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waves

Surrfff!! Damn.. it’s been happenin’ around here lately. Saturday was just risickulous out at the local beachie. The kind-of day where grizzled, seasoned veterans of OB creep out of the woodwork with their trusty 8 foot rhino-chaser and gnarled, hooded wetsuit. Extra-large, seductively perfect, horridly punishing freight-train barrels roared and fired as the tide sucked out toward the end of the day. I’m sure many honorable charger sacked up and scored epic rides. Good on ya! I ended up jumping in the back seat of my friend’s truck and adventuring south in search of sculpted point or reef. Ended up surfing a new spot, an overhead, suckout, character-rich reefbreak. Good times.

This morning saw a serious decrease in oceanic energy. Lerm picked me up and we wondered around for a spell. Lerm spun yarns of his recent East-Asian sojourn. The blackened, hyper-polluted river in Humen,China. The Bladerunner-esque super-modernity of Taipei, Taiwan. The fun, surprisingly powerful surf. The ridiculous traffic scenes. Tallest building on earth. Magical dragon sculptures adorning ancient Buddhist temples. Amazing food. Strikingly beautiful women with a penchant for white men!! Hmmmm… Anyway… we eventually suited up and paddled out at a never-before-surfed-by-us San Mateo county steep-beach spot. What looked to be mellow from afar ended up being surprisingly daunting and gnarly in the water. Thick, open-ocean swells rolled in and either backed-off until exploding in the shore-pound or hammered and rifled along, sometimes offering fast, high-performance sections… sometimes… We had a good time all by our lonesome. There is so much local coastline that rarely gets surfed. If you’re bumming about the crowds at VFWs or Rockaway or the points, get out there and poke your head around corners that you’ve considered but never explored.

Surrfff!

interesting non-surf-related blog about political blogging

off the wall a few days back

mavs

Rocky sent a few photos in
niceness

local tow-in
tow

Fri and Sat were indeed burly out there, on or past the edge of comfort for such as me. Saturday was serious fun, though. Racing north pretty much by myself on the afternoon current I caught a few okay rides, got sucked out on a rip, rode a fizzler in to join a sudden knot of folks at the north end. Thought I'd hang a little outside there for a while and get a sense of how it was breaking, but right away a nice looking wave comes through, catching most of them inside, and only one guy is paddling for it---no way will he make the section that's already breaking between us. So I go for it too, and---wheeeee!!!---a surprisingly long, skittery drop for both of us. He goes left (I didn't think there was a left), and me right, with an easily doable bottom turn, and it stays burly and fast for a long, long time, the breaking part catching up to me a couple of times, brushing my head, but never overtaking me. Smile on my face for the entire trek back to the car, and then some.

Yesterday at Lindy offered several fun little rides, but I ruined it at the end by dropping in on a guy who'd been waiting patiently outside and had finally caught his just-one-more. I AM A GODDAMN KOOK!

Seems to be cleaning up, but the tide is insane . . .

Posted by: klooless at December 13, 2004 10:37 AM

Got on a boat and tooks some shots of Mav's on Friday. Great experience if you haven't had the chance.

Posted by: Bruce at December 13, 2004 10:44 AM

Excellent Klooless! I think I was in the same area as you, earlier, but only managed a swim/paddle/karma session. Fark that was hella punchy, a bit too much so in the shallows for my taste.

Yup, wind is clean, tide is crap, but aaaagggghhhhh this ridiculous time is my only hope for the day. If not the entire week. Going mad. Who cares. Charlie Brown session, heading out...

Posted by: s.s. sharkbait at December 13, 2004 10:48 AM

nice shots from the boat Bruce! possibly silly question: were you using a tripod?

Posted by: loon at December 13, 2004 10:53 AM

Another great installment from Bruce...

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 10:55 AM

These guys are thinking about 2 very different things at these moments. But, the goal is the same....


Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 11:02 AM

check out judith in the thick of things. great pics bruce....can you add a "next" button to you site so we can view like a slideshow?

Posted by: tom at December 13, 2004 11:03 AM

judith is freaking intense...

Posted by: bbr at December 13, 2004 11:04 AM

Some guys "had to work" on friday.

Judith "had to call in sick"

Know what I'm saying?

I worked......

Posted by: tom at December 13, 2004 11:06 AM

How about the random, non-wetsuit wearing, european dude that cruises the lineup down and the north end of the beach?

This guy is nuts. I was sitting out in the lineup Sat. afternoon and swims by talking about the strong current that almost pulled him around seal rock.

Crazy cold....

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 11:07 AM

Tom, I think I can answer that: Judith, although she doesn't really have a sack, she has a sack! Some others that think they have a sack, well, they don't have a sack.

As for me, my sack was in Ventura/LA.

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 11:11 AM


Yep.

