I no longer surf with a leash. It’s just way to dangerous. Wipeouts can be so bloody violent here, that I felt it was time to remove the noose out of my surfing equation. I finally had a leash related incident this morning that pulled the piss out of me. The fucking thing wrapped around the top of my thigh near the groin, and just before it cinched tight I managed to Houdini out of it. I’m tired of having to perform magic tricks.
Surfing without a leash removes any chance of entanglement on the takeoff. All surfers know that a time or two out of 10 or 20, the leash stands a chance of ending up between a toe or under a foot. End of the world? Normally not. Here at Main Beach, where the critical takeoff is 4/5 the battle, having to battle the cord could end up being the difference between the barrel of a lifetime, and a life changing ocean incident.
Thinking of pulling in? Aware of the consequences if you don’t make it out? I don’t think you are! I’m not talking buckets of water with see through lips. Around here, water is measured in tons. Heavy water pounding on shallow sand. Do you want the pointed fiberglass weapon anywhere near you during the heart stopping violence? I don’t think you do. I know I don’t. You don’t even know what you want do you?
Indecisions cost a lot here. Everything has to be 110% or you pay. Duck diving is important. Understanding when NOT to duck dive is more important. An indecision between the two will haunt you. I just had one. Tried to get under an iron curtain. I was blessed with just a fat lip. Got pinned under water in a washing machine environment with a rubber rope attached to a surfboard attached to my ankle. Sketchy odds friend.
