Thursday 1 December
Yesterday we had a lovely groundswell, 2.7m and 10 seconds with light WNW winds so I knew the point would be pumping.
The tide wasn't great, a little too low but I had a pass and enough time to squeeze into a few waves before work.
I decided to don my 6mm full winter suit and boy was it hard work! It felt heavy just throwing it into my wetsuit bucket but once water was added felt like I had a monkey on my back ;)
With only 3 of us in it looked promising but as the tide pushed the crowds arrived and it wasn't long before the inevitable drop ins began...
On my third wave I paddled right (as everyone does) to catch a nice wave coming through, took the drop and rode along the line only to be dropped in on by the self appointed 'enforcer' @ the point as I neared the flatter shoulder section.
I congratulated him on an "excellent drop in" to which he replied it was my fault as I shouldn't have paddled past him to catch a wave after I'd just ridden one? Was this guy for real?! Sadly, yes.
I hadn't caught anything worthwhile but but let's not let the facts get in the way. Isn't this what you do when surfing, paddle towards the curl and if no-one spots a rogue wave, then even better!
He'd only just arrived, and in my book, you don't paddle out and expect to take an automatic spot in the line up but there we go. We clearly read different books.
Another 'good' local surfer then piped up to defuse the situation (backing up his compadre) which was ironic seeing as HE had just paddled over from Coney straight into the inside slot and started catching waves.
You can't have it both ways, so which is it, eh?
I put it down to blinkered localism at its very finest and a lack of surf travel. You go to Burleigh or Kirra or any other good point break in the world and the rules are the same and this is Porthcawl on a quiet day in winter!
In my book, a blatant drop in (from the safety of a nice fat shoulder), just highlights the fact that you're a weak surfer.
Point made? Big ******** deal! And all this from someone who is always moaning about overcrowding and drop ins. Isn't it ironic.
My next three waves were all 'shared' as guts joined us and what could have been a really nice surf turned a bit sour in my mind.
Nevertheless I managed to snag 3 lovely long waves and rode my last one to shore as work beckoned. Next time I won't be taking prisoners, the imaginary rule book will be set alight.
Friday 2 December
This morning the swell had halved but the period jumped to 12 secs and the wind was very light nw.
The windscreen was iced over but at least the sea felt warm compared to the outside air temps but I did time my paddle out and kept my head dry for a while :)
I paddled out at rest bay to 3ft and clean, a little choppy in places due to the rip but a totally different vibe. People having fun, chatting and enjoy the blue skies and sunshine. Emma was way out the back enjoying her new longboard whilst milesy, adrian and I enjoyed the inside bowls.
I squeezed an hour in and caught one or two nice waves including one nice big hollow bowl on my backhand that got a couple of hoots and perhaps I should've pulled in but now we'll never know!
Still no hood or gloves on and I wore my autumn suit avec thermal rashie today for better paddle speed.
Friday 2 December 2011
Tuesday 22 November 2011
A good winter so far
Can't complain - not much anyway!
The water is still relatively warm, around 13 degs last time I checked and we've had an abundance of solid groundswell and half decent wave periods, combined with a few offshore days.
The swells come and go but I've lost my mojo lately and can't say I've had a really good surf since my last session @ Morfa.
I've had a few Thurs and Fri dawnies @ sker and while it's been pretty big at times, the wave shape hasn't quite been there and it's been more big drops than manoeuvres.
The winter rubber and boots are also on which doesn't help but I'm beginning to think it's time to get back onto my bonzer and do what I was born to do - carve! ;)
Rest Bay has been fairly classic too as these shots from Claire Beach show: aerials, barrels, big overhead drops have been on offer.
Saturday 19 November was pretty special too with report of 6ft+ in the morning and super clean. I met up with Doc to surf the dropping tide from 1pm onwards and we enjoyed offshore, empty lineups with fun but heavy 3-4ft+ until later afternoon.
I pulled the stops out and paid a fair few times, going late and making some but getting beaten in the process. One particular wave stands out as I my neck still aches! I took off late on a really warping, bowly left.
Didn't make the drop and slipped backwards off my board at the base of the wave landing on my back with my head facing the lip.
I must've hit the water hard and got a bit of whiplash followed by the lip landing square on the back of my neck causing a click and some pain. Luckily no permanent damage done and lets face it we're not in Hawaii but sker always packs a punch!
The previous week I lip launched on another chunky day, made the drop on a lovely right but just twitched the rail before the fins bit, and off I went - again landing flat on the wave face :(
The lip nailed me and then sucked me up and over and the bloody thing just held me down, span me round. I waited, no, panicked slightly, no, relaxed again, no still I went down, so dark I couldn't see which way was up and then with a bit more struggling I got up to the surface!
I've not had a hold down like that for ages but keep getting battered lately! That's the 3rd bad one in a month now after years of escaping so maybe Huey is finally catching me up...
Time for new boots, might make a difference as my feet are all over the place currently, especially on my backhand. I just feel like I need a good day on the reefs where I can catch wave after perfect wave and focus on surfing and not paddling.
More huge lows on the horizon so it should be an interesting week ahead!
The water is still relatively warm, around 13 degs last time I checked and we've had an abundance of solid groundswell and half decent wave periods, combined with a few offshore days.
The swells come and go but I've lost my mojo lately and can't say I've had a really good surf since my last session @ Morfa.
I've had a few Thurs and Fri dawnies @ sker and while it's been pretty big at times, the wave shape hasn't quite been there and it's been more big drops than manoeuvres.
The winter rubber and boots are also on which doesn't help but I'm beginning to think it's time to get back onto my bonzer and do what I was born to do - carve! ;)
Rest Bay has been fairly classic too as these shots from Claire Beach show: aerials, barrels, big overhead drops have been on offer.
Saturday 19 November was pretty special too with report of 6ft+ in the morning and super clean. I met up with Doc to surf the dropping tide from 1pm onwards and we enjoyed offshore, empty lineups with fun but heavy 3-4ft+ until later afternoon.
I pulled the stops out and paid a fair few times, going late and making some but getting beaten in the process. One particular wave stands out as I my neck still aches! I took off late on a really warping, bowly left.
Didn't make the drop and slipped backwards off my board at the base of the wave landing on my back with my head facing the lip.
I must've hit the water hard and got a bit of whiplash followed by the lip landing square on the back of my neck causing a click and some pain. Luckily no permanent damage done and lets face it we're not in Hawaii but sker always packs a punch!
The previous week I lip launched on another chunky day, made the drop on a lovely right but just twitched the rail before the fins bit, and off I went - again landing flat on the wave face :(
The lip nailed me and then sucked me up and over and the bloody thing just held me down, span me round. I waited, no, panicked slightly, no, relaxed again, no still I went down, so dark I couldn't see which way was up and then with a bit more struggling I got up to the surface!
I've not had a hold down like that for ages but keep getting battered lately! That's the 3rd bad one in a month now after years of escaping so maybe Huey is finally catching me up...
Time for new boots, might make a difference as my feet are all over the place currently, especially on my backhand. I just feel like I need a good day on the reefs where I can catch wave after perfect wave and focus on surfing and not paddling.
More huge lows on the horizon so it should be an interesting week ahead!
Wednesday 12 October 2011
The friday feeling
Not posted for a while as the surf has either been cranking or distinctly average so apologies.
My last good session went down 2 weeks ago. I'd booked the friday off in preparation and hooked up with greg hill for an industrial session. Super tubes wasn't super at all, it looked small, really small so we opted for plan B which was going to be our second surf spot anyway.
The tides were stupidly low, the period nudging 12 seconds and a half decent swell was running with light offshores...
Arriving at the beach we were dazzled by the extremely low tide which was still miles out although it had supposedly turned an hour ago. Never mind, we could see some lines pushing in a few guys getting some so trekked down to the water edge and paddled out.
Fun, 2-3ft waves were pushing in, pretty hollow but fast and closing out unless you got right on the end of them but we shared a few. As the afternoon wore on the wave quality improved, dan and his mate paddled out and we also blods, wilks and matt eventually, surfing a peak further down.
The waves began to go into overdrive around mid-tide and greg picked off some nice rights. I was missing my mojo a bit, I couldn't decide where to position myself and kept missing the set waves. Eventually I gave up chasing and tried for smaller, cleaner inside wave.
I paddled hard and as I jumped up, and dropped down in a jacking, hollow 3-4ft wedge, pulled into the barrel and watched greg paddling back out from inside the tube, as he hooted :)
My exit wasn't pretty, kind of a side curtain, lip avoidance but I came out and then got creamed by a few heavy close-outs for my trouble but ti gave me the adrenalin boost I needed.
We decided to try our luck down towards the steel so after a quick gulp of water on the beach moved down. The tide was pushing fast and it didn't look particularly good but as we all know, looks can be deceiving! Once we'd worked our way through the sun's glare we found some half decent 4-ft peaks.
This time I was on it and had one of those rare wave magnet moments where no matter which way I paddled the set wave came and left the crowd to one side. I caught 5 cracking waves, nice overhead drops into long, fast, walling lefts allowing for 4 or 5 turns on each ride.
I've not had waves as good as this all summer long so was well and truly stoked when we got out after a solid 3-4 hour session. Greg was only 2 hours later for his weekend away but it was his birthday and well worth it!
My last good session went down 2 weeks ago. I'd booked the friday off in preparation and hooked up with greg hill for an industrial session. Super tubes wasn't super at all, it looked small, really small so we opted for plan B which was going to be our second surf spot anyway.
The tides were stupidly low, the period nudging 12 seconds and a half decent swell was running with light offshores...
Arriving at the beach we were dazzled by the extremely low tide which was still miles out although it had supposedly turned an hour ago. Never mind, we could see some lines pushing in a few guys getting some so trekked down to the water edge and paddled out.
Fun, 2-3ft waves were pushing in, pretty hollow but fast and closing out unless you got right on the end of them but we shared a few. As the afternoon wore on the wave quality improved, dan and his mate paddled out and we also blods, wilks and matt eventually, surfing a peak further down.
The waves began to go into overdrive around mid-tide and greg picked off some nice rights. I was missing my mojo a bit, I couldn't decide where to position myself and kept missing the set waves. Eventually I gave up chasing and tried for smaller, cleaner inside wave.
I paddled hard and as I jumped up, and dropped down in a jacking, hollow 3-4ft wedge, pulled into the barrel and watched greg paddling back out from inside the tube, as he hooted :)
My exit wasn't pretty, kind of a side curtain, lip avoidance but I came out and then got creamed by a few heavy close-outs for my trouble but ti gave me the adrenalin boost I needed.
We decided to try our luck down towards the steel so after a quick gulp of water on the beach moved down. The tide was pushing fast and it didn't look particularly good but as we all know, looks can be deceiving! Once we'd worked our way through the sun's glare we found some half decent 4-ft peaks.
This time I was on it and had one of those rare wave magnet moments where no matter which way I paddled the set wave came and left the crowd to one side. I caught 5 cracking waves, nice overhead drops into long, fast, walling lefts allowing for 4 or 5 turns on each ride.
I've not had waves as good as this all summer long so was well and truly stoked when we got out after a solid 3-4 hour session. Greg was only 2 hours later for his weekend away but it was his birthday and well worth it!
Thursday 15 September 2011
Calm after hurricane katia
Hurricane Katia has been battering Wales this week but sheltered spots have provided some respite even if it did mean many of us were forced to surf Coney beach :(
You can see some of the pics taken at Coney, Porthcawl here.
I popped down on Weds evening and after a frustrating 30 mins or so, finally caught a half decent wave. It was in the 3-4ft range with a howling cross offshore nw wind with the harbour wall protecting us from the brunt of the wind.
Sven and Wilks - the new dad brigade came down and we had a few laughs, sharing the waves as the sun went down, all too early at about 8pm. I left feeling shattered after all the paddling but had 3 or 4 good waves with some clean open face.
Thursday:
0.9m
10.6 seconds
Light SE winds
HT 9.30am, 9.5m+
I opted for a 'late' early today as I had the morning off, beautifully orchestrated to combine with a clean swell, decent period and SE offshore wind :)
I could hear the waves as I walked neared and spied a few lines so knew it would be nice. Spotted a large rat in the dunes as I scurried off so I guess he'd been up early!
The tides were large but sker worked through. I arrived just after 8am and scored some lovely rights, breaking quite far out and working themselves all the way down to the inside pebble bank. The waves were fast today, so you had to pick and choose your moves or get left behind.
Despite the car park being rammed, there were very few in the water as the work crowd had bailed leaving me with a nice peak and only 4 of us in.
Out back I chatted to an American girl over here from NJ who was surfing pretty good and had a few nice lefts! I'm always fascinated to know how on earth surfers from abroad manage to find out about sker but I guess word of mouth and the internet plays its part.
I finally feel like I'm finding the sweet spot on my 'dominator', getting a lot more pazazzzzzzz out of the bottom turns now and beating sections comfortably. It's taken me long enough but I'm really enjoying my surfing at the moment.
Blods eventually snaked his way into the line up ;) along with French Jeff and Sven staggered back down the bank to join us having surfed earlier despite arranging to meet me at 8am? Who knows what goes in his mind of jelly! ;)
Walking back I was accosted by a large German Shepherd bitch 'on heat' and off its lead. I decided to hold my ground as it was getting quite wound up by my presence, barking and banging its head into my Firewire! Eventually its stupid owner came over and put it on a lead at my request.
Caught a few really nice waves today, landed a couple of floaters and left feeling very contented. There were some beautiful peaks throwing out today and although small, were a joy to be amongst.
Shame I had work this afternoon but there's always tomorrow!
You can see some of the pics taken at Coney, Porthcawl here.
I popped down on Weds evening and after a frustrating 30 mins or so, finally caught a half decent wave. It was in the 3-4ft range with a howling cross offshore nw wind with the harbour wall protecting us from the brunt of the wind.
Sven and Wilks - the new dad brigade came down and we had a few laughs, sharing the waves as the sun went down, all too early at about 8pm. I left feeling shattered after all the paddling but had 3 or 4 good waves with some clean open face.
Thursday:
0.9m
10.6 seconds
Light SE winds
HT 9.30am, 9.5m+
I opted for a 'late' early today as I had the morning off, beautifully orchestrated to combine with a clean swell, decent period and SE offshore wind :)
I could hear the waves as I walked neared and spied a few lines so knew it would be nice. Spotted a large rat in the dunes as I scurried off so I guess he'd been up early!
The tides were large but sker worked through. I arrived just after 8am and scored some lovely rights, breaking quite far out and working themselves all the way down to the inside pebble bank. The waves were fast today, so you had to pick and choose your moves or get left behind.