Follow the cavalcade of toocoolfor surfschoolfools down the coast.
All of you packed beyond the roof with boards and Barney's. All these heads: silly naive softheads; bald headed hard assed heads in Gucci surf shades; rough cut, lambchopped side burned trustafarian heads; egg headed SF new schooler heads; preppy clean cut Abercrombie and Filth cardboard cutout human being transplant plastic square heads; ALL sporting the "new look of surfing." ACT COOL. Yeah, You surf.
Your wide Sport Utilty Vehicles, Eurovan's, Audi's, VW's, Volvo's; all with those nifty 'show off your board in "style"' racks - in blaring white letters: WISE, DA KINE, AQUA, LOOK AT ME, I SURF. Suggestion: blacken everything out or simply turn the pad covers inside out...and hide you're trendy boards - I say HIDE THEM!
What is it with you people? You have turned surfing into a roast - a blackened roast of souless plastic posturing bullshit.
Crowded? Pissed Off? You bet.
Surfing is supposed to be a soulful, was once, a soulful experience - we never brought attention to ourselves, we deflected it; we hid our cars or parked a mile away and walked - ran across highways and fields to avoid detection from then what was only us.
Now this.

Posted by: Local 415 at December 13, 2004 11:19 AM

Judith, also, prefers to keep it on the down low - just let her surf in peace....instead, talk about how cool the too-tan guy on the much-bigger-than-necessary red board is.

Saw Danny out Saturday - riding his new 6 ft wooden fish - that is way beyond craftsman in nature. 12 pound wood board that is virtually unbreakable, surfing the outer bars with stiff offshores...

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 11:32 AM

Hey D. Blake, gotta quick ? for you. whats your call for the final swell angle for this thursday friday swell? considering a roadie to a spot that likes 280 or less.

Posted by: dsx at December 13, 2004 11:49 AM

hey all.. i'm interviewing Matt Warshaw after work today.. anyone have any questions they'd like me to ask him?

Posted by: e at December 13, 2004 11:59 AM

tell warshaw he is a tranny kook exploiter and to go back to LA and take Blake with him.

Posted by: Local 415 at December 13, 2004 12:01 PM

i think bodysurfing mav's would be pretty low on my list, but plausibly fun.

but bodysurfing mav's with a huge crowd and loads of people on a peak, i think that is lower on my list.

but then again. better to die with people around than by yourself ...

jeff clark rules. but the charger rules harder

Posted by: elias at December 13, 2004 12:02 PM

Thank you local 415! One of the best posts ever on the WAY. I love this quote: "Surfing is supposed to be a soulful, was once, a soulful experience - we never brought attention to ourselves, we deflected it; we hid our cars or parked a mile away and walked - ran across highways and fields to avoid detection from then what was only us. Now this."

Posted by: 3to5setsof7 at December 13, 2004 12:06 PM

WHO ARE YOU? Yeah, why IS it that people put stickers all over the back of their car advertising their hobbies' products? Do they have stock in the company or some interest in their financial gain? Or maybe they really identify with their corporate images/reputation or current ad campaigns? Something like, "hey world-- I'm a Volcom kind of guy" Or maybe it's a type of shorthand for who people see themselves as, like a "Roxy/surfer" or a "Fox/motocrosser." I really like Stanley Kubrick movies and fresh garlic in my spaghetti sauce, but Aleks down at Aqua told me they don't have stickers for those kinds of things. Damn.

Posted by: cadaver at December 13, 2004 12:10 PM

Let's debate Uggs because I think those things are fucking stupid.

They are just Sorell's for pansies. Unless of course you go with this look:

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 12:19 PM

I happen to be a close personal friend of Matt W. whoever you are writing in as Local 415; can't you think of yer own original name? C'mon - be brave. Try a few...???
Matt and I go back a bit. He shares my views of contemporary art as it relates to surf culture. I was a bit disappointed his Encyclopedia using a lousy stock photo of the Laguna Beach Surf Culture exhibit instead of a "Surf Trip" image; all over a more meanigful exhibit attempting to define, or mark things in art history...
Hey Blake. I happen to be a native to the west indigenous person with brown skin that tans nicely in temperate sun and in the tropics. Do you have a problem with that? How about if I said something like, ' ... Blake, a native doughboy of the midwest, is a bit whiter than us natives would prefer but we like him ok..., -he can't really surf but the good thing is that at least HE TRIES'.
"Big Red" was free and is an 8'-3" monster. I agree. It sure catches waves for me though..., ease of paddling in larger surf. I'd like to get a Minami, a shrunk down version of Big Red - say, 7'-2" -3" thick kind wide with a squash. I rode a 6-10 'big guy tri' on Oahu last month - ez - no hell paddle and it fit nicely into the perfect waves. Yep. Blake. In yer face.

Posted by: B.V.B. at December 13, 2004 12:20 PM

BVB, are you crazy traveling to Hawaii in November?

What were you thinking.....

Yeah, I scored too. C. L. A. I. M. Go ahead and grill me for it. I hate 80 degree water, 83 degree air and reef breaks. Girls in bikinis kinda suck as well.

