Surfing Ruined My Life

March 2022 Surf Sessions

3-31-22 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Little Rincon
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 25
Miles Driven: 54
I got up early hoping to take advantage of some fun surf.  As I drove up the street for a look I saw that the wind was already onshore.  Rather then waste my time I just cruised home and got some chores done around the house with the idea to set out for the North Points on the afternoon low tide.  Rincon was my first stop.  There was a decent wave in the Cove about waist plus.  There were also a lot of long boarders and random kooks out for what was coming through.  To me it just looked like the majority of my waves were going to be ruined by said crowd.  On the way up I saw a few at Little Rincon with no one out.  I went back for a look.  Though on the smaller side there definitely some waist to occasional chest high runners coming through.  It was a bit dumpy and fast, but when you locked into a good one it was worth three to four decent turns.  There was one guy out and I didn’t hesitate to join.  I got on a froth on my new Clarks Surfboards Bizzle Model I had just shaped for myself.  The board absolutely killed in the tricky miniature conditions. I surfed till my arms were feeling the burn and then decided to quit while I was ahead.  Like I always say with the right equipment and state of mind any conditions can be fun.

3-30-22 AM Session: 1-3+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 12
Sometimes we pay for our laziness in surfing this is usually the case.  I had a look at Hueneme and it was far from desirable.  C.C. called and we headed over to Strand for a look.  The Ship was fat but there was enough coming through to lead us to believe that it might get more fun as the tide dropped.  There was a light on shore breeze just strong enough to add a bit of crumble.  We paddled and it was way worse then it looked.  Instead of getting better the surf go progressively less surf-able.  Towards the end I was lucky to even get a turn on my last wave.  I should have just cruised up to Rincon.  

3-29-22 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Trancas, Malibu
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 32
There was plenty of west wind swell in the water lighting up just about every nook and cranny on the coast.  My first instinct was to head to Rincon. Word was the crowd was on it.  The wind was stiff NW leaving the other points a bit blown out. C.C., Biz and I decided to head south to see what Malibu had to offer.  Leo was our first stop but it was too mushy.  We were going to have a look at Dume when we decided to stop and just have a look at Trancas Point since there was lots of swell getting into north Zuma. Sure enough there was a chest to head high right coming through off the rocks with one guy on it.  I saw enough to paddle.  A few other guys must have seen the same thing and decided to give it a go as well.  I had never surfed over there before.  It was sort of a poor man’s Leo with way more current and a bit more wonky between sections.  If you caught a runner it was good for a few turns and an section bash.  The only downside was the current was so bad you had to paddle the entire time to hold position and since only about one out of ten waves was decent it was a lot of paddling.  That being said we had a blast. I managed a couple of really decent rights.   It’s always fun to surf a new spot. The thrill of exploration is real.  After two hours of paddling I was spent.

3-28-22 No Surfing: 3-4+ ft
Miles Driven: 22
The morning was small and rainy with ugly south winds. Around mid day it cleaned up a bit down here in Ventura, but the beaches were still jumbled and a bit to be desired. I had shaping to do and went to the shop to get some work done. On that note if you are looking for a board for summer now is the time to order to ensure getting it in time. We got lots of great fishes, grovelers, short boards, guns and step ups for travel and long boards, mid lengths and fun shapes. Check them out at clarkssurfboards.com or hit me up. Mention this blog and I’ll take $50 off your order. After shaping I had another look about but nothing was calling out to me. I heard Rincon got pretty fun right before dark.

3-27-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Port Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 he
Waves Surfed: 11
Miles Driven: 2
There was still a bit of south swell left and rather then going on a wild goose chase Pat and I paddled on the rock side of Hueneme. While checking it there were actually some decent chest high corners coming through. In the time it took to put on our suits the wind came up out of the south ultimately trashing the waves. Add the low tide and within a half hour it was barely even surf-able out there. I literally didn’t get one decent ride. Rest of the day we just relaxed around the house. It had been a long week entertaining family thus a rest afternoon was well deserved.

