El Porto Fridays

The Dry Spell Is Over!

Jeff — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:30:44 +0000

It’s ironic that the “dry spell” of my surfing was mainly due to rain. Although the fierce winds earlier this week didn’t help much either. But finally, FINALLY, after nearly 3 awful weeks out of the water, the planets aligned, the council voted “aye,” and the gods decreed that Jeff could finally go surfing again.

Mike was coming down to Orange County to visit his buddy Adam and they invited me to join them for a surf session. We headed up to the pier as it was the only OC spot with any sizable forecast. They waves were a tad junky, but the crowds were low, I was with some buds AND I WAS SURFING! I went berserk out there. I caught any ripple that came my way. I ran myself ragged in the two hours or so that we were out. I thought for sure after such a long hiatus I wouldn’t have the strength to catch much, but I think I was running on adrenaline the whole time. I was so giddy, I even forgot to take pictures.

Afterward, we each had a huge meal at a local cafe. Not a scrap of food was left over. Two hours later I texted Mike that my stomach was rumbling again already. He texted back that he’d already eaten again.

Lumpy Porto

Jeff — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 23:30:52 +0000

Another sluggish, lumpy surf day. BUT we did have an actual El Porto Friday with Josh, Mike and Uzair. So, no matter what the waves were like it was great to get out with buds and made for a fun surf session.

After the surf session, Mike and I clowned around with various cameras and his sweet tripod. I do have some video from the day, but that’ll have to wait until next week as I am just about to leave for Joshua Tree. But the video will give me something to do if it rains…AGAIN!

More Sluggish Swell

Jeff — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:35:48 +0000

Same waves today as yesterday – sluggish shoulder-high swells that refused to pitch over. On very rare occasions the some lovely peaks would appear, but they’d peter out just as fast as they built up. I only saw one guy ride a wave all the way from the outer break to the shore. We all tried to make it that far, but it just wasn’t happening. But I did take the Revolver out which definitely made the difference between catching a wave and just missing it. But they were all short lived victories. I know those epic sessions were only a few days past, but it seems like so long ago.

The most fun waves were on inside break, but that area was clogged with surfers trying to get their photo ops taken care of before the tours start back up. Fighting for any of those was out of the question. Although when I was paddling in, I did see one dude get the longest, sweetest, tiniest barrel. He was crouched down as far as he could go, but rode the green room all the way.

Goodbye, Big Swell

Jeff — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:47:00 +0000

The big swell has left us, leaving sizable waves that lack the impetus to pitch over. The waves would build to the tipping point, then ebb, then build again and finally break on the inside. But every so often, a great set would come and break on the outside. But by the time that set came most everyone had lost their patience and gone to play on the inside scraps.

I took the Electric out, in my continuing theme of a different board everyday. I nearly took the Revolver out. Looking back, I think the Revolver might have been a better choice. I might have caught a few more of the waves I was on the cusp of catching. I ultimately opted for the Electric thinking this would be my last chance for some sizable waves with it, but alas…it was not to be. Tomorrow, Revolver action for sure.

But as always, I caught a few good ones and I was grateful to be able to paddle out.

Another Day of Sweet Bombs

Jeff — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:51:40 +0000

Yet another day of terrific, chunky bombs out there. Caught a few more exhilarating overhead waves. I decided to take the Doug Haut out today to continue riding a different board each day of this swell. My Haut is the only thruster I own. I always have a hard time adjusting to three fins. It takes a few wobbly drop-ins before I start getting comfortable. Unfortunately the moment of comfort often coincides with the time to head in.

Today I had a lunch meeting to run off to, so the sesh was cut extra short. But the good news was that I was able to take my nice camera since I could keep it in the car.

Super fun session. What an awesome swell this has been. I’ll be sad to see it go.

Wave of My Life!

Jeff — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:38:36 +0000

This surf session was fraught with bomb waves, but one in particular was stellar. I took the Junod out today having learned from yesterday that a longer board doesn’t ease the paddle on a big day. And today was especially big – most waves coming in well overhead. Nearly every wave that came in was a nice beefy wave with a huge face and power like I’ve rarely seen in California. Every ride felt like a 10. And again, like yesterday, crowds were low, so wave count was high.