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 12:28 PM

most people believe that they need to be a "part" of something bigger.

i would like to think i am. though to be totally honest, i feel better being somewhere inbetween worlds. but, i guess that's why i have a skate mag sticker on my car and surf more than i skate now. go figure. maybe it was a spur of the moment thing. maybe i had some affinity to "thrasher" magazine. maybe it was my first magazine that i read cover to cover repeatedly. but then again maybe it was the fact that i have a whole bunch of "thrasher" stickers and needed to STICK. maybe i have friends at "thrasher" and am supporting them too by advertising. maybe i should get a "surfrider" sticker that says i care. nah, then i would be a "surfer". but that's not so bad. maybe i have a generic car and need a sticker so that my friends know where i am at all times and can crowd the lineup with me. better to die together? right? but i've resigned myself to being me, which is fun.

but it would be a good experiment to see what kind of stickers make certain connections.... like if i had a "surfrider" foundation sticker and a sticker of a "caravaggio" would i more meet more artist surfers?

but. hmm. maybe i should take the stickers off my car. or not. or put more. like "bad cop, no donut" or "420" "coche de cronic"
or dave matthews band.

hmm.. decisions.
hmmm... friday.

ok thats my thoughts. hmmm. i should get back to work.

Posted by: elias at December 13, 2004 12:29 PM

OK now hang on a minute.
This expoitation thread is such hypocrisy! And I'm on a tear, so here goes:

This blog is essentially about sharing the stoke of surfing in and around OB! That's essentially what it is about. Meaning: Discussing how fun it is to surf in the bay area and even throughout the world. If you want to do that, you may enjoy going to the niceness.org URL ...

So now we have SF "elite" (blood-line SF’ers) hanging out on this blog telling us how we should act, what we should say and not say, what NOT to drive, what our history should be...in order that we not be in the wrong group. Or perhaps to tell us how "wrong" we are "being" .... OK 415 elite – Now because of what I drive I’m not soulful like you.

By the logic of those claiming exploition than any conversation about surfing is doing harm. Ohhh, but wait, you also have to be a person who drives a certain type car or truck in order to NOT be an exploiter, ....like if you drive a sedan instead of an white econovan or 70's pickup truck then you're a yuppy and must be a tranny/exploiter. Yes, and you people that started surf shops in SF are exploiting our beach.

I wish I could be as cool as all the SF core group. But I can't, I wasn't born here and only got here in 1989. I don't qualify. I'm lesser. My friend got here in 1973 ...can he be in your club???? …please????, wait check that, I think he drives a toyota, has the wrong job, and rides the wrong board. Perhaps it’s a blood-line issue. You could get wetsuits that are white with pointy hats.

Rant over. My place of work is being taken over by Genghis Khan and I’m a little edgy.

Posted by: Jack at December 13, 2004 12:29 PM

Now I know why Kdalle left.

Good-bye.

Posted by: friend #1 at December 13, 2004 12:33 PM

if uggs stay around any longer.
i'm going to write zinc-a and try to persuade them to relaunch.

Posted by: elias at December 13, 2004 12:34 PM

Loon- no tripod, pitching boat. Braced myself in the doorway to the wheel house. Thank goodness for Canon image stabilization. Thank goodness I didn't chuck my cookies, as well.

Tom- I'll look into the slide show approach.

E- Maybe MW would comment on these discussions of the "soul of surfing" and "surf culture."

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 12:40 PM

cadaver,
who cares?
you sound kinda bitter
how about those gay little grateful-dead bears or skeletons?
or maybe, "Mean People Suck" bumper stickers?
"corporate" is such an ugly word

a lot of guys have SLAYER stickers on their cars and boards lately down at Kellys. That shit is scary as hell. Young punks listening to SLAYER, holy shiznit!!! Have you heard that type of music before? I mean those guys probably kill their young. SPOOKY!!!

Posted by: Chasey Laine at December 13, 2004 12:40 PM

BVB...why all the hate? I have nothing against people who tan easily and ride red boards that are much bigger than conditions merit...

swell angle 290 late Thursday, a mix of 285-290 for Friday...dsx, dunno how much this helps you...the storm has been moving to a more southerly angle as it approaches...so the first sets are more 290-ish, then the peak should be 285, but the fetch area is decent size, is someplace really wants a 280 it will probably work. that's the best I can do....it's gonna have a lot of juice, that's for sure.

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 12:42 PM

I'll bite E. Ask Matt W. if he has any reservations about his contribution to OB exploitation. If he could do it all over would he do it the same? I remember hearing his stoked rant on a praticurally spectacular middle of the beach day 15 years ago. A day that still is a top 10 day in my surfing exprierence. It was that perfect, uncrowded and beautiful. I still have my 6'9" coffey from that day. I have nothing but respect for him, just curious if he has any concious awareness about the impact his writing and social networking had on the surfing expereince up here in the 415. His arrival marked the begining of the SoCalification of OB, imho.

Posted by: 3to5setsof7 at December 13, 2004 12:47 PM

Dave-

That mug of BVB isnt tanned it more like weather beaten leather. That bastard surf so much the fuckin wind exfoliates his skin for him. His wife like him better that way. Soft!!! Just giving you shit BOB hope your got some good ones SAT...and hey what happened to the bagels at your place?

Posted by: pez at December 13, 2004 12:47 PM

Thanks Elias, that's a pretty good response. It could be, too, a little bit of image management or fine tuning. Some people probably end up buying cars they don't fully relate to, brand or model-wise. They walk around the back of the thing (imagining being someone else in their desired peer group, driving behind it) and think to themselves "Gee, I have some explaining to do"-- and on go a couple of carefully placed stickers, just to sorta, you know, set the record straight.