Despite the car park being rammed, there were very few in the water as the work crowd had bailed leaving me with a nice peak and only 4 of us in.
Out back I chatted to an American girl over here from NJ who was surfing pretty good and had a few nice lefts! I'm always fascinated to know how on earth surfers from abroad manage to find out about sker but I guess word of mouth and the internet plays its part.
I finally feel like I'm finding the sweet spot on my 'dominator', getting a lot more pazazzzzzzz out of the bottom turns now and beating sections comfortably. It's taken me long enough but I'm really enjoying my surfing at the moment.
Blods eventually snaked his way into the line up ;) along with French Jeff and Sven staggered back down the bank to join us having surfed earlier despite arranging to meet me at 8am? Who knows what goes in his mind of jelly! ;)
Walking back I was accosted by a large German Shepherd bitch 'on heat' and off its lead. I decided to hold my ground as it was getting quite wound up by my presence, barking and banging its head into my Firewire! Eventually its stupid owner came over and put it on a lead at my request.
Caught a few really nice waves today, landed a couple of floaters and left feeling very contented. There were some beautiful peaks throwing out today and although small, were a joy to be amongst.
Shame I had work this afternoon but there's always tomorrow!
Monday 22 August 2011
Weekend waves
Saturday was a pleasant surprise. Gave Merchant his early morning wake up call at 8am and suggested a dip at Rest Bay. The winds were onshore but light and there was a medium swell running.
Nath had had a few beers the night before and was already talking about it being a tricky paddle out so the warning signs were there! ;)
We paddled out and I lost Nath about halfway out last seen going the wrong way over towards the headland ;) I carried on and was pleased to see a few clean faces jacking up and landing in front me.
I noticed a few guys sat further out - Adrian etc so went a bit further and took my spot out back. The waves although crumbly in a light wsw breeze had plenty of power and were 3-4ft. Nath ended up at Coney for some reason but caught a few apparently.
As the tide pushed, the waves improved and within an hour the wind had swung dropped to a very light cross offshore - result!
I bumped into the Greek lads out back and the crowd filled slightly but the vibe was good with plenty of good rights coming through and some nice high speed bowling sections to carve off.
a set appeared and I could see two lads to my left with priority but looking too deep to ever catch me up so off I went. I checked to my left just in case they made it and saw the nearest surfer fall on bottom turn so I had a clear run.
I had a nice long right, kicked out and paddled back only to find the other surfer staring at me?
He continued to paddle, stop, turn around and stare at me as he made his way back to the line up. I found the whole thing a bit bizarre? What was I meant to do, not go just because he'd attempted a wave and fallen off?! To give you an idea of how far away I was, I kicked out about 40-50 feet away from him!
I paddled back to my slot determined not to let it ruin a good surf and took off on a nice wave only to find the same guy doing his best to get in the way as he paddled back out - making no effort to move so I took the drop, steering away from him and continued on my way.
As I paddled out the same guy took off and the deliberately rode straight for me narrowly missing me as I paddled up and out of the way and over the wave.
I took a deep breath and let it go as I know the other guy in question is a local surfer and I didn't really want to start a 'tit for tat' campaign which would ultimately only end in confrontation or someone getting injured. Be the better man etc...
That was it really, I caught a few more and called it a day. Thoroughly surprising session only slightly soured by the actions of another surfer.
A shame as we don't this kind of behaviour at Rest Bay - save it for Hawaii!
Sunday delivered more waves but smaller and onshore with a stronger w wind. I opted for a quick surf at sker and met up with harv & co so some fun 2-3ft mush burgers. The waves did improve and the sun came out so not a bad hour or so paddling for everything that came my way.
Nath had had a few beers the night before and was already talking about it being a tricky paddle out so the warning signs were there! ;)
We paddled out and I lost Nath about halfway out last seen going the wrong way over towards the headland ;) I carried on and was pleased to see a few clean faces jacking up and landing in front me.
I noticed a few guys sat further out - Adrian etc so went a bit further and took my spot out back. The waves although crumbly in a light wsw breeze had plenty of power and were 3-4ft. Nath ended up at Coney for some reason but caught a few apparently.
As the tide pushed, the waves improved and within an hour the wind had swung dropped to a very light cross offshore - result!
I bumped into the Greek lads out back and the crowd filled slightly but the vibe was good with plenty of good rights coming through and some nice high speed bowling sections to carve off.
a set appeared and I could see two lads to my left with priority but looking too deep to ever catch me up so off I went. I checked to my left just in case they made it and saw the nearest surfer fall on bottom turn so I had a clear run.
I had a nice long right, kicked out and paddled back only to find the other surfer staring at me?
He continued to paddle, stop, turn around and stare at me as he made his way back to the line up. I found the whole thing a bit bizarre? What was I meant to do, not go just because he'd attempted a wave and fallen off?! To give you an idea of how far away I was, I kicked out about 40-50 feet away from him!
I paddled back to my slot determined not to let it ruin a good surf and took off on a nice wave only to find the same guy doing his best to get in the way as he paddled back out - making no effort to move so I took the drop, steering away from him and continued on my way.
As I paddled out the same guy took off and the deliberately rode straight for me narrowly missing me as I paddled up and out of the way and over the wave.
I took a deep breath and let it go as I know the other guy in question is a local surfer and I didn't really want to start a 'tit for tat' campaign which would ultimately only end in confrontation or someone getting injured. Be the better man etc...
That was it really, I caught a few more and called it a day. Thoroughly surprising session only slightly soured by the actions of another surfer.
A shame as we don't this kind of behaviour at Rest Bay - save it for Hawaii!
Sunday delivered more waves but smaller and onshore with a stronger w wind. I opted for a quick surf at sker and met up with harv & co so some fun 2-3ft mush burgers. The waves did improve and the sun came out so not a bad hour or so paddling for everything that came my way.
Tuesday 16 August 2011
It just dawned on me
I've been away visiting the outlaws in Germany recently, typically I left the day before a new low pressure pushed in from the Atlantic, but from all accounts, I've missed nothing other than some smallish blown out onshore days.
11 days away from the ocean were certainly taking their toll though and I was frothing like David Frothelhoff by the time we got back late on Sunday night!
Despite Fin having a restless night, I'd set my alarm for 5 am determined to try out my new wetty which has been lying around the house (bone dry) now for some time.
A quick check of the wave buoy date on the i-phone (under the duvet) revealed a small swell but half decent wave period - decent enough for a desperate man anyway at 6 or 7 seconds. The winds were very light NW and a 1.4m swell was running so there should be something, surely?!
I loaded up the van and was at the beach a few minutes later, just in time to witness a spectacularly pink sunrise and told myself it was worth being tired just to see that.
I sat and watched the misformed waves peaking and tumbling about at mid tide Rest Bay and at one point almost bailed. Yes there was surf but the big tides weren't helping with the banks and I just couldn't see anything I'd get more than a drop out of.
The waves were clean on the face though and some even threw the lip out to form little barrels but it was tricky to see 'that wave' which is the one wave breaking that always inspires you, should you ever be in any doubt about paddling out.
"If in doubt paddle out"
I had a quick word with myself and got suited up. As I walked down into the shallows I realised how warm the sea felt and figured a paddle as good an option as any so with no other soul in sight I got my 40 yr old ass out the back, wondering if the beach was closed as there would normally be at least 10 surfers in by now?!
As I paddled out I was rewarded by a few powerful lumps on the head, only 2-3ft but that was enough to make me smile knowing that it could only improve over the next hour or so and it did.
One other guy - Ollie paddled out later and we shared some fun waves. No lengthy rides but one or two which held up long enough to throw in some turns and the odd close out lip bash.
It was just what I needed though and sometimes just one turn can be all the salt water therapy a man needs to start the day in the right way. You can keep your Special K!
I was back in time for a family breakfast, ticking all the right boxes and the new wetsuit was great, really warm, flexible and comfortable and should see me well into late November/December.
It looks like we're in for a few days of swell this week as a couple of weakish fronts move in for Thursday and then Saturday. The winds going offshore on Weds and Thursday so we might just get some fun, clean surf in this week...
11 days away from the ocean were certainly taking their toll though and I was frothing like David Frothelhoff by the time we got back late on Sunday night!
Despite Fin having a restless night, I'd set my alarm for 5 am determined to try out my new wetty which has been lying around the house (bone dry) now for some time.
A quick check of the wave buoy date on the i-phone (under the duvet) revealed a small swell but half decent wave period - decent enough for a desperate man anyway at 6 or 7 seconds. The winds were very light NW and a 1.4m swell was running so there should be something, surely?!
I loaded up the van and was at the beach a few minutes later, just in time to witness a spectacularly pink sunrise and told myself it was worth being tired just to see that.
I sat and watched the misformed waves peaking and tumbling about at mid tide Rest Bay and at one point almost bailed. Yes there was surf but the big tides weren't helping with the banks and I just couldn't see anything I'd get more than a drop out of.
The waves were clean on the face though and some even threw the lip out to form little barrels but it was tricky to see 'that wave' which is the one wave breaking that always inspires you, should you ever be in any doubt about paddling out.
"If in doubt paddle out"
I had a quick word with myself and got suited up. As I walked down into the shallows I realised how warm the sea felt and figured a paddle as good an option as any so with no other soul in sight I got my 40 yr old ass out the back, wondering if the beach was closed as there would normally be at least 10 surfers in by now?!
As I paddled out I was rewarded by a few powerful lumps on the head, only 2-3ft but that was enough to make me smile knowing that it could only improve over the next hour or so and it did.
One other guy - Ollie paddled out later and we shared some fun waves. No lengthy rides but one or two which held up long enough to throw in some turns and the odd close out lip bash.
It was just what I needed though and sometimes just one turn can be all the salt water therapy a man needs to start the day in the right way. You can keep your Special K!
I was back in time for a family breakfast, ticking all the right boxes and the new wetsuit was great, really warm, flexible and comfortable and should see me well into late November/December.
It looks like we're in for a few days of swell this week as a couple of weakish fronts move in for Thursday and then Saturday. The winds going offshore on Weds and Thursday so we might just get some fun, clean surf in this week...
Tuesday 2 August 2011
Ankle slappers
The fact that I've not blogged since June 29 speaks volumes in gull's world...It's been dire.
I've mustered two really poor surfs at the end of July, one in choppy onshore 1-2ft, the other in windless seas but on a large tide and small swell so I spent an hour dodging rocks and just about managing to stand up on the weak pulses.
Despite the dire waves, I actually surfed quite well, popping up quickly and finding the occasional bit of face but I know I'll struggle from surf fitness once we get proper waves again.
I've recently turned 40... and acquired a new wetty which I'm keen to try out but am determined to christen it in waves which are taller than my knees.
You can tell it's been flat as I'm now climbing the walls and getting very pissed off at missing the 1-2ft weak surf that keeps on mystically appearing around mid tide.
I was positively frothing this morning as I ran out of time for a pre work dip and may go later but it doesn't look good currently so may have to drown my sorrows at the surf club meeting tonight.
I'm off to a land locked country shortly for 10 days just as ********* low pressure arrives but it ain't over until the fat lady sings and I still have 48 hours to try and get a half decent surf in.
Roll on September, I'm off somewhere with surf - I don't care where!
I've mustered two really poor surfs at the end of July, one in choppy onshore 1-2ft, the other in windless seas but on a large tide and small swell so I spent an hour dodging rocks and just about managing to stand up on the weak pulses.
Despite the dire waves, I actually surfed quite well, popping up quickly and finding the occasional bit of face but I know I'll struggle from surf fitness once we get proper waves again.
I've recently turned 40...
You can tell it's been flat as I'm now climbing the walls and getting very pissed off at missing the 1-2ft weak surf that keeps on mystically appearing around mid tide.
I was positively frothing this morning as I ran out of time for a pre work dip and may go later but it doesn't look good currently so may have to drown my sorrows at the surf club meeting tonight.
I'm off to a land locked country shortly for 10 days just as ********* low pressure arrives but it ain't over until the fat lady sings and I still have 48 hours to try and get a half decent surf in.
Roll on September, I'm off somewhere with surf - I don't care where!
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Sunday's heat wave
The wave drought finally broke last week when we enjoyed a heat wave 'of sorts' with temps reaching a staggering 26 degrees in parts of Wales ;0
Not only did we have blue sky and sunshine but also a light cross offshore SE wind and solid ground swell, nudging 4ft on sets with a 10 sec wave period making all the difference.
Everywhere was heaving and Sker was no exception but I found a nice peak and tried to stay on it picking off decent rights whenever they came through.
I was on my OP 6'6 single fin which was a bit weird as I've not ridden it in more than a year as I've been surfing my 'ickle 5'10" Firewire Quad (being repaired)but I managed to hang onto a few and got some fairly long rides. It's a great board to paddle though and got me into a few peachy waves nice and early.
I did however find it very stiff and dug far too many rails, in my quest to hack into some lips. I guess I'll have to persevere with it a bit more as it's a beautiful board to ride once you find the sweet spot.
Had a quick chat with Eliot Dudley about boards, always nice to meet someone else with an interest and he showed him a sweet looking Pavel quad fish he'd picked up in the states. Elliot had just won the Welsh Nationals longboard at Llantwit on the saturday so well done him and hope he's enjoying life out west in Newgale.
Bumped into a few more WCSC associates out back who all seemed to be enjoying the swell and although a bit more crowded than normal, everyone was spread out and well behaved.
I did however get assassinated by an old boy on a long longboard who not only dropped in on me badly, but then proceeded to kick out badly, sending his board straight towards my head causing an emergency bail and wasted wave. It was a beauty too :(
Next few days were small and clean but we're locked into high pressure now so flatness will ensue for the rest of the week and weekend but at least most of us scored on Sunday - it's amazing how just one decent swell can cheer us all up after months of flatness & onshore slop.
And finally...Sven (a surf buddy of mine) and Mads are now the proud parents of a baby boy named 'Raphael Beau Attridge' who weighed in at 9lbs and flew out in about 4hrs so well done guys! x
Not only did we have blue sky and sunshine but also a light cross offshore SE wind and solid ground swell, nudging 4ft on sets with a 10 sec wave period making all the difference.
Everywhere was heaving and Sker was no exception but I found a nice peak and tried to stay on it picking off decent rights whenever they came through.
I was on my OP 6'6 single fin which was a bit weird as I've not ridden it in more than a year as I've been surfing my 'ickle 5'10" Firewire Quad (being repaired)but I managed to hang onto a few and got some fairly long rides. It's a great board to paddle though and got me into a few peachy waves nice and early.