3-26-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Port Hueneme
Time in Water: 45 mins
Waves Surfed: 11
Miles Driven: 23
For my parents’ final day here in the 805 they were slotted to meet my mother in-law, sister-in-law and brother-in-law with their baby in tow. This was all to take place at 11:30am at the Golden Egg Luncheonette off Victoria in Oxnard. It’s a great little establishment with outside dining on the water front. There was also a small south swell running. I met Pat at the Shores. The bars are all too far off the beach at the moment for any of those waves to be any good at the moment. It may be done there for the entire season and summer if nothing changes. It’s been a few decent years of good Shores sand that had to end at some point. We had a look at Hueneme but the tide was already too low. There were some peaks all the way to south end of the beach towards the power plant. We found an alright A-frame peak and made the most of it. Unfortunately the water was absolutely freezing limiting the amount of time we could surf due to the sheer factor of being uncomfortable. It worked out for the best since I just made it to the restaurant in time. Everyone has a lovely breakfast followed by a leisurely stroll by the canals. The rest of the day was spent relaxing around he house. The evening was capped off with my famous eggplant parmigiana. If you have had it then you know. After diner my folks had to head to LA where they had a room for the night in order to catch their flight home in the morning. I must say it was with out a doubt the most successful visit yet. Everyone had fun with limited confrontations or hurt feelings.

3-25-22 No Surfing: 1-2+ ft,
Miles Driven: 12
We had an appointment at Lotus Land at 1:15. It is one of my favorite places in Santa Barbara and I have been wanting to share it with my parents for years now but never had the opportunity. To make it all happen my wife and I had to meet them in Carpinteria where they were staying at 11am. This left me a very short window. I was far from impressed with the meager weak looking waves on offer and the cold foggy conditions didn’t help my motivation. Over it I went home, picked up my wife and we headed to Carpinteria. We did breakfast at Hugo’s my favorite luncheonette in that area and one I miss very much now that I live down south so I always make sure to visit when up that way. Both Hugo’s and Lotus Land didn’t disappoint. Surprisingly day three of my parents visit went well. One more day to go.

3-24-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 16
Miles Driven: 12
I had to meet my parents at my place around noon. There was a gnarly accident that shut down the 101 Northbound in Carpinteria causing my wife to work at home for the day as the commute would have been completely counterproductive. There was a bit of wind swell/south west combo in the water. I had a look out front but it was wanting thus headed to Strand. Ship had a few corners up and down the beach with one guy out. It wasn’t epic, but with a short window I saw enough to paddle. The water was absolutely freezing. The dropping tide killed what little was on offer fast, this coupled with a stiff onshore breeze made for less then fun surfing conditions. I paddled from the Ship to Tower 4 twice hunting down the odd ball fantom left that I seemed to never be in position for. At least I got a worn out. My wife and I took my parents to Mama Olsen’s in Hollywood Beach for breakfast. They always to do a decent job there. Afterwards my sister had been dying to see some seals so we took them to the small elephant seal colony that resides on the banks of the harbor mouth depending on the tide. It was mid tide so there were about thirty or so of them barking and fighting for space. There were even a few harbor seals swimming around for good measure. From there we took them over to the Strand side for a little beach walk in the fog, which by that point had rolled in rather thick. We capped off the night with a meal at my new favorite Italian spot right here in Hueneme, Little Tony’s. I must say so far it’s been a fun time with my family. Then again it’s also just day two. Ask me again on day four.

3-23-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 19
Miles Driven: 10
My parents got in super late thanks to airline delays. This left me the morning to grab a quick surf. The Ship has a few waves with no one out and light wind. The first half of the surf was super fun. As the wind increased the waves got worse and ultimately it became borderline not surf-able making it yet another short surf window. That is the story of the year thus far. I met my parents at my house around noon. They got the grand tour and we chilled till around 4pm when they could take possession of their Air bnb. I rode up with them and my wife met us for dinner at the Rincon Brewery.

3-22-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Little Rincon
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 21
Miles Driven: 52
I got word early that Strand was fun. I woke up Biz and we cruised hoping to get some good footage. It wasn’t. Luckily Jeffery let me know that the north points had waves thus we set out for the Rincon Loop. ‘Con was weak and crowded for what it was. Little Rincon didn’t look much better, but my boy was out with just one other guy and tired of driving around we decided just to paddle. The water was freezing. It doesn’t help that I am wearing a hand me down 4/3 that is half a size too small for me. Any wetsuit company that wants to hook it up I’ll gladly promote the shit out of you on all my social media. Anyway though very inconsistent there was the occasional chest high runner that I fully ripped the shit out of. After an hour the tide got too high turning the surf completely off. My parents were due to arrive tomorrow morning leaving me with the rest of the afternoon to get my house in order.