Posted by: cadaver at December 13, 2004 12:54 PM

Once again sidelined with wake-me-up-in -the-middle-of-the-night-can't-get-my-shirt-over-my-head shoulder tendonitis. So, it's learn to shoot video time.
Got myself rigged up with a 24x optical digicam, tripod, and a computer that can handle the Adobe Premier video editing package (thanks to my wife working at Adobe). Let the long, looooong learning curve begin... I got a couple short clips from OB on Sat. One was a great ride by a local ripper on a DOH+ wave and I was zoomed out too far. Argh.

Posted by: Dennis at December 13, 2004 01:07 PM

dsx - re-charted from quikscat, looks like 290-295 is better estimate than 285-290 - storm didn't migrate south today like models predicted it would...it also didn't migrate towards us as models predicted, this one is, so far, 2200+ nautical miles away and 40 ft 20 sec at the source. Hawaii is going to get an epic epic big swell on Wednesday.

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 01:17 PM

Good pics of OB from Sat at: http://www.pbase.com/chucklantz/121104ob

Posted by: tom at December 13, 2004 01:18 PM

I respect all of your opinions, but the simple fact of the matter is that if you don't listen to Slayer, you should just fucking die.

Thank you. Good day.

Posted by: Slaytanic at December 13, 2004 01:22 PM

stickers are a great way to cover dings on a window to help keep it from spreading.

weird, i had to look 4 times before i saw the uggs on that girl kaiser posted. the old bbd lyric "take off your clothes but leave on your shoes" don't apply with them things.

peterson verdict must be close, helis circling overhead.

Posted by: j at December 13, 2004 01:28 PM

j, you work in rwc?

Posted by: 3to5setsof7 at December 13, 2004 01:49 PM

Reality Check,

I will let you live due to your affinity for Slayer. However, any true Slayer fan knows that the best Pre-surf Ampage album is Reign in Blood.

And be careful of which words you choose: "speed metal" is a term reserved primarily for late-80s/early-90s bands with a fast, yet lighter edge such as (early) Metallica, (early) Megadeth, Anthrax, etc. Slayer would more accurately described as the best "Thrash" band of all time, due to a slightly heavier, crunchier tone and darker overtones. Subtle distinction, but an important one none the less.

Otherwise, terrific post.

Oh, btw, Scott Peterson = Death. Just announced.

Posted by: Slaytanic at December 13, 2004 01:50 PM

thanks D.B. I kind of figured it would stay at 285+ for most of the impact. anyway we are thinking a bit south of a military instalation. for a friday-sat-sun run. get a new flavor once and a while.

Posted by: dsx at December 13, 2004 01:51 PM

ya i agree, Slayer is awesome. ive recently been getting into death metal. I had a rancid sticker on my 67 bug once, i was younger than and the band was better. the most recent sticker i had on my car was a picture of a hot naked girl i kind of liked it there. i had to take it off though when i went to visit my parents. im thinking of getting a kellys cove local boys sticker, they sell those at wise right? maybe i missed it this weekend it was fun in tahoe. there is a new keep tahoe blue sticker i saw up there, but now the design is the lake tahoe shape in american flag colors and it says keep tahoe red white and blue, i didnt get it. E, thats cool your interviewing that dude, cant wait to read it. Judith is gnarly. and good gumption Bruce! nice shots..

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 01:52 PM

slaytanic, im not saying slayer is death metal imho

did i just use imho right? i have no idea wha that really means..

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 01:54 PM

wow death..thats crazy..OFF WITH HIS HEAD!! pretty surreal shit

thats 3

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 01:56 PM

I have no idea what "imho" means, unless it's an abbreviation for "I'm a ho".

Death Metal is fantastic as well. The best death metal bands of all time are Suffocation and Cannibal Corpse of course, but there are many others such as Deicide, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, Dying Fetus, Both Thrower, Napalm Death, Terrorizer, etc.

I have to go, but have a great day. Take care.

Posted by: Slaytanic at December 13, 2004 02:00 PM

imho = "in my honest opinion"

Posted by: Chasey Lain at December 13, 2004 02:02 PM

oh, guess i used it wrong. live and learn. thanks Chaisey..

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 02:27 PM

has anyone out there seen any of my films?

do you like my work?

Posted by: Chaisey Lain at December 13, 2004 02:33 PM

In my HUMBLE opinion, honestly.

Posted by: IMHO at December 13, 2004 02:37 PM

cadaver, i'm all for carefully placed stickers. when that car was purchased, i thought.... no stickers. but then time passed. oh well. anyway, thanks for all of the art pics.

have a good day.

Posted by: elias at December 13, 2004 02:39 PM

in the 90's, i had some snowboard company stickers on my ride. the switch mfg, sticker caused me the most grief. i was propositioned on 3 seperate occassions by fellas that had no idea that i was a proponent of step in binding technology.......

Posted by: 3to5setsof7 at December 13, 2004 03:18 PM

if you like stoner metal you should go see high on fire, best local live band "IHMO":
http://www.teepeerecords.com/highonfire/
http://highonfire.net

Posted by: bbr at December 13, 2004 03:25 PM

Mondays seem to inspire angry rants...so I thought I'd post a nice photo. The caption is inspired by Local 415: "Unridden wave at undisclosed location."

