E's Surf Report

Thanks for the healthy dose of existentialism this morning e.

2nd

Haven't seen any commentary on the Santa Cruz surf school protests...

http://surfermag.com/features/onlineexclusives/surfscholprotest/

Any eye-witness accounts?

My impressions of area talked about yesterday.

The town has some rowdy locals with major drug problems. Most of the country seems to have a coke problem probably since it is very cheap. Stick with the cautious traveler mindset and you shouldn't have an issue. My crew didn't do this when we first arrived and ended up having to buy beers for the hoodlums nearly everynight and had some unwelcome guests hanging outside our cabinas everyday and night. This culminated in a couple fights, one break in and me ultimatly breaking my hand on a guys face.

The wave in the town is crowded with locals. Shouting as you go for a wave is a must unless you want to be dropped in on.

Other waves exist within 1-2 hrs but can be difficult to find. The best way to get there is to hire a local guide especially as no local car rental agencies exist (at least none that I could easily find).

There is a lot of deserty land for sale in the area. One guy was trying to sell me some land. He was hiding the land deeds for his "clients" under his drivers side floor mat (which happened to be the same vehicle that we had rented from him - and which I mildly wrecked).

Theres a frumpy s/sw wind on it, and every 5 minutes an overhead mostly closeout SW swell set hits. The NW is waist to navel high. The sets re-introduced me to sinuses I had forgotten about for months.

Hey Bstah - do sinus cavities expand with age? Mine seem to hold a lot more water than they did years ago. I need to sleep with a sponge under my head now.

RE Flades
"Other protestors were just plain tired of what they see as crass commercialization of a culture steeped in heritage and tradition."

I feel that this nicely states the feeling that a lot of surfers are having…
Many of us had to work very hard to establish respect from the previous generation of surfers that preceded us. That work included paying dues to learn ocean knowledge, staying low key and impacting local and distant breaks as little as possible, learning the local surf history, legends and traditions of our local spots, etc. paying respect to the older generation and knowing who they are, and what THEY went through. This includes aloha, which is getting harder and harder to extend to those who wish to become a part of that culture. And I mean a part of it all the way into the soul. This is partly due to shear numbers, and partly due to a disintegration of this culture.

Those who choose to promulgate the disintegration of this culture, through gross disrespect of local micro cultures, being in the limelight through such means as surf reports (in effect negating the necessity to LEARN the craft), etc. MUST understand that a lot of surfers don’t think they have earned it or have the right. And I agree. Completely. It is akin to treading into taboo territory.

The feeling is not that “we” own the beach, but that a culture so rich in tradition is not being respected. I feel sorry for those that do not understand. They are really missing something, in my humble opinion.

Those who know, do not tell.

Those who tell, do not know.

Someone said that a long time ago.

Hi everyone, I'm a long time reader and occasional contributor to this blog, and I want to put myself out there without making this a "commercial" post. I'm a surfer and an art lawyer, and I notice that a lot of surfer-artists use this blog, and I wanted to offer my services, pro bono if the need is there, and for compensation if the resources are there.

I have experience in both the intellectual property aspects and the contract for sale/exhibit aspects of art law. I'm also a member of California Lawyers for the Arts. If anyone has any questions or comments about art legal issues, please email me at artlawyer01@yahoo.com.

Thanks, and good luck finding some waves from the windswell this weekend!

Thanks for your input Traut! Sounds like the wild west up there. I'm pretty familiar with the troubles of Peru. I've been there quit a bit, just never the Northern part. Luckily, my fiance and her brothers will be there to help soften the burden of those who may bother. I like the third world feel though. Is that some place you would consider buying some land, or do you feel there are better places.... (in peru that is..)

bstah.. what is the fog gradient looking like for this saturday?

cheers everyone! life is good. keep it that way.

yeah, buying in Peru sounds real safe...go for it obsurfer. Lawlessness, drugs and land tenure go hand in hand.

Web - I agree mostly with paragraph 1, but I do not think culture is disintegrating. I see it more as changing. In society and surfing alike.

I do not agree with paragraph 2 regarding surf reports. In my early days of surfing, I lived 30 miles from the beach. A buddy that lived next to the beach would often call me when the waves looked good. That was surf reporting with aloha from 35 years ago. Internet technology for the massses did not exist back then (a little info for you young'ins). We all just called each other on land lines cuz cell phones didn't exist either... Sometimnes we would just drive to a friends house and tell him the surf is on. Reporting? You bet.

