Sunday, September 21, 2014

Every man and his log



This week I’ve been reminded of what I love so much about surfing in winter. Apart from the totally ‘alive’ feeling that only comes with standing wet in a bikini in a windy carpark at 7:30am, there’s a distinct lack of crowds. This past winter I can’t count the number of crowd-free sessions I’ve enjoyed while the majority of people either stand huddled around coffees on the beach, or just stay in bed.

With the official lifesaving season (and school holidays) starting this weekend, the water has suddenly been inundated with people who were missing in action all winter, and apparently trying to make up for their lack of waves over the last few months...

Don’t get me wrong, I do love the busier seasons too — there’s a real excitement in the air when everyone’s in ‘holiday mode’ and just enjoying being outdoors (until someone inevitably runs into someone else of course). But you can’t beat being out early with nothing but a cold headland, a brilliant dawn and empty waves for company.

Saturday, May 3, 2014

The first shall be last...


A couple of Mondays ago, in a rare turn of events, I found myself the first person to paddle out at my local break just after the sun came up, and the last to come in as it went down.* As a mother of two kids under three, even being able to go for one surf in a day demonstrates good fortune. But thanks to the glorious school holidays (and a teacher for a husband), on this day I indulged in not one but two sessions—top-and-tailing the day in the best way possible. How could anyone hate Mondays when they pan out like this?

*It is of course a possibility that someone else decided to have a super-quick session in the dark after I'd gone, but for the purposes of this story let's assume that didn't happen. Oh, and to clarify—my surf-filled day comprised two separate sessions, not one all-day marathon (although that would have been nice).