Posted by: AS at December 13, 2004 03:28 PM

Hey there Blakestah. You were talking about getting a doubler for you cam lens some time ago. Did you ever get one? I curious if it's worth the investment.

Posted by: Dennis at December 13, 2004 03:32 PM

dec 14 tue Slayer, Killswitch Engaged, Mastodon
at the Warfield, S.F. a/a $30 7pm/8pm # *** @

see ya there!

Posted by: lerm at December 13, 2004 03:41 PM

Thanks AS. And you are?? Keep it up.
The Internet loves your surfploitation pictures - great. Good job.

Blake, no hate - only venom.
3to5 has a point about Matt.

Posted by: Fred Hemmings at December 13, 2004 03:41 PM

dennis, worth the investment??? Kinda judgmental. With the doubler I can frame the surfer up close and personal. Without it I can make surfers no more than 1/4 the aperture in height.

Compare:
http://www.keck.ucsf.edu/~dblake/obwsd2002.wmv
http://www.keck.ucsf.edu/~dblake/ob112703.mov

That represents what it will do for you. It is really an art to get even half-crappy shots at that magnification without a fluid head tripod (which I obviously don't have). But a good tripod is about twice the cost of the doubler.

My camera has 25x optical and 2x doubler, but the camera can really only do about 20x zoom without really significant brightness problems in the image corners.

To get both and a decent camera, you are talking $1000 or so, and that would put you in the upper echelon of amateur hacks with digital video cameras, and several orders of magnitude below the pros.

BTW, were you out late Sat morning on the dunes? Someone was shooting right where I was surfing...

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 03:42 PM

Its Christmas time and I ask all of you to pitch in and buy me one of these....

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 03:50 PM

fred hemmings?

Posted by: goodmorning at December 13, 2004 03:51 PM

Even though i hate the negativity, good posts about stickers. Even worse are the vanity surf plates ie. lwyrsrf or srfacct or some crap.

Good meteor shower tonight by the way.

Great surf today, yesterday, and so forth down here.

Enjoy what you got when you got it.

Posted by: Hb at December 13, 2004 03:54 PM

Reality Check,

Thank you for your honest opinion on your best pre-sure ampage album by Slayer. I do have to disagree, however, that South of Heaven is a crisper album. Don't get me wrong; I LOVE "South of Heaven", especially for the noticable change of pace after "Reign in Blood". However, I would say that S.O.H. is noticably simpler in terms of production value. I think what makes it sound "crisper" is that fact that it is very stripped down with less blast beats and dueling guitar riffs, and flat out intensity. "South of Heaven" has great moments (Ghosts of War is singularly one of the best songs Slayer has done, in my opinion), but when you listen to the album on a whole, Reign in Blood simply does it for me.

Put it this way: if you are only looking at the 5-minute change in the parking lot, then maybe Mandatory Suicide or Ghosts of War is enough. But if you're driving from downtown or somewhere requiring a 20-minute+ ride, I think the continous sonic assault of Reign of Blood is more inspiring.

Also, I don't think you should downplay Paul Bostaph's role, as he did play in the band for roughly 10 years and played on 4 full-length albums. He is also definitely a big part of the band's maturation process, which I feel truly began with "Seasons in the Abyss", and continued through "God Hates Us All". There is no denying that Slayer today is not only one of the most intense bands on the planet, but also one of the most technically sound metal bands as well. However, I think Dave Lombardo's return to the band is a great decision, as he has long been considered one of the best, if not THE best, drummer in metal, and his reunification with the original members can only be a positive thing. His work with Grip Inc., Fantomas, John Zorn, and Testament has done nothing but IMPROVE his already stellar skills, and I think anyone who has seen Slayer's last two shows at the Warfield can attest to that. I'm very much looking forward to the show tomorrow night, and I'm sure he will impress.

Posted by: Slaytanic at December 13, 2004 04:00 PM

smallish, disorganized, unshapely mid-beach a hour or two ago, imho. no one out but me.

is the flyer 2 (6'4"x18.5x2.25) a good mushy-wave board for me (155lbs)? Sounds kind of narrow to me . . .

Posted by: klooless at December 13, 2004 04:03 PM

3to5 - yup, work in RWC. you?

kaiser - we all know you look better in green, i don't think that outfit will work for you.

Posted by: j at December 13, 2004 04:11 PM

Local 415 -- why don't you call whine-1-1 and they will send a wh-ambulance to your residence ASAP to pull your panties out of your ass. Who cares what the yuppies, kooks, and trannies do at the ocean? What about your soul? Your surfing? How does an Aqua rack affect your bottom turn, you big tough nor cal soul fucking guy?

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 04:13 PM

shut up and surf you whiners!

Posted by: Local FQ-U at December 13, 2004 04:14 PM

j - yes
we should take a long lunch, get baked and go for a mid day skate session one of these days.

