Sixteenth Log Entry 10/14/04

Today is Thursday and marks the last day I will surf until at least next Friday. I have surfed 98/112 days since the daily routine started on June 25. We have seen small surf that was barely rideable, overhead surf carved hollow by Santa Ana winds, choppy surf that tossed you around like you were skiiing moguls and last Saturday we had what I consider to be perfect surf. The water was glassy and the wind was inperceptible. Set waves were coming in about head high and pealing left and right. They were fast, clean and plentiful. I surfed more than two hours until finally a combination of fatigue and increasingly croweded conditions drove me from the water. Some days I barely make quota, some days I catch an excess of so-so surf, and then those rare days like Saturday I lose track of how many really fast and fun rides I get. The last few days we have been surfing at RJs to help perpetuate Travis' streak. The place is filled with high school kids who are full of surf skills and short on manners. As you go further north, people get more laid back (and older) culminating at Bolsa Chica, where the crowds are friendly (and somewhat geriatric)

Fifteenth Log Entry 10/4/04

Top Ten Lame Excuses for Not Surfing



10. My dog ate my surfboard. This is a classic, only noone believes it. Try again.

9. I went on vacation. Pretty weak, why didn't you go on vacation somewhere you could surf?

8. I damaged my surfboard. You idiot, you are surrounded by billions of gallons of water. How do you manage to run into anything that could actually damage your surfboard?

7. My leash broke. Poor baby, what do you think people did before the leash was invented?

6. Surf was too big. Eddie would go.

5. Surf was too small. If we could surf yesterday, it can be done. Yesterday, all we needed was a rubber duckie and it would have been a (cold) bathtub.

4. I stayed up too late. Poor decision making does not a surfer make.

3. I drank too much last night. See #4.

2. I didn't want to go. GASP!!!



And the number 1 lame excuse of all time for not going surfing...



1. I dropped a measuring tape on my knee.



Yes, it is true. An object (any object) dropped from a height of 6 ft and impacting another object at a height of 2 ft will have a speed of 16 ft/sec (11 mph) at the time of impact. This object weighing half a pound will have 64 ft-lbs of kinetic energy. If the flat side of this object hits muscle, this energy could be absorbed without the victim noticing. However, if the corner of the object hits the spot directly above the kneecap where there is not much muscle, the result is a painful sensation similar to getting whacked in the funny bone. If you are lucky, the pain dissipates quickly and you go on your way. If you are unlucky, you wake up around midnight with a knee twice the size it should be and throbbing painfully. Not being able to sleep you limp to the TV only to discover that the bonus disc of a ten disc documentary, that you thought was going to be bad, dissapoints even your meager expectations. Finally after the painpills kick in, you limp back to bed with that terrible feeling, knowing you won't be surfing tomorrow.

Fourteenth Log Entry 10/1/04

Saturday and Monday we were at RJs due to the high tides and small swells. After the previous week's monster monday and tuesday sessions, it was a bit of a relief to have some ho-hum 2-4 sets rolling in lazily. It hearkened back to the early summer days when we had extreme low tides and the sandbar was still out there so you could literally walk out to the break. That was before I learned about stingrays. Large sea creatures scare the hell out of me. Even the friendly ones. It has never been a problem when I am underwater, I used to SCUBA quite a bit, but when I am sitting on top I think about it constantly. When the dolphins come by I am certain one is going to bite my ankle, even though I have never heard of a dolphin ever hurting a surfer. Sea lions freak me out because big sharks eat them therefore there must be a big shark nearby. I remember one time surfing in Carpenteria with little sharks swarming under me. They were all less than 2 ft, but that is big enough to bite a toe. I paddled out anyway, but kept my feet out of the water. Today I saw dolphins. They are common along the southern California coast. I see them a lot, still my heart leaps into my throat whenever that fin first breaks through the water.



Today was day 99 for Travis, day 86 for me. Of those days, I have been in the water everyday since 8/11/04 (52 days) . Two of those days I did not get to surf. Once because I cracked open my board before I ever caught a wave and once because my leash broke before I caught a wave. Travis has an unusual problem. His streak has gone on so long that he may never again have this many consecutive days. Consequently, he has incremental milestones that are easily achievable now, but will be tough to ever make again. Tomorrow is day 100, and it is light enough to surf by 6:25. We may make it through October (Off of daylight savings time), so it may be the rain that stops him in November, or he may go all the way into the darkness of December. Stay tuned to find out.



P.S. The Angels are tied with Oakland with 3 games to go... All against Oakland. Go Angels.