I did however find it very stiff and dug far too many rails, in my quest to hack into some lips. I guess I'll have to persevere with it a bit more as it's a beautiful board to ride once you find the sweet spot.
Had a quick chat with Eliot Dudley about boards, always nice to meet someone else with an interest and he showed him a sweet looking Pavel quad fish he'd picked up in the states. Elliot had just won the Welsh Nationals longboard at Llantwit on the saturday so well done him and hope he's enjoying life out west in Newgale.
Bumped into a few more WCSC associates out back who all seemed to be enjoying the swell and although a bit more crowded than normal, everyone was spread out and well behaved.
I did however get assassinated by an old boy on a long longboard who not only dropped in on me badly, but then proceeded to kick out badly, sending his board straight towards my head causing an emergency bail and wasted wave. It was a beauty too :(
Next few days were small and clean but we're locked into high pressure now so flatness will ensue for the rest of the week and weekend but at least most of us scored on Sunday - it's amazing how just one decent swell can cheer us all up after months of flatness & onshore slop.
And finally...Sven (a surf buddy of mine) and Mads are now the proud parents of a baby boy named 'Raphael Beau Attridge' who weighed in at 9lbs and flew out in about 4hrs so well done guys! x
Potential surf dog
Colleague in work sent me this link of his pooch having a go in Cornwall and I have to say - she puts a lot of the kooks in Rest Bay to shame.
Straight into the sea, paddling out back, to the lineup and waits for a set before paddling for a couple. Well done Ella the surf dog. Imagine what she could do on a board?!
Straight into the sea, paddling out back, to the lineup and waits for a set before paddling for a couple. Well done Ella the surf dog. Imagine what she could do on a board?!
Friday 24 June 2011
Worst June for a long while
That seems to be the headline for this month. I was chatting to bob blythe the other day who informed me that June was always good for as long as he could remember (back in the day!) and this was the worst one he could remember and he's getting on a bit now ;)
We've had the swell but the wind has killed it thanks largely to the jet stream being too far south - it's now buggered off up north again so fingers crossed it stays there for a while.
We've got a weak low pushing in over SW Ireland tonight and into tomorrow and then clearing for Sunday. Apparently the rest of the Welsh Nationals will be taking place at Fresh West over the weekend so at least they should have waves although I'm sure Saturday will be too clever in that wind.
The point in Porthcawl has had a couple of half decent days but the tides have meant earlies and late surfs were out the window so only the self employed, unemployed and students have been able to score any waves!
The wind has been relentless though, blowing strong all day and into the night and carrying on the next day all week long...
Windguru has been conjuring up daft expectations for Sunday getting everyone in a pickle but I think there will be a lot of disappointed surfers out there this weekend although having said that - at least we'll have something to surf!
If we get 3ft on Sunday then we'll be happy, just so long as the wind plays ball and delivers SSE as promised...
Other news - our WCSC club fundraiser and the Elusive Taylor Steele Night went down well and we raised a few quid for the Logan Padden Foundation. The beach day moved to Sunday and I worked the barbie hard for a couple of hours feeding the hoards of hungry surfers who kept coming back for 2nds, 3rds and in some cases 4ths?!
A crowd gathers for the penalty shoot out down on the beach:
Tom Anderson rocked the mic, turning the event into an ASP world tour event complete with beach side interviews with anyone that moved whilst Matt Hapgood helped me on the BBQ, throwing on raw meet whenever I gave him the nod!
The club gazebo and base camp for the day:
Stu Bentley was luckily on hand with all the hardware and helped us erect the large club gazebo etc which would have been a struggle without him so it turned into a pretty civilised affair with tables, chairs, plates and eventually cutlery!
We ended the day with a fun swell board tag team event complete with inflatable croc nicknamed 'steve' which had to be ridden for 2 waves by each team.
The red team ended up winning - comprising of myself, matt, sonja, emma and lewis and we all received beautiful Olympic style medals for our troubles ;)
Looking forward to the next one...
We've had the swell but the wind has killed it thanks largely to the jet stream being too far south - it's now buggered off up north again so fingers crossed it stays there for a while.
We've got a weak low pushing in over SW Ireland tonight and into tomorrow and then clearing for Sunday. Apparently the rest of the Welsh Nationals will be taking place at Fresh West over the weekend so at least they should have waves although I'm sure Saturday will be too clever in that wind.
The point in Porthcawl has had a couple of half decent days but the tides have meant earlies and late surfs were out the window so only the self employed, unemployed and students have been able to score any waves!
The wind has been relentless though, blowing strong all day and into the night and carrying on the next day all week long...
Windguru has been conjuring up daft expectations for Sunday getting everyone in a pickle but I think there will be a lot of disappointed surfers out there this weekend although having said that - at least we'll have something to surf!
If we get 3ft on Sunday then we'll be happy, just so long as the wind plays ball and delivers SSE as promised...
Other news - our WCSC club fundraiser and the Elusive Taylor Steele Night went down well and we raised a few quid for the Logan Padden Foundation. The beach day moved to Sunday and I worked the barbie hard for a couple of hours feeding the hoards of hungry surfers who kept coming back for 2nds, 3rds and in some cases 4ths?!
A crowd gathers for the penalty shoot out down on the beach:
Tom Anderson rocked the mic, turning the event into an ASP world tour event complete with beach side interviews with anyone that moved whilst Matt Hapgood helped me on the BBQ, throwing on raw meet whenever I gave him the nod!
The club gazebo and base camp for the day:
Stu Bentley was luckily on hand with all the hardware and helped us erect the large club gazebo etc which would have been a struggle without him so it turned into a pretty civilised affair with tables, chairs, plates and eventually cutlery!
We ended the day with a fun swell board tag team event complete with inflatable croc nicknamed 'steve' which had to be ridden for 2 waves by each team.
The red team ended up winning - comprising of myself, matt, sonja, emma and lewis and we all received beautiful Olympic style medals for our troubles ;)
Looking forward to the next one...
Wednesday 15 June 2011
what happened to summer?
Wimbledon is just around the corner but we've not had nice hot sunny weather( lasting longer than a day) for about 2 months now. Weak lows keep sending wind and rain in our general direction so we end up shit surf and wet weather. I'm meeting a lot of disgruntled surfers at the moment and this is shaping up to be one of our worst summers in a long while (for surf and weather).
I'm helping out with the WCSC International Surf Day @ Rest Bay this Saturday from 11amand the forecast keeps changing but hoping we'll have a relatively dry day. Loads of things lined up for all ages and abilities so hope to many of you down there.
The tag team event is the only one requiring registration so pop along at 11am if you want to put your name down. Food is all free but donations are welcome as we're raising £ for the Logan Padden Foundation.
The evening will be dry as we're indoors at the Fairways so that promises to be an epic night with live music, new surf movies and an aution so I'm sure plenty of ale will be drunk.
I'm helping out with the WCSC International Surf Day @ Rest Bay this Saturday from 11amand the forecast keeps changing but hoping we'll have a relatively dry day. Loads of things lined up for all ages and abilities so hope to many of you down there.
The tag team event is the only one requiring registration so pop along at 11am if you want to put your name down. Food is all free but donations are welcome as we're raising £ for the Logan Padden Foundation.
The evening will be dry as we're indoors at the Fairways so that promises to be an epic night with live music, new surf movies and an aution so I'm sure plenty of ale will be drunk.
Tuesday 7 June 2011
Cornish cream
Just spent a week camping it up down in Cornwall wit the family (the Badlands area) hanging out with local bad asses dave & lara salter and their crazy pooch 'lil miss cool'.
The epic surf never really materialised, the first few days were onshore and blown out 2-3ft but the wind eased and the sun made an appearance mid week.
Nevertheless we had a fun trip and visited Lands End, Porthcurno, Gwithian, Hayle, Newquay Aquarium, Perran Sands and a few other places in between and the tent remained upright! I can definitely recommend the Gwithian Farm campsite too - cracking spot, excellent facilities and nice people running the place and the 'Sunset Surf Cafe' serves up some amazing food at the back of the beach.
I took the single fin with me which I'd not surfed for about a year which wasn't ideal in 3-4ft wedgey Penhale with lots of close outs! but rode a few.
The waves didn't really give me an opportunity to find my rhythm and were generally steep drops followed by a bottom turn/top turn and close-out section. I paddled in feeling very sorry for myself especially as there were groms out there ripping it up! lol
The following day I got up 'earlyish' and hit Gwithian where we were camping and after a few aborted rock scrambles, I found the 'proper' steps down to the beach and had some fun 2-3ft clean beach break. It took me a while to get into my stride but eventually began to master the board again and threw in a few floaters and cutbacks.
The following day we hit the beach once more on our way home and it was howling NE and 3ft but I was on dad patrol hurling rocks into rock pools and anyone walking by so gave it a miss.
We also bought Fin his first wetty - 'trainee lifeguard', well his second actually but the baby one doesn't really count. He found the seas off Cornwall a bit chilly in howling NW winds but seemed to enjoy walking dad's board on the sand and covering the melting wax with sand....
Not much surf to report, back home but we're due a small hit tonight and tomorrow and onshore winds so might take a dip anyway.
Surf club meeting is on tonight - 7.30pm @ Salthouse Bar and as part of International Surfing Day on 20 June, we're planning a cool family surfing day at Rest Bay on 18 June with some crazy surfing contests in the pipeline( tandem, fancy dress, swell boards are all in the mix currently), BBQ, some expression sessions from the local rippers and free surfing lessons.
There's a party in the evening with bands and a charity surf auction for the local Logan Padden Foundation so check out our WCSC Facebook page for more details on that.
See some of you later for a pint!
Gull
The epic surf never really materialised, the first few days were onshore and blown out 2-3ft but the wind eased and the sun made an appearance mid week.
Nevertheless we had a fun trip and visited Lands End, Porthcurno, Gwithian, Hayle, Newquay Aquarium, Perran Sands and a few other places in between and the tent remained upright! I can definitely recommend the Gwithian Farm campsite too - cracking spot, excellent facilities and nice people running the place and the 'Sunset Surf Cafe' serves up some amazing food at the back of the beach.
I took the single fin with me which I'd not surfed for about a year which wasn't ideal in 3-4ft wedgey Penhale with lots of close outs! but rode a few.
The waves didn't really give me an opportunity to find my rhythm and were generally steep drops followed by a bottom turn/top turn and close-out section. I paddled in feeling very sorry for myself especially as there were groms out there ripping it up! lol
The following day I got up 'earlyish' and hit Gwithian where we were camping and after a few aborted rock scrambles, I found the 'proper' steps down to the beach and had some fun 2-3ft clean beach break. It took me a while to get into my stride but eventually began to master the board again and threw in a few floaters and cutbacks.
The following day we hit the beach once more on our way home and it was howling NE and 3ft but I was on dad patrol hurling rocks into rock pools and anyone walking by so gave it a miss.
We also bought Fin his first wetty - 'trainee lifeguard', well his second actually but the baby one doesn't really count. He found the seas off Cornwall a bit chilly in howling NW winds but seemed to enjoy walking dad's board on the sand and covering the melting wax with sand....
Not much surf to report, back home but we're due a small hit tonight and tomorrow and onshore winds so might take a dip anyway.
Surf club meeting is on tonight - 7.30pm @ Salthouse Bar and as part of International Surfing Day on 20 June, we're planning a cool family surfing day at Rest Bay on 18 June with some crazy surfing contests in the pipeline( tandem, fancy dress, swell boards are all in the mix currently), BBQ, some expression sessions from the local rippers and free surfing lessons.
There's a party in the evening with bands and a charity surf auction for the local Logan Padden Foundation so check out our WCSC Facebook page for more details on that.
See some of you later for a pint!
Gull
Tuesday 24 May 2011
When the wind blows
Gull's cradle will rock but that's about all as it's been completely blown out of late! The Porthcawl wind data recorded a 92km gust yesterday and it seems to have been blowing for days now :(
Coney has been a mess with small tides so the wind has still managed to ruin things but a few deperados have been in braving the Coney wedge including Harv who reckoned it was 3ft but looked dire when I checked! ;)
Personally I've not been inspired lately but the wind looks like it's finally dropping so might get an hour in later...
I'm off to Cornwall for a week soon so hoping to score some decent surf down there but would prefer a mix of highs and lows or camping will be very soggy indeed!
Other news...the ASP Brazil comp finished in controversy with the usual aussie suspects claiming foul play as Taj failed to win again.
Meanwhile in Peru, our very own local grom - Max Tucker is in the Quiksilver World Junior Comp! so we all wish him well for that. He came 2nd in his heat the other night and has one last do or die chance to surf according to his dad, Simon.
Coney has been a mess with small tides so the wind has still managed to ruin things but a few deperados have been in braving the Coney wedge including Harv who reckoned it was 3ft but looked dire when I checked! ;)
Personally I've not been inspired lately but the wind looks like it's finally dropping so might get an hour in later...
I'm off to Cornwall for a week soon so hoping to score some decent surf down there but would prefer a mix of highs and lows or camping will be very soggy indeed!
Other news...the ASP Brazil comp finished in controversy with the usual aussie suspects claiming foul play as Taj failed to win again.
Meanwhile in Peru, our very own local grom - Max Tucker is in the Quiksilver World Junior Comp! so we all wish him well for that. He came 2nd in his heat the other night and has one last do or die chance to surf according to his dad, Simon.
Thursday 12 May 2011
Grinders
Not a lot of surf around currently and with a dying swell and strong sw winds it's hardly worth checking as high pressure edges closer.
But all is not lost!
Local surfer George Schofield has a new underwear business in the pipeline (no pun intended) so check out some Grinders and help him fund a new surfboard ;)
But all is not lost!
Local surfer George Schofield has a new underwear business in the pipeline (no pun intended) so check out some Grinders and help him fund a new surfboard ;)
Friday 6 May 2011
2 in 24
Thursday night
1.2m
9-10 seconds, underlying period = 5 seconds
light SE
Friday dawnie:
1.5m, 8-9 seconds, underlying period = 5-6 seconds
Moderate SSE
Not a bad 24 hrs really. Finished early yesterday evening so managed to get in the water by 5.15pm along with Doc, Grant and Sven. Quiet to begin with but the summer student hoards soon descended...God I hate summer surfers. They do my bleedin' head in!
Sat there like driftwood, wasting waves, paddling and pulling back @ the last minute and looking all sulky in their winter suits with hoods and gloves on? LOL
The waves on paper should have been epic with an 10 sec period but the swell was never much over 1.2m and the big tides and subsequent rip made it hard work trying to find a good one and when they came, they just tended to back off unless you were inside.
I left feeling a bit deflated but thinking back, I did have some pretty good rides just not as many as I was expecting.