3-21-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft,
Miles Driven: 2
Whatever south swell was left got completely demolished by the hard NW winds in the channel. I had a look at all the LA spots on the drive home from the desert. Please someone remind not to drive all the way out to the middle of nowhere for a party ever again. At 41 I’m definitely “too old for that shit”. Nothing along the PCH looked fun thus we headed home. I had a look out front later before dark, but couldn’t get motivated to surf the freezing cold slop.

3-20-22 No Surfing: 3-4+ ft
I woke up with a massive headache and the room completely spinning. No sure of where I was I had to peer out my window. I was in a road stop Motel 6 off the I-10 in the low dessert with giant wind turbines in view from my window. My wife was passed out in bed. I don’t know how we got there but I didn’t hesitate to call the front desk and extend our stay another night. There was no way I was going to be able to drive home to Port Hueneme, let alone try and surf. I guess old habits die hard. All I am going to say is never underestimate the danger of an open bar.

3-19-22 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Malibu
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 18
Miles Driven: 70
We were surprised by the first real south swell of the season today. I wasn’t expecting more then a little combo. Hueneme and the VTA beaches were far from decent. 2nd peak looked decent on the cams. My wife and I had to be in the Low Desert just outside of Palm Springs for an engagement party in the evening and decided to stop at Malibu on the way for a quick smash and grab surf. C.C. met us down there and the two of us wrecked havoc on 3rd and 2nd Peak. There was a bit of south wind on making conditions less then ideal. The crowd was light and with the occasional head high plus set I wasn’t about to complain. We got out there and pretty much were on an hour long froth. Sadly it was definitely some of the better surf I have caught in days. We had to get back on the road by noon keeping my surf short but sweet. The drive out to the desert was a traffic riddled nightmare that took nearly four hours leaving almost delirious upon arrival. The wind was absolutely out of control, which should have been obvious since there were giant wind farms everywhere. Between the wind, the dust and a bit too much to drink I found myself rather ill by the end of the night. Besides that the party itself was fun. They had a live band and my wife and I ended up hanging with Noemi Gonzalez from the Netflix show Selena and that was the last thing I can remember…

3-18-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Port Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 hr 30 mins
Waves Surfed: 18
Miles Driven: 52
I started at Hueneme and it looked alright off the south side of the pier. I should have paddled right then and there. There was still a healthy amount of NW in the water so C.C. and I decided to have a look at Strand. Ship had a wave but it was fat and the north end was messy. We went back to Hueneme. By that time the tide had gotten too high and wind got on it. There were a few shore break lefts against the grain that were palatable. I somehow managed to hurt my wrist beaching myself on a backside air attempt. At this point I’m sitting on the beach figuring out the extent of the damage as the water was cold numbing my hand. This random dude comes up to me with a drawing of a horse his daughter did and asked if he could take a picture of me with the horse. It was super random though I complied. All the while I was in a good amount of pain and thinking “maybe he can drive me to the hospital if it’s serious”. Then Biz showed up with his water rig and the compelling need to get some shots caused me to power through it and nail a few clips.

3-17-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Leo Carrillo
Time in Water: 1 hr 30 mins
Waves Surfed: 13
Miles Driven: 38
After yesterday and with similar swell conditions C.C. and I didn’t hesitate to go back to Leo. It was definitely much more inconsistent and more crowded then yesterday. That is usually the case at Leo. I went to the inside and did my double up thing like the previous day. It was definitely nothing inspiring, but I got some decent turns in. Rest of my day was spent running errands and at Home Depot.

3-16-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Leo Carrillo
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 12
Miles Driven: 38
The wind was howling first thing. There was a bit of south swell on the buoys considering the wind and the fact that I had driven north to Rincon twice this week and came out wanting I decided to try something different. My friend C.C. was down to drive. When we pulled up we saw a chest high set that stoked us out to paddle. In classic Leo fashion those sets were few and far between. There was this inside double up that stoked me out that I managed to get a few rides on. It wasn’t a score but nice to get a few. Rest of my day was spent doing finish carpentry on my house, a project that seems to never end.

