Worst Beat Down Ever

I've gone to Central America in the spring several times, straight from 40 degree water to 80 degree water and pumping waves. It might feel faster, it definately feels great to go from 5 mil to no mil, but the reality for me is i have probably surfed and paddled less in the previous three months than any other time of year. Fewer sessions, shorter sessions = worse paddling shape. January and February just arent real consistent months in the mid atlantic - way too many days of relentless offshore/flatness.

 

I definitely feel amazing after shredding rubber. It’s like going from a caddy to a lambo. I’m my opinion at least, but I also tend to get some heavy arse suites.

Worst wipe outs have been close to structures in the water, pipe, sea walls, jetties etc. Have had two memorable ones and yesterday was actually one.

Got creamed going right and came up right next to this nasty, rusted, metal sea wall. Some fast current was dragging straight into it and I was swimming so hard to get away, leash and bored lagging behind. Set comes, dive, another set, dive. Come back up and I’m right next to this thing and dive under, but I get tumbled from being gassed and pushed to the bottom. For some reason it was really deep there. I started freaking and took a solid 5-6 strokes to the top. Water is all aerated and I feel like I’m getting nowhere and I’m ready to die. Literally, ready to die. But, I was thinking naw son not today. Finally got up to the top huffing and puffing and I’m right in front of this thing again. Took like 6 more sets on the head before finally making it outside and just laid on my board for 5 mins and drifted down past this thing and scrambled in. Totally looked like such a kook, but I survived. It was scary though. I’ll remember that. After that I took a 15 minute break before I saw my bud and he convinced me to go back out for just a few more.

Other two worst ones included an inside rip at the Estuary in Cabo this last summer and then my first hurricane swell ever in OC. Both, near drowning experiences.

 

I know, dude.

It only hurts when you breathe, or laugh, or... when you SNEEZE!

 

Good convo.....I've had some pretty terrible beat downs at places like Santa Catalina, Moss Landing, Pascuales, Balangan,etc . I almost died last winter at Puerto when I caught a solid bomb (not for Puerto but for everywhere else) had a great ride and then my leash snapped when I kicked out. Like an idiot I played it cool and just swam under the 3x head bombs exploding on my head not realizing I was in a massive rip. After getting sucked into the impact zone and dealing with a two wave hold down I was back in the line up almost dead...then I had to swim back in....I though about swimming to the harbor...luckily I almost made it back and the next set rolled me in....it was about 7:30 AM at this point so went to eat breakfast. Humbling and terrifying.

One other time I literally got stuck out to sea at a beach break in Panama ---it was DOH when I paddled out but the rips were so strong that I needed a much bigger board to get into than my 5'10...and then the swell just started pulsing and it got pretty crazy....I just ended up waiting for a set to come through then paddled straight to shore but the rips were so bad that it was super slow...then a macker set came in and just destroyed me...I was just swimmming trying to stay afloat for a good 6 waves...somehow it rolled me close to shore. I literally crawled out of the water coughing up water....all these people in the restaurants on the beach were watching and a few guys came running down.....you OK? You need anything? Beer please...Be safe yall

 

That's got to be a joke, right? Summer is generally flat... not winter. Not getting out because of weather i can understand, but because of flatness....i don't know man.

When i put on the rubber, i don't feel slower (although I'm sure i am), i just get tired quicker. Really got to dig deep to fight through the fatigue, then you get used to it. After shedding it i feel like iv gotten so used to the rubber that it diffrent feel that diffrent to me. With the exception of the boots. But as far as the shoulders and paddling go i don't notice a difference really. Its getting in the rubber that you have to acclimate to.

