You like to body surf? Good for you! Boogieboard? Go for it! Shortboard, longboard, fish, stand-up paddle board, you name it. If it gets you off on a wave, I think it's a very, very good thing.
This particular story is about my wild ride, one day long ago, on a bodyboard. Come with me now as I reminisce...
There is a rare south swell coming through. The sets are massive and thick. Easily head and a half high, for the most part. I screw up my courage and start to paddle out.
The contour of the coastline in front of the power plant helps a lot on a day like this when the surf is big. Instead of great marching walls, the waves are separated nicely into peaks and valleys. I grab my chance to slip, left and right, in between them, and I mostly avoid getting dumped on. But the current is strong, and it takes a while to get past the breakers.
I am about five houses south of the power plant and a long ways from shore. The lineup is way overcrowded. I wonder to myself,
"Where in the world are all these guys from? It's just not right! After all, I'm loyal, I'm out here every day rain or shine; why should I have to share this place with all these strangers today?"
Surfers take off on one choice wave after another. I hang to the north end of the lineup, struggling to avoid getting run over. The waves look like pictures I’ve seen of hollow Hawaiian bowls, thick and well contoured with great near-vertical drops transitioning cleanly to beautiful hollow shoulders.
After waiting a long time, I begin to wonder if I’ll even get one of the leftovers.
Here comes the wave I've waited for. It's an outlier, north of the pack. Am I positioned well? I turn and start to paddle, hoping for the best.
Looking back over my shoulder, I see the wave closing in on me fast. The rest of the crew are out of position, and either go around or over the top. My moment has arrived.
I am suddenly lifted up and thrust forward. I stop kicking and concentrate on maintaining control as I make the drop. My position could not be much better; I drop cleanly to the shoulder and crank in a bottom turn to the left, rising back up as the wave's shoulder catches and lifts me.
A couple of surfers, paddling back out, shout words of encouragement as they cross in front of me and watch me ride in the sweet spot. I veer right to avoid them, and as they slide up and over the oncoming lip I cut back to the left and regain my preferred location on the shoulder.
There is a magnificent balance between the force of gravity drawing me downward, ever faster, and the thrust of the wave lifting me upward and forward. Without sectioning, the wave connects on a beautiful, long diagonal. I am in the driver’s seat, piloting my vessel towards shore.
Finally, after a long time, the wave closes out and I bail over the top right in front of the smokestack.
I will never forget this wonderful ride! God is good!
More Surfing Posts
It's Here! Come Ride My Beautiful Magic Carpet
Riding On Dad's Shoulders
The First Wave
Eternity: A Mind-Numbingly Powerful Perspective
Making The Drop (A Poem of Sorts)
The Ocean; God's Finest Invention?
All Creatures, Great and Small
Paddling Out -- The Story
Colorful Art from a Personal Perspective; Introducing "Paddling Out"
The Humorous Truth; Willpower and Cold Water
Why Do Jerks Seem To Get the Best Waves?
Red Tide at Night
All Creatures, Great And Small