3-15-22 No Surfing: 2-3+ ft,
Miles Driven: 62
More wind swell had me chasing waves up to Rincon and back to little avail. I couldn’t get into anything. Emma Wood look the best. I was going to paddle but it was packed and average at best. Over it I headed home to get some work done around the house. Biz and I had a look around before dark to try and get some sunset pictures but nothing was too appealing.

3-14-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Pitas
Time in Water: 1 hr 30 mins
Waves Surfed: 18
Miles Driven: 52
I started at Strand where it was pretty uninspiring. C.C. showed up and we decided to head up and check the north points via the Rincon Loop. Rincon would have been alright except that the wind decided to go south west trashing what little bread crumbs were on offer. We a saw a few at Pitas from the road and checked it. It was to be desired there too. We saw on decent one with only two guys out and decided to paddle. Jeffery showed up and joined us along with four other guys. Now we had ten guys on a below average inconsistent peak. I was having a hate session picking all the junky ones. Bizarro showed up to shoot some water right as the waves went from bad to worse with the draining tide. I did manage one really good wave that I suppose made it worth it.

3-13-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 19
Miles Driven: 18
My first stop was Ventura Harbor where there was plenty of swell, plenty of surfers and plenty of close outs. The regular weekend par for the course out there. I watched it for a bit and couldn’t get into it. There was plenty of wind swell thus I headed to Strand. The North End had a crowded burger. I saw some guy get a few at the Ship and paddled. Jon, Mike and a few other guys did too. As it turned out it was a bit harder to get decent waves out there then it looked. I caught a few, but I also worked pretty hard for well below average conditions. My wife and I tried this Asian spot here in Hueneme called The Ragin Pot, Asian hot pot place. I must say I was thought impressed. I don’t recommend the sandwiches though. It’s all about the soups there.

3-12-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Surfers Knoll
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 14
Miles Driven: 18
After yesterday’s retarded car surf back and forth I decided to just head over to Ventura Harbor and cut my losses. C.C. showed up right as I was finding difficulty motivating to surf the junk. He got pumped on a few lefts and we paddled. Actually, for about thirty minutes or so we managed to get a handful of fun ones before the the tide got too low and it started to close out. Following the surf I met up with my wife, her sister and her mom for lunch over at Channel Islands harbor.

3-11-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, New Jetty
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 13
Miles Driven: 36
The wind was offshore but the waves were scarce with just a tad bit of trace NW energy. I cruised to the Ship first. It was barely knee high. From there I ran to the Harbor which had more size but was mostly closed out even with the wind. Hoping shores would be fun I went there. All the bars have moved way offshore thus not doing anything for small waves. C.C. showed up and we decided to head to North Strand, which was terrible. Not ready to throw in the towel we cruised back to the Harbor. I saw a few at New Jetty and since the wind was still offshore I decided to paddle. As soon as I walked over the dunes with my suit on the wind switched onshore. Serves me right for wasting two hours car surfing. If my suit wasn’t already on I would have walked on it. Instead I decided to paddle Somehow despite the absolute garbage I was surfing I managed to find a few lefts. Mostly it’s because before the insipid crowds I used to surf New Jetty nearly everyday almost always by myself. My how times have changed. The below photo is what I saw when I checked it, not the blown out trash I had to endure.

3-10-22 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 9
Miles Driven: 12
There was some new steep wind swell in the water. Hoping to capitalize on some decent bowls at the Ship I woke up Biz and we headed. I noticed the wind has begun to creep up onshore and decided to have a quick look out front at Hueneme. It was surf-able but tiny. We got to the Strand and it was average at best. I thought I saw a few kill-able bowls off the Ship and paddled. The sand is just atrocious out there at the moment and the session proved it. Myself and a handful of other competent surfers were out there and none of us were getting anything remotely close to a good ride. In an hour of surfing I was unable to catch more then nine waves and not a single one was a worthy clip. “Momma said there would be days like this”. Later that evening my wife had an exhibit opening at her museum in Santa Barbara. I made the drive up and once again was overwhelming impressed by her ability to lay out a gallery display. This one was on the art work of Huguette Clark & Lockwood de Forest. It’s totally worth a look if you’re in SB. Check it out at the Santa Barbara Historical Museum. For dinner we ate at Jill’s on Santa Barbara street. Though it’s been a staple in SB for years it took me to move out of town to discover the place. The food is excellent and not badly priced either. So go to SB, check out my wife’s show and enjoy a meal at Jill’s.

