San Diego 2013

[shera]

Ok, here's my progress report, since I finally have something to report. I got my 4/3 wetsuit from grubbers - in really great condition except for the tiniest tear where the 4 meets the 3. I really appreciate the maggot hookup. I took the suit to Bird's Surf Shed, not too far from where I live, where Bird himself handed me the glue and coached me through the repair - no charge. What an awesome cool guy in a quonset hut.

He's got racks of used boards so I asked him what he had in the 9'ish range. He looks me up and down and goes all the way to the back where he pulls out this aqua board with a long single fin. So pretty. 9'2" I wonder if this guy is a mind reader. Exactly the overall shape I was looking for, so thankful now that I rode a variety of boards last summer and got a little bit of an eye for what I wanted. $300. But I didn't want to make an impulse purchase so I took off to think it over. We were joking that if somebody else got it then it just wasn't meant to be mine. I came back in the morning two days later and I guess I snaked it out from some guy that looked at it the day before. Well, I saw it first and it's a girly color anyway.

So I have my first beautiful surfboard, mine all mine. But I don't know anybody around here, nobody to go out in the ocean with me. And I'm so busy trying to get settled in here in San Diego. My son came to visit for a month, back from Korea, and he got all my attention. I've been working out a LOT, with him I did hill sprints, weight lifting, hiking, plenty of stuff. After he left I joined OB crossfit. I'm being a workout junkie and doing some cool stuff like running around barefoot in Mission Trails. I also had to get a regular job and I'm starting a software company right now, writing code again for the first time in ten years. Everything is distracting me from actually getting in the ocean.

I took my board into the swimming pool just to see how it floated and this lady came out on the balcony to ask about it. I told her about my limited experience surfing in Maui and she was just so scared, gripped, even to hear about it. My mom has been the same way, acting like I'm gonna go out and get myself killed. Never mind that I grew up swimming alone at the beach and sailing too and I really do have a LOT of general experience adventuring in the wilderness. All in all there was just a ton of negative energy floating around me, mentally holding me back. But I went down to Sunset Cliffs every couple of days at different tides, studied the surf, pretended I was walking down the stairs with a board, waded repeatedly in and out of the water, and especially watched everyone get in and out with their boards. Mulled it over.

Then my very good friend and fellow maggot, Burnhard, comes to visit. That boy isn't afraid of anything and he's a hell of an athlete and he came to surf, not procrastinate. He brought along another buddy that is really not a surfer but wanted to try it out. So I take them up to La Jolla to get 10 foot soft tops and we're out in the easy water at La Jolla Shores. All day long!!! My first paddle for a wave I nosed dived, ok, I can fix that. Second try I'm up and surfing!!! And this board will turn too. I can really play! Ah so fun, so happy. Of course I got awfully tired and eventually would just walk out through the white and hop on in time to catch a wave - it's really shallow there. I saw a ray and a small shark in the clear water. Beautiful. I messed around a lot inside, playing with my new toy, riding on my knees, getting intimate. In the afternoon it got so flat that I couldn't get enough momentum to stand up any more, so I know the minumum wave size.

His buddy left for Colorado that night and I took Burnhard to Tourmaline the next day. It was like 2-3 foot and solid bodies out there, hordes of people at 10am on a Friday morning. My arms were pretty much gone, but I got outside and paddled in for my first wave. I was up and riding so easy, first try. I think it's a combination of the board and the wave, a sweet spot. I loved the feel, the energy, of the wave there, it was just right for me and I got a REALLY long ride. Got back outside and pretty much just layed around, watching and enjoying the day. Rode a couple more and had a collision. There were so many people that going across the line was a ridiulous propostition.

