Another well-hyped El Niño storm is forecasted to hit the coast today. The National Weather Service is calling for howling southwest winds and torrential rain from the get-go.
Take the kids to school under a menacing sky but no precipitation. Drive by the beach and notice that the wind is easterly.
Get a better look at the ocean in Carlsbad and the surf is big and firing. Nobody out.
Drive straight to Swami’s and the lineup is practically barren. It’s offshore, double-overhead and there are eight guys out.
Suit up as fast as I can and paddle out. When I reach the inside, I see who’s out: Ken Mcnight, Mark Brolaski, Scott Bass, Tom English, Jack Davis, and a couple of others.
It’s 8a.m., it’s uncrowded and as good as I’ve seen Swami’s in decades…and I’m out here with the same dudes that I surfed with in 1983.
It was this rare, anomalous session that really got me thinking about the graying of the surf population. About the fact that on days like this those the median age could qualify for a senior discount.
