Not Missing Much

Well, despite all the predications, it appears that Hurricane Bill produced some sizable mediocre waves in the SE and that I didn't really miss that much at all. Sure, I would have been happy to go get some big drops, and there were some fun looking waves on the Jacksonville FL surf report I've been checking, but it sounds like the crowd was huge, drop-ins numerous, and not really that great. It's also possible that I'm rationalizing to make myself feel better about missing what looked like a perfect swell producer for the eastern seaboard, but I don't think so.

Missing Bill

Well, as luck would have it, two weeks after I move to the panhandle of FL, a storm rolls along producing what several forecasters have predicted to be the best surf this year, and perhaps for many years. It's yet to really materialize as anything special, but buoys all over the SE Atlantic coast have the surf big and clean tomorrow with ridiculously long periods. Tomorrow isn't a possibility, but perhaps conditions Sunday will dictate a run to J'ville? We'll see how it all pans out I suppose. To my compadres back in Wilmington and WB, catch some for me bruddas. I wish I was there hooting you into some big glassy ones. Cheers.

Corporate Sesh Photos

A few more photos from the morning sessions I enjoyed with bike shop coworkers:

Making My Approach

Trim and Glide

I almost ran over Billy on this one

Ankle Biters

Morning Glass
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So, yeah, the waves are small here most of the time, but it does get bigger. We had chest-head high waves on a couple of these mornings, but there aren't any photos because, well, who wants to take pictures when the surf really gets good? Note the lack of crowd. This is known as one of the more popular spots, and it does get pretty crowded when the waves get good, but we had a blast these few mornings with no one else out. You can't find that in lots of places. I have very few photos and me surfing, so this expands the portfolio quite well. My stance is a little funny looking, though, which is disconcerting. Ah well, ce est la vie. Thanks to Bill and Georgia for taking these and getting them to me. I'll post a few more yet.

Water Drop

Billy took this shot. The camera focused on a bead of water on the lens instead of me, and it turned out kind of cool, I think.

Swell in July

Today marked the last of 4 consecutive days of fun waves. Wednesday we had a chunky session at C-street in which I didn't get a ton of waves, but I did get one really good wave that earned compliments from the boss Jim, coworker Cameron, and a hoot from the local webcam owner/surf shop manager/area talent on the good noseride. Thursday was the best, with stomach to chest high superglass on my quad fish and then my log as the tide fattened it out. Friday was head-high chop on the N end on my Stewart with old pals. Today P-funk and I hit our old favorite in CB for pretty glassy waist + diminishing waves in the river runoff with just a few other guys out. The light was really nice at dawn because the sun was coming up and there were also storms around, so the clouds were lit orange from underneath. Four days running is pretty good. And I'm not even rashed or sore or anything.

It was cool to ride the different boards and surf in 4 different spots where I saw a lot of old faces right before I leave for Florida. It's all very nostalgic.

Grip Your Stick

Maxim Magazine, which I haven't seen in years, used to have a section called "Found Porn" featuring advertisements that could easily be misconstrued by viewers as something more sexually explicit. This photo is a promotion for a bodysurfing aid called a Gripboard (www.gripboard.org). I submit:

Um...If you don't get it, I can't help you. Cheers.

Clean and Empty Masonboro

P-funk and I paddled over to Masonboro this morning from the S end of WB for a surf session in what we predicted would be small but glassy conditions. Unlike the 4th weekend (see the paddling blog for my assessment of that cluster$%&#), we found the island nearly deserted. There were about 7 people in the water, but spread out over a couple of peaks, so plenty of room. The waves were waist high and very clean and very fast, breaking top-bottom (hollow) in a couple feet of water. Many were closeouts, but when you got the right one, they were a little bigger, steep, and quick but not unmakeable. I had three really good ones, which totally made all the paddling and walking with my heavy longboard worth it. Because we didn't get started until 7 and it takes some time to paddle the inlet, we only surfed for about an hour and a quarter before we had to start back in time to not get parking tickets, but the quality of the waves I got was good enough to sate me for the day.