The other day was a pretty day here in Florida (if you are so blessed to live here). It was a day that followed one of the few days that we have had recently that actually had longboardable surf, a term I call "Longable", as do many others. It was a Sunday morning, and I had missed the day before where I was told that it had actually got up to waist high! WOW! Amazing. Following my trip to Costa, this was the first waist high waves we had been blessed with for over six weeks, if my calculations are correct. Unless you live at the Inlet (Sebastian), I think most people around here were pretty darn excited. So that Sunday morning, I decided to go out and catch some leftovers all by my lonesome. I pulled up to the beach knowing full well that I would be the only one there for it was about 7:30 in the morn, and most guys had caught it yesterday. Yes, the old proverbial saying would definitely hold true here; "You Should Have Been Here Yesterday!". But I just didn't care. I wanted to get wet, and I was determined to ride whatever leftovers there were after my fellow surfarians had desecrated my local break the entire preceding afternoon.

As I looked out, it was hard to tell how big it was, being that there wasn't anyone at the break. I decided that no matter what, I was going out, for the previous two times I had surfed, it was literally shin to knee high, with the occasional thigh high set wave that me and my buddy had pounced upon. I was gonna hit it with a fury that being alone at your home break could only describe. Having my 9'0" Kechele, I felt prepared for whatever I would come across. Incidentally, this is only a single fin (the fin being of my own template) that is surprisingly responsive, even in the smallest of waves (I do have the Side Bite FCS Boxes just in case though). As I paddled out, to my surprise it was bigger than it looked, and as usual, there was nobody to see for evidence. As I surfed these extremely fun waves for being alone, and being a virtually flat summer, it seemed to get better. It seemed ever acclimated to a longboard, and how we, as longboarders would like the shape to be, as it would come in upon the sandbar. As I continued to look out for any friends that might be peering through the bushes of AIA, I seemed to get these waves more and more wired.

As a guy who seems to adapt to different longboarding styles, this day I was more prone to ride my Longer like a shorty. This due to the obvious fact that it had been mostly flat, and I need to simply take out some aggression on these poor thigh to waist high leftover wind swells. As I did, I started to try to "Hot Dog" them as though I had a huge audience in front of me at some major surf contest. What did I have to loose? The most notable maneuver that I was pulling off was an on rail, full frontside cutback into a backside rebound, then once again headed down the line frontside. Now mind you, I had to walk the board a bit, for there just simply was not enough speed to hold it all the way through without moving my feet. For Pete's sake, I am only 5'6", and way in at a whopping 153 lbs.

Needless to say, someone had been watching. They had been watching while I was unaware, and while I was having a blast, simply being me, a surfer who loved to do what he does. As I saw him walking down the beach, It seemed as though I picked off two more really fun waves in which one, I pulled one of those sorta rebound S turns while barely moving my feet! It was a great feeling as I came around the arc to smack it backside while having more than the usual speed. The anticipation was killing me as I was pulling it hoping to do it with near perfection. Alas! I did it! It came around with an almost uncanny perfection. As my old friend who is ever importantly a SHORTBOARDER approached as he glided though the water with some effort (for he had surfer some four hours straight the afternoon before), he had the biggest freakin smile on his face. I waited with almost a childish patience as he was about to utter what I had hoped to be an actual compliment to a longboarder from a shortboarder who simply just ripps. I have been surfing with this guy for at least 16 years, and he is one of those quiet types that surfs wherever the waves are, and not where the crowd is. He doesn't think he is all that special because there is at least two guys who surf better
than him in the area. The fact is, he is a completely natural surfer, something I am not. I have had to work harder than all of my friends to be a competent surfer, something that has taken me about 20 years to do.

As he approached my boat with his Ferrari, I almost fainted when I heard the words he uttered. Now mind you I will try to put it as closely to what he said as possible, but the exact thrust will be there.

He said, "I was just about to go back to bed when I looked and saw you out here. You looked like you were having so much fun, that I just HAD to come out. Can you imagine the feelings that came over me?! This is a longboarders Triumph! A shortboard ripper actually said that to a longboarder? Imagine my surprise. I mean, don't get me wrong, he likes me and all, but not that much. Not enough to massage my ego. He has no reason, nor could he have benefited from it. I was aglow. I had just experienced what some longboarders hope wish and dream for. An actual, a real, Bonafide compliment from a younger shortboarder. Yep, it happened. But not just from any surfer, a surfer whom I respected, as did many others.

This little session continued to have silent untold compliments. For the waves where very difficult to ride for a shortboarder, even him. I mean he was pulling some impressive stuff off on the decent waves, but it was difficult for him to get any speed. He did pull a few hot things such as a couple backside arial 360's, and some sweet frontside stuff, but it was a bit of a struggle. I was clearly having more fun. Isn't that a saying somewhere?

Anyway, then something happened. I actually had the biggest wave of the morn (whew, hold on now). I had another right that seemed to be more lined up than the rest. I decided to go for the full rail turn again, this time without moving my feet. He was watching. He saw it. The only thing was, he was watching from the back, and he couldn't see the subtleties of my feet. I had to claim it, for I had actually pulled it on rail without moving my feet, and the rebound was perfect! Absolutely perfect. As I paddled back out towards him, my smile was unable to be hidden. But as I approached him, I noticed so was his. There was only one thing that had to be said in order to let him know who was having the most fun..but he already knew that.

I left a very satisfied and vindicated longboarder. I look forward to more days like that for me, and my fellow longboarders around the globe.

By

Mighty Mouse