My story post 48, surfer attire.

Huarache sandals, you got them in Mexico. White Levi’s, not the white like painters pants. The surfer wore more of an off white Levi’s jeans. Then after awhile there was the light blue Levi’s, not the regular Levi’s jeans color after they’ve been washed a hundred times, but a light blue color.

Converse tennis shoes were good, or Purcell’s. Both were the low cut type not high tops. You were good to go in deck shoes as well. To stay warm you had to have a Pea coat. That double buttoned heavy navy coat.

Plain white t-shirts with a pocket or maybe a white t-shirt that had a surfboard label on it. And over the t-shirt it was the Pendleton.

Honestly I don’t think I needed a surfboard but if I wore the right clothes I was a surfer. Actually I don’t think I had a surfboard when I first started wearing the attire. I was learning how to surf so… I wasn’t to much of a gremmie.... nah, I was the typical adolescent that wanted to be identified as a surfer.

The Pendleton was the shirt though. Not cheap either, so you had to really bug your parents for one or work hard and save some cash to get one. They were only available at certain stores too, so they weren’t to easy to come by. I still like those shirts… believe it or not I’ve got 11 of them. I’d have more but stopped wearing the plaid ones… at least for the past few years. I like the solid color ones, I’ve got two of them. It’s hard to catch my size on sale in the solid colors though.

Did you know that there was a band named The Pendletones? Yeah, they started as The Pendletones before they changed their name to the Beach Boys. That’s probably why they where wearing Pendleton’s when pictured on their first records. With white or light blue Levi’s and a white t-shirt. Don’t know if any of them were surfers, but they knew how to dress like one.

D.R.

Surfing with friends always makes surfing better…. Though there may be a limit to how many friends you may want in the water at any given time.

Friday I took off work at mid day. The first sun we’d had in almost two weeks showed itself late morning. I knew there was a little surf so I took off, got my tip tool (the waves were small) and spent almost 3 hours having some fun and spending some tip time.

After an hour or more my friend Donna came paddling out, said hello and introduce me to her friend Rob. The three of us were enjoying the sun and small surf with a small group of other surfers doing the same. Rob would be all smiles as Donna or I came riding a wave down the point while he was paddling back to the line up after a ride.

Rob asked me if I found a new friend when a person dropped in on me at the inside section. Then wondered if I’d just found a new best friend after seeing me hanging on the tip for a couple seconds then franticly back peddling and straightening out, though not fast enough, to avoid banging rails with the guy that blindly dropped in on me as I came flying along. After all, what are friends for?

This morning I went for a bike ride up the beach. I thought it was such a nice sunny morning, besides I wanted to check out how the demolition project was going in the Fair Grounds parking lot. So why not jump on a bike, get some exercise and see what’s up?

I peddled up the promenade through the 2 dollar lot, around the construction work via a detour lane and stopped at the Ventura River. I hung at the river for several minutes watching about 8 or 10 surfers play with the inconsistent but nice clean peaks along that stretch of beach from the back side of pipe maybe a hundred yards up to hobo jungle. I wouldn’t have minded at all to be one of those 8 or 10 surfers.

After day dreaming for awhile about days long past and un-crowded waves I headed back. Down past the 2 dollar lot I decided to see what the surf looked like on the back side of the point and up to pipe.

What’s left of the 2 dollar lot was full. There was a contest at pipe so that added to the amount of vehicles and bodies that wanted to use the short couple hundred yards of beach. And, the number of people in the water, hoping for a chance to catch one of the few waves that came through every 4 or 5 minutes? I tried counting, but stopped at 40.

That’s a lot of friends… I began wondering how many of them actually got out of the water after an hour and got a chance wave? The words survival of the fittest came to mind.

How curious later at home, what my wife called me in from the front yard to show me through the kitchen window. A hawk on the back neighbors garage roof eating what I think may have been a squirrel. Talk about survival of the fittest.

D.R.

Being motivated to surf, sometimes you don’t have it, sometimes you do.

What I remember of my younger years was that I was almost always motivated to surf. So why is it now that a lot of times I go to the beach when the surf is not great but surf able and I’m not that interested in going out?

When I was younger if there was anything in the water that would propel my surfboard I was on it. And in Hawaii, unless the winds were not favorable, which was seldom, or it was over my size limit, which could happen, I’d go surf. On the main land, I look and start thinking… nah, it’s not consistent enough, it’s small, it’s to cold, the wind is picking up so it will blow out by the time I reach the lineup, it’s a waste of time right now, I’ll come back later… but don’t, etc, etc.

Having a surf buddy helps with this type of problem. You get to the beach see something you could surf and say “what do you think?” Your buddy says “we’re here.” You say “yeah.” He says “we came to surf so.” You say “ok, let’s go out then.” Done deal.

After you surf you can make the assessment.. you say “ I saw you got a couple good ones”. He says “yeah, it was fun… you got some too”. You say “yeah, I’m hungry lets go get something to eat”.

