[Paddlewise] Holiday Traditions

12/24/09

I need harbor no more sympathy for you northern folk. When I went out to the
car this morn to head to the San O Xmas Eve Surf Fiesta, I had to scrape ice
off my windshield! Not a real common occurance here in the O.C.! Perhaps it
had something to do with our rare visitor from the cold, cold north--no not
Santa, but Craig Jungers and his wife Sue who stayed a few days at the Doheny
campground. Other participants included Duane, Steve Wilson, Dublin Dave,
Howard, Ken & Barb, John Clinton and Debbie from the Meetup.com crowd.
Everyone was pretty bundled up from the cold, but the sun was starting to come
out of its shell to warm us a bit.

Long boats were the order of the day with 2 1/2 footers a rare commodity. The
only trepidation with the launch was the fact that Duane had forgoten his
paddling shorts and was heading out Commando Style under his thankfully long
Tuilik. Remember that next time you ask to try his boat! Fortified with
Steve's offering of pre-paddle donuts, we were soon waiting in line for the
small surf for our occasional rides.

With plenty of lulls, there was time for breaks on the beach to talk and eat
and sight see. Craig had brought his F1 down, so on my second trip out, I got
to give it a try. I was quite impressed with the light weight, but sturdy
construction and none of the flex I expected to feel in the surf with a skin
boat. So we all surfed and rolled; Duane practiced a bit of spear chucking and
Steve lived up to his nickname of Hullcracker by finding the only wave around
with enough energy to send him into John and damage some of the gel-coat on
his Aquanaut! When worlds collide!!!

With the bulk of the CKF Music Dept. in attendance at this morning soiree,
Craig and Sue and their two dogs got to listen as two guitars got passed
around to 4 different players. It was a fun little jam session deilightfully
interuped a couple times by a surf loving dog chasing his ball into the shore
break. Each time it looked like a he was in for it, but he was too quick to
let any wave knock him around. For his effort, he was serenaded with a version
of "He's a Good Ol' Dog" that Steve made up on the spot to the joy of the
group. Another dog got to join its owner out on the water on his stand up
paddle board, but alas, it earned no song!

For some reason, these events always seem to have to end sometime and this one
was no different. It is Chrismas Eve, so perhaps we should be thankful just
for being able to spend even a short morning on the beach. Even sans waves it
was a fun event and I'm glad we were able to share it with Craig and Sue.

Mark Sanders
www.sandmarks.net

#
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