No Bad Tides: Surfing 4 Doors on Sunday 9-16-12 at San Onofre ... By Eric Cedeno

Back in September I wrote about my day surfing Ofre (Read all about here). This is an update to that post (as of 11-9-12), because now I have more pictures share thanks to my friend Mahalo.

Orlando Man told me that he and Mahalo were going down to Ofre for the day on Sunday (9-16-12) and that I should meet up with them. I figured it would be good for me to get some surfing in and I heard that there was going to be some good waves. I woke up extra early and loaded up my Honda element with my three boards (9'0" longboard, 7'4 hybrid and 6'10" mini log) so I'd have options in the water. I also packed up some waters and sandwiches for lunch and grabbed a few other things to snack on. I also took a few minutes to feed my fish.

My Backyard Pond 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

I left my house just before 5 am and went to the gas station to fill up my tank and grabbed a Red-Bull energy drink for the drive home at the end of the day. I headed south on the 405 freeway and there was hardly anyone on the road.

405 South FWY 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

I made really good time and arrived at Ofre (San Onofre in San Clemente) around 5:45 am. The line to get in wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been and they started letting people in at 5:47 so I wasn’t waiting long to get in. I sent Orlando Man a text message that said I was in line to get in and he replied that they were still driving. It was still dark our when I handed over the $15 bucks to get in and was thinking that maybe I should get an annual pass for $195, but didn’t. I parked in the usual spot that Skip and I get pretty much every time we go and took a long look at the surf. The wind was howling side shore to the north and it looked more like a November stormy swell than a late summer swell.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

It was cold standing outside my car so I decided to put my seats down and try out my new sleeping bag that I picked up the day before. I watched the cold waves chop and crash while a few cars parked and then left again.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

One guy out was catching these rights and made the surf look fun. I would’ve bet that it was my friend Skip but I would’ve been wrong. It was warm and cozy in my car I drifted off to sleep.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

I woke up about an hour later and the only thing that changed was the high tide just got higher. I called Orlando Man and after a few minutes we found each other. We were actually parked on opposite sides of the shower at 4 Doors. I suited up in my 4-3 mm, grabbed my 9’0” longboard, walked over to where Orlando Man and Mahalo were parked.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

Mahalo was cooking up breakfast for everyone and they introduced me to Shane Jones and a few of the other guys hanging around. Shane had a big camera on a tri-pod and I was hoping to get my picture taken. I paddled out and made my way over to the peaky right at 4 Doors.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

I knew the waves were going to have a tricky take-off, but that didn’t make it any easier for me in the stormy conditions. I managed to catch three waves but was having a hard time catching the rolly waves in the windy surf.

Orlando Man, Shane and Eric Cedeno Surfing San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Mahalo

Orlando Man Surfing San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Mahalo

I figured that I need either a heavier board to stick into the waves better like my 7’10” noserider that I didn’t bring, or a shorter wider shorter board that would make it easier to take off in the backwash like my 6’10” mini log that I actually did bring. I got out and ran over to my car and did a board swap and ran back over to the spot right out front of the guys and I saw that Mahalo also had his camera out too. I was hoping that the board change would make the difference that I needed and on the first wave it all came together. I made the quick drop and flew down the line and made a few turns and popped off the back just before the shore pound. I was instantly dialed in, wave after wave, turn after turn, making the best of every wave.

Eric Cedeno Surfing San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Mahalo

I stayed out for about another hour and a half until was getting hungry and thirsty and decided it was time to recharge. I took a wave in and Shane told me that he got me on a wave, I was stoked. He showed me the back of his camera with a shot of me doing a cutback on his screen- awesome! He said that he could email it to me later.

I changed into some warm dry clothes and ate some of the mid-morning BBQ that Mahalo was cooking up. It turns out that Shane and his dad own and operate Coral Reef Wetsuits (http://www.coralreefwetsuits.com/ : Coral Reef is located at 14161 Beach Blvd, Westminster, CA 92683). Shane’s dad Tony is a surf maniac, that guy can surf for like 8 hours straight and still want more.

