Surfing!

Those of you who have been reading my blog may - if you've been especially observant - have noticed one entry that is suspiciously missing. Of all the activities to do in southern California, how come I haven't gone surfing yet? Where is my surfing story?!

The truth is sad and bitter medicine. I did indeed try surfing on May 24, 2009. R, the "surfer bum" co-op (I don't think even he would dispute that title), invited me to come along on one of his surfing expeditions. R went surfing every day that he could, and would have done it during his lunch breaks if he had the chance. He wasn't much of a teacher, but he did give me some basic instructions. Unfortunately, I didn't get far enough to use them.

You see in order to ride the waves, you first have to get out away from the shore. Which seems intuitive, until you consider that those same waves which you plan on riding you must somehow get THROUGH in order to get out there. There is a technique to paddling through 5-foot waves so that you stay on your board. However, I didn't figure it out; I was swept off my board and twirled upside down by the footstrap attached to my ankle, while my board smirkingly floated on the surface. I recovered the first time, but the second time I got so much salt water up my nose that I decided to abandon ship and paddle back to shore before the next wave drowned me to death. Waves and I turned out to be an uncomfortable couple. I flirted with the idea of taking lessons, but without a car or a partner to learn with me there was no second date.

But there is more than one kind of surfing, and last Saturday I got the opportunity to redeem myself and become a surfer dude. Sep 12 was the San Diego Windsurfing Association's end-of-season picnic, and someone at ATA invited all the co-ops. This time, we received professional instruction, and well...

Alas, I didn't have enough PAM to slide on land.

So I tried it on water.

This is before I fell in the first time and got the rest of my shirt wet.

I don't think I've had this much fun since my run-in with the dinosaurs at the zoo. The great thing about windsurfing is you don't need waves, so you can do it in land-locked places like Ohio. If there is a windsurfing club in Cincinnati, I think I'll keep it up. (At least until it starts snowing.)