The learning process

On Saturday the wind was offshore and the waves were in the 8' range at mid-beach. I considered going north for less size, but ended up going out into the heaviest spot I'd seen that morning. I brought out the 7'5" thinking I could get into the waves earlier and handle the pitching lips that way. Once I got out there I found out that the waves were rolling along, not catchable, until hitting the bar and throwning over with heavy force. I had the most intense half-hour of surfing since Puerto at about the same size. The only difference is I was making waves in Puerto, OB was kicking my ass. It was too the point to make me worry about my health and I only stayed out for an hour, which was two waves made and many more getting drilled.
The next day I returned to similar condiitons but around 6' on most waves. I made the decision to go with the Quintara, the smallest board I own, and was glad I did. What I think is that the smaller board has less force pulling it up the face of the wave and so drops more easily when the waves are sucking out suddenly. I ended up making all my waves, and almost getting barreled. (JZ did better than almost, as did a few other guys out there.)
So next time it's 8' and throwing I'll go out on the small board and see what it will do for me. I am getting into better shape so I can handle the paddling better.

The thing about Hess boards is...

So I've got myself a solid quiver of Hess boards. If I could I would fill in the spot between the 6' Quintara and the 7'5" Noriega with a 6'10"-ish Quintara or Lola. For those days when the smaller boards would leave me drifting with the current, but the 7'5" is more than is needed.
So except that, I don't really have an excuse to go board shopping. I have retained the habit of watching the web for Hess boards and there is a board for sale in Southern California that is very similar to my Pacheco, and for a great price $650! I want to buy it just because it's a great price, and if I could expect the other Pacheco to fall apart in a few years I would make arrangements for the "back-up" board. But I can't fool myself that these Hess boards will be falling apart any time this decade, or ever under my feet. I can imagine giving these boards away to someone who hasn't even been born yet, some kid who I help learn to surf.
So I will hold off on this other Pacheco and keep an eye out for a 6'10"-ish board with slimmer hips than the Pacheco but more paddle than my Quintara. In fact if anyone is out there, I'd trade my 6'1" Quintara for a 6'6" to 7' Lola or Quintara. Please!

Catch-up on events

Surfed Blacks 2 ft fun warm sunny, not classic Blacks.

Bought a new wetsuit. Went with the same model as last time (oneil mutant) because it fit perfectly. This one is 5/4 and has a better chest closing system. I was complaining about the old one and how it would come loose and the guy at the shop said, "That hasn't happened since the first year they made those suits." We talked more and I found out the suit I'd been wearing was 4+ years old. Not a bad run! With the new suit being thicker and not leaking water I'm sitting out there overheated sometimes. Nice.

Surfed OB several times in December, size range 6-10'. Got the Noriega semi-gun in the water and made some bigger drops, pulled into smaller tubes, paddled against the current and succeeded! Reminded myself that when the waves are 8'+ you have to paddle down the face a few extra strokes. Offshore winds and sunny days!

Picked up a nagging cough that has been sapping my energy making the 6-8' days at OB more of a struggle than they should be. Still fighting it, and hitting the gym, gonna surf tomorrow if it looks good.

Surfed John St. in SC. Not classic, or even very good. More people than should have been out for the conditions. The swell was too north, and the next cove up was 8'+ with a small, scattered crowd. Would have been the call and I might have survived even with the low energy from this cough. Maybe not...

At some point at the gym I hyper-extended my elbow. I should let it rest, but I'm still doing everything I normally do, but at least I'm not doing bar dips, which is when it happened. I'm also adding bicep curls to my workout to try to prevent it from happening again. I also realized that just cardio at the gym isn't enough for a surf workout. I need to do strength/endurance work on my arms, and a bit of strength training on my legs and core. If I start going regularly I should consider making a plan/schedule of what/when/how much.

Spending the poor quality surf days on the smallest board would also be a good idea, as would bodysurfing if conditions dictate.

Wanderlust

I found an excuse to travel to San Diego in November, and here I sit in the La Jolla coffee shop typing about the lack of surf. Actually, let's flip it and talk instead about the drive. I left home after work, dinner, and a quick nap. I drove through the night listening to WTF podcasts to stay awake and arrived in the pre-dawn at Blacks. I don't know the best access, but in the morning light I was able to figure out one. This means that it's entirely possible to make a strike on Blacks with only a single day off of work required. If I see an opportunity I want to capitalize on I can be here by dawn, surf once or twice, sleep the rest of the day and reverse the overnight drive and be back to work a day later. I'm not sure I'd be of much use that day at work, but with my new limited work schedule and the double day field days that I sometimes do in winter, I may not need to do much work if things work out just right.
Furthermore, Blacks is the furthest south spot I would drive that far for, with a few in between I'd like to surf as well, mostly bunched around Santa Barbara.
As for the present surf conditions, the CDIP buoy for Southern California shows 7'@12s from 315deg. I've been told Blacks is my best bet, and I can't really tell from the cliff angle/distance, but to me it looks waist high at best. The shape doesn't look appealing either with rangy walls that close out. I wonder if I was even looking at the right stretch of beach.
And since this is the only time I'll probably ever have a segway between surfing and a podcast, I want to talk about the WTF podcast. It is funny and deep and always entertaining. There is a stereotype of stand-up comics having tortured histories. The host of WTF, Marc Maron, is no exception and he speaks to my own frustrated with everything/nothing dark side. His interviews often try to bring out dark experiences of the comics he interviews. Sometimes he uncovers some deep dark shit, but because the stories are coming from comics they are layered with humor to break the tension. Other times the guest on the show will be a light hearted person without any dark side to uncover, but Marc still finds what makes them tick, what makes them special. With his comic style you might expect him to ridicule the guests softer side (or any side) but he always conducts the interviews with compassion, which helps the guest open up. Unlike a typical interviewer Marc interjects his own experiences as they relate to the topic, sometimes stepping on his guests stories. I thought this was irritating but I now believe it makes the show more conversational, and because Marc is opening up the guest opens up too. If I had the opportunity to talk to Marc about his interruptions I would say, "Keep it up, don't change a thing."
Anyway, this is what happens when I drive all night then have a capichino for breakfast, only to discover free WiFi and nothing else to do.

