Surf Mat

I want to get into writing my impressions from two surf mat sessions. The first was a week back on a Friday. I went down to SC to check John St on a low tide. The swell was too north and not much was making it in, and the wind was knocking the waves down a bit. I was sitting and watching not feeling up to it when I remembered I brought my surf mat. I looked at the waves with that in mind and thought I might be able to make some use of the poor conditions. The best part is there was only one guy out, so after seeing a 4 waves set I decided to give it a go.
By the time I got to the lineup the other guy had just about given up. I saw him ride one wave that was a drop, struggle with the bump, and not make the first section. He never paddled back out and I was on my own. I caught some waves a figured out which ones would work best for me. I ended up getting rides as long as I would have had I been on my Pacheco, and if it was bigger and cleaner. It was quite a surprise and I was enjoying it. I guess others were watching because not long after 3 guys paddled out. They sat a bit further down the line and I felt a twang of guilt as I rode waves past them and paddled back out deeper than them. After a few of those they just started dropping in anyway. I figured if I caught them I would say something, but I never did so no worries.
It got to be a bit uncomfortable with them around so after riding one in I tried a spot down the reef a bit. I got lucky and caught one behind Getchel section and connected it down around and through to the climb up cove. It was a long, fast ride on a small but well formed little wave. I paddled back to where I caught that wave and waited, but soon realized there were very few waves making it down to that part of the reef. After watching a few sets roll through John I paddled back up. Same guys were there and I had the same problems with them catching the waves a section ahead of me.
Eventually they left and, to my surprise, I was now making all the waves I caught! It took me awhile to realize that those guys who were taking off down the line were snowballing me. Now that they were gone I was zipping along past where they were dropping in. I continued until I got tired and went in happy.

The next session was this weekend. The swell was due Friday but didn't show until Saturday. After staying home Friday I got out Saturday at dawn to 3 miles with JB. The waves were overhead but not shaped well, even for 3 mile. I opted to take the surf mat out in some size and see if it could connect the soft spot between the outside and 2nd peak. The suddenly steep drop that 3 mile throws at me was a bit hard to handle one the mat because I don't have the benefit of legs to absorb the drop. Instead, if I free fell at all it would result in bouncing which I couldn't always recover from. One wave I free fell, bounced, started to recover when the lip hit me and started me bouncing again.
I did learn something from this bouncing though. Don't try to maintain control by wrapping an arm under the mat. It worked as I was in mid-air but stalled me like hitting a skeg fin in the kelp once I regained the water surface. It caused me to suck back up the face and go for a lip launch ride. I ended up loosing the mat and while still being held under by the wave I had already set the intention that I was going to have to sprint swim in to save my mat from the rocks. I broke the surface and took half a look back at the waves to see if there was danger coming before I committed to swimming in. I'm glad I did cause right there behind me was my mat. In the moment of relief at not having to push my tired body to catch my mat I floated for a moment half reaching for the mat. I don't know why (since we were both in the water) but the mat was moving out or I was moving in and the distance was increasing quickly. I awoke from my false sense of security and kicked myself to the mat just in time to pull everything through a wall of whitewater.
Before the session JB was skeptical as to my choice of wave riding vehicles. He'd never seen one before and politely wondered what the heck I was up to. I told him to watch my rides and be honest if he thought I was going any faster than others on regular boards. After the session he said he couldn't tell if I was going faster but I was making it as far as anyone, and I was catching more waves than anyone else. From my perspective I wasn't doing what I wanted which was connecting those two take-off spots, so it wasn't a complete success. I did get some good enough rides and, considering the conditions, was glad I gave the surf mat a try. Another thing is that this spot, while not shapely, is a longer ride than I normally get at OB and this alone is a good reason to get the mat out there. I need more time on a wave to get used to the controls and get a feel for how to ride the mat. I forgot to bring my GoPro and now wish I had so I could re-examine the rides I got. No "tubes" so there wouldn't have been any entries to the 2013 Mat Tube Ridding comp Link, but still.