i got my shit handed to me again while surfing overhead waves at La Punta. i am finding out the formidable way that a fluffy lefthander it’s not! i waited on the way outside for about 30 min., when a ten wave set came storming inland. after scratching over the tops of a few, and then allowing a few more to barge their way in, i opted to stroke into a meaty one. i was on my trusty longboard.
at first, i performed a slow motion carve off the top with a splash of sophistication. i actually remember thinking how good natured the wave seemed. on my return trip to the lions mouth, i stayed well clear of the whitewash because i knew it to be way more strapping than it tries to appear. first and foremost, i didn’t want to fall. falling on the outside has consequences. i will just leave it at that.
so i wrapped my cutback up fairly abruptly, set my next line, and determined that I was going to connect this wave to the inside section. talk about consequences! that meant sidestepping the sucking rock where bunny hopping and showing wave command are measuring devices that can determine whether or not it is a wave worth writing home about. here is where my fortune cookie crumbled.
first i heard the yell, and this HEY had nothing to do with horses. a couple of local boys were paddling out through the rocks. they obviously saw what i didn’t. my eyes were glued on the the big sucking rock and the next pack of surfers that use the rock as their lineup. with only so much surplus focus, i hadn’t noticed that the face of my wave was caving in hard just in front of me. i was now in a moment.
and that’s when i unofficially blacked out. not an official blackout, rather a mental one. i honestly don’t know what happened next. outside of making a split decision to play it as safe as i should and could, i can only say that i wish i could see the video replay, because the video wouldn’t lie. when i snapped out of it, i knew i was in a pinch. there were about four waves behind it, and i was drained.
uncurious, evil eyes appeared to be on me, but appearances can be deceiving in the ocean during even slight moments of panic. yes i was still amongst the rocks. and yes, powerful whitewash was still making its way to me. but yes, i was in only four feet of water. four little feet! well i knew exactly what to do in four feet of water. during my walk home, i thought about how much safer it is on land.
