Ding Repair also available
September 2026 Surf Sessions
9-21-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Zeros
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 23
Miles Driven: 43
Hueneme was looking a bit small and lack luster this morning. There was some small fresh long period SW swell in the water coupled with a very small, very short period NW wind swell. After a crazy weekend of catering work I was in mood for finding something a little less grovely than what was a foot. AJ and I cruised south where there was definitely more south swell showing. County Line had a chest high wave but the sand has gotten all messed up on the beach break post Marie and the reef wasn’t happening. Leo was small and crowded. Then we got to Zeros and there was only six guys out with plenty of rip-able lefts to be had despite the four foot high tide. We jumped in and everyone left thus the whole break was ours. It’s so gnarly to surf a spot that is always stupid crowded with just you and your bud and get fun waves to boot. What’s nice about Zeros not being crowded is it allows one to really get gnarly out there and surf the wave to its full potential with having to jockey for position or dodge guys on the inside or deal with drop ins. This session was all about being one with waves. We had an absolute blast. Talk about an epic session. The rest of my afternoon was spent sanding surfboards.
9-20-26 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 min
Waves Surfed: 28
Miles Driven: 2
Looks like small is the call this week. There’s nothing really out in pacific but some scrubby short period NW wind swell and some minor south. Luckily Hueneme loves these types of conditions and at the very least stays somewhat surf-able. My window was super short because I had to be in Santa Barbara to work a fundraiser at 12:30pm. When AJ and I saw a couple of corners off the north side of the Pier with light offshore winds we jumped on it. It was a grovel session for sure but I had a few head dips and key hits. What more can you ask for from weak surf. I’m always stoked to at least get wet. As far as the catering gig went it was a fundraiser for the Santa Barbara community pet alliance or something like that at the Stowe House in Goleta. It was an easy passed appetizer party for 150 people. After the gig I went home and shaped two surfboards. Later that night my wife and son had returned from San Diego.
9-19-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 min
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 2
It’s hard to get motivated to surf grovely waves after the amazing run we have had this season. AJ and I dug down deep and walked out to Rockside with our small wave gear and low expectations. There were actually a few decent waves to be had with clean conditions. Sets were very inconsistent. I managed a few little shacks and some decent hits. Then I came home and did a little bit of ding repair because my friend Steven needs his step up by Wednesday for another one of his epic surf trips. Meanwhile I stay here grinding away. Such is the plight of a surfboard shaper trying to make it. I don’t know what was more difficult trying to make it as a professional surfer or as a shaper? Maybe it’s just me forever fulfilling my Sisyphean destiny in life. Whatever the case at the very least I never let my passions die. As a result of said life style at three I had to work a 300 person benefit for the Santa Barbara Humane Society. The gig went well though a lot of work. Then at the end of the night when it should have been an easy load out we couldn’t find where we parked the truck. Eventually after walking around in circles around industrial Goleta for half an hour we located it. Good times.
9-18-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Zeros
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 43
I woke up this morning to a very quiet house. My wife decided to take Adagio and head down to San Diego to spend the weekend with her mom and sister. I had to work the entire weekend catering and wasn’t really going to be around anyway. Not having my usual baby chores I was able to get out of the house at eight allowing more time to surf. AJ and I started at Hueneme where it was looking small and shapeless. We headed south hoping to find a bit more of the south swell showing. Zeros was the best of it despite being rather busy (what else is new). Since we have been surfing up here in somewhat obscurity it was a bit of an adjustment settling into a crowded lineup. We made the adjustment and both of us got some fun waves. The season for Zeros is almost over. Soon enough there will be more NW swells than south and the reef will be completely ensconced in sand. In reality today could be the last time we surf there for the year. After the surf I had to head up to Carpinteria to work a small thirty six head wedding. Two more events to go this weekend.
9-17-26 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 28
Miles Driven: 2
The long period south swell came in as predicted bringing us chest to head high waves at Hueneme. The swell was pretty stretched with some funky corners on Rockside. There was also a bit of chop due to west winds. The session was a pretty big let down. I don’t think I had one decent ride till more towards the end of my session when the wind went more NW making it side shore offshore. After the surf I had to stop by my shop and do a quick hot coat followed by a pizza catering gig cooking wood fired pizzas in Carpinteria. After that I went back to my shop to finish sanding the board I hot coated earlier. After sanding till after midnight AJ’s Hacksaw SU is ready for his Ireland trip. I finally got home around and passed out.
