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| Original photo by Clayton Plummer |
It was a big day for the surf. I have not been surfing enough, nor am I skilled enough for the power that was out there Saturday.
So, I paddled out and just watched.
There was an old man out there, like 70 years old and surfing a SUP, no less. He was just chillin' in the line-up, no problem. He paddled into waves like it was no big deal. He was definitely an old salt. TONS of years surfing and the paddle thing was just another wave vehicle. He was definitely from the era when you had to be a true waterman to surf. No leashes (kook cords) and the boards weighed over 50lbs. He made it look easy.
I tried to scratch my way into smaller warm-up waves, but it wasn't happening. I was too far outside (with the rest of the line-up) for the small stuff. The big sets were BIG, but had a very long period (time between sets). I made the mistake of being teased to the inside stuff, catching nothing, just as a big set came through. I always seem to be RIGHT where the wave breaks when I get caught this way. Thankfully, I was just inside enough for the wave to break before it got to me. I turned towards shore and got way back on the tail of my board to let the wall of white-wash propel me zero-to-sixty back to the sand.
I sucked it up and paddled back out. I paddled around for an hour and a half before calling it good. I couldn't even catch a ripple to ride in as I paddled back to shore. I tried, I promise.
So, once back on land, I sat and watched the masters do their work. It is always amazing to watch guys catch big waves like it's no big deal. Longboards, short boards, SUPs; whatever they're riding it doesn't seem to matter to the guys that know what to do.
Hopefully, I'll be that guy some day. In the mean time, it was a day to watch mother nature doing her thing while the real surfers rode the waves and had a blast.
Until next time, keep it rubber side down.
Clayton
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