Posted by: 3to5setsof7 at December 13, 2004 04:16 PM

That flyer II is definately a little narrow and thin IMHO but I don't know much about your size klooless. I just ordered a 6'5" Flyer 19 3/4 x 2 5/8 that I am really excited to get (god do they lag on sending out their boards, I am dyin' with the old board these days). Good for head high to a tiny bit overhead. Wanted a flyer II but those are hard to get your hands on and I already have a bunch of swallow tails. Flyer II holds way better in more solid surf from what my buddy says and he rides a 6'5" 19.5 x 2.5 flyer II. Although he did have that out at OB last week (he is an SC guy) and said he wished he had more cause the surf got bigger out of nowhere. Imagine that at OB.

I just wanna see what all the Merrick fuss is about.

Posted by: kookdom at December 13, 2004 04:16 PM

whine 1-1, nice one

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 04:19 PM

Fred Hemmings, aka Local 415: Your comments inspire me to post more shots. Thanks for the inspiration.

Posted by: AS at December 13, 2004 04:27 PM

Thanks a lot, kookdom. On the bigger or shaplier end, I'm okay for now with a shortboard (6'6"x18.75x2.5) and semigun. I am looking for a small wave board that'll catch mush, not bog down, get through weak sections, etc., but still be playful. You've confirmed my hunch that this isn't it. I'm looking used, for wifely reasons and because I don't really know what I want (so I may well run through a few used ones).

Posted by: klooless at December 13, 2004 04:37 PM

klooless, that's a ripper's shortboard in size/float. As in, when you see someone totally tear up a wave at OB, and ask him what size board he is riding, if he is around your weight he is prolly on a board not too different from that one in size/float/width etc. I guess it depends on your goals, someone like Christian will ride boards like that to the outer bars, but most folk that were never competition surfers ride slightly bigger boards...but that size can definitely work for someone your weight.

The fuss about Merricks is about the thrill of riding shapes by the guy who shapes for Slater and Curren, and the extra $200 gone from your wallet. You want a good competition style shortboard, there are good options around, Schultze, Coffey, Rasche for three examples. Tim Gras for that extra underground uber-ripper look. Jeff Clark. Shawn Rhodes. All as good as a Merrick under your feet for close to $200 less.


Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 04:38 PM

AS, dont listen to Whiney Mc Whinestein..i for one am stoked on your photos..i love to make my friends down south jealous, as they have the ability to make me jealous the rest of the 9 months of the year..

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 04:40 PM

forget all of the other whining, i want to whine about not being J and having the opportunity to go burn with 3to5 and skate during lunch!!! damn that sounds nice.

i grew up in Foster City and was born in RC. FC baby!

Posted by: Hb at December 13, 2004 04:40 PM

for Blakestah -- what is the main difference between a 17 second interval swell and a 20 second interval, besides the obvious 3 second interval? i.e. how does a 10 @ 20 stack up against a 10 @ 17 for size, power, duration? Your insight is much appreciated as I play with all the variables and try to set a course for Friday.

Posted by: Kit at December 13, 2004 04:41 PM

uuuuh wait..never mind..you got it..duh

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 04:42 PM

klooless, for a board for mushier stuff, and to carry through more flat sections, look at a wider board, and especially a wider tailed board. A board with a 15 inch tail will KILL mush for someone your weight.

There are some other designs out there that catch waves easily and carry through flat sections....

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 04:43 PM

AS - your photos are tight!

Posted by: e at December 13, 2004 04:45 PM

Actually I get the Merrick's for cost so not losing 200 bucks. Never ridden one but have ridden all types of different boards from all types of different shapers. I want to try what is touted as some of the best shaped boards in the world to decide for myself. Would also love to try out a T.Patterson too, his shapes look really nice.

Posted by: kookdom at December 13, 2004 04:52 PM

Ugh boots are pure Pismo.
Is there a bodysurfer in that Mav's pic?


SURF.

Posted by: Yellow Pismo Vega Drivin' Mullett Head at December 13, 2004 04:53 PM

Thanks, Blakestah! I will keep an eye out . . .

Kit, as to the interval/size thing, Blakestah is the expert, but this page has seemed useful to me:

http://www.stormsurf.com/page2/papers/category.html

Posted by: klooless at December 13, 2004 04:58 PM

Saw this sticker yesterday:

"Pop-outs suck, support your local shaper"

Posted by: moss_man at December 13, 2004 04:59 PM

3to5 - hit me up at nitsuj at gmail dot com and we'll definitely grab a bite and roll around RWC.

Posted by: j at December 13, 2004 05:04 PM

Reality Check,

Ironically, I went to Cal Poly as well, and I've seen "The Truth About Seafood" a couple times. Interesting. Different. I first met Paul when one Halloween when I was dressed up as "Crazy Watermelon Head" and, very, very drunk. I sat down next to him at Woodstock's and introduced myself. Very cool guy, very technical drummer. I think he got bored with Slayer's "image" at times. He mentioned once to me that they had a rule that (at the time at least) you could only wear black on stage. It makes sense, if you wish to maintain that ominous presence for 20+ years.