9-16-26 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Zuma
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 28
Miles Driven: 56
The buoys indicated that there was some fresh minor long period SW in the water. Hueneme was looking rather small and with south wind on it. AJ and I decided to drive south in the hope that more swell might show. County Line had some waves but was crowded for the lack of quality. Leo was crowded as usual and Zeros wasn’t breaking with the high tide. Out of options we paddled Zuma near tower 8 where there was a waist to chest high somewhat stretchy somewhat weak wave to be had with only a handful of guys spread out. Conditions were really glassy. I made the most of it. The water was extremely warm. I had a case of last wave syndrome and still ended on a sub par one to quit. My afternoon was spent sanding and glassing surfboards.
9-15-26 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Hollywood
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 26
Miles Driven: 12
According to the surf reports the NW wind swell was supposed to be on its way down this morning. Sure enough Hueneme was tiny with a bit of SE wind on it. The call was to go give Hollywood a look. To our surprise AJ and I found chest to head plus thumping wind swell peaks up and down the beach. We decided to surf Little Sunset where there was a bit more of a break up to the somewhat stretched out rights coming through on the rest of the beach. Considering how fat the tide was, five feet at 11am most waves were still breaking top to bottom. The wind was stiff SE keeping the faces super clean. There were some tubes to be had, although I couldn’t make it out of any. Both of us got lots of really fun ones and there were even decent lefts. The wind turned more south west ultimately putting an end to our fun. My afternoon was spent sanding and glassing surfboards. My evening was spent doing the LAX three hour loop to drop Bizarro off for his ten day NYC trip.
9-14-26 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 2
There was a solid rise in the NW wind swell. I heard rumors that Strand was overhead and that Rincon had a crowded chest high wave. Meanwhile Hueneme was chest plus, peaky, fun and empty therefore I wasn’t about to go anywhere. AJ and I paddled Rockside which looked unreal from the beach. We unfortunately missed the Hueneme window and the high tide made the waves very soft. It was also rather inconsistent allowing every so often for a sick right or left to roll through. I had a couple of four turn lefts and rights. AJ was killing it on his new Clarks Surfboards SPF Fish. It might have been one of the best sessions I’ve ever seen him surf. I’m so happy that we have surf-able waves again at home. The rest of my day was spent Shaping Surfboards
9-13-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 32
Miles Driven: 2
I took the family with me over to Hueneme where we met up with AJ and paddled the north side of the pier. My wife put Adagio in his little wetsuit so he could enjoy the water without getting cold. The south swell had pretty much completely dropped out but there was a fresh NW wind swell in the water making peaky chest high bowls up and down the beach. The only issue was the five and a half foot high tide right smack in the middle of the surf at 10am. This added some unwanted backwash and burgered out a lot of the waves. I found an against the grain left bowl next to the pier that allowed me to capitalize on the what waves did come in and put down a few clips when my son took his nap. All in all it was splendid family beach day. I got home and met up with a few younger guys from down south who came up to drop off some ding repairs and look at my used and stock board inventory. I was able to sell my old Mr. Pocket Model. In the afternoon we took Adagio to the Moore Park teaching zoo at Moore Park College. It was cute little zoo, perfect for children. Adagio had blast.
9-12-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 23
Miles Driven: 2
Just as predicted today was tiny with just some minor SW/NW wind swell in the water. I was on a very tight time window as I needed to be up in Gaviota by noon to work a wedding. My wife took Adagio for his weekly swim lesson. The kid loves to be in water whether it’s a pool, lake, puddle or the ocean. I’ve been letting him get acclimated to the water at his own pace. Last thing I want him to do is get a complex and hate the ocean forever cause I started him too early. AJ and I cruised up the Pier where as predicted it was a great deal smaller than yesterday. That being said there were still fun looking waist to chest high clean lefts and rights to be had. I got on froth and smash twenty three waves in an hour. The remainder of my day was spent out in the grueling heat at the Dos Pueblos Orchid Farm. I hate this venue. It’s hot, dirty, rickety and very spread out. I always earn my pay there. My crew and I prevailed and everyone in attendance was pleased.
9-11-26 AM Session: 2-4+ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 2
With still plenty of swell mix in the water AJ and I headed back to Hueneme cause as Dorthy said in the Wizard of Oz “There’s no place like home”. The Pier wasn’t really doing it but through binoculars it appeared that Rockside might be fun. We made the walk and paddled. The crowd was surprisingly busy with about ten guys on it most not regulars as I didn’t recognize many faces and those that I did were guys I almost never see in Hueneme. I guess word must have gotten out. There were lots of peaks keeping everyone spread out. The south swell had gotten very lully but when sets came they were still chest plus. I got in a groove and found plenty of rip-able corners, some air sections and the occasional tube. It looks like the swell is on the way down the next couple of days. I guess I’ll have to put on my grovel hat. The rest of my afternoon was spent building surfboards in a very hot work shop. Photo from the north side of the pier.