Steve Beach @ Rest Bay by Claire Beach:
Grant seemed to be in the thick of it, with nice rights being magnetically attracted to him so we moved over onto his peak ;)
Doc snagged some nice long rights on his 'nugget' so was a happy chappy and it's his 47th birthday today so happy birthday to him! He had a lie in today to open up his pressies so I'll let him off missing the dawnie.
I had a few nice rights last night, one in particular stands out, prob nudging 4ft and nice and clean on the face, it took a bit of work after a fast take-off to get going but after a lip bash and a cutback I found myself tucking into a hollow end section and coming out which is always a nice surprise :)
Harv turned up later but we'd had our fill by then and I knew I'd be up early hoping for bigger and better.
I got Rattz and Aran out of bed today - separate beds I think? and met them at 6am at the usual spot.
Aran was high on a McDonalds breakfast and staggered off into the woods to do what bears do, so we walked on and saw him in the water later.
Emma C @ Rest Bay by Claire Beach:
The waves were bigger but the period smaller....damn it Huey! If he's just leave things alone it would have been okay but he always has to meddle. Swell up, wave period down. Hmmmmm
Nevertheless the waves were a good 4ft on sets and punchy but again a bit sluggish after take-off as the big tides pushed in.
Towards high it became more enjoyable and I snagged a few good sized rights which made it worthwhile but again I've come away thinking it should have been better. Might have to try Rest Bay instead tomorrow as I hear it's been cranking over there!
The weekend looks really good as does Monday and possibly Tues with offshore winds and plenty of swell about so enjoy!
1.2m
9-10 seconds, underlying period = 5 seconds
light SE
Friday dawnie:
1.5m, 8-9 seconds, underlying period = 5-6 seconds
Moderate SSE
Not a bad 24 hrs really. Finished early yesterday evening so managed to get in the water by 5.15pm along with Doc, Grant and Sven. Quiet to begin with but the summer student hoards soon descended...God I hate summer surfers. They do my bleedin' head in!
Sat there like driftwood, wasting waves, paddling and pulling back @ the last minute and looking all sulky in their winter suits with hoods and gloves on? LOL
The waves on paper should have been epic with an 10 sec period but the swell was never much over 1.2m and the big tides and subsequent rip made it hard work trying to find a good one and when they came, they just tended to back off unless you were inside.
I left feeling a bit deflated but thinking back, I did have some pretty good rides just not as many as I was expecting.
Steve Beach @ Rest Bay by Claire Beach:
Grant seemed to be in the thick of it, with nice rights being magnetically attracted to him so we moved over onto his peak ;)
Doc snagged some nice long rights on his 'nugget' so was a happy chappy and it's his 47th birthday today so happy birthday to him! He had a lie in today to open up his pressies so I'll let him off missing the dawnie.
I had a few nice rights last night, one in particular stands out, prob nudging 4ft and nice and clean on the face, it took a bit of work after a fast take-off to get going but after a lip bash and a cutback I found myself tucking into a hollow end section and coming out which is always a nice surprise :)
Harv turned up later but we'd had our fill by then and I knew I'd be up early hoping for bigger and better.
I got Rattz and Aran out of bed today - separate beds I think? and met them at 6am at the usual spot.
Aran was high on a McDonalds breakfast and staggered off into the woods to do what bears do, so we walked on and saw him in the water later.
Emma C @ Rest Bay by Claire Beach:
The waves were bigger but the period smaller....damn it Huey! If he's just leave things alone it would have been okay but he always has to meddle. Swell up, wave period down. Hmmmmm
Nevertheless the waves were a good 4ft on sets and punchy but again a bit sluggish after take-off as the big tides pushed in.
Towards high it became more enjoyable and I snagged a few good sized rights which made it worthwhile but again I've come away thinking it should have been better. Might have to try Rest Bay instead tomorrow as I hear it's been cranking over there!
The weekend looks really good as does Monday and possibly Tues with offshore winds and plenty of swell about so enjoy!
Thursday 5 May 2011
Onion ahoy
It may not be a winter onion sitting off the west coast but it's not too bad for May - a 988 last time I checked and with a blocking high to the east, we should be in for a good run with the winds too.
The current forecast is for SSE winds and plenty of swell over the next 5 days peaking on Monday.
Currently Rest Bay is clean with plenty of lines and around 2-3ft on the dropping tide. tides are pretty big at the moment, 9.5m+
I think I'll be going for a dip later, board in van ready for action.
The current forecast is for SSE winds and plenty of swell over the next 5 days peaking on Monday.
Currently Rest Bay is clean with plenty of lines and around 2-3ft on the dropping tide. tides are pretty big at the moment, 9.5m+
I think I'll be going for a dip later, board in van ready for action.
Tuesday 3 May 2011
Sunny skies
Well it's been the sunniest, driest March and April since 1950 something which never bodes well for surf but the Easter Monday and following Tuesday did deliver some ice waves.
Monday although small, served up punchy, fast bowling peaks around 2-3ft and despite still being drunk from the night before, I surfed my socks off and had some really nice rides????! I'm normally badly affected by 'beer legs' but not this time!
I'm not sure if the alcohol relaxed me but I felt like I was on fire and flowing nicely LOL even busting a small air on an inside ramp - fins popped right out and I remember thinking, "this feels a bit funny" before landing on the foam and carrying on, so I'm going to start drinking more from now on before each surf! ;)
After a good 2.5hrs in, I'd sobered up and felt an absolute wreck on the long walk home...I returned on Tues as the wave period was still high, around 14 secs but was expecting it to have dropped off.
Not on your nelly, it had actually picked up and was now 3-4ft, slightly chopped up from a NE wind but a lot quieter too.
I bumped into Steve Beach and Harv out back and we shared a few waves in the sun. In hindsight I should have hit Gower reefs as they would have been classic but I was just too damn tired so stayed local and had a few nice rides.
The waves cleaned up as the tide went over high and the far left was throwing up some lovely rights with some shoulder high sets. I didn't want to go in but my arms had given up and I was starting to get grumpy as it became more crowded so called it a day.
There's been nothing since buy I've been busy in the garden and it looks like we're set for some half decent surf later on this week....
Monday although small, served up punchy, fast bowling peaks around 2-3ft and despite still being drunk from the night before, I surfed my socks off and had some really nice rides????! I'm normally badly affected by 'beer legs' but not this time!
I'm not sure if the alcohol relaxed me but I felt like I was on fire and flowing nicely LOL even busting a small air on an inside ramp - fins popped right out and I remember thinking, "this feels a bit funny" before landing on the foam and carrying on, so I'm going to start drinking more from now on before each surf! ;)
After a good 2.5hrs in, I'd sobered up and felt an absolute wreck on the long walk home...I returned on Tues as the wave period was still high, around 14 secs but was expecting it to have dropped off.
Not on your nelly, it had actually picked up and was now 3-4ft, slightly chopped up from a NE wind but a lot quieter too.
I bumped into Steve Beach and Harv out back and we shared a few waves in the sun. In hindsight I should have hit Gower reefs as they would have been classic but I was just too damn tired so stayed local and had a few nice rides.
The waves cleaned up as the tide went over high and the far left was throwing up some lovely rights with some shoulder high sets. I didn't want to go in but my arms had given up and I was starting to get grumpy as it became more crowded so called it a day.
There's been nothing since buy I've been busy in the garden and it looks like we're set for some half decent surf later on this week....
Thursday 21 April 2011
High pressure
Not much surf to report since our last good swell really, a few small longboard days here and there but that's been about it.
I went for a run last night and was saddened to find a small but fun looking summer wave at rest breaking around 2ft on sets so perhaps I should have checked first! ;0
The Welsh National Surfing Championships are scheduled for this weekend but with a small swell forecast I have might doubts as to whether they will actually run anything other than longboard heats...
More hot n sunny weather ahead so it looks like I'll be cranking up the BBQ and having a few cold ones this weekend :)
Sunday looks like our best hope of a wave in South Wales so fingers crossed.
This in from my amigo in Oregon - the next big thing? I doubt it some how, imagine all the kooks getting out back and then getting into trouble when the batteries die...
"Powered by an integrated twin-lithium ion battery pack, WaveJet is capable of 20 pounds of thrust, has a continuous run-time of over 30 minutes, and recharges in a standard wall socket".
This bit sounds positively idyllic: "Kayakers will have an auxiliary power source beyond their paddles. So you can expend less energy fighting currents and have more fun riding them."
"SUPers can get up and running immediately and push the limits of their board's capabilities".
"You will no longer have to depend solely on the strength of your arms or be towed into big waves".
All in all it sounds pretty horrific to me!
http://wavejet.com
I went for a run last night and was saddened to find a small but fun looking summer wave at rest breaking around 2ft on sets so perhaps I should have checked first! ;0
The Welsh National Surfing Championships are scheduled for this weekend but with a small swell forecast I have might doubts as to whether they will actually run anything other than longboard heats...
More hot n sunny weather ahead so it looks like I'll be cranking up the BBQ and having a few cold ones this weekend :)
Sunday looks like our best hope of a wave in South Wales so fingers crossed.
This in from my amigo in Oregon - the next big thing? I doubt it some how, imagine all the kooks getting out back and then getting into trouble when the batteries die...
"Powered by an integrated twin-lithium ion battery pack, WaveJet is capable of 20 pounds of thrust, has a continuous run-time of over 30 minutes, and recharges in a standard wall socket".
This bit sounds positively idyllic: "Kayakers will have an auxiliary power source beyond their paddles. So you can expend less energy fighting currents and have more fun riding them."
"SUPers can get up and running immediately and push the limits of their board's capabilities".
"You will no longer have to depend solely on the strength of your arms or be towed into big waves".
All in all it sounds pretty horrific to me!
http://wavejet.com
Friday 8 April 2011
3 in 3
Thursday night @ Rest Bay:
Waves: 1.2 m
Period: 10.8 seconds
Winds:Light SE
Tides: 2 hours before high
It's been a fun week for surf - three surfs in three days can't be bad and I actually feel paddle fit at least :)
After my paddleathon on Weds night I opted for Rest Bay last night and bumped into 'the plough' as I parked up. I'd not seen him in ages and it turns out he's still living in Bristol but now working at a male topless waiter in some dodgy bar in Barry?! I bet his parents don't know...
We wandered down to surf an average looking Rest Bay around 6pm and ended up finding some extremely enjoyable walls to bash. Despite the wind which eventually dropped and swng from light onshore to light offshore, the wave faces were actually pretty glassy.
The rip was as annoying as ever but I did my best to take tactical lefts and try to stay as close to golf as possible.
Saw a few of the WCSC crew out - Brad, Tom Blythe, Mat Hapgood, Steve Horn etc and we all had a good craic in fun surf.
Although a bit crumbly at times, the waves were quite fast on the inside bowls and allowed for a few manoeuvres to be unleashed. My first wave was a late head high left on which a koo proceeded to drop in, fall off and narrowly miss decapitating me.
I had a few words, he asked if I was okay and then proceeded to hoot like a maniac as he paddled off for more, clearly stoked at catching a wave and getting pummelled. Welcome to Rest - LOL
The only fly in the ointment was a sponger on my last wave who not only dropped in but turned around to look at me as I called him off and carried on going until I practically speared him up the ass! ;) cheeky so and so...
But my first 3 waves were better than anything I'd had in 2.5hrs on Weds night so I left the water a happy man!
Friday morning and stoked grandad salutes the surf!
Wave Height :1.1 m
Wave Period: 11 seconds
Winds: Light SE
Tides: 2 hours before high
Still keen for more I did the early today and donned my Spring suit with no gloves or good for the first time. A bit of a gamble but it paid off nicely although I was trying to avoid duckdiving at all costs on the paddle out!
I can't tell you how glad I am to have finally broken off the winter shackles of a 6mm suit, hood and mitts. I felt like a man reborn today and seemed to be popping up quicker too!
Saw rattz and aran, malc and gitto out the back and enjoyed a few fun sized 2-3ft and clean.
The sun was shining and a light offshore made it really nice. Nothing huge but some fun drops occasionally and a few nice rights to be had. High pressure coming into play now so doubt I'll get wet tomorrow but never say never!
Kev, Larry and James scored a nice Gower reef on Thursday at 6ft and had a great time by all accounts with Kev having one spectacular crowd pleasing wipeout. Great stuff! :)
Waves: 1.2 m
Period: 10.8 seconds
Winds:Light SE
Tides: 2 hours before high
It's been a fun week for surf - three surfs in three days can't be bad and I actually feel paddle fit at least :)
After my paddleathon on Weds night I opted for Rest Bay last night and bumped into 'the plough' as I parked up. I'd not seen him in ages and it turns out he's still living in Bristol but now working at a male topless waiter in some dodgy bar in Barry?! I bet his parents don't know...
We wandered down to surf an average looking Rest Bay around 6pm and ended up finding some extremely enjoyable walls to bash. Despite the wind which eventually dropped and swng from light onshore to light offshore, the wave faces were actually pretty glassy.
The rip was as annoying as ever but I did my best to take tactical lefts and try to stay as close to golf as possible.
Saw a few of the WCSC crew out - Brad, Tom Blythe, Mat Hapgood, Steve Horn etc and we all had a good craic in fun surf.
Although a bit crumbly at times, the waves were quite fast on the inside bowls and allowed for a few manoeuvres to be unleashed. My first wave was a late head high left on which a koo proceeded to drop in, fall off and narrowly miss decapitating me.
I had a few words, he asked if I was okay and then proceeded to hoot like a maniac as he paddled off for more, clearly stoked at catching a wave and getting pummelled. Welcome to Rest - LOL
The only fly in the ointment was a sponger on my last wave who not only dropped in but turned around to look at me as I called him off and carried on going until I practically speared him up the ass! ;) cheeky so and so...
But my first 3 waves were better than anything I'd had in 2.5hrs on Weds night so I left the water a happy man!
Friday morning and stoked grandad salutes the surf!
Wave Height :1.1 m
Wave Period: 11 seconds
Winds: Light SE
Tides: 2 hours before high
Still keen for more I did the early today and donned my Spring suit with no gloves or good for the first time. A bit of a gamble but it paid off nicely although I was trying to avoid duckdiving at all costs on the paddle out!
I can't tell you how glad I am to have finally broken off the winter shackles of a 6mm suit, hood and mitts. I felt like a man reborn today and seemed to be popping up quicker too!
Saw rattz and aran, malc and gitto out the back and enjoyed a few fun sized 2-3ft and clean.
The sun was shining and a light offshore made it really nice. Nothing huge but some fun drops occasionally and a few nice rights to be had. High pressure coming into play now so doubt I'll get wet tomorrow but never say never!
