Stronger

I've been working with Otavio a lot lately. He has still had me working on basics like keeping equilibrium on the board in the water and paddling as opposed to swimming on top of the board. This week I went out into some actual waves, much like I tried to do before and failed. This time I paddled out into some calm water with him first to keep practicing basics, but then he had me paddle back into the waves from beyond, which is a lot of hard work. Anyway, I actually caught a wave after I rested sitting on my board for a while. He kept pushing me to go ahead and try. So, finally I did, and after I missed a few, I caught one for a while. Then he said he wanted to try my board, so I let him, while I floated and rested for a while. I was just happy that someone was actually surfing on my board. It was great, although I could only see him part of the time when he would ride on top of the wave.

So, then he brought the board back and went to the beach while I was still trying to catch some waves. He said they were really fracas (weak), so it was harder to catch them right now because I have to paddle the same speed of the waves to catch them when they are so small and weak. He missed the one that I actually caught and rode into the shore, although I was prone all the way (that means on my belly). Anyway, I am feeling a lot stronger in the water.

Oh, I forgot. The funniest thing that has happened lately was on the beach. I was practicing popping up on my feet (found out I'm goofy) on a board drawn in the sand. And, so that I would know the right time to paddle and pop up, Otavio was acting like a wave, with his arm curled upward to imitate the shape of a wave coming at me. He had me do it a couple of times for him as well. It was a little awkward, but it was funny, even though he is such a serious dude, or maybe because he is such a serious dude.

note: postdated actual post date 3 March 2006

First day of class

Mondays are my day off. Today I lugged my longboard down the stairs again, this time early in the morning and took a taxi to my friend Otavio's house. I spent the morning with him and my stick, on the beach. We started out jogging and then did some exercises to warm up. Then I spent the rest of the time paddling out and paddling back in calm water. Each time I went a little further, but he wanted to start me off completely on the basics (and from the last time I attempted to surf, that was probably a very good idea.)

So, I got a little tired and then we worked a little on popping up on a board drawn in the sand.

After the beach, we went back to his house for lunch and to relax. I was there for a few hours, but then had to get home. Mostly I just layed in a hammock and tried to talk to him about the day in Portuguese. I am still learning. So, he helped me with two new things to me right now, a new language and a new sport.

Then we walked to the bus stop together. He let me keep my board at his house, so I don't have to carry it up stairs and try to catch a taxi with a rack on it everytime I want to go over there to surf.

note: postdated. Actual publish date 25 April 2006.

Wiped and wiped out

I just got back from my first attempt at riding waves. I am so a total kook. I was probably dangerous out there. I wiped out a couple of times, and that was just my attempt at paddling out. My stick is pretty dinged up from slicing across a couple of shallow places over rocks, but thakfully not through the shell, so I should be ok. I'm a little dinged up as well. I got a couple of cuts on my feet, not too deep though. I am thrashed. Completely tired. The thing is, my board does not fit in our elevator, so anytime I want to go, I have to carry it down 13 flights of stairs and then after surfing for a few hours, and getting completely tired out, I return home to carry it up those same 13 flights of stairs.

We were out there with Keith and his son Brock. Brock was cute trying to surf on the sand. He even helped me wax my stick for the first time. They were an encouragement as was Mary Virginia, my wife and helper. I have a friend here who is a lifeguard and a surfer. He wants to teach me to surf, and after today, I am more than ready to take some lessons. Not going into the water again without someone showing me the way.

note: backdated and actually posted 25 abril 2006.

The Gift

I have spent pretty much all my life as either a poser, a hodad, or a body surfer catching whatever waves would pick up my large frame and carry me for a few seconds toward shore. Today, that changed. I received, from my wife on our wedding anniversary, a mean green long board from right here in Salvador da Bahia, Brasil. It is a quebra coco, considered the top local board company, and a lot of surfers are already admiring the board shape. So, this begins my journey into learning to catch waves. I will start soon heading out into the waters of our beaches here, turning around and trying to raise. She gave me some bogus story about needing to help our teamates Travis and Alicia with something, and then we opened the door to a room they had not yet finished in their apartment. There it was, in its case, but I ripped that baby open to find a beautiful dream sitting there for me begging me to take it to the water. Soon my new friend. Soon.

note: This post was published 25 Abril 2006, backdated.