Heart Rate Monitor

During some great days last winter I found myself so out of shape I couldn't even make it to the peak. I spend whole sessions on the shoulder trying to paddle against the current and not catching waves. I have since taken action to get into better shape, and one part of that is cardio fitness. I joined a gym (climbing gym with weights and bikes, etc.) and started riding the stationary bikes. Those bikes have heart rate monitors built in and I got curious about my HR during other exercises. I bought myself a Polar FT60 and began playing with it.
I'm going to skip all the functions and featurs discussion and hit at the *heart of the matter. When surfing my HR goes from low 100s when sitting to ~175 when paddling for a wave, or back out with duckdives. When paddling for position or through a rip I'm in the upper 150s. After I'm done paddling my heart rate gets back down into the low 120s in about a minute.
Biking to work in traffic with stoplights, etc. gives me a very similar workout.
Here's the thing, the HRM wants me to spend the largest amount of time in the 135-145range but I don't really know if that's right for me. Surfing seems to be sprint and rest, so shouldn't my workouts be sprint and rest? For now I'm just exercising however as often as I can motivate.
*About using the HRM in the ocean. The HRM isn't perfect and doesn't always pick up my heart rate even on dry land. I tried to use it in Maui while swiming in the ocean and that didn't ever work for me. I have been able to get it to work while surfing, although inconsistantly. I think what's happening is that the wetsuit keeps most of the water off my chest so when I'm not duck-diving the HRM works. If I get washed and my suit flushes the HRM stops working until the water runs out. Or, if the HRM shifts around and slides down then it's shot for the session. One more thing, the HRM is a pod that attaches to a strap and is worn on your sternum. This doesn't work for surfing (paddling problems) but the thing works for me when I put the pod on my back.
I've been doing cardio with some weights for a few months now, inconsistantly, but I've found anything I do to stay in shape for surfing helps, and I think I'll keep doing what I can to keep improving. Can't get barreled if I can't get the wave.

November offshore

This November has been a good one for OB with regular offshore wind and consistent waves in the manageable size range. Some have even been saying it's been some of the best run of good conditions ever, but I think that's more related to the surf contest that was in town and seeing the same old spot through the eyes of a pro surfer. I don't have any use for surf contests, but it was inspiring to see how well the pros made use of the waves and made me think the waves look better than I would have before.
I've gotten out a few of the days and have had some fun. Nothing epic, but much better than the miserable summer we had. The low tides have been after noon and I've been surfing the better morning wind, so mostly I've been getting offshore groomed but mushy waves (with some juice mixed in to keep me on my toes.)
I've been surfing the Pacheco which has been a good all around board with float to catch soft waves but able to handle the juice when it comes. Yesterday I took out the Quintara and didn't feel like I missed the extra float of the Pacheco. I had one morning a few weeks ago that I would have felt good about the Noriega. I surfed 6-8' Tarval with strong offshores, two other guys out. I would have like to have been able to track down the rangy peaks better, and get in a bit earlier since the lips were throwing wide.
As part of the great waves I've been working on fitness so I can be better prepared for winter this year. I'll expand in a later post.

Swell of the summer

It was a buzzer beater arriving in September, but before the 21st so still technically summer. I surfed in town Thursday and found Mitchel's overhead on the sets. I surfed a few on the outside of my usual take-off spot but the crowd filled in and I dealt with it by paddling further out and around the corner. I also had thoughts in my head of finding some barrels on the Getchel section like I saw guys do earlier in the summer. It turned out that the drop on the outside was too late and the shoulder to fast and I didn't make it to the bottom on most, and those that I did I didn't make it back up the face. I might have been more successfull on something other than the Pacheco, but it was fun to try.
Next day I did 3mile with JA. The size was causing the 2nd peak to break on the sets, closing out the 1st peak. The 2nd peak was not exciting after the drop, so I dealt with the sets on the head and took smaller waves at the 1st peak. These were tons of fun, even though they didn't really look like it. JA kept guard at 2nd peak and made it over the top of most of the sets, but not into any of them.
Third morning in a row, back to 3mile. Being Saturday morning the crowd was new, wide-eyed and mostly unprepared for the winter like size. I returned to 1st peak for more of the same and had plenty of fun. The Pacheco goes great in those conditions, even though the size was HH+, the softer walls were still plenty of energy to get the wide board running fast.