Jersey Shore Surf!

August 25, 2009

First time in the water: Ocean City, NJ
44th street. In the break between 45th and 43rd streets.

Observations: Mostly sunny. Light cloud cover, high small cirrus clouds. Above average temperatures – 70s. The sun is directly overhead. Sunlight sparkles off the wave, like diamonds in the sea. Water temperature – cold, maybe the coldest water I’ve ever been in – feels like pins, prickling / stinging my feet and hands. Wetsuit works great, offered protection from hypothermia. The stoke of wave riding kept me warm – no time to think about being cold when you are scanning the peaks on the horizon for the next perfect wave to glide down.

As I returned to the waters of Ocean City, NJ – I also reverted back to my kooky-style of surfing. With a nice sandy bottom, no coral reef to worry about destroying, no sea urchins with their nasty needles to dance around, I could just stand next to my board and wait for the waves, hop on at the last minute, paddle one or two strokes, and then hold-on tight, rise into my cobra pose, climb up from my knees to my feet and viola! Stand, surfing, for a solid 3 seconds!

Sure, my first day in the water after Rincon, PR was a bit of a let down, but only for a few seconds. As soon as I caught my first wave and rose to my feet, I only thought, in that moment, fully focused, that this was awesome! Also, I was super jazzed to find nice little 1 footers to ride at the 44th street beach. This is my beach. This is where I surf and its nice to know that on any given day, I can get out in the water. I don’t care if it is flat. I don’t care if it is cold. I don’t care if it is crowded. I know I can get out there and have fun, every time.

There are no great tales of unforgettable rides to tell after this first day. I was excited on two separate occasions to be able to take one step forward on the board in my ultimate pursuit of walking the nose. There was one moment though, when a group of birds were flying in the migratory V-formation, north along the beach toward Atlantic City. The amazing thing was this flock of about twenty birds flew just a few feet above the surface of the ocean and directly in my direction. I laid prostrate on my board and just watched as they flew over, so close I could clearly see that they were ducks. In the same frame of sight, the sun sparkled off the water creating an amazingly beautiful testament to the pure beauty of mother Earth. I was overcome with awe on top of the stoke I’d already received.

What a great day!