I saw fights in the water in the 60's. I saw wave hogs and kooks. The numbers of surfers have greatly increased, but in my time the culture has varied only a little - improved in my mind from the dark ages of the late 70's to mid 80's.

I'm as stoked to be surfing as ever, in some ways more. I still doodle stick figures on waves just like I did on my high school book covers. True, we don't have the culture that was displayed in Riding Giants during the early days of the North Shore and Makaha, but the whole world is changing. My suggestion is to enjoy what you have and try to educate others when you can.

Dust
Wind
Dude

great post dennis.

surfing has always been about sharing the stoke.

Dennis-good points,especially the last line. Don't worry, the enjoyment is in full swing :)
But I cannot back off on my "surf report" feelings.. my opinion is solidly formed on that.

OBS - N.Peru is way to dusty and in most parts, flat for me. Inland has some more jungles and could make for a more plesant living but it would mean a 20 min drive at a min to the beaches and require some heavy equipment to build roads etc. Before considering any area in Peru I would have to explore all over until I fell in love with a place. Maybe in the South?? For me personally, I think it is a cool place to visit but not to live. As you know, Lima and probably some of the other major cities are depressingly grey and downtrodden. My wife would quickly become an X if I tried dragging her down there for an extended period of time.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sketchypad/20418726/in/set-476676/

Disintegration of conformity is a good thing. Society is obviously a giant hole. The ocean is a gift; Kaiser's a pervert, BV's a ranting dick, Rapestah is ever wanting and E's a fitful mystic trying to unite everyone.
Listen to the elders, they may harsh and shame you, youth, but like Dog the Bounty Hunter they'll hug you in the end.

Shhhhhhhh. No more naming.

The perspective of someone who has been surfing for 3 years:

I'm a product of an $80, 6 hour course in pacifica, 2 instructors, 4 students. They spent the first hour discussing etiquette, talking about "ocean knowldge" and the like. They first took us out on boogie boards to see how we responded to the water then started us on boards (w/o leashes), only two boards, 1 per instructor. It was done safely in the water in front of the taco bell, far from anyone else, and frankly, while I didn't necessarily get my money's worth, the basic introduction was valuable.

After trying to teach a girlfriend to surf, I signed her up for a lesson that had 12 students and two instructors. After 10 minutes of introduction, they put everyone on a softtop and had them get into the water. All the students were real unconfortable, real lost looking, and no one knew what to do. They didn't even try to get them to start with bellyriding. Those lessons were $60...but what a kick in the pants to save $20.

I think the moral of the story is that done well, a surf camp is a safe outlet that keeps beginners out of the line-up, and in the whitewater and teaches them ettiquette is useful. Lessons can also be done poorly so as to add to the cluster-f.

As for respecting customs and paying dues, I don't know if any camps even deal with that level, or should. I don't know if you consider those things your first week siding on whitewater..it seems to be a next step for people who stick with it...I suspect most don't. The argument that the schools are taking the same waves as the locals is absurd...maybe down the road it's the case, but unless the locals are in waist deep water, it's not an immediate concern.

I think alot of people in general society want to pretend the pecking order they are dialed into is "tradition," but I think current "California surf culture" is a product of the 60s, unrecogniable when viewed by the Hawiian surfers that nearly got eliminated by the Calvinist missionaries.

Anyone have any experience in Costa Rica at this time of the year?

Kudos to Web, and let the stoke prevail Dennis.

I wish i weren't such a downer.

No comment on Peru, cept to say when I was there I only saw Americans in the Hermosa area, the rest was USA free cept for me, and I liked that.

One funny tid Bit, the Peruvians are looked at as a nuisance in Ecuador where they go to surf on holiday.

elias...foggy Saturday, chance of burnoff Sunday, at least over most of town.

Dennis, in gross anatomy I fully dissected the sinus cavities. They are a LOT bigger than most people think.

Surfing has always been an inherently selfish behavior.

junglebook, rainy season.

Sounds like Mexi should be the one moving to Peru.

I surf for the poor, and the beaten down.

Looks like surfable energy in the water. Afternoon glass-off, please!

Web another fine post.

