Letter From San Francisco

Wendy's Bodacious Surfing Lesson in Santa Cruz and Other Excellent Adventures…

Here it is, almost the end of August already! However, if you have been living in the Bay Area for a while, you know that the best "summer weather" is yet to come-- in October! So it's premature to start mourning the end of summer, fortunately.

People from around the world who visit San Francisco are often surprised to learn that the weather here is often fall-like throughout the year. Of course, there are the micro-climates throughout the Bay Area, where weather varies quite a bit, for example, Walnut Creek out in the East Bay. There the summers are really hot and dry, whereas in the winter, the temperatures drop much lower than in much of the Bay Area. Of course, no way are the temperatures ever as extreme or severe here as in other parts of the country. I, for one, coming from Massachusetts, can truly appreciate that fact!

So, summer brings to mind some things like… the beach… and in Santa Cruz…surfing! Surfing is something I have always wanted to try ever since way back when The Beach Boys glamorized it with their catchy tunes. When I first moved out here, I could sit on the shore completely mesmerized for hours watching surfers in their exciting moments of catching waves and riding them for as long as they could, usually lasting only a few minutes, if that.

I finally got up the courage to try it myself! If not now, then when? There is danger involved, of course, but I decided to put myself to the challenge. So, I made a reservation for a class, and cruised on down to Santa Cruz for my first lesson in surfing. I arrived there, paid my $75, which covered the lesson, and rental of the wetsuit and the board. I was excited and a little nervous. The teacher was billed as reputable and seasoned, which I am sure he is, however whatever happened to the laid-back surfer attitude? He was more like an army drill sargeant! First he had us doing our "surfer push-ups" on the board on the beach. The idea is to pop yourself up to your feet in one fell swoop from a prone position, and of course, you are supposed to be balanced on the board as it swooshes through the water at an alarming rate! Right!

Well, we paddled our way strenuously through the water there at Cowell's Beach, which is famous as a popular surfing beginner's spot, over to where the rideable waves came in sets of three, usually. Even though Cowell's Beach is the number one beginning surfer's training area, unfortunately the waves end up crashing right against a long stretch of big hard rocks covered with barnacles.

At any rate, there we were, my instructor, my three classmates (a 16 year old girl and two 13 year old boys) and myself lying expectantly and nervously on our floating surfboards. We were hardly out there for more than five minutes when my instructor gives my board a big shove onto a wave and barks "NOW STAND UP!!!" and I yell out "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO" like the guy who yells out "GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLL" during Spanish-speaking soccer games, as I rode my first wave terrified, holding on for dear life to my surfboard, zooming mightily along, heading--you guessed it!--- right for the rocks!!!! O MY GOD! I became silent as I realized this was not a movie, this was actually happening and I was afraid of what might happen next.

BANG! SPLAT! SPLASH! I hit the rocks and lay for a minute or two against the rocks. Then looked and saw my board and pulled it over and headed back out into the water. Thank goodness that was the last wave of that set!

I nonchalantly paddled back out while noticing my hand was bleeding profusely from being shredded by the barnacles on the rocks. Was I going to let that stop me? NO WAY! I was determined to go back for more thrills. Except for hitting the rocks, that ride was a blast! What's a little blood in the famed Red Triangle (the nickname for the area that starts in the Pacific Ocean area around Mendocino and goes down the coast to Monterey encompassing the Santa Cruz area where Great White Sharks breed prolifically). Sharks! Bah Humbug! You have more of a chance of dying in a car crash! (I think I must have been in an altered state of mind at that point!)

My instructor yelled at me to come back and join our group, but I yelled back NO, I am going further out AWAY from the rocks. He told me later I was supposed to roll off the board before hitting the rocks. No kidding.

At any rate, I had fun just hanging out, floating on my board as the waves undulated under me, not trying to really catch one to ride. Just enjoying the scene, socializing with the other surfers around me, mostly first timers, and many from other countries such as Denmark and Belgium. There was also a group that had two riders each teamed up on one board, an instructor each with a rider that was handicapped. I swear one of those instructors looked like the mythical god Neptune! With the carved muscles, the long hair, and the eyes of a mystic!

My instructor came up to me a while later and gallantly kissed my hand (which was sweet) and then after talking a little he yelled "READY?" and gave me another push onto a big wave, and once again I am zooming along in pure excitement feeling the power of the wave, but OH NO! A woman is floating on her board directly ahead, and I shout out "HELP!" and drag my right arm in the water to slow myself down and swerve to the right as she looks at me in utter fear, and the I miss her by plenty. My instructor paddles over and admonishes me against panicking in water, where everything is magnified 3x. Danger that is. Anyway, although I felt sheepish about my uncool panic, I am "stoked" as they say, and let out a whoop of joy. Ready for more!

Actually, I didn't catch any more waves that day, and reluctantly paddled back onto the beach as I heard others whoop out in their excitement from riding the waves. Fortunately the mothers of the two 13 year old boys who were in my class were there on the beach, since I needed their help, which they graciously gave, in getting my board back to the shop. My hand, which really hadn't hurt out in the water, started to really swell up and feel sore. It looked pretty bad.

As it turns out, I found that I had chipped a bone in my little finger on my left hand as I looked at my X-rays in the ER at Dominican Hospital, which is fortunately associated with Kaiser. A few weeks later, my finger is looking a little crooked, is still kind of swollen and won't bend down totally yet, but I hope it will!

At any rate, I still want to learn how to surf, but next time, I am going to take a lesson with a more mellow teacher who will be by my side from start to finish and that is Richard Schmidt, who is a truly famous and well-known surfer. If you are interested, you can find out all about his gentle, nurturing teaching style and on-going classes at www.richardschmidt.com or call the Richard Schmidt Surf Camp at 831-423-0928. Another recommended place to learn is Club Ed, and the phone number there is 831-459-7873.

Although my surfing adventure got off to a rocky start (pun intended), I hope to master my fears to be able to surf standing up and just experience the thrilling joy of it!

Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer!

Best,

Wendy Campbell

P.S. For a more relaxing summer experience, I recommend visiting Jenner, a mystical hamlet situated right where the Russian River meets the Pacific Ocean. It's a perfect place to get in touch with the majesty of nature, hike, watch the seals, kayak, do yoga, get a massage and enjoy excellent food and wine. A great way to unwind! For more details, see the travelogue under the "Fun Spots" section.