Charles Loe
Images above by Mike Baird.
Photo by Chuck Abbe: End of Day at Morro Rock
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Surfing California's Central Coast Waters
by Charles Loe
One of the great things about writing on the subject of surfing, aside from all the wealth and fame, is that it allows me to share some of the things I find so incredible about the sport. There are so many different facets to the surfing experience, some are obvious, many much less so. I have been around the ocean and surfing for forty years and am very happy to say that I still learn new things all the time. The more I learn, the more fun it is. The end result is that I enjoy surfing, maybe not more than when I was younger, but definitely with more depth and appreciation.
Let's see, things I love about surfing.
Well to begin with, it all starts in the ocean. With a few notable exceptions, nearly all surfing is done in the ocean. Right there we are talking about being in one of the most amazing and dynamic places on the planet.
The ocean is one of the most beautiful and idyllic places to splash around in. It can also be a frightening, churning chaos of waves and currents - sometimes changing from one to the other in a matter of a few short hours. Most of the time it is not that dramatic, but the overriding theme of change is constant and never ending.
The continuous flux of ocean conditions is both a blessing and a curse to those of us who are always checking to see if the waves are good. If the conditions are terrible - no swell, wind from the wrong direction, tide wrong - then at least we can be assured that it will change soon. Conversely, every surfer has experienced surfing in prime conditions for several hours, only to have the wind change direction or the tide move and completely ruin what were beforehand perfect surfing waves.
Because conditions are always changing and not everyone who would like to can just go check the waves at their local beach, internet websites catering to surfers have been created over the years. These websites provide detailed reports on marine and weather conditions, and, increasingly, from off shore bouys, accurate information for swell forecasting. These forecasts can predict size, direction, and arrival time of swells to almost any area of coastline. In addition, many sites have webcams where one can see, in real time, what a favorite surfing spot is looking like. Surf in many of the more famous spots around the world can also be checked. Here modern technology is put to use so we can more efficiently go play in the ocean.
Predicting swells and weather patterns is only a basis for knowing when to head to the beach. Once there, you have to actually go out into the ocean, and that is where the fun begins.
Now, fun can take many forms and everyone has their own idea of what that constitutes - from checkers to skydiving, collecting to spelunking to reading a good book. But everyone has their own comfort zone as to what they are willing to do to have fun.
Some activities entail very little physical risk. You can have fun and be reasonably certain that you won't need an ambulance ride after a wild game of checkers. Where as other kinds of fun require large amounts of risk to participate and it might be handy to have that ambulance idling nearby.
In short, some people shy away from anything physically risky and some people can't seem to have fun unless they are doing something most of us would consider insanely life threatening.
I am somewhere in the middle of that spectrum in that I enjoy a certain amount of risk. There is always an unknown, uncontrollable element about the ocean. This is part of the thrill of surfing. Every experience in the ocean is different because it is constantly changing, moment to moment. Every paddle out is unique. Will you get good waves or bad waves, will you be half drowned, nibbled on, get to swim with a dolphin, laugh with your friends, or just get wet? Who knows, maybe you'll get all of them.
Check surf conditions and related information at two of my favorite sites, Surfline.com and Wetsand.com.
Until next time. Mahalo.
Photo Set by Mike Baird
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