A crazy wind started blowing yesterday and there was no swell yet. So I wandered down to CB skatepark to get a skate on. At 9:30 there was only me and 3 other older guys in park. The wind was howling 20-30kts SW and I was thinking of today. Swellinfo was showing building seas all day and a wind switch around lunchtime. Headhigh and offshore sounded good to me. I decided to try and roll in. Have not even attempted that yet as I have only been skating for 2.5 years since a 30+ year hiatus of flat ground and hill bombing on my old G&S Fiberflex. I got the first one although it was somewhat wobbley. After a few minutes I decided it was time to give it another try, bad idea, rear trucks locked up and I was eating concrete some four feet down in the flats. My left wrist got torqued but did not hurt to bad. I continued skating and after a while decided to give another shot. I had to get back on that pony, as I tell my son, and give it another shot. Success, although it was wobbley also. Four hours later and my wrist was killing me. This morning I could barely move it. Greg at HotWax told me last year don't skate before a swell, I guess I should have listened to him.
As I check the WBlive beach cam there was a mess of a SW swell, easy head high and drifting mad. The wind was still blowing SW 20-25 kts with gusts to 40 as the band of heavy shit barreled up the eastern seaboard, now it was just a waiting game for the wind switch. That happened almost on cue and at 12 noon the wind was W but still howling in the 20+kt zone. I went and looked at it and with a hurt wing decided to past as the drift was still strong and it still was not lining up on the falling tide. I managed to get a window this evening and surfed til dark on the incoming tide and falling swell. It still had some chest high sets coming and not to many people in one spot. I didn't even notice the wrist. But I probably won't try new shit before a swell again, but then skating is skating and if you ain't trying life is boring. It's hell being 43. Sorry for not having any swell pics, maybe next time.