 

A timely conversation - just last night I experienced my first 2 wave hold down at my local break down the street. We waited all day for the 3 to 4x overhead sets to become manageable and finally went out at dusk. Caught a DOH warm up wave then moved out to the peak. Stroked into a real bomb and made it to the bottom. I guess I was projecting too far down the line while watching the swell line bend around the point because I washed out of the bottom turn suddenly. I skipped on my back in the trough when suddenly the lip (maybe 3 feet in width) suddenly and violently landed on my chest. It immediately ripped both contact lenses out, knocked the wind out of me and sent me straight to the bottom. My elbow and hip hit rock and it's about 15-18 feet deep at that tide. It took me along time to find which way was light/up and I began to climb my leash and try not to panic. Later friends watching from the seawall said that only about 18" of my board was tombstoning at that point in the impact zone. The same second I came up and began a breath the second wave detonated right in front of me before I got a full breath (which ended up half seawater and big wave foam). The second thrashing wasn't as bad but lasted too long and I finally came up fully weakened and having fuzzy peripheral vision, on top of no more contact lenses. It was a 6 wave set and it pushed me about 150 yards before I got back on my board.
I took a 5 minute timeout, caught 3 more waves (one real bomb) and left.
I couldn't sleep that night either - my "fight or flight" adrenaline just wouldn't dissipate. I kept wondering how many seconds more I had before blacking out. Maybe a few.

 

Nope. I really get more way more hours of surfing/paddling this time of year than I do in January / February. The guy asked if its easier paddling going someplace hot right after 5 mil season. I'm in better paddling shape now than i will be at the end of the winter with the 5 mil rubber on unless this winter is different than normal.

 

I'm definitely in better shape and surfing more now than I likely will be in the winter, but I still stay in pretty good paddling shape all winter. Unless there's an extended flat spell I feel like getting out in head high plus waves once or twice a week (that's about what it's been the past couple years, with the exception of this past February which was terrible) is enough to keep me in relatively decent shape. I've never taken a warm water trip in the middle of neoprene season but I have to imagine it would feel incredible and like a dramatic change. Even going to a 3/2 from a 5/4 in later spring it suddenly just feels so much easier, like I can paddle forever and not get tired (planning to pick up a 4/3 in the next few days which I suppose will lessen that effect somewhat).

Worst beat downs... haven't really had a truly terrible one on par with some of the postes in here. The Ocean Beach story reminded me of being out there on a similarly sized day last fall... it was slightly overhead for the first 45 min or so of the session and then all of a sudden just jumped up about 3 feet and started breaking way outside where I was sitting. Got tossed around pretty good but no extended hold down. Though I did get my board ripped out of my hands on one wave (it was a bigger board and the set broke a ways outside so instead of trying to duck dive I hopped off and just tried to hold on to the board) and it somehow hit me in the mouth and split my lip open. Kooky. And I got pounded pretty good most of the way back in to the beach by the rest of the set and called it a day after.

Worst, at least in recent memory was about a month and a half ago on the first day of the Irma swell (9/8 I think). In keeping with some of the other postes, it was big that morning but it wasn't THAT big and I definitely wasn't being super cautious with my wave selection. Was out on my longbort, took off on my second wave of the day, almost made the drop but slightly dug the tip of the nose. Tried to dive through the back of the wave, didn't make it, over the falls and slammed and then tumbled for a while... seemed like I went over the falls a second time... definitely felt like I was out of air and starting to panic when I made it to the surface. Fortunately got a fairly decent breath before the next one and I suspect the total time underwater was only like 15-20 seconds, but it felt a lot longer. Can't say it was that bad cause I paddled back out and got a few more waves, but it shook me up a little bit for sure and got in my head for the next few sessions. That said, after sitting down and thinking about it I realized I definitely panicked too soon and wasted my energy and I seem to have learned from it and been better since then about staying calm and expending as little energy as possible while I'm actively getting tossed around underwater. I've noticed there's a specific point at which fear of drowning kicks in and I have an overwhelming instinct to fight for the surface... I gave in to it that day and wasted a lot of air and energy. Took a couple more solid beatings during the remainder of September where I reached that same point of "oh **** i'm about to be out of air" but deliberately told myself to stay calm and not panic and things worked out a lot better for me.