3-9-22 AM Session: 1-3 ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 27
Miles Driven: 10
I had a feeling that the ship was going to have a wave today. Jeffery was at the Harbor and not stoked. I saw a few wind swelly bowls coming off of Tower 5 and paddled. Jeffery joined me and Jon followed. Considering how weak it looked I rode my 5’2 Clarks Surfboards Mr. Pocket mini simons model. I initially designed it for point breaks, but was surprised how well it worked out there today. It was just a nice morning to be in the water with just two of my friends. Surfs like that a quite rare these days so if it takes a tiny day to make it happen then so be it. To our credit everyone had a fun time of it.

3-8-22 No Surfing: 1-2+ ft,
Miles Driven: 18
I got up early to stay ahead of the wind. Unfortunately the waves were tiny at at the Harbor. Still it was surf-able with light offshore winds. New Jetty looked the best but it had a crowd of ten kids on it who were definitely not selling it. I was debating paddling the Knoll when the wind began to blow onshore completely killing my stoke. The only thing worse then surfing cold little waves is cold blown out little waves. I guess winter really was over with the close of last week’s swell.

3-7-22 No Surfing: 1-3 ft,
Miles Driven: 32
I headed out first thing to get my flat tire fixed from Friday. Biz was supposed to follow behind and then we were going to go shoot somewhere. He ended up lagging an hour behind me and by the time we got to looking around the wind had come up. On a last ditch effort we decided to check Emma, but it was rather weak and uninspiring. Instead I picked up my car, ran some errands and got a bit more work done around my house.

3-6-22 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 19
Miles Driven: 10
Finally the wind subsided. The buoys were spiking with wind swell though the beaches weren’t showing anything major. I decided to paddled the Ship though it was on the small side, weak and rather crowded for what was on offer. Biz decided to shoot some water. I got on a froth off the ship and had some fun till the crowd got wind of what I was doing and clogged my little bit of oasis. That’s how it goes on the weekends. Later that afternoon my wife and I did a bit of birding on the back trail at Ormond Beach.

3-5-22 No Surfing: 2-3+ ft,
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 21
Miles Driven: 38
Yet another north west gale decided to ravage our coast. Looks like it’s going to be one of those springs of being constantly stuck in the fetch and not the gain. C.C. Thought we might get lucky and get a few at Leo. It was clean, but also tiny and weak. If it had my fish I could have cruised on a few of the weak waist high burgers but I didn’t and after days of solid surf I wasn’t that frothy. I could have got a few at Rincon in the cove in the afternoon, but I had a party to attend in Santa Barbara with my wife and it definitely wasn’t good enough to upset her plans.

3-4-22 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Little Rincon
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 21
Miles Driven: 52
Biz and I headed up to Rincon in the hopes of scoring a high tide sneaker session up top. We forgot that it was a Friday. The place was packed with easily a hundred plus guys and the consistency was not in the crowds favor. As we were checking it more guys kept showing up. Over it we cruised to Little Rincon. Though a bit fat I saw two solid sets that looked worthy. The tide was on the way down and considering how fast it drained yesterday I though we might score. I was wrong. The tide took its sweet time leaving most waves bogged down and wonky. When a solid set came in the waves were too stretched to be worth anything. When the tide did start to get low enough the wind came up adding extra chop to the already difficult conditions. I got a few but overall it was not the optimal spot choice. Later that evening I ended up at the Thousand Oaks Mall with my wife so she could do a bit of shopping. After, she talked me into revisiting the Cheesecake Factory. I had eaten there twenty years ago with my parents and was not impressed. This visit was no different except that there was the plastic tip from a pastry bag in my sour cream for my baked potato bites. As far as my opinion on the cheese cake factory goes buy a cheese cake, take it home and cook your own dinner.

