who here has been surfing this week?

No worries. Early Sat was clear then it rolled in thick. I often think abiut shooting some pics but laziness along with a good bit of selfishness take over.

 

Today was much smaller and perfect glassy all day long so we got done with our errands and finally grabbed my daughter. Paddled out about 3 o'clock north of Mercer's and by then the wind had turned South and destroyed it when it had been glassy all day. Aaaaaagh! Bella got one or two and I was proud of her surfing and 60 degree water and 57 degree air temps for the first time. Quite warm for late February. I got one or two on the long board and it was okay. Glad to be getting back in the water. More will be revealed!

 

I passed up 3 or 4 potential hours of surf to make up on some missed sleep haha.

Sucks but this sleep deficit is horrible.

 

Page 500 and neither of us surfed, but hatteras water was 65 today

 

Da fuq? 65 degree water in February? That's crazy!

 

Did not go south but surfed town on Saturday with no hood or gloves....can't recall doing that in February.

 

Water is definitely warmer in Jersey than almost any time in February of any other year. Last year, I don't think it got to 65 degrees (in Monmouth County) until the second week in June or something. I remember in one year, I think it was 09, the water didn't hit 65 degrees until like the 23rd of June or something. Average highs that June were like 62 degrees. That was brutal.

This has been the most mild Winter in quite a while. Maybe a decade? Whereas last Spring was definitely the coolest since 2009.

 

I feel ya. That is what I did on Saturday after doing an insane workout Friday night. Saturday am turned out to be the good session too. Aaaaagh.

 

Usually I try not to pass up an opportunity to surf, to go home and take a nap in the afternoon. I had to work for a few hours yesterday morning and then got to come home early. Problem was that I literally only got 2.5 hours of sleep, so I headed straight for the bed and took a 3 hour nap. I'll sleep in on off days a lot and just never get up until late afternoon. If I didn't do that on off days, I might die of exhaustion! Literally!

 

Took out the 7'2" Hog Molly fish on Saturday at Folly. Waves were shoulder to head. didn't break as clean with some lil chop, but they carried a distance. Had a couple fun ones, managed to stick in for a couple hrs before the wave period stretched out too long and the wind took over. Sunday was a clean up, longer periods of swell. Very easy paddle in, took one right 100 yrs - one of the first waves and the best of that morning. Took the 9'4" LB Blue Steele. Had a rough time catching waves on it tho, so i'm leaning towards selling it (just bought several months ago) since i've been having that problem multiple sessions. i think the rocker of this Gary Wilson Hot Red Log needs more incline, tends to dive in the water or just float in an oncoming wave rather than shape its way onto the wave. I'll post it here for a SI price if i do so before i lay it out on Craigslist

 

Surfed in Sandbridge saturday morning. First time back in the water since the end of November for various reasons. Been training and getting myself in shape through other means in that time and have noticed a serious improvement in the water even without spending time training in the water. Went form 225 lbs in November to about 195 now. Its amazing how much easier that 30 lbs makes it to ride a 5'10" fish...

 

Nice! Congrats on the weight loss!

 

Congrats and excellent! I too was at 225 too and lost 50...got down a couple years ago and still there. It is amazing how it will help your surfing. Maintain it...IMO, its alot easier to maintain then lose it.

 

Cape Fear- Carolina Beach, Pelican Watch beach access just south of the old center pier. Took my oldest offspring over to the skate park and hit it solo just before the sun went down. He had it all day at C-street while I worked on WB. Good chance to spend time with the 16 yr. old. We attended his expulsion hearing at school tuesday and I finally got some time w/ him alone. Maybe getting kicked out of school- 10th grade. Not sure what to do w/ him. Makes really bad decisions and is easily influenced by peers. Surf was really good, chest high plus & fairly clean, water very warm for feb., free parking, only one young fellow out w/ me, I rode 6' fish, only a few rides before dark, didn't feel satisfied with any of them but it felt good to duck dive a lot. Next morning was waist and clean in the Long Bay and hit a log sesh w/ the other offspring who is 13. He is having a hard time getting stoked, wants to learn but is not a charger, hesitates and mistimes almost every wave. Can't find the rhythm. Surfed for 90 minutes and he did not stand on a single wave. Bummer. Sometimes I wonder if it is right to even encourage a kid to surf. Maybe better to let them discover it on their own like I did so it is theirs and not mine. I think I loved it even more because it is something my old man would never even think of. Something that is mine and not his.

 

Amazing weekend of surf. From dawn on Friday to Sunday afternoon. SE of WB to NE of Topsail and back again. Such a dreamy weekend...

 

Fortunately my buddy was there and he reminded me of a fundamental I was neglecting.. so I was able to get back on track a little quicker.

 

I think in hindsight I pushed my daughter too hard to surf when she was young, now she barely surfs.
It's something you have to love, but I know lots of younger guys who surf, whose dads pushed them, and they rule the reefs now. So you never know.

 

Great day! One of these swells I'll
be able to sweet talk the missus into taking the drive upcoast to meet up with ya'll.
Truth be told, I have been to lazy to go far afield on days when there are waves close by, but lots of sessions are defined by who is out having fun, and are more memorable when good friends are hooting each other on. Sounds like a blast!

 

I am wondering the same thing with my daughter. She is 14 and has been dabbling in it for a number of years but due to my in consistent surfing she really doesn't get it just yet. She had the stones to paddle out yesterday and attempt to get a couple of waves. Went over the falls got caught inside and then didn't want to paddle back out I paddled back in so she wouldn't freeze. She felt okay about it and was not beating herself up as she hadn't surfed in six months and I gave her props for having the balls to battle out on such a cold day even though for February it's quite warm. It really is a tough balancing act with these kids on how far to push them and how far to let them find their own way, but she does ask to go surfing still. What I find difficult is when I am sitting outside and I can see she is not out of danger of the Impact Zone and gives up and quits paddling. I yell at her come on come on come on because I know that you have to put your head down and just paddle paddle paddle until you make it out. I'm not sure if she's learned that yet and I hate that it sounds like I'm yelling at her. I did try to explain this to her yesterday that I was only yelling so she could hear me and she understood so hopefully she'll still want to surf with me. I have been trying to hook her up with other girls and kids to surf with but it's tough. I am local to Wrightsville and Carolina or even Surf City beach so if anyone has a girl for her to surf with message me.

 

The eternal question. How hard to push kids in anything? But in a sport?

Let them find their own way. Encourage 'em to have fun. You guys aren't talking about collegiate, pro or semi-pro level sports here - - the kid should have fun. If the drive is there to keep doing it, then it's there, if it's not then it's not.

For many years I've coached athletes from 10 yrs old & every level through D-1 scholarship gems, and one thing is always true: if they ain't having fun, fugeddabodditt; they won't do well & they will stop doing it. Basic human nature.

I don't coach kids surfing, lol not with my abilities in the ocean. Having said that, I think taking a kid out on a day when they get crushed or go over the falls on an 'adult-sized' day is tantamount to putting them up against a flamethrower after a dozen or so baseball practices. Serves no useful purpose, and might demoralize the kid so much that they take up checkers instead.

I know guys, superb athletes, who chucked pro careers cause they weren't having fun. Too much stress, road life ain't no good life, sh!iitttty coaches (lotta that going around, forever, on every level).

Pushing a kid to surf when they're terrified or getting repeatedly bludgeoned by Mother Ocean is not gonna get you a kid who loves the ocean. You don't want to end up with your very own Todd Marinovich.

And then there's Michael Jordan. Cut from his high school hoops team. Left to his own devices, got annoyed at being cut, determined then & there he would make the team, and the rest, as they say, is history.