Kev, Larry and James scored a nice Gower reef on Thursday at 6ft and had a great time by all accounts with Kev having one spectacular crowd pleasing wipeout. Great stuff! :)
Thursday 7 April 2011
A river runs through it
Waves: 1.3m
Period: 13.7 secs
Wind: Light SSE
That's how the rip felt last night @ sker!
Still it was a lovely evening and I shared the waves with only one other surfer for a while before the after work crowd turned up. The waves ranged from 3-4ft with shifting peaks, the odd rogue set and lots of pristine waves on offer but always one step ahead of gull!
The first few waves were nice. Fast, punchy bowling rights. Short rides but steep jacking take offs made for plenty of fun drops.
Then we had some glass as the waves almost went oily for a time, then back to a bit more chop but clean waves on the face and so it went on getting bigger, dropping off a bit as the tide pushed in.
I felt like I was chasing ghosts but caught enough to keep me happy - just but came away feeling like I'd beeb slightly mugged again. I was determined to try and catch one big set wave before I left and by the time I did, it just turned into a nice drop and then deep water.
One guy paddled out, sat next to me and the took a lovely 4ft right which I'd been waiting for and paddling after for about 30 mins. He had a really nice long ride and that kind of summed up my session - always in the wrong spot. He didn't catch many more waves though but it's just down to luck some days.
The far left was cranking, with some lovely jacking lefts barreling through but again, tricky to catch and noone really nailed them. Ianto had a few nice drops though.
Will snagged a couple of nice barrels on his lid though and seemed to be enjoying himself. Aran & Chris lookde to be having a similar session to me, surrounded by perfect waves but paddling their socks off trying to ride one!
An odd session but nice to get in and I had a good 2.5 hrs paddling so I'm one step closer to getting my surf fitness back :)
The wind was on it a bit today with WSW first thing but it looks like it's cleaning up now on the dropping tide:
Waves: 1.3m
Period: 11.8
Wind: Light to moderate WSW
Period: 13.7 secs
Wind: Light SSE
That's how the rip felt last night @ sker!
Still it was a lovely evening and I shared the waves with only one other surfer for a while before the after work crowd turned up. The waves ranged from 3-4ft with shifting peaks, the odd rogue set and lots of pristine waves on offer but always one step ahead of gull!
The first few waves were nice. Fast, punchy bowling rights. Short rides but steep jacking take offs made for plenty of fun drops.
Then we had some glass as the waves almost went oily for a time, then back to a bit more chop but clean waves on the face and so it went on getting bigger, dropping off a bit as the tide pushed in.
I felt like I was chasing ghosts but caught enough to keep me happy - just but came away feeling like I'd beeb slightly mugged again. I was determined to try and catch one big set wave before I left and by the time I did, it just turned into a nice drop and then deep water.
One guy paddled out, sat next to me and the took a lovely 4ft right which I'd been waiting for and paddling after for about 30 mins. He had a really nice long ride and that kind of summed up my session - always in the wrong spot. He didn't catch many more waves though but it's just down to luck some days.
The far left was cranking, with some lovely jacking lefts barreling through but again, tricky to catch and noone really nailed them. Ianto had a few nice drops though.
Will snagged a couple of nice barrels on his lid though and seemed to be enjoying himself. Aran & Chris lookde to be having a similar session to me, surrounded by perfect waves but paddling their socks off trying to ride one!
An odd session but nice to get in and I had a good 2.5 hrs paddling so I'm one step closer to getting my surf fitness back :)
The wind was on it a bit today with WSW first thing but it looks like it's cleaning up now on the dropping tide:
Waves: 1.3m
Period: 11.8
Wind: Light to moderate WSW
Wednesday 6 April 2011
New swell
Looks like we've got a few dyas of decent surf comnig up before high pressure comes to the party and spoils eeverything!
The swell is 3-4ft and winds are light Southerly so it looks like I'll be surfing after work today :)
Nice pics from Hugh @ Porthcawlsurf today:
The wave period was nudging 11 seconds earlier with a 1.7m swell and hardly a breath of no wind but time was not on my side this morning.
Might see some of you in later!
The swell is 3-4ft and winds are light Southerly so it looks like I'll be surfing after work today :)
Nice pics from Hugh @ Porthcawlsurf today:
The wave period was nudging 11 seconds earlier with a 1.7m swell and hardly a breath of no wind but time was not on my side this morning.
Might see some of you in later!
Last weekend
Mixed bag of late. Friday evening was okay for a quick dip @ coney...yes coney. I snagged one or two okay rides but my best was probably a left which held up long enough to whack the lip a couple of times despite some kook paddling right across me dressed in a rather severe looking helmet - and no it wasn't Hazel! This was a bloke.
My next session was on the Saturday at Rest Bay. The sun was blazing and although onshore, the wave faces looked clean. I bumped into Agger son the walk down so we paddled out together near the golf course.
You could see it was a hefty swell by the number of surfers actually out the back - very few! Most were being wshed up on the inside amongst the mountains of white water.
I joked to Aggers that I'd come back and find him in half an hour but he had the last laugh! He set off first and I followed after a quick warm up. What followed was a shoulder burning 20 min endurance as I battled wave after wave of white water smashing down on me, every time I mistakenly thought I'd made some progress!
There was no out the back, just different areas of breaking wave which got quite frustrating as I couldn't actually see where I was paddling to - no end point!
I almost felt like giving up and had aggers not made it, prob would have gone in and tried further down but I persevered and eventually found my spot in the lineup. There weren't many faces, prob only 6 or 7 guys out there and I bumped into Tristan, Greg Hill and Rhino.
The waves were qute chunky, not massive ( 4ft+ on sets) but had plenty of underlying power and I had a few nice big drops, just about hanging on and making something of a ride out of them before the tide got too full. Great fun though and the biggest I've been out in in ages so well worth it.
My next session was on the Saturday at Rest Bay. The sun was blazing and although onshore, the wave faces looked clean. I bumped into Agger son the walk down so we paddled out together near the golf course.
You could see it was a hefty swell by the number of surfers actually out the back - very few! Most were being wshed up on the inside amongst the mountains of white water.
I joked to Aggers that I'd come back and find him in half an hour but he had the last laugh! He set off first and I followed after a quick warm up. What followed was a shoulder burning 20 min endurance as I battled wave after wave of white water smashing down on me, every time I mistakenly thought I'd made some progress!
There was no out the back, just different areas of breaking wave which got quite frustrating as I couldn't actually see where I was paddling to - no end point!
I almost felt like giving up and had aggers not made it, prob would have gone in and tried further down but I persevered and eventually found my spot in the lineup. There weren't many faces, prob only 6 or 7 guys out there and I bumped into Tristan, Greg Hill and Rhino.
The waves were qute chunky, not massive ( 4ft+ on sets) but had plenty of underlying power and I had a few nice big drops, just about hanging on and making something of a ride out of them before the tide got too full. Great fun though and the biggest I've been out in in ages so well worth it.
Thursday 31 March 2011
DOG boarding
It's finally swung onshore...
But fear not! especially if you own a dog.
Check out this awesome video:
I'm off to buy a pooch right now. I'm thinking start with something smaller as I'm not a good skater?
But fear not! especially if you own a dog.
Check out this awesome video:
Dogboarding from DANIELS on Vimeo.
I'm off to buy a pooch right now. I'm thinking start with something smaller as I'm not a good skater?
Tuesday night
I had arranged to meet up with Aran in the morning for a pre work surf but my gut was telling to hang on so I did. Aran made do with 1-2ft on the drop and for him to say it was shit really puts it into perspective! ;)
The wave period was fluctuating between 15 and 18 seconds but the wave buoys were still only registering a couple of feet...
Luckily my gamble paid off and I finished early to squeeze in a quick hour before dad duties commenced.
I got down to Rest Bay just as the tide turned and passed two grinning surfers who'd been over surfing over by golf for the last 3 hours. I stood and watched, weighing up my options - main beach, over the reef a bit or walk on a bit. I walked on...
A guy took off on a lovely A frame peak and proceeded to milk it for all it was worth trough to the inside, hitting lips and nailing some nice cutbacks and my walk rapidly turned into a run!
Lovely clean lines rolled through and 3 guys sat, spread out on a couple of lovely looking peaks breaking to the left of the ledges.
My first wave was a corker, a long fast right taking me a long way inside with speed and power - the best wave I'd ridden in months. So nice to have something bigger than 2ft which is all we've been getting lately.
The rip was a mare and dragging me left and I was constantly aware of how little time I had and reminding myself not to take any of the lefts even though they were so perfect as I didn't want to waste time paddling back!
The wind remained light offshore, barely a breath though and I picked off a few more long rights, racing the face and occasionally busting into the lip before it shut down. Great fun but I could have done with a faster board!
I paddled in not long after it turned and the waves dropped in size which was a good way to end it. My fitness is still poor so I'm off swimming now!
It won't be long before we can shed the old winter rubber though and the water is warming up nicely, currently nudging 8 deg C.
The wave period was fluctuating between 15 and 18 seconds but the wave buoys were still only registering a couple of feet...
Luckily my gamble paid off and I finished early to squeeze in a quick hour before dad duties commenced.
I got down to Rest Bay just as the tide turned and passed two grinning surfers who'd been over surfing over by golf for the last 3 hours. I stood and watched, weighing up my options - main beach, over the reef a bit or walk on a bit. I walked on...
A guy took off on a lovely A frame peak and proceeded to milk it for all it was worth trough to the inside, hitting lips and nailing some nice cutbacks and my walk rapidly turned into a run!
Lovely clean lines rolled through and 3 guys sat, spread out on a couple of lovely looking peaks breaking to the left of the ledges.
My first wave was a corker, a long fast right taking me a long way inside with speed and power - the best wave I'd ridden in months. So nice to have something bigger than 2ft which is all we've been getting lately.
The rip was a mare and dragging me left and I was constantly aware of how little time I had and reminding myself not to take any of the lefts even though they were so perfect as I didn't want to waste time paddling back!
The wind remained light offshore, barely a breath though and I picked off a few more long rights, racing the face and occasionally busting into the lip before it shut down. Great fun but I could have done with a faster board!
I paddled in not long after it turned and the waves dropped in size which was a good way to end it. My fitness is still poor so I'm off swimming now!
It won't be long before we can shed the old winter rubber though and the water is warming up nicely, currently nudging 8 deg C.
Monday 28 March 2011
The surf returns
Apologies I've either been injured or it's be flat of late so not blogged in a while but I managed a couple of surfs last week - I say surfs, they were more like paddles.
Monday was okay from what I remember, small, 1-2ft but super clean and then tiny on Tues when I dragged Steve Beach out of his lair for a paddle @ sker but by the time he arrived it had dropped to a weak 1 ft so we weren't in for long!
I prob should have hit Gower as it would have been classic at a certain outer reef break but I couldn't find anyone to come with me so decided to save it for another time.
The rest of my week off was spent painting the garage...but at least the sun was out and I basked in the balmy 17 degrees ;)
A weak low pushed in over the weekend and we all got very excited. I had a quick look on saturday as I was passing and spotted lines and a 2ft wave with a few longboarders on it.
Stunned I pegged it home to grab my stuff, drove back and ran down to find it was virtually flat?! Undeterred I paddled out and tried to ride a few stupidly shallow ones over the reef but ended up going for a paddle instead.
Up early on sunday to watch the 1ft wave on the cam gradually build @ Rest Bay so I hit my local spot early.
Not expecting much I found a nice fun 2ft wave with only 3 guys in and spent the next 2 hours chasing everything that came my way; surfing myself into the ground.
I scored a couple of cheeky head dips for my troubles and by 11.30am was well and truly done. The crowd had descended, including the annoying SUP'r hogging everything! so I was happy to call it a day.
I hit Rest with the family later and was surprised to see the surf had picked up. It looks ok today too and with the clocks springing forwards, we can all enjoy after work surfs from now on :)
Monday was okay from what I remember, small, 1-2ft but super clean and then tiny on Tues when I dragged Steve Beach out of his lair for a paddle @ sker but by the time he arrived it had dropped to a weak 1 ft so we weren't in for long!
I prob should have hit Gower as it would have been classic at a certain outer reef break but I couldn't find anyone to come with me so decided to save it for another time.
The rest of my week off was spent painting the garage...but at least the sun was out and I basked in the balmy 17 degrees ;)
A weak low pushed in over the weekend and we all got very excited. I had a quick look on saturday as I was passing and spotted lines and a 2ft wave with a few longboarders on it.
Stunned I pegged it home to grab my stuff, drove back and ran down to find it was virtually flat?! Undeterred I paddled out and tried to ride a few stupidly shallow ones over the reef but ended up going for a paddle instead.
Up early on sunday to watch the 1ft wave on the cam gradually build @ Rest Bay so I hit my local spot early.
Not expecting much I found a nice fun 2ft wave with only 3 guys in and spent the next 2 hours chasing everything that came my way; surfing myself into the ground.
I scored a couple of cheeky head dips for my troubles and by 11.30am was well and truly done. The crowd had descended, including the annoying SUP'r hogging everything! so I was happy to call it a day.
I hit Rest with the family later and was surprised to see the surf had picked up. It looks ok today too and with the clocks springing forwards, we can all enjoy after work surfs from now on :)
Friday 11 March 2011
Tsunami hits Japan
Breaking news on BBC and the rest of the world currently as Japan is struck by a earthquake and 10m high tsunami.
The footage is incredible as ever, almost unbelievable as we're so used to Hollywood cgi special effects.
Watching a mountain of water complete with flames steadily marching inland carrying everything includng fire in it's wake is quite startling to see.
I watched earlier in disbelief as water as far as you could see moved steadily inland through fields, as cars oblivious to the danger drove along nearby roads as the sleeping giant moved ever closer.
I'm not sure if the wave being featured is the actual wave or waves generated afterwards but they are insanely clean, barrelling left and right as they head towards the coast. More to come as both bigger and smaller islands prepare themselves for a hit from NZ to Mexico. I hope everyone stays safe.
You can only imagine how the indonesians are feeling right now. It must be terrifying especially if you live on a low lying island out at sea and have nowhere to flee to.
I probably shouldn't type this but after the initial shock of seeing the Tsunami hitting my thoughts turned to the dolphin and whale populations which are mercilessly persecuted by Japanese fishing fleets.
So I checked where the infamous 'Cove' fishing village - Taiji is located - much further to the south but I wonder now, if our oceans are a little safer for our marine life, for a few years at least?
The footage is incredible as ever, almost unbelievable as we're so used to Hollywood cgi special effects.
