Shoots Brah!

I just came home from a four day trip to Oahu. (Home is currently Maui to avoid confusion) And it was awesome. I hiked, jumped, swam, sat, surfed, and loved...every second of it. I will get to that when I make a slideshow of it. Which I am getting behind on, sorry. But while on Oahu I went to the North Shore. For the uninformed...North Shore on Oahu is the Mecca, birthplace, holy grail, and most famous place for surfing in the world. And I surfed it! Now it's epicness comes from the winter months when the North Pacific storms send down swells that would eat 5 story buildings, but late September was good enough for me! yeah, the waves were pretty big. I spent a day watching and scouting before I paddled out and I was filled with mixed feelings of fear and excitement. So I rented a board and threw it in the back of my bright blue PT Cruiser that just screamed TOURIST! all over it, and went to find my surferhood (like manhood, but for surfers). I physically shook with fear, because the waves were huge and the locals are mean. I camped out at the end of the lineup for awhile waiting for a wave no one else wanted. I stared down into the clear blue water and could actually see the reef caves and canyons that have actually claimed the lives of significantly professional surfers. My heart beat faster than the first time I, well...it was beating fast! Finally, I was in a good spot to catch a wave without getting in anyone's way. Then the most amazing thing happened...I paddled into to this huge mass of moving water, stood up and rode the greatest ride of my life. I caught so much speed dropping in, then made my first turn to the right (I'm not so good at the rights) and cut back to the left and realized I still had massive wave behind me. So I cut back right again and rode the lip then turned back down the face. The reef was flying by underneath, the wind was blowing the surf into my face, and I just kept riding. The power didn't die like I am used to, just kept pushing. I realized that in a few more seconds I would be barrelled on the sandy beach, so I peeled off the back of the wave, landed on my board, wiped my wet hair out of my eyes and paddled back out. But this time I got right in to the middle of the lineup, with all the locals. Then the second most amazing thing happened. I did it all again. Then again and again and six hours later I was still doing it. I had just surfed Bonzai Pipeline, and I surfed it well. I felt like I deserved to be in that wave, I had earned respect in the lineup. Sure it wasn't going off like you see in December but hey, it was going off for me. Then I realized: I don't wear shoes anymore-I walk everywhere barefoot; I say "shoots brah"; My hair is always in my eyes and yeah, its actually really blonde; I am almost constantly feeling in my mind the sensation of riding a wave; and...I just surfed Pipeline on the North Shore!

It's official...I AM A SURFER.

I didn't even make anyone mad, get barrelled by waves, or embarrass myself in any way. It was an absolutely beautiful experience. Even the pouring rain didn't make a difference. Shoots, I surfed pipe in a typhoon!
Then today I went back to my humble little breakwall on Maui. Pulled out the longboard and it just wasn't the same as it was last time I was there. North shore changed me. Tiny little waves weren't this tiny last week. But you know what, I just worked on nose riding and still had blast! Funny thing though, here at humble breakwall I almost got in a fight! check this out:
surfer 1: Wutchyou doin brah!
surfer 2: What?
surfer 1: Wutchyou mean wut? Why jew drop in on me!?
surfer 2: I didn't drop in on you, there were like ten people on that wave. Chill out.
(surfer 1 throws his board at surfer 2)
surfer 1: where jew goin!?
surfer 2: surfing. you?
(surfer 1 grabs surfer 2's ankle)
surfer 1: Hey! We gonna take dis to da beach!?
surfer 2: you mean like a date? No thanks, I like girls.
surfer 1: I'll (expletive) you up!
surfer 2: Hey I said I'm not interested in that sort of thing
(big wave hits both surfers, surfer 2 paddles away and doesn't see surfer 1 again till later, surfer 1 is waiting on the beach)

Well, I am surfer 2, and surfer 1 is some 40 year old local hawaiian with a bad case of little man syndrome. Lucky for me (or him, I'm not really tested in the fighting arena) he left before I came in. So much for the Aloha spirit! I miss north shore.

p.s. I didn't drop in on him. Surfer law states that he who is up first gets the wave. That was very much me.

I love Hawaii!

ALOHA!