The next day, Saturday, we gave it a rest and hiked around at Torrey Pines. I had taken him over to look at Sunset Cliffs on the first day and told him I was really chicken about paddling out there, so of course he got fixated on the idea. Said it was just like the cliffs he enjoyed as a kid on summer vacation, I think to Sicely. So Sunday morning we got out early, by 7am, and put in at the stairs at low tide. I was really awkward, but I got in and I got out without falling on my @ss and that's that. Proud of myself for managing a reef break below the cliffs in California for the first time. I caught my first wave out there on south Garbage and had a nice ride. The problem is that I need to learn how to surf across the line. When I turned around to paddle back out I started getting slammed by white water, the waves were at 3-4 foot which is too big for me anyway and I don't know how to turtle. And I'm getting pushed in towards the shallow rocks so I had to FREAKING PADDLE OUT NOW. Holy Sh!t. The thing is, if you can surf across the line there you can just paddle back out the channel and not even get your hair wet. I got so much water up my nose that I pretty much rolled along on my belly with some swells after that, just looking around me and getting a feel for the place. I did have one real ride at Sunset Cliffs though, so I'm claiming it.

And that's all I've got, but it was pretty good all in all. Broke through the mental barrier of getting out there. On Maui I stared at the water for the first month too, completely sketched out about the coral 12" under the surface, but finally ended up surfing several times a week for the rest of the summer. So all's well that ends well.

And I need a plan going forward. Writing all this out makes me understand that I need to spend some days at Tourmaline, which we've talked about on this forum already. Maybe if I get out midweek at first light I'll have some real estate to myself. I really need to learn how to do an angled takeoff and how to surf down the line instead of just getting pushed into shore by the white. I need to learn how to turtle and I need to get my arms even stronger, although I'm already better than last year, or maybe just more clever. Finally I need to just sack up and head out alone, well it's not alone really, but with strangers. Everyone's been totally nice and friendly so far. I got spoiled in Hawaii last year, had friends on the beach which makes it so much easier to get out.

Would appreciate everyone's thoughts. You guys have been such a great resource. Please help me keep the momentum going, surfing is so much fun. I'll try to get a pic up of my board really quick, for you all to admire.

[jtran10]

I've made the most progress surfing spots that have good waves at times they're not very crowded. I think it's so much harder to think about everything that goes into surfing, plus staying out of people's way and figuring out who's got priority on a wave etc. It's also all about just doing it. I've basically just asked questions on here and tried to implement what people told me, and definitely feel like I've improved a whole lot in the past 6 months (or even the past 15 months, when I went to having never surfed to now shortboarding kind of well).

[shera]

I've made the most progress surfing spots that have good waves at times they're not very crowded. I think it's so much harder to think about everything that goes into surfing, plus staying out of people's way and figuring out who's got priority on a wave etc. It's also all about just doing it. I've basically just asked questions on here and tried to implement what people told me, and definitely feel like I've improved a whole lot in the past 6 months (or even the past 15 months, when I went to having never surfed to now shortboarding kind of well).

Nice. This forum has helped me SO MUCH. First with skiing, back in the day, and now surfing. Such enablers.

Yeah I have trouble with too much of crowds also. Once I commit to getting a wave my mind refuses to pull back. I never surfed a place with a nice organized lineup, like they do out at Sunset Cliffs. I watch them all the time, two people going for a wave, if the inside guy gets up, the other one pulls back every time, so polite. Lahaina was not like that at all, everyone just up and chicken winging and whoever can move across the line the fastest, knocking the others down like dominoes. Well the wave is shaped so different too, if you want to stay ahead of the break you have to move across really fast - at Sunset Cliffs it's such a big slow rolling swell.

None of that really matters for me though because I haven't learned how to stay on the green part of the wave. I think you're right I need to go to the good wave (Tourmaline) when it's not crowded so I can think.

Man you are killing it, going to the shortboard so fast and I guess you're having a ton of fun. I'm all the way over in the slow lane, also enjoying.

[shera]

Ok here is the tl;dr version

[Game Over]

Are you right by the yacht club? I think we parked in that second to last pic to walk the Bessemer path after eating on shelter island.

[Ottime]

I bet if you regularly hit the same spot, around the same time, several days a week, you will see many if the same people in the water. And I assume you are good at making friends. You might never even grab a beer with any of them, but it is a lot more fun being in the water with faces you know.

And crowds can make it tough for sure. Every break seems to have a different set of rules to follow, but trying to balance between vein a d-bag and a buoy is tough no matter what. If you don't mind vein either, then it is easier, I guess.