Dennis, I think that our surfing culture has changed dramatically. Espicially in cold water climates where wetsuits and surf reports have made it eaiser for people to enjoy surfing. It's like LA up here now. I see Land Rovers and BMW's with funboards at spots that we used to go to for empty peaks......WTF?

I dunno what the answer is. I do know that if you surfed as a grom and lived a hand to mouth surfers existence for a time in your life. The safe and sane surfing experince of today lacks it's old edge. I for one miss that and I appreciate BVB and his aliases for that reason.

I haven't seen another person in the water in the last month of surfing, except for Lerm.
I love summer! No hype. no hold-downs. Just scrappy, uncrowded waves. Say no to fall and winter!

Stretchy wetsuits started in the late 90s...just in time for the dot-com boom. They made a big difference in warmth and comfort in cold water.

Surf potential near urban areas couldn't hide from the internet, as of the early 90s.

I was somewhat shocked at the surf culture on display at the 111 Minna a coupla weeks ago. Surf artists of various ilks. I actually thought it was pretty cool, lots of photography on display, some videos, and peeps. Different peeps from the people who walk to the Great Highway.

When I was a grom I rode my bike to the ocean. Rotary dial phones were still around. Gas was under a buck a gallon. Cable TV didn't exist yet. Personal computers didn't exist. But we knew what a hurricane swell was...

for god's sake, dude, you piss and moan about america/americans more than bin laden. the elitist "i'm not one of them americans" traveling kook bit is old. how about just buying a one way ticket on your next wordly travels. you know you want to.

yours,
Betty Duball

3to5, you need to come visit us more often in the winter. There's nothing safe or sane at OB by the time November rolls around :)

I'm hoping to do just that. this career path/resposible adult stuff has really impacted my ability to be a crusty old carp.

what the hell are you guys talking about and where are the chicks in bikinis!?

Sheeit I took old betsy out to 3rd point one of my first times surfing and chris o keefe almost punched me, even though he was twice my size. than i got to the beach and craig herring dragged me around by my wetsuit that was around my ankles and all i could do was hold on to my towel and all the chicks saw my hairless dick anyway, i hate that jerk!

big log kook rules!

A rumination on the dog-eat-dog conditions in the midst of classic point waves and the duality of the world class point break that is Rincon.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

I gotta tell you how Rincon was yesterday afternoon.

Very small when I paddled out. I was starting to wonder what we were all doing out there (about 25 of us) when I picked off the wave of the afternoon. Shoulder high, from the outside cove past about 3 long, fast, steep sections. I was stoked.

I swear, no one will ever have a mellow soul session again at Rincon. Not in this life. As I came down the line, a dozen guys on the shoulder eyed me intently for any sign of weakness, then reluctantly pulled back one after another as I made each section. As my friend BJ said later, "A lot of folks on the inside were counting on you to fall on that wave, Robert." This is fitting and proper: no scrap goes unsurfed. But it makes for a whole different vibe in the water.

Then I hit another long section and my apparent odds on making it dropped to about 50/50. I was starting to come out of the foam when this guy looked me right in the eye and preemptively stuffed me to surf the tail end of it. Oh well. Twelve guys out of 13 did the right thing.

I gave a wave to a friend. Later I paddled hard around her to take off on one (a little unkindly). My bad karma was instantly repaid with interest as a 9 wave set poured through and worked me in the impact zone. Suddenly my "wave of the day" was looking like a cocktail frank before the oncoming glut. I was getting pounded while everyone else was having a wave feast.

Incredible how fast the crowd filled in after that. Two good sets and in minutes the crowd went from 25 to 50. More were on the way when we left. I got a few more fun ones, but none of the real bombs came my way.

It's the typical Rincon paradox: Lots of beautiful waves, a whole lot of real hungry surfers, and some pretty heinous stuffs, drop ins, and generally uncourteous behavior. If there is any justice in this world, this one older dude in a bright blue hat is going to a landlocked, horrific dustbowl surfer's Hell when he dies. If this was you, please repent now and mend your ways before it's too late! Lots of loose boards, close calls,and general mayhem in the lineup after the first few on each set. And some incredible, steep, hollow rides all the way to the freeway.

Will I be back? You bet. Me and 500 of my leanest and hungriest brethren. Try to show a little courtesy out there bro's. Take some and leave plenty. That place will hold 100 courteous surfers well on a good day, but ten or fifteen snakes makes for a pretty crowded lineup.