Tony Of Coral Reef Wetsuits Surfing San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Mahalo

I actually thought Tony had left for the day but he was out surfing pretty much all day. I guess they also make Tiki furniture and stuff to, like the palapas that we were hanging out under all day. I got to talking with Shane and man that guy has surfed all over the place. In my opinion Shane is a better surfer than me and I’m ok with that. The sun finally broke through the morning fog and the wind died as the high tide peaked and started to finally start dropping. We watched the waves improve and I was getting antsy to surf again.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

The waves were rollier than earlier and the ocean smoothed out so I decided to give the 9’0” longboard another run. I put on my dry spring suit (long legs with short sleeved arms) because the sun was starting to heat things up a bit. The surf was clean and not very crowded and I was getting some super fun rides.

Eric Cedeno Surfing San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Mahalo

Most of the waves I caught were rights, but I did get three or four lefts. I managed to pull one of the best tricks that I land maybe once every five years on a left. I took off (regular foot – left foot forward) on a clean shoulder high wave and decided to go left and did a quick switch foot (goofy foot – right foot forward) did a big bottom turn and shot up the face of the wave (still goofy) and hit the lip as the wave started to break and started to float the section. Then in mid-Float switched back to regular foot (left foot forward) and landed it. That made my second session all worth it! I was nothing but smiles for the rest of my time in the water. I stayed out for at least another hour after that and then went in to re-hydrate and snack again.

Back on the beach Mahalo was cooking up a different batch of meat and offered me another plate of food which I gladly accepted. I hung out with the gang and we laughed at our own stupid jokes and stories while trying not to get too sun burned. I learned two new things at that time; (1) when the older guys shout “202” that means there is a hot girl somewhere close and you should look before she’s gone and (2) don’t drink beer from a red cup. Just so you know drinking alcohol (beer of other) is not allowed at any state beach, including this one and the fine is about $325. The local guys said the red cups are a dead give away to the lifeguards and beach patrol and its best not to ever use them. Instead use a coffee thermos of Ice-Tea bottle or something like that to not draw attention to yourself. None of us got busted, but it was good sound advice to those that might want to have a frosty beverage while at the beach. I didn’t have to worry about because I had planned to surf my brains out so I just drank water and Gatorade all day.

The wind died down and the surf really started to glass off as the low tide too over. The surf just kept getting better and although I was tired I wanted one more surf session. My arms were pretty worn out so after resting for a while I decided to pack my stuff inside my car just in case the others left before I got out from my third surf session. Tony, Shane’s dad finally got out of the water and said the point was the place to be and I believed him without question. I put on my spring suit (long sleeves with short legs) in the hot afternoon sun and grabbed my 6’10” mini-log which is easy for me to paddle, duck-dive and catch waves. The tide was super low and the shore line was filled with seaweed and exposed rocks.

I did the rock dance while carrying my board out into the water. I made the slow paddle out to the point where I found only five people out surfing which was way less than then twenty five people still surfing 4 Doors. A nice shoulder high set popped up and I caught it with ease. The wave held up fast and without sections, just a super clean fun wave. It was getting harder to see as the sun was getting lower in the sky and the reflection was blinding at times. I need to invest in some surfing sunglasses before I burn my eyes even more. I surf until my arms started cramping up and eventually made it back to my car. I packed up my car for the trip back home and thought about taking a power nap, but decided against it because then I wouldn’t get home until around 9. I watched the surf for a little while longer and just enjoyed the sun and the view. I snapped a few more pictures before getting back on the road.

San Onofre 9-16-12 Photo by Eric Cedeno

I was stoked to find my Red-Bull energy drink was still cold in my lunch cooler after a day at the beach. I cracked it open just before leaving the beach around 6:45 pm. I took my time drinking it on the drive home and was glad that the traffic was still light on the way home. I got home safe and sound, had some pizza and crashed out for the night with the burning reflection of the sun off the water still flickering behind my closed eyes.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Surfing 4 Doors on Sunday 9-16-12 at San Onofre ... By Eric Cedeno

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