 

Spanish house in near DOH waves mid 80's, caught the best waves of my young life, then paid the toll when I got caught inside and held down so long I started seeing stars and thought this was it. Managed to get in and literally crawled up the beach and just lied there. Was rattled for a couple of months, but learned the value of going with the flow and conserving energy during a hold down.

 

Were you out this morning?

 

No, surfed yesterday, nice long lines.

 

Reminds me of one time at PAB... a big winter storm, and alone. Was down there with a friend, who didn't make the paddle out. I got out, got a bomb, and ended up losing my board with a broken leash. I don't remember the beat down, but the swim in was the longest I've ever experienced. I have no idea far I drifted, but it felt like a mile. I just could not get in... too many rips and too much current, and taking too many waves on the head. By the time I finally did get in, I was so exhausted I think I puked on the beach. Or maybe that was the hangover...

 

Yeah, they were nice. I went out this morning again, but the swell had faded a lot. But I still had a few good lines; waist high. Then the tide set in, and it was all over. Cold as well (air).

 

In the water, same as Barry. Marias on a double overhead day. I should have just gone out a Tres, but I felt under-gunned so I paddled out at Indicators and worked my way down. I got stuck in the lip, pitched, and then shredded on the reef. Lost my board. Washed inside past Doggies, but knew I had to go down further to get out due to the urchin beds. Got out at Steps. Exhausted but not panicked. When I got a ride back to Marias, this local kid had my board on the beach and gave it back to me in one piece.

On land, I went toe to toe with heavy hitter named Walt Jackson behind a bar in West Philadelphia. It was 1982 or 83. I smashed him with haymaker right below his left eye and knocked him backwards but did not follow up quick enough due to being drunk. He recovered and rained down blow after blow on my head and face. I did not go to ground but stumbled backwards. He punched me backwards for about half a city block. This was the only time in my life I was glad the boys in blue showed up. They broke it up. If not, I think he woulda kept punching me until I was literally dead on my feet. Walt was actually a good guy. He ended up being a good buddy of mine until his untimely passing in the late 90s from cancer.

 

Yeah, there is some contrast that i'll feel when I go to my 3/2 in the spring or w.e. The weight difference with soaked winter gear is about 25lbs I believe. Quality winter gear is pretty flexible these days, I wear Xcel, so its not a burden except getting in and out of it. It can be nice surfing lower tides with swell over rock reef where I surf when I have the winter gear on, more forgiving with the extra padding.

 

Five or six years ago, I was out in AC with a few randos out in the lineup; 4-6ft and relatively inconsistent. Had a nice set wave come in, dropped in, ate sh1t, was held under for a bit and felt my leash disconnect. Came up and immediately took on on the head. Came up again, and took two more. I was so out of breath I could barely tread water. Slowly started making my way to shore and the board, and ANOTHER set rolled in. I legitimately thought I'm gonna drown.

Sat on the beach for a long while after that just thinking. Still spooks me to this day and a huge reason why I hate going out by myself. Never had more respect for the ocean or nature itself than I did in that moment.

 

I wont bore anyone with the details of the story, but it's funny hearing numerous people similarly recount sitting on the beach afterward for a while and thinking. I remember I got in from an experience like this at Domes and just laid on the beach for a good 20 minutes. My girl came over trying to talk and ask what had happened, and I just had no words - a truly existential moment.

 

I'm curious, when people are talking about losing their boards in heavy surf, is it because your leash broke or the velcro was ripped open? I had the velcro come undone on my leash three times in September while surfing good-sized hurricane swell up here in New England. Granted, each time was during a good thrashing in at least head high long period swell, but I was surprised because usually before that it's always been my leash hardware or rope that snaps. Have I just had good velcro luck up until now...?

 

What was it that someone once said here?

Surfing is the only sport where the playing field tries to kill you.

 

For me it was a choppy stomach high day at a typical beach break in NJ. It really wasn't a day to surf. I tried to take off late when a wave found me. It was too shallow. I got pitched over, shoulder into the sand and scorpioned. It took months before my back felt normal again. For a while I was concerned that it wouldn't.