Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Replacement


NE WIND 15 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 3 TO 4 FT. NW SWELL 10 FT AT 12 SECONDS.
Froze my ass off yesterday...
Pouring down rain as I pulled up...
Put on my foul weather gear for the walk in...
Just in case the hike yielded absolute crap...
But it looked workable despite emptiness...
Wrapped my clothes in said gear to keep them dry...
Freezing cold series of duck dive and persistence...
New style ear plugs gouging during sinusoidal sea changes...
Sitting in the rain, on the water, waiting for waves, between lumps...
Edging in after missed opportunities, scrambling back out regularly...
A few big wooly ones rolling through, struggles back to the outside...
Big drops, bails, bounces, thashings and drubbings galore...
Just one more, just one more, edge in, edge in, oh shit...
Liquid explosion 50 yards outside any previous sets...
Repeated bashings taken on the head...
Until a glance behind reveals a shore nearer than said waves...
Spin, paddle, and prone it in in unwitnessed surrender...
Shivering, in the rain, strip, unbundle clothes, dress for the hike out...
Get to the car, dump gear, stash board, truck pulls into the lot...
Head pops out, "How was it?", I glance at the empty lot...
"Better than work", he grabs a board out of the back...
And heads down the trail, my replacement.

2 comments:

Thom said...

Sounds all too familar... Empathy from Ireland.

Anonymous said...

Better than work huh? At least you made it outside. still sounds like another beautiful day at the beach.