I like what Jtran suggested for improving, but I also like surfing uncrowned, less than ideal, but super consistent waves. So, when the perfect reef set up has 40 folks fighting for a peak, I'll hit up the one turn to close out beach break, and work on making that turn count. At you level if surfing, a that type of set up gives you plenty of opportunity to strengthen the arms, practice catching and angling and getting back out.

And get out often, regardless of swell or conditions. I suggest aiming for five sessions a week at least 1.5 hours long. If you miss a session, hit the gym or go for a run/ride to keep the muscles working. That is my general exercise regime. I call them segments. Another example is 1500' very of touring counts as a segment, 10 miles on the MTB or 5 mile hike. But water time is the best.

[liv2ski]

I bet if you regularly hit the same spot, around the same time, several days a week, you will see many if the same people in the water. And I assume you are good at making friends. You might never even grab a beer with any of them, but it is a lot more fun being in the water with faces you know.

And get out often, regardless of swell or conditions. I suggest aiming for five sessions a week at least 1.5 hours long. If you miss a session, hit the gym or go for a run/ride to keep the muscles working. That is my general exercise regime. I call them segments. Another example is 1500' very of touring counts as a segment, 10 miles on the MTB or 5 mile hike. But water time is the best.

This is great advise. When I started surfing I was at Turmo pretty much every morning at 6:30am to surf (if you could call it that) before going to work. I made many friends with the guys I saw there repeatedly and gradually was given my turn at waves. Surfing unlike skiing takes a lot of time in the water as the time actually spent surfing isn't much in the beginning on inconsistent days.

Find a spot your comfortable with and go all the time is the best thing to do.

[shera]

Ottime and liv2ski, awesome advice. I'm trying to build up the habit here. I need to stop fretting about going out alone. And I need to stop thinking about any other working out, like crossfit and make the water my first priority. I had to spend a couple of days in the swimming pool, but I practiced a bunch of turtle rolls.

I tried to get out Saturday to San Onofre, pulled up at 7:30am and there was a line to get into the parking lot! The attendent said it would be maybe an hour wait, so I just drove up to Huntington Beach. It's a big pier and a beach break, like OB. The waves were up to 1.5 overhead near the pier and really, um, concave. I watched some of the comp and that was cool. But taking my longboard out there was def not going to work out so I just put on my wetsuit and went swimming. Dived under a bunch of waves and body surfed some. Wow the tow along the shoreline was intense, you could not stand still in the water.

Are you right by the yacht club? I think we parked in that second to last pic to walk the Bessemer path after eating on shelter island.

Yup

[comish]

Next time San O is like that, turn around and head to the south side of the powerplant and surf Trails. Much less crowded, similar waves, without the San O vibe (could be good or bad depending on your perspective)

If you are longboarding, find waves that are slower/flatter. That will help you figure out the timing and standing up bit. Don't necesarily know which waves in San Diego that is, but I'm guessing Cardif might fall into that category. San O is great for learning. Doheny is always tiny and mellow.

Good luck

[shera]

Next time San O is like that, turn around and head to the south side of the powerplant and surf Trails. Much less crowded, similar waves, without the San O vibe (could be good or bad depending on your perspective)

If you are longboarding, find waves that are slower/flatter. That will help you figure out the timing and standing up bit. Don't necesarily know which waves in San Diego that is, but I'm guessing Cardif might fall into that category. San O is great for learning. Doheny is always tiny and mellow.

Good luck

Thanks! I'm focusing on Tourmaline, with an eye to Sunset Cliffs. I wonder if there are any other longboard breaks between the two.

[willie61]

When I learned to surf ( over 30 yrs ago now) it was in the Ventura/Oxnard are, one of the most localized beach areas in Ca. I found that by surfing the better spots but in crappy conditions (onshore or small blown out waves) was the best way to deal with crowds, also hit it early, I mean still dark early, and leave before the crowd hits, try surfing off hours for a shorter time then sitting out there with 100 other people, but hit it often at least once if not twice a day but at off times. Surfing good is the hardest thing to learn in the world because of all the variables, swell, wind, tides, not to mention crowds, but if you stick with it and have a game plan the reward is insane, The only thing that compares is waist deep powder on fat boards so you are floating on top slashing around like your on a twin fin, that's why I live in Tahoe now but still take a few trips a year to different places. Good Luck.

