I started surfing while in High School. My brother had just graduated, and he and his friend decided that they wanted to learn to surf. They were three and four years older than me. As they were just setting off into new found independance, I was just starting my sophemore year.
More than anything I think it was our own little rebellion against our parents. Not that they ever treated us bad, and in fact, treated us pretty damn good, but everyones got to have a little rebellion. Our parents really had no idea what surfing was. Thier idea of going to the beach was our annual trip to Mission Bay for Fourth of July. We were woken in the dark, packed into the Falcon Wagon (which in those days we hated) and driven over the hills as the sun breached the water. Dad cooked eggs and bacon on the barbeque. Then we spent all day, without sunscreen, getting sunburned with the rest of the uninitiated. Watch the Sea World fireworks. Then wait another year and repeat. The only white water we'd experience was from boat wakes.
So, in a way, the beach was a little forbidden fruit that we just had to taste. We would do whatever we had to do to get thier. Everyone would save their lunch money and we'd pack 3-4 into the VW Bug and head over the hill after or before school. Sometimes even both. I bought my first board from my brother. It was his first board past down. I think $25. Then continued buying his hand me downs, until I was able to work a summer job and buy a new custom, "JETS." During this time, not only did my grades dive, but also my school and baseball attendance.
I was pretty into baseball and was pretty decent at it too. My coach had high hopes for me. When he learned that I had been missing baseball practice to go surfing, he sat me down for a little lecture. From this lecture, one of the most profound statements of my life came. He said, "You will never get out of Surfing, what you could get out of Baseball." My coach was a great guy, and truly meaned well. But like my parents, really had no clue. In my High School graduating class, our team won the District. Seven of the Nine starting players were drafted. That is pretty amazing. Never before, and probably never again will that many players get drafted from one team, at least at my school. So getting back to his statement, out of those seven players that were drafted, how many do you think are still playing baseball? Yup, you guessed it. NONE.
Surfing has done great things for me. Besides all the fun it has brought, the best thing has to be helping to connect the lives of my wife and I. A distant second would be that i've been lucky and had the opportunity to travel a decent amount.
As would be expected, Travelling has slowed down a bit since the three rugrats came along. My last trip was to the Mentaweis a few years ago. It was a great trip and I was lucky enough to share it with two of my my best friends that I went to high school with.
As for the board, It's for one of those two buddies. It's called the "Barrel Rider." Another expression we've pretty much said our whole surfing lives. Anytime anyone stalls, and even gets a rear ear dip, they get the label. After Slater won the Pipe Masterson on a short stubby board, We'll call him Joey, came to me and said he wanted a barrel board for our local slab. Short, wide point forward, low entry rocker, etc.
As for the fins, yea, well, leave it to one of your best friends to forget his shiny new fins for the pictures.
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