Winter Missions

"I don't care if it rains or freezes, long as I got my plastic Jesus,
riding on the dashboard of my car..."

snowy roads @ dawn

1st light on glass

long drive home...

Hope everyone's getting their fill. I have been left to reflect on waves gone by and to day dream about dawn to dusk missions from winters past as these December swells roll through. Trying my best to weather my landlocked holddown at the moment. A few strategic missions have helped fill the void this fall, but all in all coming up short on filling my cold water quota this season.

*top photo: unknown

Vert thru the Ages

70's stylin': photo Hugh Holland

80's skate and destroy: photo jacked


Red in PDX: reposted via Max

Cali now: photo bowl sk8ter

As the end of each year draws near, it often occurs to me that everything is growing up and growing older. Including vert. Happy thirty something. You feel that?

Bajaliday...

Bajalidays, always an adventure or misadventure depending on your perspective. These shots are from a trip dating back to the 20th century. Just me and one long lost friend. It contained all of the requisite elements of a memorable adventure . A blood stained mattress, sleeping in the dirt, first response to a MEX 1 car crash, nearly clipping a feral dog, sharing drinks with seemingly friendly locals only to realize later that they slipped us mickeys and tried to rob us blind. And of coarse...pointy peelers, juicy nuggets, and freight trains at dawn. We managed to avoid la mordida but had to push our overheated '84 Vanagon through Tijuana traffic and back across the border.

Nor'easter+Ida=Nor'Ida

Nor'ida wreaked havoc on Hatteras and much of the Eastern Seaboard last week. Apparently the roads leading off the Cape in NC were closed four days. However, it delivered some cold water gems to New England over the weekend and into the week and Me and "T" were there to greet them. Long period, lined up, offshore, crisp, clear and sweet. All was good, except for the chicken wings...

Cosmic Connection

A few weeks ago I surfed a spot (in a state) that I had never been to before. After a few hours of much needed water time, I decided to check the wave up the road before the sun went down. I got in my van, pointed it north, found the pull out I was looking for and grabbed the only parking space available. Not a minute later, the guy parked in front of me walks up to his car dripping wet and calls my name. I couldn't believe it. How random. Or was it? It was my old friend Trevor (the names have been changed to protect the innocent). The last time I ran into Trevor was 12 years ago. I was at a New Years Eve show at some random venue in San Francisco. I was in line to use the men's room and recognized the guy in front of me...it was Trevor. Keep in mind that neither of us lived in CA. at the time and we hadn't seen each other for maybe 4 years before that.

Trevor is an old friend from my "blurry" years. We shared some crazy experiences together. A few that come to mind involved a coast to coast flight with a very large and very stinky suitcase. Another, Texas girls on vacation with their church group and more pitchers of margaritas than anyone can remember. We were young and we were dumb but we had fun. That was another lifetime ago...

So, there we were, once again, cosmically crossing paths. Once the initial shock wore off we went to have a beer and some chowder and some more beers. Trevor informed me it was his birthday in the morning. Instead of parting ways, we called our wives, called into work and decided to ring in his birthday sharing waves together. The last time that happened....Baja Norte, 1990.

Sweet Relief

swell dying fast but still finding cover

I finally found my way to the sea again! I managed to score a few sessions of a decent little ground swell before it faded away into the night. It's been way too long and drying out is hard to do. Discovering rocky points on the East coast gives me hope. Learning to love a west wind, a little disorienting. Accepting the windows of opportunity are so short lived, a hard pill to swallow. Ahhhh but being wet again, engulfed in the salty embrace of mother ocean, that is all that mattered. The token fuzzy photo was snapped this morning after I got out. Inspired by a salt stained glider.

Duct Tape and Dental Floss

November in New Hampshire is no time for patching wetsuits. But my limited (foreseeable) water time this winter warranted breaking out the needle and thread in lieu of a new suit. Then there are the glass cracks around a fin box on my favorite board. I've been meaning to patch them since Bill visited back in August. Talk about dry docked. Anyhow a little duct tape will do for now. The forecast is calling for 6.5' @ 12 sec., air 36*, water 44*, and offshore.... Hope it holds.

Pining for a PNW fall

Every once in a while I'll get an intense sense of nostalgia. A yearning for another time and place that has been relegated to the depths of my memory banks (for the time being). I'm not sure what set me off this time. Maybe it's the surf updates from friends, or perhaps it's simply the landlocked predicament I find myself in for the next 6 months. Regardless I have to re-divert my stoke-lessness into something positive and constructive to keep me sane.

I recently rediscovered the Lo-Fi Photo scene, something I have admittedly lost touch with since my days making and using pinhole cameras in art school some years back (read: pre-digital era). The feelings that the less than crisp lo-fi images evoke are often dreamy and nostalgic, feelings I can relate too. I shot the images above with a digital point and shoot on the north coast last fall. However, for me, they have a similar effect.

Sinking @ CJ's

The fall colors were peaking in my neck of the woods a few weeks back. I spent an afternoon enjoying the leaves swirling all around... underwater

New England Colors

It's been a loooong time since I've experienced a fall in New England. I forgot how breathtaking this part of the country can be. I had a crazy hair (seems all I have left are crazy hairs) to surf and to sink all in the same day. This entailed an early start and a lot of driving. The stars aligned and I woke to small clean surf. Just had to wait a little for the tide to fill in. The day was crisp and the fall colors in full affect. Snapped some photos along the way...the sinking to follow.

Criss Cross Country

I recently made a solo drive coast to coast with a few random stops along the way. Before my journey I discovered my last pack of Polariod 600 film amongst my things. I had 10 shots for over 3000 miles, the pressure was on. A bit ironic considering the carefree approach and shoot from the hip mentality normally associated with instant film. I'll never forget the "kachinnnngk" of the print rolling out the end of the camera or that moment of magic while the image morphs out of nothingness onto the paper. I did hear murmurings of a Belgium company with plans of producing instant film in the future. Until then, Polaroids will be sorely missed and fondly remembered.

Vintage Rides

Got to sample some vintage rides at a craggy headland on the eastern seaboard this September. There's something strangely wonderful about tapping into the life of things, things that have been around the block a time or two and still possess the magic.

Like this '58 woody that's been in my buddy's family since day one. Four generations of fishing from this boat and still running strong. Then there was the mid-80's Shaun Tomson twinny collecting dust in the shed. My buddy got it at a garage sale for $15 bucks 10 yrs. back. Beak nose, fat and friendly foil, and plenty 'o VVVVeeeeee

The surf was nothing to write home about but the fish was fresh, the beer was cold, and catching up with old friends, way over due.