[shera]

Surfing good is the hardest thing to learn in the world because of all the variables, swell, wind, tides, not to mention crowds, but if you stick with it and have a game plan the reward is insane, The only thing that compares is waist deep powder on fat boards so you are floating on top slashing around like your on a twin fin

Er, I only have one long fin, and I haven't had much luck this week standing up to play with turning it. Trying to completely change what I'm doing, from getting pushed straight into shore from the back by the wave to rolling angled down the lip of the swell. Like going from a green run to dropping into a halfpipe (but smaller of course). Anyway, I am failing, but it is fun trying. I am just determined to go sideways!

All those variables you're talking about are feeding my brain that's for sure, I just realized that to go left on a break you have to be looking over your shoulder to the right to watch it while you are paddling in and leftish. I thought my brain would explode when I realized that. I've also got another problem to solve - you know that moment when you are caught by the wave's energy, but you're gonna pearl unless you shift your weight back? Well I've developed the bad habit of shifting back, sometimes up onto my knees, to keep going and then going through the process of standing up only after I'm sure that I'm hooked into the wave. I am now realizing that that shifting moment is exactly when I need to pop to my feet, but it's so exact that I wonder if I'll ever get it. I was trying to find movies and videos of people popping up and they are ALWAYS showing the same thing, bottom turn, back up to grind the lip, repeat, and never showing them paddling for the wave. Jeez. I did find a kid and a chick in the middle of Kelly Slater's Tahiti movie showing nice smooth popups. Ah I love that movie.

It took me a long time to get good at skiing, like at least 10 years. I'm a slow study. Surfing, well, I dunno, but it's a fun challenge every day. Just glad to be in the water now. And I'm realizing what an incredible break Tourmaline really is. Bigger and longer breaking than Lahaina. There is a wide green wall that just sits up for you and you can ride anywhere along it. Well, if you can. And it's pretty much up to waist high every time I'm out there, I think 3-4 if you wait for it, so I'm not messing around in knee high waves any more. Hoping to grow into it.

Have you guys see this book: Kook: What Surfing Taught Me About Love, Life, and Catching the Perfect Wave

I read once that violin guy Suzuki said that you could accomplish anything with ten years of dedication. He was talking about violin, but I always remembered it when I was trying to get better at skiing. That worked out ok, so I'll give surfing 10 years and see where I am. Hopefully all shacked up with my fingers lightly grazing a wall of glass, that's my dream.

Apologies for writing so much on the forum, but I don't know anybody that surfs around here yet, need to talk...maybe a chick thing. Maybe some of you will decide to come for dawn patrol at Tourmaline cause I think I'm gonna paint my name on one of the parking spots.

[shera]

BTW, I'm reading everyone's advice over and over, taking it all to heart, really grateful for the help.

[whyturn]

San elijo just north of moonlight. Glass rollers and easy entry about 7:30-8 am. Trust me. Grew up in SD and body surfed most spots. 21st is also good after some progress. Fins has best fish tacos by the Mormon temple off 5

[willie61]

SHeRA At this point don't even bother trying to drop in straight and do a bottom turn, take off on the wave at a slight angle pointing down the line so all you have to do is stand up and your heading down the wave, try and focus on point breaks that have long line if available. I know by reading your posts that you just got your board, but a 3 fin thruster is much more stable a board to learn on, a single fin would be the hardest board to learn on, and yes it makes a HUGE difference.

[shera]

San elijo just north of moonlight. Glass rollers and easy entry about 7:30-8 am. Trust me. Grew up in SD and body surfed most spots. 21st is also good after some progress. Fins has best fish tacos by the Mormon temple off 5

Ok, thanks.