Watching a mountain of water complete with flames steadily marching inland carrying everything includng fire in it's wake is quite startling to see.
I watched earlier in disbelief as water as far as you could see moved steadily inland through fields, as cars oblivious to the danger drove along nearby roads as the sleeping giant moved ever closer.
I'm not sure if the wave being featured is the actual wave or waves generated afterwards but they are insanely clean, barrelling left and right as they head towards the coast. More to come as both bigger and smaller islands prepare themselves for a hit from NZ to Mexico. I hope everyone stays safe.
You can only imagine how the indonesians are feeling right now. It must be terrifying especially if you live on a low lying island out at sea and have nowhere to flee to.
I probably shouldn't type this but after the initial shock of seeing the Tsunami hitting my thoughts turned to the dolphin and whale populations which are mercilessly persecuted by Japanese fishing fleets.
So I checked where the infamous 'Cove' fishing village - Taiji is located - much further to the south but I wonder now, if our oceans are a little safer for our marine life, for a few years at least?
Thursday 24 February 2011
Severn Bore
We've had some huge tides recently and Sunday and Monday were no exception at 10 metres odd.
This meant that the Severn Bore would awaken from it's winter slumber, ready to be ruined by kayakers once again;)
Loads of footage already up (check You Tube)and some saying it's the best and biggest they've seen it at certain spots.
Apart from the commentary, this clip is pretty cool as it shows a surfer at 'pylons' calmly stepping off the bank into the incoming bore wave at the very last minute and surfing it up river.
The surf has been pretty good and fairly clean most days this week but gradually getting smaller. It should build for the weekend though.
10 days since I hurt my back and still no sign of me getting back into the water. The doctor reckoned I could be out for up to a month but I'm aiming for 3 weeks...
In the meantime I'll keep on snapping.
This meant that the Severn Bore would awaken from it's winter slumber, ready to be ruined by kayakers once again;)
Loads of footage already up (check You Tube)and some saying it's the best and biggest they've seen it at certain spots.
Apart from the commentary, this clip is pretty cool as it shows a surfer at 'pylons' calmly stepping off the bank into the incoming bore wave at the very last minute and surfing it up river.
The surf has been pretty good and fairly clean most days this week but gradually getting smaller. It should build for the weekend though.
10 days since I hurt my back and still no sign of me getting back into the water. The doctor reckoned I could be out for up to a month but I'm aiming for 3 weeks...
In the meantime I'll keep on snapping.
Tuesday 22 February 2011
It's pumping
Who cares if Sunny Garcia goes to the slammer again when the surf is so good?!
Swell: 1.5m
Period: 13 seconds
Winds: V.light E winds
Sea Temp: 6.5 deg C
It may be a bit foggy out there but the coast is groomed with pleasant looking corduroy lines. Get on it!
Swell: 1.5m
Period: 13 seconds
Winds: V.light E winds
Sea Temp: 6.5 deg C
It may be a bit foggy out there but the coast is groomed with pleasant looking corduroy lines. Get on it!
Monday 21 February 2011
The swell run continues
Well I thought 2010 was a good winter but 2011 seems to be going one better currently!
Waves all weekend again and offshore winds with a good wave period?!
I was down the beach for a walk with family & friends on Saturday and watched a few guys messing about in fun 2-3ft glassy stuff.
The sun was out and it felt like a spring day until we were swamped by sea fog which came in thick and fast. Within 10 minutes you couldn't even see the sea but surfers continued arriving and I expect it got rather nice just before high tide.
Harv did an early at the local and reported 3ft glassy tubes so that'll be 2ft then! ;)
Half way along the beach we came across a weird bubbling pool which resembled a load of trapped sand eels in a puddle but was actually more like a hot spring without the heat.
Apparently they're quite common down there - although I've never seen it before and it's caused by fresh water being trapped under a layer of gravel under the sand. I'm a bit light on the science there but it's a rough explanation.
Sunday continued to pump although I didn't see any surf but the buoy data was 1.5m, 13-14 secs period and offshore winds so I imagine it was rather good. Werg reported 4-5ft at the local spot and really nice until the wind picked up.
I went 'swalking' instead (swimming/walking)and had a good time with antje & fin down at the local pool.
It's ooking good out there this morning with plenty of lines at high tide and clean offshore conditions again - we've had about 6 days on the trot now!
There's more swell on the way this week but we're set to lose the se winds shortly as the wind veers more sw from weds onwards and then nw for the weekend.
I just hope my back continues to mend so I can get in at the weekend. Fingers crossed x
Waves all weekend again and offshore winds with a good wave period?!
I was down the beach for a walk with family & friends on Saturday and watched a few guys messing about in fun 2-3ft glassy stuff.
The sun was out and it felt like a spring day until we were swamped by sea fog which came in thick and fast. Within 10 minutes you couldn't even see the sea but surfers continued arriving and I expect it got rather nice just before high tide.
Harv did an early at the local and reported 3ft glassy tubes so that'll be 2ft then! ;)
Half way along the beach we came across a weird bubbling pool which resembled a load of trapped sand eels in a puddle but was actually more like a hot spring without the heat.
Apparently they're quite common down there - although I've never seen it before and it's caused by fresh water being trapped under a layer of gravel under the sand. I'm a bit light on the science there but it's a rough explanation.
Sunday continued to pump although I didn't see any surf but the buoy data was 1.5m, 13-14 secs period and offshore winds so I imagine it was rather good. Werg reported 4-5ft at the local spot and really nice until the wind picked up.
I went 'swalking' instead (swimming/walking)and had a good time with antje & fin down at the local pool.
It's ooking good out there this morning with plenty of lines at high tide and clean offshore conditions again - we've had about 6 days on the trot now!
There's more swell on the way this week but we're set to lose the se winds shortly as the wind veers more sw from weds onwards and then nw for the weekend.
I just hope my back continues to mend so I can get in at the weekend. Fingers crossed x
Friday 18 February 2011
Classic days
Saturday
Wave Period: 16.8 seconds
Winds: Moderate E going SE
Swell: 1.5m
Swell Direction: 259 degrees, spread 12-25
Sunday
Wave Period: 14 seconds
Winds: SE, variable but mainly light
Swell: 1.2m
Swell Direction: 259 degrees, spread 20-30
There's been lot's going on here recently with back to back days of classic surf hitting the south coast of Wales. It's more than made up for the disastrous start to the winter we had back in December 2010 with weeks of nothingness.
My back is still too sore to surf on so I dusted off the old 'photographic machine' and got up up early, seeking out perfection. I'd booked 2 days off specifically to go surfing but taking photos of surf is the next best thing I guess.
I didn't have to travel too far to fin perfection though as it was on my doorstep. I couldn't be bothered driving for hours (Porlock, Lynmouth, Caravan Point etc) when it was so good locally, and there were certain spots I was keen to capture.
The surf ranged from 3-8ft but one thing was consistent throughout - the quality and wave shape. Yesterday morning, Rest Bay was about as good as it gets with mechanical peeling waves throwing barrels every which way. The wind was light offshore and even the sun was shining.
There are some spots around here that I have surfed religiously for years on end but never found time to photograph them as I'm too busy surfing them, so it was nice to redress the balance.
I did find it hard watching my old local going off yesterday at 4-6ft+ though and willing surfers to paddle harder and catch a few big ones!
Driving around in the mornings I also spied waves I'd never seen break before - wild sandbars miles out at sea in the Bristol Channel throwing up hollow surf-able waves, providing you had a boat handy.
I hope you enjoy the pics and I'm hoping to sell one or two as I'm a bit skint at the moment! So if you're interested, drop me a line in the comments or email me at mart.aaron@gmail.com :)
If you're on Facebook then you can see more photos here.
Other stuff before I forget - we had a really useful AGM meeting at the local surf club on Tuesday evening and are actively looking to recruit new members, get some fresh ideas and bring the club kicking and screaming into the new Millenia!
I've been appointed 'media something or other' to the club committee so will be voicing my opinions and ideas regularly but it would nice to see some new faces and 'old faces' coming along for a beer and a chat. We should have some good 'fun' events lined up this summer.
So if you're wondering what we do, look us up on Facebook - WCSC or pop along on March 1 at 7.30pm in the Salthouse Bar, Porthcawl.
The Severn Bore is set to fire this Sunday with a 4* Bore and good swell running but the wind is going to be SE...
Expect the usual crowds and carnage though but with the forecast looking so nice, perhaps most surfers will opt for some salt this weekend instead?
Here are some low-res versions of some of the pics I've taken over the last 48 hours. Enjoy!
Wave Period: 16.8 seconds
Winds: Moderate E going SE
Swell: 1.5m
Swell Direction: 259 degrees, spread 12-25
Sunday
Wave Period: 14 seconds
Winds: SE, variable but mainly light
Swell: 1.2m
Swell Direction: 259 degrees, spread 20-30
There's been lot's going on here recently with back to back days of classic surf hitting the south coast of Wales. It's more than made up for the disastrous start to the winter we had back in December 2010 with weeks of nothingness.
My back is still too sore to surf on so I dusted off the old 'photographic machine' and got up up early, seeking out perfection. I'd booked 2 days off specifically to go surfing but taking photos of surf is the next best thing I guess.
I didn't have to travel too far to fin perfection though as it was on my doorstep. I couldn't be bothered driving for hours (Porlock, Lynmouth, Caravan Point etc) when it was so good locally, and there were certain spots I was keen to capture.
The surf ranged from 3-8ft but one thing was consistent throughout - the quality and wave shape. Yesterday morning, Rest Bay was about as good as it gets with mechanical peeling waves throwing barrels every which way. The wind was light offshore and even the sun was shining.
There are some spots around here that I have surfed religiously for years on end but never found time to photograph them as I'm too busy surfing them, so it was nice to redress the balance.
I did find it hard watching my old local going off yesterday at 4-6ft+ though and willing surfers to paddle harder and catch a few big ones!
Driving around in the mornings I also spied waves I'd never seen break before - wild sandbars miles out at sea in the Bristol Channel throwing up hollow surf-able waves, providing you had a boat handy.
I hope you enjoy the pics and I'm hoping to sell one or two as I'm a bit skint at the moment! So if you're interested, drop me a line in the comments or email me at mart.aaron@gmail.com :)
If you're on Facebook then you can see more photos here.
Other stuff before I forget - we had a really useful AGM meeting at the local surf club on Tuesday evening and are actively looking to recruit new members, get some fresh ideas and bring the club kicking and screaming into the new Millenia!
I've been appointed 'media something or other' to the club committee so will be voicing my opinions and ideas regularly but it would nice to see some new faces and 'old faces' coming along for a beer and a chat. We should have some good 'fun' events lined up this summer.
So if you're wondering what we do, look us up on Facebook - WCSC or pop along on March 1 at 7.30pm in the Salthouse Bar, Porthcawl.
The Severn Bore is set to fire this Sunday with a 4* Bore and good swell running but the wind is going to be SE...
Expect the usual crowds and carnage though but with the forecast looking so nice, perhaps most surfers will opt for some salt this weekend instead?
Here are some low-res versions of some of the pics I've taken over the last 48 hours. Enjoy!
Tuesday 15 February 2011
"I never promised you a wave garden..."
But here it is! Thanks to Neil Law for the heads up on this insane wave garden development idea:
Check out the videos.
http://www.wave-garden.com/
Check out the videos.
http://www.wave-garden.com/
Monday 14 February 2011
The Elusive Tsunami - a weekend of comps
Got up early on Saturday to a solid swell pounding the South Coast. There was a 14ft swell and decent period so I checked the point and was surprised to find no-one on it. The sets were swinging wider than normal but it was nudging 4ft+ on sets and I was keen to see if my ankle would hold for the Tsunami Cup on Sunday.
I decided to save my energy and attempt the infamous rock jump. I'd not done this one before so clambered over a few jagged rocks to find my spot.
I have to say it was pretty sketchy! and I aborted a few times as waves came crashing through but eventually committed and paddled hard out back to deeper water. I'd saved my arms a long paddle out anyway and had it to myself for a while.
Harv and Dan soon joined me and a few more as the tide pushed in including Blods who'd I'd phoned earlier and said he wasn't coming due to dad duties but there he was! I also bumped into Sam Moore who I recognised from my pics from Thursday so I'll post some more up of you tonight Sam (if you're reading this).
The point began to do it's thing after a while and a few more of the local crew arrived. It wasn't heaving but the waves weren't classic either but I snagged one or nice waves so was happy enough. Any wave that allows to hit 5 or 6 reo's on the trot can't be bad!
The Elusive Welsh Open comp was on all day at Rest Bay and was absolutely pumping by all accounts with some solid 8ft waves being ridden. Alex Morris' keg was still being talked about on Sunday by some of the competitors, so good to see the Pembs boys flying the flag.
Here are a few pics from local photographer Claire Beach:
Alex setting up for his barrel:
Alex coming out:
Greg Owen tearing it up:
Local lad George Schofield showed off his local knowledge and won the event:
1 George Schofield
2 Ryan Thomas
3 Harry Cromwell
4 Max Tucker
Sunday loomed and it was time for the Tsunami Cup - a charity comp organised by the Christian Surfers and WCSC.
The 8am check in time was optimistic after a Welsh rugby victory against the Scots and a few of us gathered around in the rain and mud to help set up. The comp eventually began around 10.30am when the wind had eased and the rain lightened a little.
The surf wasn't as big as Sunday but still fairly solid with no real lulls making for a hard paddle out.
Adie was as ever present making the trip up from Pembs with his mega lens to take a few shots but I think he missed my best wave right in front of him! ;)
Adie dressed in his all weather gear:
The Open heats went first and I managed to scrape a second in my first heat. I don't remember much as I was shattered after the paddle out but caught one decent right and longish left that I didn't really want but figured it would hold up and let me work the face in a half arsed fashion!
15 mins later after a quick gulp of water and some cake I was back out paddling :(
The surf was a good 4-5ft and pretty heavy on the head as I repeatedly found out in heat 2.
My tactic was to sit on a big right hand peak and try to snag some bigger ones but all I ended up doing was getting slammed on 3 consecutive waves.
The other groms in my heat all seemed to having better luck over on the lefts although one of them did lose his hood and board on one wave as his leash snapped!
Eventually I snagged one that held up and I managed 2 reo's and a floater at the end. I decided to head in after that as it was going to take me 10 mins to get out back again and I figured there was only 5 mins left!
Me on what initially looked like a good right hander turned into the close out from hell. Thanks to Adie at www.framesphotography.co.uk for the pic!
Too little too late, so I bowed out in the semis but to be honest I don't think I was fit enough to paddle back out again if I'd scraped into the final so it was a relief!
