All of our waves are under the surface, I guess.

there have been a few days that I missed surf on but I've only surfed 3 times in the last 2 months. I don't count last sunday because it was an absolute wind blown mess and I just wanted to get into the water.

 

as an ex-lg i can tell you that under those undercurrents are social undercurrents.

 

Nailed it. I kept one afloat until the guards got out there 4th of July weekend. Hid dreads must of held 2 gallons of water. Even the kids in the family had B. Marley worthy dreads. They guy outweighed me by 30+ lbs. and tried a rear naked choke bear hug and scratched my chest all up. Then I had to push him off me to regrab him from another direction.

Not one thank you or head nod was given. They may not have noticed who it was due to the confusion but still...

Lifeguards got no thanks either.

 

VB has many visitors, and the small surf which we have been experiencing for a good portion of the summer may appear very safe to those unfamiliar with the ocean. But we have had some choppy days, including several with red or yellow flags posted.
As an aside, I've noticed a lot more SUPs in the water and on vehicles this summer.

 

I'm not expecting a beach like VB to reasonably be closed much or ever, but does anyone within the influence of authority think those numbers are excessive? Almost 100 in a matter of a couple days?! I mean is every third person who steps into liquid needing a rescue?? If it's that hazardous (as denoted by folks inability in the water) then shouldn't it be looked at as something that's a danger to the general public? Yes, I'm opening a can of worms here and a problem not easily solved, but how about a swim/water treading test to get the right to go in the water? It would take manpower but triple digit rescues is a far bigger misallocation of manpower. I'm not saying let them drown, I'm saying keep these life kooks out of the damn water. Sounds no better than a lemonade stand giving out bags of smack in the hood.

Andddd here comes SJB out of the woodwork now that his favorite topic has hit the air again.

 

hey congrats on your humanitarianism; even the thankless kind. and yes thats EXACTLY what i'm talking about.

 

Probably has something to do with the obnoxious shore break (after they did the most recent round of beach replenishment on the north end). It gets a little squirrely trying to get back to shore when it goes from 6 ft to 1 ft deep in a matter of a few steps.

 

^^This and when the red flags are flying they let people in up to their knees which happens to be about 3-4 ft. from where the shorebreak is dumping. Tourons get smashed then ragdolled into the trough right off the beach. They can't stand and said shorebreak is sucking back out to sea and panic ensues.

 

Next time approach him from behind, knock him out, and drag him in by his nappy dreads. And demand a Marley sized blunt from his fambily as payment for his soggy ass.

 

Timing is everything

 

Do you think I'd get in trouble if I did this BEFORE he got himself into trouble??

 

I have actually swam up behind big doofuses who are yelling for help, and tell them if they cooperate and do what I say, and calm down, I will get them in safely. And I tell them "Don't make me knock you out and drag you in by your ears." It has always worked. Once they are in full panic mode you better hope you have a float, a board, a stick, something to keep them off you, while you try to save their dumb ass. It's when you have a whole family freaking out at the same time, that's when things get dicey. Bring a buddy out who can help. Don't be a dead hero.

 

It's amazing the degree to which presence of mind reigns supreme in the water. So much of this sh!t is psychological. Good job goose and si...it's quite the paradox b/c these are the people that would get weeded out by Natural Selection, yet we save them. Even myself, as misanthropic as I am, I just can't not help if I see someone in trouble.

 

^^^ THIS!!! Makes it all better

 

AS a surfer I've rescued numbers of people who got caught in a rip. It seems like nothing to us but when they panic you know they're in trouble. I forget how tourists rarely, if ever get to be even near the ocean. Glad to help.

 

Ya, getting rid of the 79th Street setup really killed the Northend. I was told by an old-timer that there used to be a little wash out around 47th-48th Street. Went from Crystal Lake all the way to the ocean. Of course this was filled in way before anyone really surfed probably, but still sucks.

Here's a map of VB from the 1600s that shows what VB used to look like. The Northend was on an island.

 

This is the right and ethical thing to do. Though interestingly in most states there is no legal obligation for a bystander to engage in rescue. So you could just watch 'em drown...

 

Rescues can get ugly. My buddy, who is a professional ocean rescue lifeguard for many years, just got a hernia from lifting a 300 lb. lady out of the shorebreak. She was getting repeatedly pounded, and he got tore up dragging her out. Picture that scene in your minds eye. Yuk.