SHeRA At this point don't even bother trying to drop in straight and do a bottom turn, take off on the wave at a slight angle pointing down the line so all you have to do is stand up and your heading down the wave, try and focus on point breaks that have long line if available. I know by reading your posts that you just got your board, but a 3 fin thruster is much more stable a board to learn on, a single fin would be the hardest board to learn on, and yes it makes a HUGE difference.

I hope I can pick your brain a little more, because I've been thinking about this. So I was on a 10 ft soft top last year, couldn't even make it turn at all really and this 9 foot single fin feels pretty awesome by comparison.

Is it true that a single fin is more stable and smoooth for speed and the 3 fin arrangement makes a better turn? Because if so then I would be better off to do just like you're saying, angled take off and just do my best to surf down the line. I really want to do that, will keep trying, and maybe my board is fine for learning to do that?

Then maybe my next step would be dropping directly in and making a bottom turn? And 3 fins would be important for that? And maybe I can even go shorter, like a fun shape or whatever is next?

And I also want to ask about the role of the wave shape in all of this. The wave at Sunset Cliffs is really rounded and rolling and a good long ride, but I can't manage it really because it's like an A frame and there's really only two great spots to be, one left and one right.

The wave at Tourmo stands up more straight and concave, more like a beach break, but the awesome thing is that it takes forever to close out. You can basically paddle for a wave from anywhere across the beach and if you can get going down the line there's a lot of space and time to get a ride. You really just have to think about how far in to get...

So have I got it right in my thinking that the more vertical and concave wave at Tourmo will work better with an angled takeoff, so I don't go slamming down to the bottom, which I've already done repeatedly? Whereas at Sunset Cliffs, the roller, a more direct drop with a bottom turn can really work better?

[jtran10]

"So have I got it right in my thinking that the more vertical and concave wave at Tourmo will work better with an angled takeoff, so I don't go slamming down to the bottom, which I've already done repeatedly? Whereas at Sunset Cliffs, the roller, a more direct drop with a bottom turn can really work better?"

I'd say yes, but I'm a kook so hopefully someone else weighs in. I found angling into waves (any waves, really) is the easiest way to NOT pearl a lot on a longboard, regardless of weight shifting.

The first day I really got it I surfed my cousin's 9 2 single fin and found it MUCH more stable than the board I had at the time. As long as it's big enough for your body mass I wouldn't think about looking at another board for the time being, if you were considering that.

[willie61]

I feel there is no point a single fin board, once simon Anderson invented the thruster (3 fin) in the early 80's the single fin became obsolete except in huge Hawaiian surf to hold your board in. A 3 fin board is faster by far, more stable, and looser meaning way easier to turn, you start adding concaves to the bottom and they become very loose and tourney. Comparing a single fin to a 3 fin is like comparing a 65mm waisted ski in powder to a reverse/reverse donner party ski in waist deep powder. I don't know where your at in your surfing but if you can drop in and bottom turn, that's great, because you pick up a lot of speed by doing that, if not, the best way is to take off at a slight angle pointing down the line that way your already going down the face of the wave.

As for taking off on waves it does not matter how many fins you have, it's all the same. I don't know what size you are or what size board you have, but I have taught a lot of people to surf, and if I was to choose a board for someone to learn on, it would be about 7-7 1/2'long about 22" wide and be a "egg" shape with 3 fins, that would be easy to paddle and catch waves on and more importantly you would be able to turn it fairly easily, and as you got better be able to pump it down the line to gain speed, from there you would have no problem moving onto a shorter, more high performance board.

I have only surfed sunset cliffs once about 25 yrs ago with Rusty, he was a shaper for canyon surfboards at the time, if I remember right it was a reef that rolled pretty good at the take off, at this point I would not get to hung up on the different wave shapes to much but focus more on getting out as much as possible in any surf. Sorry if I a little biased towards shorter boards, but even at 51 (surfing since I was 15) my boards are 6'-4" and 6-5". Hang in there, learning to surf is tough.

I think you will find that on mushy rolling waves it will be easier to take off at a angle heading down line, and on more hollow wave sometimes it's easier to just stand up as the wave is starting to pitch. Good luck.

[shera]

Yeah, you remember Sunset Cliffs right.