I propose that in future us 30 somethings have jetski assistance! ;)
I then went home and proceeded to fall down the stairs whilst carrying Fin, fecking my back up in the process...
Fin was okay - I managed to keep him upright as I fell but had no hands to cushion my fall, so bounced and then landed right on the stair step in my kidneys towards the bottom. Ouch.
It's a bit like Groundhog Day for injuries in my house at the moment only last week it was my ankle. I've booked Wednesday and Thursday off for surf this week, so may well be taking photos again.
I decided to save my energy and attempt the infamous rock jump. I'd not done this one before so clambered over a few jagged rocks to find my spot.
I have to say it was pretty sketchy! and I aborted a few times as waves came crashing through but eventually committed and paddled hard out back to deeper water. I'd saved my arms a long paddle out anyway and had it to myself for a while.
Harv and Dan soon joined me and a few more as the tide pushed in including Blods who'd I'd phoned earlier and said he wasn't coming due to dad duties but there he was! I also bumped into Sam Moore who I recognised from my pics from Thursday so I'll post some more up of you tonight Sam (if you're reading this).
The point began to do it's thing after a while and a few more of the local crew arrived. It wasn't heaving but the waves weren't classic either but I snagged one or nice waves so was happy enough. Any wave that allows to hit 5 or 6 reo's on the trot can't be bad!
The Elusive Welsh Open comp was on all day at Rest Bay and was absolutely pumping by all accounts with some solid 8ft waves being ridden. Alex Morris' keg was still being talked about on Sunday by some of the competitors, so good to see the Pembs boys flying the flag.
Here are a few pics from local photographer Claire Beach:
Alex setting up for his barrel:
Alex coming out:
Greg Owen tearing it up:
Local lad George Schofield showed off his local knowledge and won the event:
1 George Schofield
2 Ryan Thomas
3 Harry Cromwell
4 Max Tucker
Sunday loomed and it was time for the Tsunami Cup - a charity comp organised by the Christian Surfers and WCSC.
The 8am check in time was optimistic after a Welsh rugby victory against the Scots and a few of us gathered around in the rain and mud to help set up. The comp eventually began around 10.30am when the wind had eased and the rain lightened a little.
The surf wasn't as big as Sunday but still fairly solid with no real lulls making for a hard paddle out.
Adie was as ever present making the trip up from Pembs with his mega lens to take a few shots but I think he missed my best wave right in front of him! ;)
Adie dressed in his all weather gear:
The Open heats went first and I managed to scrape a second in my first heat. I don't remember much as I was shattered after the paddle out but caught one decent right and longish left that I didn't really want but figured it would hold up and let me work the face in a half arsed fashion!
15 mins later after a quick gulp of water and some cake I was back out paddling :(
The surf was a good 4-5ft and pretty heavy on the head as I repeatedly found out in heat 2.
My tactic was to sit on a big right hand peak and try to snag some bigger ones but all I ended up doing was getting slammed on 3 consecutive waves.
The other groms in my heat all seemed to having better luck over on the lefts although one of them did lose his hood and board on one wave as his leash snapped!
Eventually I snagged one that held up and I managed 2 reo's and a floater at the end. I decided to head in after that as it was going to take me 10 mins to get out back again and I figured there was only 5 mins left!
Me on what initially looked like a good right hander turned into the close out from hell. Thanks to Adie at www.framesphotography.co.uk for the pic!
Too little too late, so I bowed out in the semis but to be honest I don't think I was fit enough to paddle back out again if I'd scraped into the final so it was a relief!
I propose that in future us 30 somethings have jetski assistance! ;)
I then went home and proceeded to fall down the stairs whilst carrying Fin, fecking my back up in the process...
Fin was okay - I managed to keep him upright as I fell but had no hands to cushion my fall, so bounced and then landed right on the stair step in my kidneys towards the bottom. Ouch.
It's a bit like Groundhog Day for injuries in my house at the moment only last week it was my ankle. I've booked Wednesday and Thursday off for surf this week, so may well be taking photos again.
Friday 11 February 2011
Point grinders
Swell: 1.8m
Period: 16-17 seconds
Wind: Very light SW
Tide: Small tides. On the push with HT at 10.15am
I booked yesterday off well in advance of the impending swell (last week in fact) but as those of you following this blog will know, I fell out of my van on Monday morning after a swift pre-work surf whilst trying to get changed in a hurry... :(
My left foot was buried snugly in an old Ugg boot with zero support and I went right over on my ankle, squealing as I went down. I wouldn't have minded but had a crap surf too, so it was a double whammy.
The end result was that I've hobbling about this week and couldn't surf on it yesterday. Instead, I got up early and decided to take some photos and while it was painful to watch (literally) - I mind surfed plenty and took a few pics of the local crew charging, so not all bad.
A photo of a photo:
I found it quite relaxing actually, sat on a rock in the drizzle watching the tide getting closer and closer before eventually getting wet feet as a set wave swamped my slippery perch.
Technology is a weird & wonderful thing though. I stood for a while on the grass overlooking the break chatting to an old local legend by the name of 'Sinbad' who was also taking a few snaps.
I don't think he quite bought into the whole technological age thing but when I pointed out that my 18 month yr old son can use my i-phone I think he got what I was trying to say. The next generation is coming...
Staying on technology - whilst taking some shots, my phone buzzed in my pocket (yes I had a signal!). It was a mate in Porthcawl on the line telling me who good the surf was. He could "hear it outside his front door".
To which I replied: "Yes, I know, I'm sat down here right now taking photos of it!" just as I missed a perfect set rolling through...
Despite the rain and fog, the wind held off and we were greeted with clean, (at times glassy) 3-4ft+ surf with the odd bigger set pushing through.
Rhino in the barrel:
Rhino was all over it as usual and gave 100% to every wave, snagging a few nice barrels for his troubles and making out of almost everyone, bashing his way out of whatever exit was available.
Blods was out there too not really getting into it and texted me to "delete all shots" ;) but nevertheless I managed to snag him on a couple of half decent waves:
Greg and Ezra turned up as I was leaving and I managed to get one of Greg landing a nice floater so will upload that one later.
He enjoyed it so much he surfed Aberavon in the afternoon and has prob pulled/torn a stomach muscle for his troubles as I bumped into him in the doctors surgery last night.
Wave etiquette on the point seemed to be good yesterday. I only saw one drop in! so it was nice to see waves being ridden rather than wasted and one guy out there on fish was getting some really long rides by sitting a little bit wider than the inside pack.
Rhino reo:
You cee more pics from this session on my Facebook page.
Everywhere fired yesterday. Aran and Rattz hit a local river mouth but weren't overly impressed to begin with but apparently it improved on the push delivering shoulder high waves but it was slightly more wind affected than other spots.
Meanwhile Doc and Werg scored a Gower reef at 5ft and clean and reported classic conditions - the best doc's had it since the last best he had it session of 2010 ;)
The Tsunami Cup and Elusive are on this weekend so I'm hoping to get a surf in then. Next week is looking EPIC so I might just get some at the point myself with any luck!
Other news - Gower and Welsh surfing legend PJ suffered head injuries after surfing on Gower on Wednesday. He's already had brain surgery and is doing well apparently, so hopefully he'll make a full recovery and be back ripping up Llangennith soon.
Have a nice weekend and I might see some of you down Rest Bay. Present plans are for the Tsunami Cup to run on Sunday, with the Elusive taking place on Saturday.
To enter please email info@tomandersonbooks.com with your name, age and category. It'll be £5 per category, with limited numbers.
It will still be possible to do a beach entry for the Tsunami contest IF places still exist - although only on Saturday as the draw will be done that evening.
Period: 16-17 seconds
Wind: Very light SW
Tide: Small tides. On the push with HT at 10.15am
I booked yesterday off well in advance of the impending swell (last week in fact) but as those of you following this blog will know, I fell out of my van on Monday morning after a swift pre-work surf whilst trying to get changed in a hurry... :(
My left foot was buried snugly in an old Ugg boot with zero support and I went right over on my ankle, squealing as I went down. I wouldn't have minded but had a crap surf too, so it was a double whammy.
The end result was that I've hobbling about this week and couldn't surf on it yesterday. Instead, I got up early and decided to take some photos and while it was painful to watch (literally) - I mind surfed plenty and took a few pics of the local crew charging, so not all bad.
A photo of a photo:
I found it quite relaxing actually, sat on a rock in the drizzle watching the tide getting closer and closer before eventually getting wet feet as a set wave swamped my slippery perch.
Technology is a weird & wonderful thing though. I stood for a while on the grass overlooking the break chatting to an old local legend by the name of 'Sinbad' who was also taking a few snaps.
I don't think he quite bought into the whole technological age thing but when I pointed out that my 18 month yr old son can use my i-phone I think he got what I was trying to say. The next generation is coming...
Staying on technology - whilst taking some shots, my phone buzzed in my pocket (yes I had a signal!). It was a mate in Porthcawl on the line telling me who good the surf was. He could "hear it outside his front door".
To which I replied: "Yes, I know, I'm sat down here right now taking photos of it!" just as I missed a perfect set rolling through...
Despite the rain and fog, the wind held off and we were greeted with clean, (at times glassy) 3-4ft+ surf with the odd bigger set pushing through.
Rhino in the barrel:
Rhino was all over it as usual and gave 100% to every wave, snagging a few nice barrels for his troubles and making out of almost everyone, bashing his way out of whatever exit was available.
Blods was out there too not really getting into it and texted me to "delete all shots" ;) but nevertheless I managed to snag him on a couple of half decent waves:
Greg and Ezra turned up as I was leaving and I managed to get one of Greg landing a nice floater so will upload that one later.
He enjoyed it so much he surfed Aberavon in the afternoon and has prob pulled/torn a stomach muscle for his troubles as I bumped into him in the doctors surgery last night.
Wave etiquette on the point seemed to be good yesterday. I only saw one drop in! so it was nice to see waves being ridden rather than wasted and one guy out there on fish was getting some really long rides by sitting a little bit wider than the inside pack.
Rhino reo:
You cee more pics from this session on my Facebook page.
Everywhere fired yesterday. Aran and Rattz hit a local river mouth but weren't overly impressed to begin with but apparently it improved on the push delivering shoulder high waves but it was slightly more wind affected than other spots.
Meanwhile Doc and Werg scored a Gower reef at 5ft and clean and reported classic conditions - the best doc's had it since the last best he had it session of 2010 ;)
The Tsunami Cup and Elusive are on this weekend so I'm hoping to get a surf in then. Next week is looking EPIC so I might just get some at the point myself with any luck!
Other news - Gower and Welsh surfing legend PJ suffered head injuries after surfing on Gower on Wednesday. He's already had brain surgery and is doing well apparently, so hopefully he'll make a full recovery and be back ripping up Llangennith soon.
Have a nice weekend and I might see some of you down Rest Bay. Present plans are for the Tsunami Cup to run on Sunday, with the Elusive taking place on Saturday.
To enter please email info@tomandersonbooks.com with your name, age and category. It'll be £5 per category, with limited numbers.
It will still be possible to do a beach entry for the Tsunami contest IF places still exist - although only on Saturday as the draw will be done that evening.
Tuesday 8 February 2011
Too much water
Swell: 1.5m
Period: 12 seconds
Winds: Light SE wind
Water Temp: 6.6 deg C
Lovely conditions out there today. I managed to persuade my better half to take Fin to nursery today providing I got him fed, watered, clothed first - so I managed to get out the door just after 7am.
My first battle was with the elements as my van was completely frosted over with that annoying ice that's too thin to scrape off properly but set solid, so I gingerly drove off peering through a small gap in the windscreen towards the coast...
I arrived at Rest Bay to find a lumpy 4ft+ wave coming in with the occasional bigger one. I decided to check a few other spots first but ended up coming back and paddled out towards Golf over a rocky shelf.
The entry was fine but the paddle out was tough after 2 weeks of not surfing!
I actually thought for probably the first time in my life that I was going to have to turn back, defeated - but I didn't really want to do that as there were some bloody big rocks waiting to greet me inside...so I put my head down and ignored my burning jelly arms.
Eventually Huey gave me a break and offered me a brief respite, so I made it out back, pride intact. It was a beautiful day with warm sunlight bouncing off the Rest Bay Convalescent home (where Blods lives) and no other surfer near me, just gulls for company :)
I looked down to find my front zip was undone... I'd forgotten to do it up and in all the excitement, not really felt too cold either ;)
I guess that's why the Xcel Infiniti Drylock has just won best wetsuit of the year again for the 3rd year running!
The rights were coming through at a good size and perfectly formed but the tide was big and pushing hard so I was always keeping one eye on my exit down towards the boat ramp. I let the rip take me down and bumped into Sponger Harv who had stood me up - what a bitch!
Pic by porthcawlsurf.co.uk
We shared a few fun rights, working our way in to the rocks and backwash before kicking out. I caught a few but nothing special then it was time to head in.
This proved quick tricky today as the bay was full with a strong rip and waves breaking all the way. I eventually found my feet and pegged it up the boat ramp back to the van.
After a quick change I jumped out the side door in my old Uggs, causing my ankle to completely roll over onto one side. I yelped loudly, like a dog having his tail run over and hobbled around to the drivers seat knowing I might have done some damage...
So all in all, a big effort for very little reward today and a sore ankle to boot.
I hope I can surf on it tomorrow as I'm down for the Tsunami Cup on Saturday and on my current form and fitness it will be hysterically funny to watch (if I get out back!)
Ratter scored X at around 4-5 feet but nothing too special to report, meanwhile Aran & Co had 3-4ft @ Ogmore but he was suffering from 'post surf trip blues' so didn't have a good surf either, complaining about the cold water making him feel sick!
*The council have locked the top car park @ Rest Bay, so park where you can!
I also noticed that they're putting in a new board walk connecting the beach up with the main town at last so that's good news!
Gull
Period: 12 seconds
Winds: Light SE wind
Water Temp: 6.6 deg C
Lovely conditions out there today. I managed to persuade my better half to take Fin to nursery today providing I got him fed, watered, clothed first - so I managed to get out the door just after 7am.
My first battle was with the elements as my van was completely frosted over with that annoying ice that's too thin to scrape off properly but set solid, so I gingerly drove off peering through a small gap in the windscreen towards the coast...
I arrived at Rest Bay to find a lumpy 4ft+ wave coming in with the occasional bigger one. I decided to check a few other spots first but ended up coming back and paddled out towards Golf over a rocky shelf.
The entry was fine but the paddle out was tough after 2 weeks of not surfing!
I actually thought for probably the first time in my life that I was going to have to turn back, defeated - but I didn't really want to do that as there were some bloody big rocks waiting to greet me inside...so I put my head down and ignored my burning jelly arms.
