week #004
monday 9/19
randa:
Picked up a new longboard last night! It’s bright red and boat-like. Went to pacifica this morning with my roommates–our first sesh together. We had been watching the cam early and it didn’t look great–the tide was really low and the waves seemed to crumble more than peel, but we decided to give it a shot anyway after I saw one little peeler.
When we arrived, there were maybe 40 people at the panda peak. It was the only peak that was working so we had no choice. I made several futile attempts at paddling for non-waves or shoulders of real waves. This is what I tend to do when the peak is too crowded. I don’t understand how to jockey for position when there aren’t enough waves per capita and the best surfers easily make it back out before the next set, impatient for their next waves.
So what I end up doing is dropping in on people… I am not proud of it but I left enough room between us and I just wanted to get a couple. On days like these, I don’t know how else I am supposed to get waves. Perhaps that makes me a kook…
thursday 9/21
randa:
Early AM pacifica sesh. Was in the water just about an hour. Went to the boat docks today because it was a bit bigger. i had a really tough time navigating the crowd-when i sat outside, i didn’t have a clear line to paddle. inside, i struggled to get priority. i finally figured out a good inside wave that was mine, then a couple seconds after i stood up i got kelp slammed (fins caught the kelp and i launched forward off the board). not much to say about my surfing today… but the waves were pretty nice i liked the conditions.
saturday 9/23
randa:
OB, 1-hr AM sesh - got in at lawton st and ran into lukas! there were lots of people out. the waves were small but always feel steeper compared to bolinas or pacifica, so when i take off i tend to grab the outside rail. i didn’t get any long or particularly exciting rides, but i probably caught 10 waves or something. we drifted down to noriega and then paddled back. it got kind of dumpy at certain places along the beach. i don’t feel like i understand what is going on but my general approach at OB is to aim for a corner, not a peak.
Bo 2pm sesh - suuuuper tiny soft waves at the channel. it wasn’t clear which way some of the waves were peeling and you could only really go straight. as i was slowing down on one wave, i shuffled up pretty close to the nose (closer than i’ve ever been) and then fell off. was cool to really make an attempt.
faiq:
Tiny waves that were a lot of fun to get into. The waves were tricky to stay in the pocket and required switching direction on them to get the most out of the wave. I did that a couple of times which was fun. My confidence in changing direction has definitely improved. When the tide rises in bolinas the wave starts breaking further in by the cement bar in the patch, and with already such a weak wave it gets a lot less fun.
I’m excited for the waves to start picking up size soon.