Can't make a bottom turn, just a kook here trying to figure it out. But I got the message loud and clear, angled take-off, surf down the line. I've got a focus.

Haha, I've owned Donner Partys, and I still love to ski my Spatulas, so I understand what you're saying there. My overall plan right now is to stay on my longboard this summer and then start looking to add in something shorter next year, egg, funshape, fish, I dunno what is next but something midsize. I haven't figured out my storage situation this winter, but I'm not taking a cruising bike and surfboards back to CO.

I also kinda want a little skimboard thingy, that looks so fun. Prolly bust my tailbone. But it's fun to have toys for the beach.

[BS720]

I have to disagree (with respect) with willie61 on the single fin topic. I have owned a few, and currently own one. Maybe I'm a surfing hipster, but there are lessons to be learned from a single fin. It's a massive difference on takeoff. There is much more drag from a large center fin. In pitching waves, my 6'9" egg hangs up in the lip. There are two things you can do about this: 1.) Angle your takeoff. 2.) Slide that fin as far forward as it will go. A single fin is by far the most stable board to ride. That also makes it the most difficult to learn to turn. However, once you learn to do this smoothly, you are set. Play around with your feet. There are definitely bigger sweet spots on a board like yours.

[willie61]

Thanks bs720 for reinforcing my argument why a single fin is not the best choice to learn to surf on because they have so much fin drag, they are slow to take off on waves with and slow in general, when your learning, taking off on waves is the most critical thing there is to learn, why use the worst board for it. As for a single fin being the most stable I would still disagree with you on that.

A few years back a group of us got together and had the same argument about shapes, being that one was a shaper friend we had 4 boards shaped by him, all roughly the same dimensions, The same bottom shape ( a single concave under foot , with a double concave out he tail with a slight vee) but with different fin configurations, a single fin, a 3 fin, a quad, and a 5 fin, we all rode these boards for about a month, rotating back and forth, sometimes evening switching every other wave, at the end we all had the same conclusion, the singe fin was the slowest and least stable, and the quad and 5 fin where by far the fastest and loosest, but not the best for when it got overhead and real hollow.

In a Egg shape, being that the board is so wide even through the tail, yes it would be stable, but put 3 fins on it and see how it rides then.

[BS720]

I never said that a single fin was the best board to learn on. SheRa walked into a surf shop with some cash, and the fuckhead behind the counter did. I totally agree that a thruster is a better choice. The stability point is moot. With all your experience with single fins, don't you have any advice to help someone who is learning on a single fin? SheRa may not have a friend who shapes for them, and allows her to choose what she rides with each wave.

[shera]

I can see a severe lack of soul in this important internet debate. Have you guys never watched endless summer? I learned to ride a bike without training wheels and I'll figure this out too.

Hopefully.

You guys got me reading some more, so thanks for that. I think I need to try to catch the wave earlier as I'm currently pretty far in, right where the swell will really sit up. I guess I'm being lazy. But it seems like I might have an easier time if I got moving from further out and less hollow. I know this will make you laugh but it would be nice if I could be on a smaller, like 2' wave, but that's up to mother nature and I'm being brave about that monstrous 4 foot wall. Only got konked in the head by my board once so far. But honestly it does not look like a chill longboard wave to me out there.

[ate'em]

great attitude SheRa, you'll get this.

One tip when catching waves is to get as much speed as possible on the paddle in. So start paddling earlier, from further out, so that when the wave catches up to you, you have a lot of speed already, and just slide right into the takeoff. You will get into the wave earlier, when it is less steep, and can then pop up earlier. Everything will just seem easier, rather than like it is all happening so fast all at once. On a longboard this is particularly easy and advantageous.

Also, when you do pop up, really commit to it and make it a quick, clean motion. Dont kneel, then wobble to your feet. Make it a habit to just jump to your feet, land crouching and ready to surf. This too is easier if you can catch the wave earlier, which is easier if you start out with a lot of paddling speed.

Strong paddling arms are the greatest asset when learning to surf. Being in the right place at the right time is essential.

[grubbers]

Glad to see the suit is working out for you.