Japan, Italy, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Pnama, and Costa Rica. Left FLA where I surfed in the ECSA for a bit...I'd rather free surf any day. Of course SOCAL in the mix. I haven't been out that much lately. Kinda hoping to get the longboard out here in a few weeks. Mostly surf Del Mar, la jolla, Swamis when its not a ZOO!, Bone yard beacons...etc. To many places to surf in SOCAL to stay in just one spot. Anyone in the area can hit me up IF I have the day off I will definately join you to surf.
It probally floated down from the San Gabriel river. There's a few farms up there. One of my friends hit a pig at Seal beach, and it wasn't the two leg type.
My dad taught my brother and me when I was about seven. I've been surfing ever since. Bounce between my pop's old Ole longboard, my 7'10" "short" board or my 9'4" board purchased from Bob Barnes. Nothing like a morning of surfing followed up by tacos and margaritas. Perfect therapy.
Been going out since '66 and still doing it as much as I can....the deuce serves as a surf wagon on occasion A small day demo here: http://nz.youtube.com/watch?v=5CM1IvdVX14
Hey! How's everything down there? I'm coming back in February. We should grab a drink or something this time.
I can't touch the cow and black helicopter story (always wondered where they dropped the carcasses after the experiments, now we know). I have seen other fish up close and personal. I've sat waiting for waves or taking a break and have seen large shadows in the water close to me. One was a striped bass, easily 4' long and deffo a keeper. Another time there was a sun fish out with us, maybe 200 yards away. They have these huge fins, nobody knew WTF it was at first. Bob
When I lived in Charleston, SC.....I surfed at the north end of Folly Beach. I was there for a year. I miss surfing, but not the humidity. Mott
Mott, I was just at Folly last week. Was down on vacation. I have family on Johns Island. Beautiful country.......... later,Bill
I play surf guitar. does that count? Being land locked this is only surfing we get to do on a regular basis. Our Bassist Joe makes our longboard skateboards, and rehearsal usually ends up in a street session. Our drummer is from so cal so he grew up surfing'. Our 2nd guitar player is from Corpus, so same deal. I'm totally fascinated with surfing. I am determined that someday soon, I will surf.
Man what a cool "Surf Wagon", that's freakin awesome! But come on dude, every Real surfer knows that the fin goes to the front when on the racks. That way when they start to slip back wards as you drive, from loose straps or excessive speed, they don't end up in the middle of coast hiway (ask me how I know that)
I was out one morning in Jax. Surf was running a solid 4 foot and glassy. Just north of the old pier. Another surfer and I were going to split a wave. I called him off the wave at the last moment. He gave me this crazy look....I pointed to the wave trough. His eyes got really big. What he thought was two huge dorsals was a big manta ray. It had crested with both tips coming out of the water. The tips were easy 3 foot high. The guy freaked and started yelling shark. Right behind that was another one. It was a freaky day in the water. Then another day up near the jetty. I had a manatee swim up underneath me. Yeah that got my heart pumping. MY 10'0 was dwarfed. The cow seemed pretty cool. I paddled with it for a few hundred yards. It would come up and look me in the eye when it took a breath. No major shark situations. That's surfing the gulf/east coast (FLA shark capital) and SOCAL. Although New Smryna had alot of fin acitvity during one contest. They seemed to busy with the schools of fish. That day really was sketchy.
^^^^^^^^^ Responsible for my addiction! But he moved to KS and I lost my Second Beach (RI) hookup for the summer. Had to go to Hampton, NH for this summer's road trip. The GOMEX is my spot now! Finishing up a great cane season here with 2 strong systems sending us swell (Gustav and Ike).
I surf Lake Ontario, Erie, Huron...yes Wisc. you can surf fresh water. Better than not surfing, try it. Also drag race my 38 Chev and video tape and sell DVDs of Mid west , East Nostalgia Drag Races and Bakersfield,California. email me at [email protected] for list.
Yep the Lake Michigan has some too! Actually lake Tahoe has a mean little wave too! But damn it is cold when it breaks.
The Jalopy Journal