3-3-22 PM Session: 3-4+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 45 mins
Waves Surfed: 16
Miles Driven: 22
I was all set to head back up to the points when I notice my back rear passenger side tire was low. I love my Si but I have never owned a car that got more flat tires in my life. Anyway as a result I was stuck local. I added some air to the leak and had a quick look at Strand. There was a chest to head high wave at the Ship. It was a little fat with the morning tide. I headed back home to wait out the tide. Around noon Biz and I headed back to the Ship. The tide sucked out fast leaving it a bit drained. It looked like there were still a few corner tubes to be had so we paddled. The session was pretty much just dumpy close outs. Biz and I got straight up beat down for forty five minutes before throwing in the towel. I did manage one tube. The rest of my afternoon was spent installing quarter round in my living room.

3-2-22 PM Session: 6-8+ ft, Razors
Time in Water: 1 hr 30 mins
Waves Surfed: 16
Miles Driven: 144
A recent friend of mine I met courtesy of this blog, reached out to me with an interest in walking into Razors at some point. Then he hit me up on Monday that he was in town and thinking of making the trek. Always up for an adventure I decided to join him. We met at Gaviota State Beach and began the undertaking of the two mile hike. Unlike last year when Kevin Angers and I made the hike this time there was plenty of sand on the beach making the walk easier. There was a lot more swell too. We could see tons of swell even pounding the beach breaks leading up the the reef point. Upon getting to Razors there were only four guys out and we were greeted with a bomb set that was well over head. Two of the dudes bailed after that set leaving just four of us out the back. I have probably walked into Razors a half dozen times in my life and never had I seen it size-able. There were eight foot plus sets standing up and just freight training down the reef. I shoulder hopped a couple to get a feel for the wave before paddling up to the peak and throwing myself over the steep ledge at the peak. I was definitely a little under gunned on my 5’10 on the sets. I charged none the less and had some really cherry rides. Then I got cockey and attempted to go vertical tail free right off the drop not taking into account how fast the wave sucked up on the reef. I went over the falls and landed on my board. After that I got a bit more cautious. The wind began to switch off shore at the half way point of the session and with it came about six more guys or so, all owners on big boards. They paddled out to the peak and capitalized on all the sets. I get it, it’s the Ranch and they get priority but it was a bit of a bummer to get paddled around and watch good waves get squandered. Surfers are such greedy ingrates. If I lived on or had Ranch access I’d give respect to the guys who put the effort in to walk there. Like I always have said “Surfers Suck”. That being said I still got my share. My last wave was a screamer down the reef that was the one for me. Rather then push the envelope I called it a day as I watched my friend get a decent one in as well. It was nice to finally have a real successful Razors Mission. No photo cause we just suited up and walked in. Here is a cool shot I got of Gaviota pier.

3-1-22 AM Session: 4-6+ ft, Naples
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 114
After yesterday it was a no brained to head back up north. I met C.C. at Rincon and not wanting to deal with the crowd we cruised back to Naples. To our surprise it was actually better then yesterday, more consistent and slightly larger on the sets. Our time was limited as I agreed to work a catering gig for the Santa Barbara based caterer Catering Connection. I had actually got hired on to do some freelance work for them back in 2019 before the Pandemic hit and then literally a week later California closed its doors to all events. The rest you all know about. Anyway, C.C. and I got on a froth up at the Crack Peak and began trading waves and smashing any section that stood in our way. It was a bit more racy so turns had to be timed and executed perfectly as to not be left behind. I somehow lucked into one of the best waves I have ever rode out there in terms of length and performance, surfing it from the Crack Peak all the way to Seals, a distance of over 900 yards. Our charge was so intense that an hour and change was all we needed out there to stoke us out. After the surf I met my wife at her Museum for a late lunch before cruising to my catering gig. It was definitely weird putting on a chef coat and getting back into it after nearly a two year break. It felt nice too though. The fact to actually do a job that I’m skilled in and feel rewarded after doing it. Covid politics really did cheat me out of two years of my professional chef life. Then again if it wasn’t for such I wouldn’t have had the on the books income from the Post Office and would have never been able to buy my house. Every cloud does have a silver lining if you can pull your head out of your ass and look for it.