I hate the month of July. In Texas, it’s hot, sticky and there’s never any surf. The ocean feels like bathwater and you break a sweat as soon as you get out of the water. You strive for shade and there’s rarely any wind. If a storm does brew in the Gulf, it rarely happens in July, at least not on the Texas side. It’s so disheartening to look at the wave models and see green and blue everywhere except for the Gulf of Mexico. Only the pinks and blacks of non-existent waves can be found here. Even the fish don’t want to cooperate as you must do any angling early in the morn or close to dusk if you want to have any luck. July literally just flat out stinks for a Texas surfer. So what does a hardcore Texas surfer do during these long periods of flat spells? Besides praying for surf (not hard enough I might add)? Besides dreaming of far off shores where the surf is peeling and water is cool? Lots of things I suppose. Obviously, I like to write. I also like to paint. And what do I write about and paint pictures of? Why surfing, of course. I like to try and keep in shape for the swells in my future and there are always a bevy of things a Texas surfer can do during these periods of waiting and watching.
Traveling is probably the best thing a Texas surfer can do during these rough (on the soul, not the seas) times. The Pacific side of Mexico is the closest and most often visited foreign land that Texas surfers visit. And July is a primo time of the year to head south of the border. Tropical disturbances along the equatorial Pacific constantly send up south swells that reach their final destination all along the Pacific side of North America. From Costa Rica to Southern California, the West has been the best this July. Even the Right Coast gets good swells in July. North Carolina, where my daughter lives, has been getting swell all week. The great state of Florida has seen some swell. Even the panhandle of Florida is getting blasted as I type this little ditty. But alas, the Third Coast sits in a sweltering cesspool of utter pink flatness. Of course, there are other spots all over the world that get good swell in July. From the South shores of Hawaii to the East Coast of Australia (which recently saw a lifetime swell hit). From Teahupo to the Maldives, everywhere seems to get good July swell except the forgotten coast of Texas.
You can always travel to other water sport spots in Texas besides the coast. There’s always river rafting in New Braunfels. I hear there’s even a wave machine at the Schlitterbaun Water Park around there that is comparable to the Swatch Wave machine. Even Water World in Houston has a wave pool that creates a wave that is actually surfable. There’s even a wahine pro contest there this Thursday and Friday. And there’s plenty of wide rivers and lakes in Texas for wakeboarding, skiing, sailboarding, swimming, etc. So here’s no shortage of water sports to be had in Texas in July. And there are many other things to keep oneself busy in July in Texas besides traveling. You can always skate. There are several skate parks in the Houston area including a new totally off the hook Vans skate park on the West side. If you can find a hill (about as hard to find in Houston as a wave in July) or a parking garage, you can always bust out the longboard skateboard and practice those sweeping carves. You can always fix the dings on your longboard from the busy Spring. You can have Lasik eye surgery done on your peepers as you’re supposed to stay out of the water for about a month after the sitting under the laser. You can work out to stay in shape for those brutal paddle outs when the waves do arrive. You can break out the Indo Board and practice your balance for future walking of the planks. You can bike, run, play soccer, play softball, play tennis, shoot some rounds of golf or just about anything to try and keep the old cardio vascular system in tune.
So I guess Texas isn’t so bad in July. It’s just really hot and really bad for surfing. There are a ton of things to do in July in Texas besides surf, just as long as one tries to stay cool and drinks plenty of liquids, one will do fine. So we’ll keep praying for surf, watching the wave models and buoys, and will be ready to dust off the longboards when the swells do arrive. August always brings the hope for hurricane swells and Fall will be right around the corner. Heck, the forecasters are calling for 2 foot waves this Saturday. I might just have to get wet and enjoy some calf high peelers just to keep myself sane. So Mahalo from the Lake of Mexico and the flat state of Texas!