Mind you, the waves weren't big by surfing standards, but they had more size than we often see here on the Right Coast. And, since they had propagated from hundreds of miles out to sea as a result of hurricane-force winds, they also had a little more juice than usual resulting in strong rip currents and a lot of white water on the inside which can make swimming challenging.
One guy was paddling out (if you could call it that) and he lost his board. His leash simply came off. It didn't break or tear apart anywhere, he just didn't have it fastened correctly. Red Flag #1. For those of you who do not surf, if you've ever owned a velcro watch, you would be able to properly fasten a leash cuff to your ankle.
When this guy lost his board, he began to panic and took my friend's longboard from her - yes, he took a surfboard from a woman to save himself. Good thing she's a strong swimmer. I don't know what made him think he could surf. I guess these fools think that if they have a surfboard under them they won't need to swim.
It's not just surfer wannabes who are wreaking havoc. The local beach manager here told me they had more than 100 rescues on Saturday alone thanks to the warm water and strong surf. When it rains, it pours.
If you're reading this and plan to go swimming or, heaven-forbid, surfing, in the ocean over the next few days - or anytime we're on the receiving end of a hurricane swell - do us all a favor and STAY HOME.
Your idiocy puts those of us who do belong out there in danger. As much as we'd like to watch you literally drown in your stupidity, if we can help, we will. Lucky you.
(By the way, my friend did make it to shore in one piece despite the fool who took her board.)
managed to fight through overhead surf to reach the lineup
0 comments:
Post a Comment