Conditions: 3-5 ft. – Glassy, walled up lines with open and worakble shoulders especially on the inside.
Gear: 8′ 6″ NSP Epoxy board from NorCal Surf Shop plus Xcel 3mm Infinity Gloves and ONeil 2 mm hood.
For a chilly, rainy day, conditions couldn’t be better. While mellow, the waves were pretty clean and winds stayed pretty calm for most of the day. My friend and I were on boards a little short for us so we didn’t get in that many clean runs, but it was fun.
Surfing in norther California on a cold day is a trip. Paddling out you can smell a fire burning somewhere and the fog makes for a mysterious looking coast. The rain makes a cool little noise hitting the waves. It’s definitely not what most people think of when they think of surfing.
I’d love to get a waterproof camera to take out with me. The California coast is a beautiful place and I’d love to send pictures back to everyone.
I rode an epoxy board for the first time. So far I’ve been on only soft tops. I think I have a few more bruises here and there, but overall it went well. It’s one step closer to me actually getting a board. I liked the grippiness of the wax too. Soft tops don’t need waxing.
I also took out my new gloves for the first time. As far as warmth goes, they are great. My hands were nice and toasty. Unfortunately they fill up with so much water it’s like paddling with weighted boxing gloves. I wore myself out paddling way too fast. I’ll definitely keep them on hand for cold days, but I’m thinking I might prefer to go barehanded.
My new surfing hood didn’t get any action today. For being a cold day, I was actually pretty warm. I’m planning on using it in the future. Silly as I might look, getting a cold wave to the side of the head is a lot like getting nailed with a snowball. Plus it should keep my hair out of my face and cut down a little on the salt water in my eyes. Other downside to the gloves, wiping your eyes isn’t easy.
I’m looking forward to getting a few more runs in this year.