Couldn't make it outside...

I saw the same thing! Those poor poor little black blobs. Heading over there now. Keep an eye on me.

 

One of the most frustrating and humbling feelings I've ever had in my life: not making it outside.

 

Getting humbled from time to time is a good thing, more humans need to experience it.

 

A test of fortitude. If nothing else, you get one hell of a workout. Beats pumping weights in a smelly gym.

 

Exactly. And if you actually make it, you are damn proud of yourself.

 

And if not, nothing else better to take a beating from than the ocean.

 

Been a long time since i've been denied, but those times where I did get sent packing I learned from big time, made me stronger, and let me know where I stand in the "food chain" so to speak. Been a few years since that's happened to me, and I know it'll happen again one day when I paddle out into some serious VAS conditions but not having that happen to me in the last few years lets me know i've gotten a lot better.

 

Thankfully I have not had this happen to me in a while. I like to think I have gotten much better in an all around sense. However, I also make more informed decisions now. I am well aware that it is going to be really hard to paddle out on big giant blown out days at beach breaks. If this is the case I will make my way to some sort of point or somewhere I can paddle around the big mess. Luckily up here in NH/MA this is an option for us. Big pounding beach break that is breaking way far out will definitely leave you walking back up the beach tired and defeated from time to time. This still happens to some of my buddies who are not as strong at paddling, or they ride boards that are harder for them to duck dive, which tires them out quickly. Or sometimes they have too much trouble making it back out after catching a wave, and then thats all she wrote for their session. Leaving me in the water to be like "where the **** is he going?"
Sometimes there is not much of a choice either. Sometimes conditions dont clean up, or the swell is gone before it does. Its either attempting to make it to the outside, or get no waves at all. I go for the former

 

...during which I ask myself why am I carrying a surfboard because I sure as hell didn't use it.

 

I was so pissed last time I didn't make it out, I killed a hobo.

 

Was at Rodanthe, before or after a hurricane, can't recall that part of it. Took one look at the 8' shore pound & told my buddy, eh, I'm watching this one from the beach. Just then here come 3 early-20-somethings. 2 dudes & a gal, reeking of confidence, striding purposefully w their shortboards into that ocean.

Within 3 minutes, the gal had been absolutely hammered into the sand on her head, and was literally crawling up the beach for dry land. Her buds helped her stagger to her feet & half-carried her out of the water. When they stumbled past us on their way back towards the parking lot, she sure looked concussed to my eyes.

We watched the whole thing without saying a word, sat down & opened up the cooler. Maybe I learned a little bit over the years of poundings.

Nah. Probably not.

 

I see people paddling out at the wrong time a lot. At a break where the wave breaks on a sandbar then backs off before the shorebreak, the time to jump in and paddle your nuts off is when the first wave of a set starts to break on the outer bar. It will take you a few seconds to get through the shorebreak. Then you will be out of the shorebreak and in the dead zone when the set reaches you. That will give you maximum time to make it outside.

 

I'd rather go over the falls on a DOH macker than take a dozen icey duckdives while getting sucked down the beach from one jetty to the next, then having to walk it back up to do it over again.

 

We made it out eventually. Finally went over to the jetty.

 

Brutal paddle out a few times today. Not scary just relentless.

 

I paddled out right at low tide this morning. The waves were constantly breaking over a new sandbar, it felt like it took me 20 minuets to get out.

 

I got denied for the first time in a long time last month. One of those cold, windy NJ mornings, overhead and heaving barrels. When its that cold outside and the water is below 40 degrees, having to duckdive a short period swell gets old fast haha. Some days you are just meant to get worked, happens to the best of us...

 

Happened to me last week when I decided to take on the shorebreak from hell. Took 3 tries to do it.

 

40F water def will hasten the denial process. 5 cold ones to the head without a pause and the dinosaur part of my brain says get out of the water.