Face plant

Yowzer! My first year surfing, it was like 25 mph wind, stepped off my board, it flew up and hit me square in the nose, very bloody and a good lesson.

 

Yup, that was the first thing I did went i paddled in for my first wave ever. Wrong angle, wrong timing, wrong place. Got to tossed off and went under... Apparently my board followed suite and I saw stars for a while. Never seen stars underwater before. When I resurfaced and climbed back on I was collecting a puddle of blood on deck. Had to go on shore and regroup for like 15 mins till the nosebleed stopped.
First thing that crossed my mind were the quiet words of Nat Geo "sharks can scent blood miles away and travel with speeds of up to 25mph..." Hahaha what a kook, in retrospect.
Called it a sort of an initiation.
Ironically enough that happened in Atlantic city. Can't believe my first sesh ever was there. Wow....

Hey man Marlon Brando ain't too bad, I did like him apocalypse now better tho.

 

Fin cuts, rails to the shins, reef rash, driven to the bottom head fist resulting in a pinched nerve to the neck and miscellaneous mishaps. Pay to play!

 

Separated my shoulder yesterday, day 1 of 7 in PR, head to several feet OH maybe DOH set ever now and then. Sat in ER all day waiting to have it set, I have done this before but yesterday was by far the worse, usually it pops back in but this time my arm was stuck in a certain position. So f'ing painful. Hope to get back in the water tomorrow or next day if I can move it enough. Why couldn't this happen on my last day here? FAAAAWK!

 

Yeah it does, but I count my blessings because I somehow swam to the surface after being pinned to the bottom with one arm and paddled all the way in with sets crashing down one after another, I was just hanging on for dear life and the funny part was I was struggling getting out of the water in the shorepound. I got out finally and took a knee too assess the damage, I was feeling exhausted, some guy let me know I was bleeding, I looked at my board and saw some, apparently my fin slice my side open good too, but I didn't feel a thing with my shoulder being blown up.

I f'ed up Baddy, forgot to tuck my limbs in the spin cycle, rag dolling ensued and SNAP! Gorgeous waves though, was on the North side where the swell was more exposed and wind was offshore. Gonna sit and watch Maria's today and lick my wounds and cry about not being out there.

I put it in perspective though, on our way to Mayaguez ER we saw a kid get hit by a car on his bike, my wife called 911 for them, then we saw him get brought in as we were waiting in the triage area, my wife saw a nurse outside crying later and she said the kid died. So in retrospect my shoulder ain't no thang....

 

That really sucks DP! That was another mishap for me. Ongoing prob. Heal up quick, be well, stay safe and don't push it. It's tough when the waves are crankin but you gotta come back strong. Much cooler to say you did it surfing, than that you fell off a pony riding the beach.

 

Thanks for the good vibes DQ, my shoulders have both been separated or dislocated several times in the past but had been lucky last 5 years, makes me question going out on the bigger days now, is it worth the risk? Sometimes it is, yesterday not so much. Good thing I have decent survival skills, no ski to come scoop you up out there like the pros, it's every man for themselves.

 

Wow, man! Bummed out now.

 

Sorry guys, didn't mean to bring the vibe down, think happy thoughts!

 

Thanks for trying to make me feel better, it was pretty scary for sure, thoughts went through my head down there. I guess I blame myself cause I can't blame the ocean lol. That's a really f'd up story, can't believe someone could be so heartless and shady to take a dead guys wallet. Wow.

 

damn, DP...when it rains, it pours. Hope you can get some more in by the end of your trip...think Bethany Hamilton.

I've been whacked hard in the nose by my board several times just from duck diving large, powerful pacific waves. But the worse was actually when I lived in south florida and I got pitched face first into the sandbar on a small windswell. My face literally got pushed/dragged across the sandbar for a couple of feet, leaving me with a strawberried face and a huge fat lip. This happens to most everyone who surfs south florida long enough...it's like a rite of passage. My local friends were laughing their ass off because it had already happened to them.

 

Damnit DP -- I am real sorry about this, not only the pain and rehabbing, but losing your PR trip.

It sure gives a perspective on Bethany Hamilton surfing with only one arm.

 

Here is a truth those of you that visit PR should internalize. That kid probably died because the ambulance crews in PR have NO TRAINING whatsoever in being paramedics, emergency medicine, or keeping people alive as they do in the USA. They are nothing better than expensive, glorified taxi cab rides to the hospital. So if you are in need of an ambulance there, have someone else take you quicker to the ER in a private car. You will increase your survival chance by 10 fold.
Sorry you got hurt on your stay there, Dawn.

 

Yeah it sure does, I'm hopeful I can get a session or two in before we leave though, good or bad idea that's my plan.

Baddy how's your face? Don't wanna hijack your thread... How you feeling?

 

Thanks Barry, we beat the ambulance to the hospital by 15-20 minutes if that gives you any idea...