But, yes, Paul played in the Band from right after the Decade of Aggression tour (1992) to early 2002, where he complained of nagging elbow injuries. But shortly after quitting Slayer, Paul re-joined Testament. From what I hear, it's a much better fit for him. Paul also left the band, apparently disgruntled, for a few months in 1996/1997 and was replaced with left-handed San Francisco local drummer John Dette. If anyone saw them play at the Trocadero before it closed in 1997, John Dette was drumming for that show.

Unfortunately for Paul, no one really forgot Dave, because he was the true timekeeper for Slayer, and was more influential than anyone for the sound and tempo of Reign in Blood, their most popular album. That is apparently one of the reasons that the band recently played the entire Reign in Blood album from start to finish to end their set on their recent tours, and one of the reasons for the release of their recent DVD "Still Reigning". In at least some fashion, it was sort of a "Welcome Back" for Dave.

I agree, Chemical Warfare is a great song. That song was widely considered the fastest, heaviest song at the time of it's release. A little known fact: Aggressive Perfector which was released on the same "Captor of Sin" EP, was actually the first song Slayer song ever released, originally debuting on a compilation for Brian Slagel's label Metal Blade, which was Slayer's first label before moving to American Recordings.

Thank you, and have a pleasant, Slayerrific day.

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 05:09 PM

klooless,

i want to sell a pearson arrow 6'2, wide-tailed thruster. sounds like it might work for you. if you want to check it out or get specs, etc. drop me a line at gone2costarica at yahoo.

dave, thanks for the tips last week.

bird

Posted by: bird at December 13, 2004 05:10 PM

damn!! Slayer heads!!!

Slayer!!!

i love all the thrash and death metal band names!

if i was in a thrash band i'd call it Soft Fluffy Snugglepuss.

Posted by: e at December 13, 2004 05:13 PM

thanks klooless -- that page was helpful. aloha.

Posted by: Kit at December 13, 2004 05:19 PM

several Robert Motherwell pictures for the after hours crowd..

Posted by: cadaver at December 13, 2004 05:33 PM

Soft Fluffy Snugglepuss is a great name, but I think you'll be more successful with a name like Beheaded, Corpsegrinder, Defleshed, Gorguts, Dismembered Fetus, Pungent Stench, Internal Bleeding, Rotting Christ, etc. - those are all real death metal band names. Don't even get me started on Song Titles.

Posted by: Slaywhore at December 13, 2004 05:40 PM

Calagulated Menstrual Blood is my favorite.

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 05:42 PM

COULD ANY GENIUSES PLEASE TELL ME WHY DRIVING A FUCKING VOLKSWAGEN HATCHBACK IS FUCKING "ELITIST"???

415 and other elitists, your rules for being "Down" are so laughably corny, unfounded and anachronistic that I simply must fart in your general direction.

MONNKEY MILK (real name, thanks mom)...

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 05:53 PM





Posted by: seth s. at December 13, 2004 05:55 PM

being that I'm from san francisco, I prefer my crazy music to reference posteriors: anal cunt, assuck, assbackwards, asshole parade, etc...

Posted by: rza at December 13, 2004 05:55 PM

hey Seth,
great pics, show us some OB!!

Posted by: 415 Loco at December 13, 2004 05:57 PM

Klooless, roll the Merrick. There is nothing wrong with Merricks at all. Obviously Al got something right besides a good marketing plan to sell as many boards as he has.

Besides, look at it like this, if you don't like it, a Merrick might be one of the easiest boards to sell to someone else. When you buy a Flyer, Flyer II or whatever, everyone knows what they are buying from you if you sell it. They are proven.

Its cool to go custom and work with a shaper but it is also cool to ride a lot of different boards. If you got a hook up with Merrick at cost, you are solid as you can get a few different models and then sell them should you not like them.

I have a Flyer II I park in Hawaii. I love it. I had a MX here, I sold it and lost $50 off what I paid for it.

Posted by: Kaiser at December 13, 2004 05:59 PM

I can't believe no-one's mentioned Craigslist Brand surfboards. My car has a bumpersticker w/ a pic of a big wave gun and the words "Crgslst srfr"

Posted by: s.s. sharkbait at December 13, 2004 06:03 PM

nice cadaver and seth s

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 06:05 PM

oh thats mathew ritche, bad ass

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 06:07 PM

Open ocean swell velocity (and energy squared) is proportional to period. So, a 20 second period swell has 38% more energy than a 17 second period swell of the same height. The wavelength is also much longer (a chart on my site - see the How I predict page).

20 second period waves travel, in the open ocean, at 62 knots (swell travels at 31 knots), 17 second period swell travels at 52 knots (waves at 26 knots). The waves slow when the water gets shallower.

Longer period wavelengths tend to make the deeper water places go that much better. This is especially true of the famous big wave reef breaks that have deep water close to shore. OB has a bar that reaches fairly far out that causes swell to lense with a focus point of its energy. Longer period swells lense a lot more - energy can be extremely focussed at OB , twice as big as some spots as at others.

Longer period waves are created by stronger local winds, or by a longer period of exposure to local winds of sufficient strength (long enough for seas to develop adequately).

Can explain more over beer. Mmmmm, beer.

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 06:19 PM


Jesus H-Christ. Get a beach.

