Month: December 2015

O

Location : O
Time/Length : AM/2.5
Rating : ****
Performance : ***
Board : 50/50/LA Marshal 94
Notes : Last session at C street. Just me and G. Perfect again. Many great rides. I stayed more on the inside- didn’t go for the outside power rides like yesterday. Tried out G’s LA Marshall. Got me to the front end and still felt stable. Lots more people in the water – or rather really great surfers. (as well as Southern Gandalf – Gandalf The Bitter) it was still near perfection. Great way to end the surf season for 2015. cut to the video … “tasty C street slider’s”
Stats/Video : https://vimeo.com/149479833

O

Location : O
Time/Length : AM/3.0
Rating : *****
Performance : ***
Board : Hansen 50/50
Notes : Well Tina and I made it down to LA to see Gina who was renting a nice Adobe themed shack in Culver City. C Street in Ventura was on deck and we left before dawn. An hour later we met Eric S. in the parking lot – a long time no see – he was riding the brothers Marshall power-morphing log. G was riding her 94 LA brothers Marshall. C Street was a gold kissed California dream- blue skies -a slight offshore and near glassy lines in a four-tiered set up. The furthest tier was way out by the point – then tiers 2, 3 and 4. 4 was closest to shore but each tier had lines coming through.
I was riding a vintage 92 Hansen 50:50 kindly supplied by Jack K. (his Dad – Mark K. – just wrote a great review of Finnegan’s barbarian days in the TLS.) It was floaty with rounded rails. I felt nervous because the waves were so perfect. I needed to get one under the belt. After catching a nice inside right – (see video – after which the battery died on the camera rendering it a useless wrist appendage for the rest of the session) – I got a feel for the board and decided to paddled out to Tier 3 and wait for something to come my way and not piss off a local. It was a bit of a wait- 30 minutes? I was pretty cautious – generously giving away waves to folk. Finally, something came my way. – Clearly mine position wise. Head high.

THE WAVE – PART ONE

I got right up. Shockingly a jabrone shoulder hopped me – right as I was racing off the lip. (I knew he wasn’t that good a surfer because I had watched him earlier) I felt confident enough to yell “hey I m on it” . He either didn’t hear or was ignoring me.

The wave was just starting and it looked like we were going to be partners. It was big and clean enough that we could both pick a separate line. He rode it high and I was low. I couldn’t kick out even if I wanted to because he was above and slightly ahead of me position wise. I calmed down and settled in. The wave stayed this way for what seemed an eternity – both of us riding our respective slots – I’m guessing 200 yards. Then things changed.

THE WAVE PART TWO

It switched up and started to hollow out. The jabrone glanced back and noticed me – I think he genuinely thought he was alone on the wave. He then – thank god – made a polite yet inelegant dismount. Part two was all mine.
I hit the high line immediately because the wave offered up a very wide feathering lip that seemed to be collapsing behind me. I kept racing along – maybe for a hundred yards. Looking down the line however I could see the end was nigh. It was going to close out around me if I didn’t make it around a section. I didn’t think I could make it but as the white water constricted around me – and another sweet open section in view-I dug in and perched near the nose angling to sweep around the section. I made it- barely – slightly off kilter. I regained my footing and confidence. With the whitewater section now behind me I braced myself for what looked to be a completely different ride.

THE WAVE PART THREE

The final section was smaller and hollower. (The first part was wide breaking – it’s crest crumbling and with a great big slope.) I had now travelled way inside. I kept down low crouched and in the pocket -almost covered – maybe another 75 yards. Finally the wave more or less ceased to exist. No big crashing end. I shot out to a flat water dismount

I immediately felt it was the greatest ride of my life and said as much to E and G.

I got a few more outside ones then moved to the inside- it was all groomed to perfection. G and E grabbed a nice right in tandem that I wish I could have caught on film.

Definitely a Very solid 5. As far as the sun drenched California dream with friends filled with laughter and great times I would have to quote spinal tap and turn the dial up to 11.
Stats/Video : https://vimeo.com/149357830?utm_source=email&utm_medium=vimeo-cliptranscode-201504&utm_campaign=29220

LM

Location : LM
Time/Length : AM/2.0
Rating : ***+
Performance : ***+
Board : 92
Notes : Well well well- clear and clean. I watched for a long time – mostly cause I had the time. It was that right by the creek. It held up it looked nice. T2 was already out there working it. For the first 1/2 hour it didn’t work – or rather i couldn’t make it work. But after one half hour i found my groove. i was in it. At one point I took a magical glassy lump for a long fast ride-the ride was over -right? No- it sort of closed out on me and i managed to work around a section and then BOOM- a whole nother piece of glass appeared- where the fuck did that come from?? I couldn’t figure it out – the wave had morphed somehow into an entirely different wave. I shot up to the top off the cascading whitewater right to the lip- and then headed down another glassy section. i dismounted and thought – was that a dream. 23 wave session. – the same right from yesterday. The last possible right before you can do before you hit boatdox.
Stats/Video :

LM

Location : LM
Time/Length : AM/2.0
Rating : ***
Performance : ***+
Board : 92
Notes : Finally- not stormy on shore mess. didn’t look like much but it surfed well. I moved the fin all the way up front- made a bif difference – i was making sections – getting around whitewater and onto another section of the wave with an open face- going fast – sing my body to go up and down to grab speed. Was it just the fin moved up front or was i just surfing real good?
Stats/Video : http://surf.traceup.com/stats/u?uId=519895&vId=9047

LM

Location : LM
Time/Length : AM/.45
Rating : ***
Performance : *
Board : 92
Notes : Last night around 10 the surf forecast for this morning 7-10 AM switched from 35MPH onshore to 35MPH offshore. Off to the races. Slight rain – relatively crowded at the creek – another high tide- the offshore was strongest i ever surfed in. A total trip. You had to dig so hard and deep to get into the wave it was amazing- once in they stayed open of course – and were became super hollow. Got some nice ones but not the offshore GEM i was hoping for. Then it started raining heavy. I went for a wave and the offshore was so strong it BLEW my left contact out of my eye. Half blind i decided it was enough – managed to score a nice ride in. Blown to my feet walking back to the parking lot. I realized it was going to be impossible to put the board on the car by myself because as soon as i picked the board off the ground it almost would fly out of my hands like a toothpick. I took the fin off and put the board inside – but couldn’t really see. Given the driving rain and gale force winds i decided to drive across the street to the parking lot and ask them if i could bring my car into the garage where i could safely strap the board onto the top away from the wind. Alas, the garage part of the gas station was closed. however the guy said- drive around back behind our gas station there is a large fence on the other side and you may be protected from the wind. Indeed he was right- it was like a protected little cove and i was able to quickly take the board out and strap it to the top of the sube.
Stats/Video : http://surf.traceup.com/stats/u?uId=519895&vId=8931

NS

Location : NS
Time/Length :
Rating :
Performance :
Board :
Notes : Way way way to big. They were having a surf contest and had to set up on the rocks by boatdox. Looked like the shanties were gonna get washed away. Over 20 foot breaking way out in open sea. R said it reminded him of el mini 97/98. We watched D2 try and battle it out / he got out but then got slammed and his longboard snapped. Kids in the contest were having a rough time- but when they locked in they were like pros- $ 500 first prize sponsored by surf rider foundation
Stats/Video :