lost the stoke

OK, I turn 50 this year, but only started when I turned 25. Do I still have stoke? YES!

But Sandy actually stoked my stoke. She took surfing whenever I wanted away. And after 2 months of that, I'll never miss session. Warm, cold, early, snowing, sleeting, rain, sun burn, whatever Mo nature throws at me.

 

"DUDE DUDE.... try these nachos". Classic.

 

You started a pretty good thread & gave us all pause to contribute some positive stuff.
Although the thread should end here with your post, unfortunately it won't - - - there's a hijack alert on the horizon.

Reason being, the black smoke has been spotted & the proselytizing crew are about to hijack what was an intelligent thread.

 

This is an interesting angle on it. Seriously.

 

Sounds like low testosterone

http://www.androgel.com/low-testosterone-symptoms-quiz.aspx

 

That's awesome news I hope more people lose the stoke so there's less people surfing. Maybe it will catch on!


QUOTE=arabseamonkey;158489]so i'm 25 years old i feel like i've lost that stoke i used to have. i'd skip work and anything with girlfriends if i knew there were waves. i'd almost never sleep in if there was a chance of waves. now here i am sleeping in, working instead of surfing and drinking the night i know there are going to be waves in the morning. i was in costa rica a month ago and even though i didn't score perfect waves it felt great to be in the water but haven't surfed since. i need help. i used to base ever decision i made around when i was going to surf. any suggestions? am i missing something? have i just plateau'd ? help me please![/QUOTE]

 

Sorry to come late to this party but, 52 this year. Surfing since 4th grade when i got my orange plastic fantastic. That board is long gone but not the stoke. Its not for everyone, most of the guys i surfed with early on are done with it. I cant imagine my life without it. Still love dawn patrol the best and its the only thing that can get me out if bed at that time.

Go with the flow, the water might just call you back. Then again maybe it wont! Good luck either way.

 

yeah, full rubber all year except , switching to 4/3 for summer and maybe a shorty or trunks for those 2 weeks in August. The lakes are even colder, we were dodging sheet ice a few weeks ago. Kinda sketchy.

 

Reading a lot of good stuff on here. Like Yankee and DosXX, I have also been down that road. Since I put the plug in the jug, surfing has really played an important role in staying on the right road. It used to be a rite of passage to hit dawn patrol still in a bit of a fog, but eventually just led to skipping the surf altogether.

Surfrat 6, you mentioned most of the guys you started with are done. In the last few months, I have run into 4 guys I grew up surfing with at a break that no longer exists (Logs in Northern Mo Co) that are still actively surfing. Were talking 5ml, hood, boots, gloves surfing because they still love it. Must have been something in the water at Logs.

 

You can only obsess about something for so long before you inevitably have to take a step backwards from it. It's easy to burn out from anything if it isn't in balance with your life. I am in your exact shoes right now. Ya know what helped me? Find another hobby and keep balance in your life, I found Crossfit & Olympic Weightlifting and I friggin love it, helps keep balance in life. However, it definitely hasn't taken the place of surfing, but I don't go out on every waist-chest high mush burger day at 5AM like I used to, that's for sure. When I do get out now, I really enjoy it. Just take a step back from it and re-evaluate your relationship with surfing. There's no shame in not being a live-in-a-van-surf-hippie, bud. Do what is fun, if it's monotonous to you, chances are you need a change of scenery.

 

My advise would be to exercise more. I go through phases where I do a little more partying than is healthy and it gets easier to skip out on the early morning session or stop by your buddy's to partake the more you do it. In the past year or two, I've made an effort to mountain bike more, skateboard more and wakeboard more, and it definitely makes it easier to surf when you're body and especially your lungs are healthy.

 

I kind of felt the same way about golf the last couple years but for some reason recently I got the desire to get back out there this year.Surfing on the East Coast you need some backup plans.I say don't force it,when you feel it, you'll know it.Sometimes you have to step away to miss it.Looks like your from N.J. After Sandy im sure alot of people lost the stoke.Its kind of depressing going to the beach still even thou things are getting a little better.I just got back in the water last month for the first time since Sandy.

 

surfing nj is totally different since the storm. so is living here. a sad new world.

 

You'll be back. I went through same thing a few years back. Went on a trip to San Diego and had no desire to surf. Felt disconnected with nature.

Crowds have multiplied exponentially in the last few years. It's especially tough in NY where the crowds are maddening in the summer and the winter is so cold it's just painful.

Nothing satisfies like surfing, though. You just have to keep plugging away and those special days when all the work pays off happen.

 

beachbreak... well said... "a sad new world" is the only real way to describe life for so many among us. Our once beautifully historic towns and proud communities now stand broken in both a physical and spiritual sense. Surfing is not the same. You're so right. For many, it may be the end of life as they knew it. Others will pick up the shards and soldier on, hoping to restore their homes, their families, and their souls.

I surfed with a guy the other day, who hadn't surfed in months. The storm had taken it's toll on him and his family, and he could not find the time nor the will to get back in the water. His stoke was all but dead. I had been asking him to just give it all a rest and just go surfing, but he just couldn't. Sure, there were excuses... there are always reasons not to surf - "gotta meet the contractor"..."my back hurts"..."I lost my gloves." But the reality was, he was depressed. Finally, on Wednesday, I gave him a pair of gloves, and insisted he join me for a surf. He got three waves. Was he stoked? Well... I'm not really sure. Not fully, that's for sure. But at least it cracked open the door... one step closer to getting back to living again.

So I guess what I'm suggesting is... maybe there's no magic bullet. Maybe it's a process. Maybe getting your stoke back has something to do with how you lost it in the first place.

One thing for sure, though... reading these posts... it's different for everybody.

 

http://vimeo.com/61139071

If you want to get the stoke back watch this link and share. Awesome video. Yes it is a surfing video but there is way more to it. If you know me, you know what it is about. This is stoke , this is real, this is how Jesus works in peoples lives.

 

Still angling for free boards.

Thread's been officially hijacked. Kinda surprised it took him this long to do it.