9-10-26 AM Session: 3-4+ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 21
Miles Driven: 2
Adagio decided he wasn’t going to sleep last night. You can imagine my wife and my frustration as we watched our sleeping hours dissipate into the morning sunrise. The gifts of parenting keep on coming. But hey he’s a great kid. Groggy as all heck I met AJ and we headed back to the Pier which was once again looking solid and fun on the south side. It was nice and glassy with some real tubes to he had. The lefts were better than the rights. We both got our share of excellent rides. After an hour I was completely spent. I probably could have pushed it but decided that there was no sense in hurting myself considering how exhausted I was. Last night I may have gotten collectively three hours of sleep. Despite my lethargy I bucked up and headed into the surfboard factory where I spent five straight hours sanding boards. Hopefully the kid decides to allow me to sleep tonight.
9-9-26 AM Session: 3-4+ft, Hueneme
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 26
Miles Driven: 2
Hueneme is back baby!!! Thank you Hurricane Marie 2.0 (I still think that name is dumb). The large swells coupled with high tide for days was exactly what we needed to clean out all of the unwanted sand off the beach and put it back into the line up. AJ and I were ecstatic that our pier had a sand bar once again. With high tide and a small NW wind swell to make the south swell peaky the north side of the pier was a full on skate park. What jubilance to score less than a mile from my home. It’s been a tough summer for every Hueneme enthusiast. We got super frothy on it. The county is set to dredge the harbor yet again come October so that only gives use a few weeks before they fill in all our bars again. The rest of my afternoon was spent working on surfboards.
9-8-26 AM Session: 3-5+ft, Hollywood
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 10
One thing I will give Marie “2.0” as the hype is now referring to it is that unlike its predecessor this hurricane swell has had staying power as we are now in day four of overhead thumping surf. The tide was pretty high this morning leaving most breaks looking rather lackluster. AJ and I started in Hollywood but decided to give Ventura Harbor a look hoping for something special. It looked stretched, wonky and hard to line up. We decided that Hollywood was the best option and paddled. The first forty minutes of the surf was super fun with glassy left and right peaks. As the tide dropped the backwash got gnarly and waves became way more stretched. Towards the end we were hard pressed to find anything worthy. It was a shame too because conditions were really glassy. The rest of my afternoon was spent sanding surfboards.
9-7-26 AM Session: 4-6+ft, Hollywood
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 23
Miles Driven: 10
After yesterday’s full day of rain it was nice to see a bit of a clearing. My wife had the day off and since we had our nanny we decided to take advantage of a day together. She accompanied me to Hollywood where there were still solid overhead waves to be had. There was a bit of a cross wind chop on the wave faces and it was a tad stretched but when the right corner came in it was pretty kill-able. There were also barrels. I managed to pull into a couple of sick drainers. AJ to his credit was absolutely charging. I think the last few days had built up his comfort level in heavy surf. The NW wind came up around 11 and trashed it. We were definitely stoked to get what we did. From there my wife and I got some lunch at the Roxbury Deli. They had this pastrami and egg sandwich special that was incredible. The chef took a regular deli style pastrami portion, folded in a French Omelet and served it on a hard roll with pickles. It was amazing and I highly recommend going in and giving it a try. Our child free day ended with nine holes of golf at the Sea Bee course. I started out the first five holes just a stroke or two over par but then fell apart on the rest leaving me with a 71. Talk about an eight hour escape from the reality and headache of being a parent. If you don’t have kids good on you. Don’t let societal pressures tell you otherwise it’s exhausting and a lot of work. If it’s not something you want to do, don’t cause it’s not like in the movies. You don’t love parenting overnight. Days like this remind just how good I had it once. Not to say I don’t love my son cause he’s an awesome kid. Once you have a child you rarely get a break.
9-6-26 AM Session: 3-5+ft, Emma Wood
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 21
Miles Driven: 28
Marie continued to send plenty of swell our way. It also brought in a full day of rain squalls. AJ and I set out for Hollywood where there was still solid head to overhead waves coming in though maybe a tad smaller than yesterday. Unfortunately there was an annoying south wind on it adding way more bump and crumble on the face then it was worth. We headed north I had a feeling the northern most section of Emma Wood might be doing its thing. There were solid head high plus drainers running down the bar with a handful of guys on it. The waves were a bit more broken up than they could have been but it looked fun enough for me. We paddled and the current dragging north was pretty intense. I had to paddle the entire session just to stay in position. This made for a lot of work but also a crowd equalizer as most guys couldn’t keep up. I made some really decent tubes out there. The wind was swirling going from onshore to offshore to glassy the entire session. I’d say it was a mini score. I guess River Mouth was all time from what I heard. My afternoon was spent playing with my son. I really wanted to surf again but my middle aged body told me to be stoked on what I got. Getting older is me constantly making the correct choices to allow myself surf longevity. Tomorrow is always another day and another wave.