When you’re alone you can’t do that. Well, you can talk to yourself, and end up either talking yourself into going out or not going out. But after a go out? Was it worth it or not. It’s almost always debatable, unless the surf was really good and you had a really good session.

So what happened yesterday? I went for a surf check, the conditions were really nice and I saw a couple good sets. Went home and got my stubbie…I’m so addicted to that board right now… but the surf just didn’t have the juice. I should have gone down with a tanker. I got a few nice ones but wished I had a tanker. My thinking stole the fun.

With a surf buddy, we would have debated first about what board would be best. He’d say “what board you gonna take?” You’d say “The stubbie.” He’d say “again? You always ride that board and then complain you should’ve taken a long board. I’m taking my long board, It’s not consistent enough for something short.” You say “yeah, I’ll take my quad long board then.” You both catch lots of waves and have fun…. Get out of the water, talk about your rides as you towel off and get in dry cloths. Then go get something to eat!

D.R.

These three guys have been surf buddies for over 40 years

The changing face of a beach area.

The beach access area in Ventura town is going through another change. If anyone has come into town this past week and gone into the Fair Grounds area you’d have seen the construction is starting… actually the demolition is what’s happening, construction comes later.

The 2 dollar fair grounds parking area and up to pipe is being rearranged. If I understand correctly the parking area is being relocated back to the street that currently runs between the parking area and the fair grounds. The current parking area will be removed and combed over with a more natural cobble and sand approach to the waters edge.

Sounds all reasonable.. we’ll see how it plays out with what the ocean wants to do over time.

There is another part to the changes which will take place below Figueroa st. along the promenade. If I understand this will change beach access by removing the inside point stairs and relocating them a couple hundred feet toward the pier from where they are now. As well, more large rocks will be added to the revetment in front of the promenade a couple hundred feet above the existing inside point beach access stairs.

The problem with the promenade is that the ocean wants the area where new rocks are going to be set. The ocean wants to remove the inside stairs… the ocean wants it’s space back… and then some maybe. But, a certain group of people wanted to take that space away from the ocean and they don’t want to ever give it back. In order to protect what the group of people did they must add to what they did so as to stop the ocean from doing what it wants to do. Lofty plans that over time have consequences.

Consequences from the first set of rocks for the revetment changed the way surf breaks along the point and, maybe more importantly, how sand is distributed below that particular stretch of coast line.

I remember how the surf at the point was before the current revetment…. It was better. I don’t think adding to the revetment will make it better than it is now, it will probably be a change for the worse… or is it another change for the worse?

D.R.

A flat seven foot high tide winter morning after some rain at the top of the point before the group of people started doing what they’ve done to the area.

Old guys post 5

Something happened to me in the water several months ago that has stuck in my memory. Curious that the great rides are etched in our memory as well sometimes the bad experiences too.

I was paddling back to the line up when a set was coming through. A guy was coming down the line racing along on the nose hanging five. I saw the line he was taking and started to paddle to the left in an effort to stay out of his way. Just as I determined my path another guy… that looked like he didn’t know what he was doing, started to paddle for the wave and would have ultimately dropped in on the guy coming down the line at the same time blocking my path to get out of the way of the guy coming down the line.

The guy paddling for the wave sort of stood up and fell, I had to avoid him so paddled straight up the wave face. I guess the guy coming down the line hanging five didn’t want to let go of his position, even though he could have back peddled and turned around me, he instead came right at me. I slipped off my board and turned it side ways as the guy hanging five went by me within inches and then fell.

The three of us, me, the kook and the guy hanging five almost collided… but didn’t. After the wave pasted I climbed up on my board and looked over at the guy that had fell after just missing me while hanging five. He had some words for me, but couldn’t hear what he said. I smiled and asked if he was ok then heard what he had to say…. “ Why don’t you get out of the way… you should paddle to the left” With rude tone. I thought What? Then said “ don’t talk to me like that, I was paddling to the left” I was immediately pissed and told him off as he paddled away… honestly out of character for me.

A couple guys that had seen what happened confirmed that guy was being an ass. But still stuff like that can really mess the atmosphere in the water.

This past week there was this stand up paddle guy being aggressive in the water that had something to say to one of the local guys in the water after the local guy attempted to drop in at the inside section. But the stand up guy made it under the section then had words for the local guy.

The standup guy was older, I’d guess in his fifties. Well built and knew how to surf and what he was doing. He would not let up on the younger local guy, cussing him and telling him he’d kick his ass, and that riding a stand up was way harder than long boarding… yelling how he should get some respect… on and on for 3 or 4 minutes.

The casual after noon surf turned into a time of tension… for what? I may or may not have been justified in what I said to the guy that almost ran my over. I’m sure the stand up paddle guy thought he was justified in what he had to say. But to go on and on made the older guy look like a total jerk. And to threaten the younger guy made it even worse.

There’s no sense in older guys being aggressive. The older guys that get aggressive only look stupid. And may make the rest of us look stupid too.

D.R.