The west swells are here!
Happy fall y'all,
Surfer Bob
p.s. south swell nada here so far...manana, manana

no kidding Betty.

If you dont like America/Americans so much, then move on out. We could do with a few less complainers.

Let us know where you end up, and if can get as many cheap plane tickets there as you do here. I'll bet not.

-Hugh

I love America and Americans but I don't like seeing them when I travel. That's why I travel.. Biatch

I love 6' to 8' glassy hollow waves.

summer in SF sucks. thats why theres so much bitching on this site.

Why is it that poo-ball...oops I meant doo-ball, only shows up to whine? SURF!

thats why im moving to antartica, biath

What's it like in Costa Rica this time of year? Green and cool, few tourists, tormentas=black cloud showers and bone rattling thunder, small swells with debris filled water,hmmm, is that a log or a cayman??
e, you never called about that amp? Its stored by Sutro Park if you still want it...

tamborjim.. amp would be awesome as we have a second guitarist with no amp right now. what should i do to get it??

thanks so much tamborjim!

4 hours until kick-off and the circle jerk continues!

- INOKEA called me a pervert. I have been called worse. I just give people what they want.

- Looks like BV's other personality learned to type with syntax. Nice work.

- The surf still sucks, so yet again, I will attempt to break this curse....I would rather look at this then surf OB right now.

BV took that text from Robert Taylor, a former UCSB grad student who surfs Rincon regularly.

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.surfing/msg/2313ad62eedc879d?dmode=source&hl=en

A few years back... Rincon, glassy 6-8 ft... 200 heads in the water = you had to drop in to get a wave. The strange thing was no one seemed to be getting pissed off because everyone was doing it.

Found a site by Bob Fiegel, about surfing SoCal in the early 60's

1918 Milktruck in 1962

car is a 1925 hudson, dunno when the photo was tanken

Now if I could only get my night vision surfing contacts I've been developing to work, I'd be stoked! No more crowds for me... night surf!

Actually one of the few night/ moon sessions I've had was at PP, and yes I got dropped in on. But can't really blame the guy since you couldn't see shit anyways! Some other fun intoxicated night sessions down in SB/ Ventura- I remember my last sesh at Oil Piers before they tore em down. It was sooo good, stayed out until the twilight changed into darkness and bright green bioluminescence. In the top 10 session for sure!

just click a category..........
http://www.tommys-bookmarks.com/main.shtml

Any thoughts on Coast Guard Reserve in Bay Area? One weekend a month doing Search and Rescue. Includes health insurance,dental and salary. Wondering if any one here knew of anyone or heard any negative things on this. The specter of being tricked into going to Iraq is always a possiblity no matter what they promise too.

What's up with that last picture at top, where the wave looks all funky next to the guy taking off?
Some sea monster dropping in?
A big vortex in space-time?

HB, I am in your hood tomorrow. If you get this, send me an email at lanceea at yahoo dot com

I know for a fact there are Coast Guardsmen in Iraq. Both in the water, and also paper pushers.

Search and Rescue on the 47 footer might be worth the risk, though.

the lefts into the pier at Oil Piers got all time... full stationary barrel with ramps on the end to boost off.... boogie heaven

Joined the Coast Guard to do just that; rescue on the high seas. Instead spent 6 months cleaning toilets and yes plenty of Coast Guard in Iraq. My advice; don't do it.

Yeah Oil Piers went off before it died, putting on one last show- some sick barrels! Such a fun wave.
I think there was talk of putting in a fake reef there, sometime soon?

yes ive had many a fun session at oil piers, driving by that place just isnt the same..since the got rid of the pier..

from surfermag.com

goddamn that last shot is amazing

Yes E. That's what I'm talkin about!

hey it's mucky bro's

stoke?
thanks for sharing the margaret kilgallen photos.
if someone missed the url:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sketchypad/20418726/in/set-476676/

Got this email out of the blue last night. I thought maybe you peru seekers might want to check it out.
-----------------
Hello my name is Makki Block from Peru. I have a nice host place in this wonderful country of waves and nice people.

We are related to the surf activity. I would like as well that you think that when you want good waves and a person who knows of surf in
Peru I have enough experience and one hotel in the beach in a good place with excellent waves all the days of the year - www.kahunasperu.com

Best regards
makki
info@kahunasperu.com