Eventually Huey gave me a break and offered me a brief respite, so I made it out back, pride intact. It was a beautiful day with warm sunlight bouncing off the Rest Bay Convalescent home (where Blods lives) and no other surfer near me, just gulls for company :)
I looked down to find my front zip was undone... I'd forgotten to do it up and in all the excitement, not really felt too cold either ;)
I guess that's why the Xcel Infiniti Drylock has just won best wetsuit of the year again for the 3rd year running!
The rights were coming through at a good size and perfectly formed but the tide was big and pushing hard so I was always keeping one eye on my exit down towards the boat ramp. I let the rip take me down and bumped into Sponger Harv who had stood me up - what a bitch!
Pic by porthcawlsurf.co.uk
We shared a few fun rights, working our way in to the rocks and backwash before kicking out. I caught a few but nothing special then it was time to head in.
This proved quick tricky today as the bay was full with a strong rip and waves breaking all the way. I eventually found my feet and pegged it up the boat ramp back to the van.
After a quick change I jumped out the side door in my old Uggs, causing my ankle to completely roll over onto one side. I yelped loudly, like a dog having his tail run over and hobbled around to the drivers seat knowing I might have done some damage...
So all in all, a big effort for very little reward today and a sore ankle to boot.
I hope I can surf on it tomorrow as I'm down for the Tsunami Cup on Saturday and on my current form and fitness it will be hysterically funny to watch (if I get out back!)
Ratter scored X at around 4-5 feet but nothing too special to report, meanwhile Aran & Co had 3-4ft @ Ogmore but he was suffering from 'post surf trip blues' so didn't have a good surf either, complaining about the cold water making him feel sick!
*The council have locked the top car park @ Rest Bay, so park where you can!
I also noticed that they're putting in a new board walk connecting the beach up with the main town at last so that's good news!
Gull
Monday 7 February 2011
Storm in a tea cup
We've been battered by storms in Wales this week - so much so that my TV aerial has been blown off twice!
First the bracket snapped clean off and it was only put on last year. Then on Sat night, the main arm severed leaving me with a shortened but working aerial so it's very streamlined now and minimal now - that's minimal not MINI MAL ;)
That's what you get for living so close to the sea I guess...
The surf has been pretty bollox unless you live near a sheltered spot in which case you've prob been mobbed by surfers from all over the place!
A few have answered the call and braved Coney close-outs but I've not been inspired yet.
Lighter winds are on the way though and plenty of swell so I've decided to bide my time and took Thursday off in advance, so hope I'm right about that one...
This photo came into me at work recently. At first glance a nice shot of a storm battered lighthouse but through surfers eyes we spy something altogether more interesting.
A new app for iphone perhaps? One that transforms normal stills and film footage into surfer vision - blurring out the main, mundane detail to reveal surf potential in every frame.
Look at that clean, right hander breaking inside the sheltered cove - highly makeable too by the looks of it and it must a solid 10-15 foot as I know that the plinth alone of that lighthouse is 13ft high.
Let's power up the jet-skis :)
First the bracket snapped clean off and it was only put on last year. Then on Sat night, the main arm severed leaving me with a shortened but working aerial so it's very streamlined now and minimal now - that's minimal not MINI MAL ;)
That's what you get for living so close to the sea I guess...
The surf has been pretty bollox unless you live near a sheltered spot in which case you've prob been mobbed by surfers from all over the place!
A few have answered the call and braved Coney close-outs but I've not been inspired yet.
Lighter winds are on the way though and plenty of swell so I've decided to bide my time and took Thursday off in advance, so hope I'm right about that one...
This photo came into me at work recently. At first glance a nice shot of a storm battered lighthouse but through surfers eyes we spy something altogether more interesting.
A new app for iphone perhaps? One that transforms normal stills and film footage into surfer vision - blurring out the main, mundane detail to reveal surf potential in every frame.
Look at that clean, right hander breaking inside the sheltered cove - highly makeable too by the looks of it and it must a solid 10-15 foot as I know that the plinth alone of that lighthouse is 13ft high.
Let's power up the jet-skis :)
Thursday 3 February 2011
Dry way to hell
I've often wondered why we as surfers don't use dry suits and always assumed it was because they were just too baggy but a company in North America called Ocean Rodeo have developed one, especially for surfers which I'd definitely consider buying next time I need a steamer.
Imagine not having to wear a heavy 6mm wet, winter suit which never ever dries out, especially if you want to surf over consecutive days (rare in Wales I know!) ;)
And the dreaded 2nd session in winter - screaming as you force your way into a cold, wet, suit with a NE wind blowing straight onto your pink bits! Brrrrrrrr
The only fly in the ointment appears to be having to don 3 different layers so I'm not sure how long all that would take - a thermal, a loose inner dry and a tight outer layer.
Here's a clip of Erik Hanson wearing and surfing one in Canada - the ultimate cold water testing ground:
Imagine not having to wear a heavy 6mm wet, winter suit which never ever dries out, especially if you want to surf over consecutive days (rare in Wales I know!) ;)
And the dreaded 2nd session in winter - screaming as you force your way into a cold, wet, suit with a NE wind blowing straight onto your pink bits! Brrrrrrrr
The only fly in the ointment appears to be having to don 3 different layers so I'm not sure how long all that would take - a thermal, a loose inner dry and a tight outer layer.
Here's a clip of Erik Hanson wearing and surfing one in Canada - the ultimate cold water testing ground:
Ocean Rodeo - Surf Dry from MWyatt on Vimeo.
Wednesday 2 February 2011
Cyclone Yasi
Good news for North Australian surfers but bad news for the rest of the country as Cyclone Yasi hits Queensland.
Wind gusts of up to 125 kilometres per hour are already being felt in Cairns and Townsville, but they are expected to intensify to about 290km/hour as Yasi closes in and crosses between Innisfail and Cardwell about 11pm tonight.
Here's how BBC have covered it.
I've encountered a few over the years on various surf trips. My closest escape was in Mexico when a Category 5 like Yasi struck a few miles up the coast from where we were staying.
I'd been watching it on the weather charts and phoned the airline the day before to ask if the flight/holiday was still okay and they replied ti was all fine. I tried to explain what a Category 5 hurricane meant i.e. 'catastrophic' but they just told me not to worry about it....clueless idjuts!
Luckily it dropped to a 4 on the scale as it made landfall and although a few villages completely vanished, there was no major loss of life. The hotel had been a scene out of disaster movie with guests boarded up in the nightclub and staff having to fend for themselves in their rooms.
The beach had lost much of it's sand and the roofs which were locally weaved were being repaired but apart from that the hotel seemed fine.
Apparently lots of surfers had arrived the day before and surfed 15-20ft waves out front with the manager screaming at them to get out of the water! Surfers eh? ;)
I visited Puerto Vallarta one day and the scene there was very different. The sea walls had been destroyed, houses left in rubble and seawater damage had travelled a long way up side streets and onto the main road.
I bought a photo off a local photogrpaher which shows a 15ft wave rearing up about to break, right where I was standing on the esplanade where tourists normally go for a stroll at night.
The rest of my stay we only had 3-4ft with a fresh 6ft+ swell on the day I left which I got to surf as our flight was delayed :)
I also surfed a cyclone swell in Northern Queensland once upon a time...
I was travelling in Oz in the late 90s with a rucksack and board for company and decided to hop on a bus to Bundaberg to get some extra cash, fruit picking.
I remember wandering through town at night (as the bus arrived at some ungodly hour in the morning) - around 2am on a Friday night just as all the fights were kicking off outside.
Anyone who has been to Bundaberg knows it's not the kind of place to wander about on your own late at night.
It's a sprawling cowboy town built on the profits of sugar cane, rum and full of fruit pickers scraping a living. It also had a large contingent of drunk Aborigines with a taste for Bundy Rum (who can blame them?) who disliked backpackers (or at least did when I was there). Our hostel even got attacked and stoned one night!
Anyway...apart from a few shouts of "surfs up!" followed by laughter I made it to the hostel in once piece. It's the only place in the world where I've kept a hand on a knife - granted it was my chopping knife for cooking ;) but I figured it was better than nothing if push came to shove.
Bundaberg feels a million miles away from the surf but the coast is actually only about 8 miles away. Luckily enough I bumped into a sponger from Devon who told me a cyclone was coming and that we ought to go check out the beach and see if a wave had pushed in - I was not expecting this!
The next day we drove down to a beach, can't recall where it was but it may have been at Bargara as I notice there's a surf shop there now.
A normally flat beach had been transformed into clean 2-3ft waves - which is considered pumping in a place that normally has no surf due to the Great Barrier Reef blocking any swell.
A few weeks later I moved on and scored 3-4ft surf at a spot called Agnes Waters - which used to be considered the most northerly surfing beach in Queensland although the Barrier reef has plenty of waves...if you have a map, some balls and a boat.
Agnes Water was a strange place, arriving at first light, there's not much there apart from a few supply shops and a campsite but the little beach had surf!
The water (although brown, murky and apparently very sharky - not a good combo) was nice and warm so we surfed in boardies in the rain but I can't say I felt comfortable knowing what was swimming around underneath me. I found a nice clip of surfing here and the sea looks nice and blue?! so maybe a storm had just passed through when I surfed it causing it to discolour? Now I feel robbed...
Final clip is from Pete in Porthcawl who sent me this mad footage of guys jumping of harbour walls into pretty big surf - they've got to be Cornish!
Let's hope the cyclone loses some oompf before it makes landfall. Goodluck to any Ozzies staying put and battening down the hatches. It must be a very scary time, just waiting.
Wind gusts of up to 125 kilometres per hour are already being felt in Cairns and Townsville, but they are expected to intensify to about 290km/hour as Yasi closes in and crosses between Innisfail and Cardwell about 11pm tonight.
Here's how BBC have covered it.
I've encountered a few over the years on various surf trips. My closest escape was in Mexico when a Category 5 like Yasi struck a few miles up the coast from where we were staying.
I'd been watching it on the weather charts and phoned the airline the day before to ask if the flight/holiday was still okay and they replied ti was all fine. I tried to explain what a Category 5 hurricane meant i.e. 'catastrophic' but they just told me not to worry about it....clueless idjuts!
Luckily it dropped to a 4 on the scale as it made landfall and although a few villages completely vanished, there was no major loss of life. The hotel had been a scene out of disaster movie with guests boarded up in the nightclub and staff having to fend for themselves in their rooms.
The beach had lost much of it's sand and the roofs which were locally weaved were being repaired but apart from that the hotel seemed fine.
Apparently lots of surfers had arrived the day before and surfed 15-20ft waves out front with the manager screaming at them to get out of the water! Surfers eh? ;)
I visited Puerto Vallarta one day and the scene there was very different. The sea walls had been destroyed, houses left in rubble and seawater damage had travelled a long way up side streets and onto the main road.
I bought a photo off a local photogrpaher which shows a 15ft wave rearing up about to break, right where I was standing on the esplanade where tourists normally go for a stroll at night.
The rest of my stay we only had 3-4ft with a fresh 6ft+ swell on the day I left which I got to surf as our flight was delayed :)
I also surfed a cyclone swell in Northern Queensland once upon a time...
I was travelling in Oz in the late 90s with a rucksack and board for company and decided to hop on a bus to Bundaberg to get some extra cash, fruit picking.
I remember wandering through town at night (as the bus arrived at some ungodly hour in the morning) - around 2am on a Friday night just as all the fights were kicking off outside.
Anyone who has been to Bundaberg knows it's not the kind of place to wander about on your own late at night.
It's a sprawling cowboy town built on the profits of sugar cane, rum and full of fruit pickers scraping a living. It also had a large contingent of drunk Aborigines with a taste for Bundy Rum (who can blame them?) who disliked backpackers (or at least did when I was there). Our hostel even got attacked and stoned one night!
Anyway...apart from a few shouts of "surfs up!" followed by laughter I made it to the hostel in once piece. It's the only place in the world where I've kept a hand on a knife - granted it was my chopping knife for cooking ;) but I figured it was better than nothing if push came to shove.
Bundaberg feels a million miles away from the surf but the coast is actually only about 8 miles away. Luckily enough I bumped into a sponger from Devon who told me a cyclone was coming and that we ought to go check out the beach and see if a wave had pushed in - I was not expecting this!
The next day we drove down to a beach, can't recall where it was but it may have been at Bargara as I notice there's a surf shop there now.
A normally flat beach had been transformed into clean 2-3ft waves - which is considered pumping in a place that normally has no surf due to the Great Barrier Reef blocking any swell.
A few weeks later I moved on and scored 3-4ft surf at a spot called Agnes Waters - which used to be considered the most northerly surfing beach in Queensland although the Barrier reef has plenty of waves...if you have a map, some balls and a boat.
Agnes Water was a strange place, arriving at first light, there's not much there apart from a few supply shops and a campsite but the little beach had surf!
The water (although brown, murky and apparently very sharky - not a good combo) was nice and warm so we surfed in boardies in the rain but I can't say I felt comfortable knowing what was swimming around underneath me. I found a nice clip of surfing here and the sea looks nice and blue?! so maybe a storm had just passed through when I surfed it causing it to discolour? Now I feel robbed...
Final clip is from Pete in Porthcawl who sent me this mad footage of guys jumping of harbour walls into pretty big surf - they've got to be Cornish!
Let's hope the cyclone loses some oompf before it makes landfall. Goodluck to any Ozzies staying put and battening down the hatches. It must be a very scary time, just waiting.
Thursday 27 January 2011
Nightmare or dream?
We've had not much to sing and dance about lately. The surf has been flat too with high pressure dominating but a few have been out scoring waves in more exotic locations.
A colleague at work, passed this onto me just now and I'm not sure how old the footage is, but it's pretty insane anyway so here you go.
Night surfing at Jaws, with a head torch on... The only thing he's missing is a cup of cocoa and a good book!
High pressure is hanging around all weekend so I can't see the Tsunami Cup and Elusive comps at Rest Bay going ahead which means I can drink and be merry on Friday night after all! :)
This wave drought should be over next week, so clean up your sticks and dry out those forever damp, wetsuit boots.
A colleague at work, passed this onto me just now and I'm not sure how old the footage is, but it's pretty insane anyway so here you go.
Night surfing at Jaws, with a head torch on... The only thing he's missing is a cup of cocoa and a good book!
High pressure is hanging around all weekend so I can't see the Tsunami Cup and Elusive comps at Rest Bay going ahead which means I can drink and be merry on Friday night after all! :)
This wave drought should be over next week, so clean up your sticks and dry out those forever damp, wetsuit boots.
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