9-5-26 AM Session: 5-7+ft, Hollywood
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 24
Miles Driven: 10
12 years ago we saw one of the gnarliest SE swells in California history courtesy of Hurricane Marie. This morning the new Hurricane Marie though not nearly as historic still sent some solid overhead waves our way. AJ and I were stoking as we watched overhead spitting barrels with light offshore winds on the south end of Hollywood. I called Biz to come film and ran out there. The lines were a bit more stretched than I would have liked but there were some really good corners and tubes to be had. One just had to be choosey. I also took my share of beatings as well. The wind came up out of the NW by 10am putting too much chop on the waves to make them worthwhile thus we threw in the towel. I probably scored three or four “A” clips and a handful of “B” clips. It definitely wasn’t the session I was hoping for but it was nice to surf something waves a consequence. Later in the afternoon I had to work a wedding in Santa Barbara on East beach. On the drive up there were solid waves everywhere. The shore break on East beach was easily 4-5 ft. With the high tide the water was almost about to wash away the wedding ceremony on the beach. The coordination staff had to basically dig a sand mountain to keep the guests dry. This delayed the reception causing me to have to work an hour later than I had planned.
9-4-26 AM Session: 2-3+ft, Thornhill
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 19
Miles Driven: 36
My window was short this morning. I had a small twenty six guest wedding to work in Summerland at noon. I also had to meet a customer at County Line at 8:30. There were definitely waves in the chest plus range and peaky but the south wind was adding a weird bump and funk to it not to mention it was very crowded. I saw a few crossed up peaks at Thornhill on the way down and decided we were better off going out there and surfing alone. It was a lot more glassy but a bit dumpy, closed out and backwashy so classic Thornhill. I picked off a solid frontside tube on my first one that just clamped shut at the end. There were a few killable corners to be had. I took a gnarly beating where I caught the lip trying to push under the hood and instead got thrown over the falls and axed. The wave knocked the wind right out of me. Finally on my last wave I managed to pull in and come out of a little tube then got a bonus end section bash. The rest of my day was spent cooking food.
9-3-26 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Thornhill
Time in Water: 45 min
Waves Surfed: 15
Miles Driven: 26
My morning began with my usual duties of getting my son out of bed, diaper changed, dressed and ready for the nanny to take over at 8am. Normally I’d be on my way to my morning surf after but today I had to work a corporate lunch in Carpinteria for 250 guests. I rarely take a lunch but a little extra money always helps especially when you own a surf board company and constantly in need of cash on hand. After the gig I had to meet a customer for a quick surf assessment so that I could build him the perfect custom board. We were supposed to meet at Emma Wood but it was god awful. The best I could find was some cross shore wind blown backwashy high tide waist to chest peaks at Thornhill. AJ came along and we made the best of the conditions but besides myself I don’t think anyone else was able to get much happening out there. Once again my uncanny ability to surf absolutely terrible waves paid off. I was at the very least able to get a feel for my customers surfboard needs. That is what great about going with a smaller shaper like myself. I am willing to paddle out with a customer to see how he surfs which ultimately allows me to build him the best board possible for his personal surf needs. I can guarantee you are not getting that from …lost or Channel Islands. Customs start at $625, what are you waiting for? Click the link at the top of the page to check out my shapes.
9-2-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Zuma
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 min
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 54
Today was without a doubt the most meager day of swell I have seen in over a week. With some very short period wind swell and slowly rising tropical south swell in the water AJ and I headed down the PCH. County looked like a slightly weaker version of yesterday but with double the crowd. Leo was very inconsistent and Zeros wasn’t even breaking. Taking the tide and wind into consideration we decided to paddle Zuma where there was chest high plus peaky wind swell lines up and down the beach. The waves were way weaker than they looked making what should have been a fun session a bit frustrating. It was pretty gutless out there. Every once in a while a wave of Substance would roll in. Nonetheless we had fun. My afternoon was spent shaping surf boards.
9-1-26 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, County Line
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 26
Miles Driven: 41
I had to meet a customer over at County Line and considering what a let down the VTA has been lately it wasn’t hard to not give anywhere around home a look. County looked rip-able but on the smaller mushy side. AJ and I cruised to Leo which was weak and inconsistent, while Zeros was too high tide. We went back to County and the incoming tide push really turned the place on. The beach break was like a skate park with all sorts of ramps, wedges and perfect peaky lefts and rights. Everyone out was having a blast. I saw some random guy riding Zach’s old twin fin Clarks Surfboards SPF Fish and absolutely ripping. I paddled over to the guy and he was stoked on the board and to meet its shaper. It’s moments like that where all the toil of surfboard building is worthwhile. The rest of my day was spent sanding and glassing surfboards.
