January 30, 2014 Thursday

 

Kona, Hawaii (the Big Island)	Kahalu'u Park
9:50 am to 11:20 am	3' to 4', occasional 5'
Mid dropping tide	NW cross breeze
Beautiful warm sunny Hawaiian day	Fun session

As soon as I dropped down the three-foot face on my first wave and looked down the line of a blue-green swell of crystal clear water, I gasped, "This is Hawaii."   I sailed along under a feathering lip, staring at the rocks below until the wave died on the inside. What exhilaration – a beautiful peak that peeled in both directions, 80 degree water, no wetsuit, just board shorts, a rash guard and reef booties cruising through clear water over lava rocks and bright yellow fish darting between them, with a high volcano in the distance hovering overhead and only five mellow surfers out there. I knew I was in for a good session.

Kate and I were on a six-day trip to the Big Island of Hawaii. The occasion was the wedding of my good friend Brad to Pat that occurred last Sunday. A reunion of sorts, I have known Brad since the first grade and our grammar school buddy, David O was there also. Twenty-five others traveled over here, including Brad's three children from previous marriages, to join in the celebration. After Sunday, Kate and I had a ball exploring the island. Of course I was thinking about surfing and was determined to surf at least once just to claim that I had surfed in Hawaii.

We left early on Saturday (Jan 25th), the day after the Mavericks surf contest. The Hawaiian Islands receive the same big Alaskan swells that hit Mavericks. High surf was hitting the Kona coast (NW corner of the island) when we arrived. All along the eight-mile stretch of the Ali'i Drive, the main road along the water through Kailua-Kona, big waves were pounding the beaches. The locals were challenging the big swells at several breaks including Kahalu'u. The waves were intimidating – big pounders smashing into jagged lava rocks. Our hotel put up high surf warning signs and closed the path along the ocean side of the hotel. On Monday we went tide pooling at Kahalu'u on a reef protected by a breakwater. The tide pool was fun, but I kept watching the surf break just north of the breakwater. The waves were big – ten feet, breaking top to bottom peeling to the left. Shortboarders were connecting on some fabulous rides – two to three feet overhead and screaming ahead of rapidly collapsing walls. Not for me.

Today was my last chance to surf because tomorrow we were leaving. Fortunately everything came together. Each day the surf had decline and was now down to four to five feet, more my size. Yesterday Billy, the driver and tour director (one person doing both roles) on our tour to the Volcanoes National Park, mentioned in his endless spiel about the island that he surfed.

"Do you surf?" Billy asked me at the Black Sand Beach. "I can set you up. I have friends. Let me make a call," and off he walked with a cell phone to his ear. He came back in a few minutes. "Here, call Dom," Billy shot off at machine gun speed. "He rents surfboards at Kahalu'u. Take down this number. He has everything, he will set you up, and he runs the Kona Surf Company."

At 7:30 this morning I called. No answer. The phone switched to a message service for the Kona Surf Company, but a recorded female voice broke in saying the message queue was full and I couldn't leave a message. Great. Kate and I just went there and sure enough there was a black pick-up truck with six sponge boards stacked in the back and KONA SURF COMPANY painted on the door.

"Are you Dom?" I asked a young Hawaiian bounding across the road.

"No, but I'm just as good. I'm Jay."

Jay had the solution for me, a nine foot Surf Tech Soft Top board – epoxy core under a soft exterior, $20 for two hours or $30 for all day. I did $20. Jay told me about the currents and pointed to John out at the break, "He's at the right spot." Jay also loaned me a pair of reef booties. I was embarrassed to admit that I had left mine in the hotel. I had purchased them especially for this trip last week at Proof Lab for $50.

Kate took the above photo with her iPhone just before I entered the water. That's the break on the outside. I paddled out to the line-up and said hello to John, who was about my age and was regular at this break. He told me to line up with the rocks of the breakwater and with the small painted church on shore. It proved to be good advice. I watched John take off on a classic blue-green A-frame peak. He glided across the top of a right peeling shoulder, cut back and then turned into a reforming long curl. That was how it was done. A friend of his, another regular, took me under his wing and we shared waves together. He rode a thick foam sponge board and swore by it. He caught the most waves and got the longest rides. I followed his lead and connected on several good waves.

In a little over an hour I caught ten waves. The take offs and the initial drops reminded me of San Onofre and the line ups on the shoulders reminded me of the Patch. About 11 am I began to work my way in, my arms were feeling it, but I was not exhausted and I was facing a Patch like long paddle in. Kate and I traveled back to our hotel where I jumped into the pool. To my surprise, the hotel's heated pool was colder than the ocean. I ended my session sitting in the hotel's spa. Nothing like jets of hot streaming water to relax one's shoulders and arms. For the rest of the day I had that surfer's glow – an overall relaxed feeling from strenuous fun exercise in a beautiful environment. Now I could say that I had surfed the Big Island.