How Cadaver. Whaaaat?
Brandy perhaps Dreaver? - warm the cold chill of all this nicenessnociousness; the rememberences of our bro barrell tonight at 4-mile. Your OB friends car with the both rear windows of the Volvo sedan blasted to bits, glass everywhere the warm bolder resting in the baby seat. The roach gone.
Ouch.
Question: Why is it fucked to drive a VW Passatt?, ask Morey, you'all look down upon him because he rides a bike and doesn't care about you.
Is abstract abstract if you have to pause to think about it? Seth. Your " artful photograph documentations " (pictures) remind me of the old days. Empty waves, no hype, no jerking off off the cilff...
Boring day here South of Howard between takes with the "actors" . Fucking hard-ons (dudes) and these amateur sanfriedfriscochicks can look pretty ugly before and after! lunch for that matter. Nothing a filtered lens or the best lighting can help; I get it fed to me on the G-5 as I edit and fuck around on the www.; meanwhile cast and crew work their asses off making this first of its kind surf flick,
"Fucking The Hole of Surfing"

Look for it out next year.

Posted by: Local 415 (' Who's that cock?...' at December 13, 2004 06:23 PM

Bagel: Nice. Real nice - is that image edited?

Posted by: Agnes at December 13, 2004 06:27 PM

local 415, you forgot the mandatory blakestah dig...where's the love...I don't look down on Morey, and I sure didn't dig it when the SanFranPsycho guys made fun of him in their film.

Posted by: blakestah at December 13, 2004 06:27 PM

Anachronistic. Hmm?
Fart?

Posted by: Sally Bendover at December 13, 2004 06:29 PM

BlakeS -- thanks for the brief run-down. So basically 20 second energy travels faster and contains more energy, so when it run across a reef or shelf, cobblestones, whatever, it is going to be both taller in wave face height, faster, and more powerful. Longer hold downs.

Yet certain coastlines do better on 14-17 second energy in my experience -- not sure why 20 second energy seems to run past these somewhat sheltered coastlines.....

Thanks for your input -- much appreciated. I am still plying my formulas over here.

Posted by: Kit at December 13, 2004 06:30 PM

Morey deserves respect -- respect the Morey!!

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 06:32 PM

Hey BerkeleysingedBlakestahbrahnessness: - Do you have a promo copy of my latest filmic endeavor? You anint seen nothin' boy!!!! Yeehhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaa!!
I'm burnt on diggin'atcha. You're like that blow up-pop up punching bag thingy for 2 ft. tall kids; the more you hit it the more it bounces back.

Posted by: Local 415 at December 13, 2004 06:36 PM

drew roulette (dredg.com) this guy (and his bands music) inspired me to do my own shitty drawings..


dali poster painted on)




Posted by: seth s. at December 13, 2004 06:36 PM

Grew up with the Rouletes and all the dredg guys. Great band, great guys. Gavin is a shredder on the guitar, too bad he usually is only singing. Drew's brother Beau is a sick photographer as well. Talented guys. Check dredg out if you can, they good.

Posted by: kookdom at December 13, 2004 06:57 PM

Please don't confuse me with EMHO, which is an early morning hard-on.
Carry on.

Posted by: IMHO at December 13, 2004 07:17 PM


what the hell is going on in this pics?

one of the dopest ob shots

oh, and nice sub-discussion on slayer. you guys were going off. quite deep, intellectual conversation.

I would much rather purchase a gun from clark, coffey, or an SF shape. Clark has the most in water research at Mav's compared to any shaper around, naturally IMHO he knows what works best.

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 07:21 PM

Flea said in the "surfing" or "surfer" or some kind of surfing mag, that mav's is better at (I think) a 16 second interval compared to a 20 sec interval. what a douche.

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 07:26 PM

anges, no editing. Mathew Ritchie check him out. he did an insane mural at MIT a few years ago. master status.

local 415, surf flick? with actors? pot calling kettle black?

imho

Posted by: bagel at December 13, 2004 07:34 PM

I'm small, but I'll eat you alive. Oh yeah.. and snap your board.

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 07:47 PM

Why do I have a crab-claw pincher left hand?

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 07:49 PM

OK, if Dr. Blake is right most of the bums on this site are going to need some real excuses why we're not paddling out this weekend.

1. Sore back/shoulder/knee
2. Cold or flu
3. Wife/kids (party, whatever)
4. Work
5. Car problems
6. Board problems
7. Wetsuit problems
8. Sick friends close to death
9. Good sex option that can't be denied
10. House burned down

OK, there must be some more. I don't know about you, but I enjoy a nasty storm or swell. Something Hemingway would love.

Posted by: Bruce at December 13, 2004 08:20 PM

"Ugh boots are pure Pismo." - awesome

Posted by: bbr at December 13, 2004 08:31 PM

dredg's music changed my life, literally..i got into them same time i did surfing..what a combo...the pictures in the Leitmotif booklet is what inspired me to take up photography...

Posted by: seth s. at December 13, 2004 08:34 PM

kinda neat

http://www.batw.org/

Posted by: at December 13, 2004 11:44 PM

I may not be much of a surf forecaster myself, but I'd really hate to be on one of them crabbing boats in Alaska right about now.

Posted by: Andrew on 57th at December 14, 2004 09:14 AM

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