The wave in particular was my last wave (what luck!). I had asked a near-by dude the time – it was time for me to head in, I had a lunch date to get to. And right away this massive wave started building on the outside. I grew and grew and turned evil. I asked the two dudes near me if they wouldn’t mind if I took this wave. The time-guy said, “Sure,” and his buddy said, “I don’t want anything to do with this wave.” I positioned myself for optimum take-off and readied my paddle. I started getting into the wave and then some rogue back-swell jacked the face up and extra foot or more and locked me into the wave. The bottom looked a million miles away. But a weird and wonderful calm came over me, muscle memory popped me up and I sailed down the face. I dragged my hand through the face of the wave and stood up tall like I always see in the movies. So fast! I raced like a bullet all the way to the beach. Adrenaline was at an all time high when I hit the sand. I grabbed my board and started running full speed up the beach. A toddler wielding a plastic shoveled stared at me as I approached. I implored the kid, “DID YOU SEE IT?! DID YOU SEE IT?!” Nervously, he shook his head, “No.” I went on, “Oh MAN! It was AWESOME. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN IT!” I described the whole wave to the poor kid. He was a good listener. Thanks, little dude.

Finally Back in the Water

Jeff — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 22:27:29 +0000

It was a long, long dryspell – about 11 days by my counting. Today finally presented the all clear and the time to hit the waves. I took the Quatro out thinking that would help ease the paddle out. (Once again I was remiss to keep up with some arm exercises during the lay days.) But the waves were nearly head-high and the chop was significant, so paddling anything especially a long board was a chore. So much so that I actually saw a few other dudes get repelled by the ocean. They tried valiantly to make it out to the break, but it was not to be. The good news was that the crowds were quite low, so I had my section all to myself. I caught every choice wave that came my way. Jack Lordy, did it feel good to be out again. The downside of having the waves to myself was that I tuckered out pretty fast. (Well, that in combination with me not having been out in nearly two weeks.) Other than that, it was just a nice surf session. Nothing special to report.

A Ride Like Butter

Jeff — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:27:41 +0000

Today’s session was the best since the rains. That’s not to say it was great, just better. The waves were breaking in more than just the one spot off the pier, but the first break was were the size and power was. So once again, every surfer waited and fought and scrapped for the bigger set waves just 100 yards south of the pier.

While in the maw of dudes (no ladies today), I did pick off one humdinger of a right. I just slalomed through the traffic all the way to the beach. Nice, long, carving turns pre-planned to guide me around the insiders, scrappers and groms. This was the first real test I had of the new Joe Aaron JM Fin on the Junod. After trying out three different fins on that board, I’ve found the perfect match. Shane over at Harbour recommended the fin to me. It’s super flexy and tapers at the base to give it a glassed-on feel. And I’ll tell you what, my humdinger right felt so smooth, like I was riding on a board of butter. Looking forward to bigger, stronger waves to really try and uncork the potential of this fin/board combo or wipeout trying. (Most likely the latter.)

Pleasantville

Aaron — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 19:27:34 +0000

Peter and I met up for a Dawn Patrol sesh at Sunset Blvd. It was my first time out since all of the rain so I was looking for a pretty mellow morning, and that is exactly what we got. The crowd was small and we had plenty of room to move around. The waves were mostly 2’s and 3’s, slightly textured. Every 20 – 25 minutes a nice set of chest high waves would roll through. In between the sets was a pretty fruitless lull period where we would chase down tiny bumps and try to get into them. I had a watch on so I timed the sets and I would paddle right into the sweet spot right before the waves would come in. That strategy paid off and I got a set wave every time….Nice long rights. I was riding my trusty single fin red log Kruisechev and that board lived up to its name. Kruising, trimming….. Good times this morning. Everyone had a smile, it was a totally chill morning.

Some pictures

All Bark, No Bite

Jeff — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:48:26 +0000

Once again I took my Junod out with its new fin, but still no love from the waves. They had size, but no umph. Even the best looking waves refused to pitch over and lumped out just when it seemed like they were ready to ride. What made it even more tough was that the swell was only breaking in one specific spot south of the pier. Usually it breaks every 100 yards or so. But today just one spot, and so everyone packed tightly into the hot zone. We all scraped for the bumps that came our way, but no one caught much. And when we did catch waves, they petered out pretty quick. One nice set came through in the two hours I was out. I was lucky enough to be one of the few in the right position. But over all it was pretty disappointing. But at least I am lucky enough to paddle out.