What a crazy day of surfing today! First of all, I'm way out of my 'hood. For the last three days I've been up in northern California touring college campuses with my daughter (Stanford... wow.). I've been able to hook up with my sponsors at Boga and surf a couple spots outside of Santa Cruz.
We ended up surfing Davenport landing today- and it was a challenge. The water up here is different. In the first place, it's really cold- the kind of cold that hits you in the middle of your body- deep inside. I wore a fullsuit, booties and was wishing I brought my hood. Secondly, there's a lot more going on- the chop is a little more punchy, the surf a little bit more powerful and everything about the place just seems a bit more raw.
We paddled out into tough conditions, I was on the 9'5 Bullet- my "go-to" board. Today I learned that you need to be flexible- you've got to let the conditions dictate what you ride. Even though I love the Bullet- for me, today, it wasn't the best choice. I could barely stand up on the thing. That's why serious surfers have quivers, collections of boards of different lengths, dimensions and functions. Mid-way through the session I was able to switch out to a bigger wider board and I immediately felt more comfortable. Don't get me wrong- I didn't rip the place, that will come with more experience and water time. The big take-away for me was this- there's a right board for the condition and I'm working on building my quiver- Bogas of course!
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