Localism- Taking Words To Heart

Everybody knows that as soon as someone tells someone else about their surf spot that next thing you know a million people are there and it gets packed and it turns that once hidden gem into a lump of crap. That might not always be the case, but I think its a fear that all surfers have. Even I have had a few lessons from the locals and I took those words to heart. I don't want my favorite spots to get turn into a mess either and I will also work on sharing waves.

This is what all locals fear:

Surfers were run over and cut each other off as many riders go for the same wave. Others were run over as they tried to paddle out. 

The more people that paddle out in the same surf beak equates to a higher the risk of injury. It gets even more dangerous as the size of with wave gets bigger.  I personally know someone who lost an eye in a surf accident after getting his lease tangle up with another guy then a set wave hit him and the other guys board took out his eye- for life. I know another guy who broke his neck paddling out on a big day and was brought back to life on the beach (by my friend and is still surfing today). If you want to see some nasty things that can happen do a google search forSurf Accident.  

Please give this some thought- Do you really want to cause harm to yourself or to others by surfing in crowded areas? Do you really want to cause harm to yourself or to others on purpose by “protecting” your local surf spot?

Pascal Dattler suffered severe head trauma at on Friday when hit in the head by another surfer's board at a crowded surf spot. Photo: Tweed Daily News

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/surf-helmet-call-after-grommets-skull-crushed-20100113-m5eh.html#ixzz1rfBxxawQ

There is also the risk that the beach will be too crowded with people and swimmers and then become “black balled” (No surfing allowed)…

I probably sound a bit like a local and to be truthful I am a South Bay local. I grew up surfing here and don't have any plans to leave- ever. Localism has gotten a bad reputation, and I’ll admit that some of that is well deserved as publicized in Rough Waves, Tougher Beaches Published: January 22, 2009http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/sports/othersports/23surfing.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&sq=wolfpak&st=cse&scp=1

Marco Garcia for The New York Times

Kala Alexander, the Wolfpak's enforcer and most notorious member, in May 2008.

By MATT HIGGINS

SUNSET BEACH, Hawaii — They are known as the Wolfpak or simply “the boys.” They use fear and their fists to command respect in the surf along the North Shore of Oahu, a seven-mile stretch of some of the world’s most renowned waves. At the celebrated Banzai Pipeline, they determine which waves go to whom, and punish those who breach their code of respect for local residents and the waves.

Localism has two major divisions; Local #1 (Non-violent) people who go to the same spot all the time and know how the waves break and know the regular people that hang out and surf there. Local #2 (Violent) same Local wave knowledge and they don’t want others (non-locals) to go to that spot and are willing to intimate, beat up, vandalize or use other scare tactics to keep outsider (non-locals) away.

I fall into the first division of localism (non-violent). I’m a peace keeper, I’m out to keep people safe and out of trouble. I’ve helped rescue a few new surfers here and there. In some cases that meant I had to leave to keep myself safe and out of trouble too.

Let’s face it the beaches with the biggest parking lots will obviously have the most surfers out in the water, like El Porto in Manhattan Beach (CA).  Porto also consistently picks up the most swell in the South Bay area.  It also has some of the best surfers battling it out for prime take-off positioning. Short boarders, long boarders, Sup’ers, knee boarders, body boarders, body surfers and the occasional swimmer and converging in the water in front of the paved metered parking lot.

 It’s the same scenario at Manhattan Pier, Hermosa Pier, and the Avenues in Redondo. Easy beach usually access means more people. A longer walk will change things only a little bit. The Cove (Malaga Cove / Bluff Cove) in PV (Palos Verdes) is a little less crowded with Sup’ers, knee boarders, body boarders, body surfers and swimmers. Its watercraft diversity has thinned for two reasons; 1) it’s a long half mile hike from the cliff down to the rocky shore line below and 2) some of the Locals (local #2’s) have been known to make things uncomfortable for non-locals (sometimes verbally sometimes physically). There are lots for really fun surf spots between PV and El Porto. I encourage you to try surfing different spots, and ride different styles of boards. It may give you a new perspective and appreciation for your home breaks.

I have A Modest Proposal when it comes to surf exploration. Become a local (#1) and if you can’t become a local (#1) then please try see the beach or surf spot like you are a local. Here is a list of a few things that have helped me stay under the radar when I’m surfing new spots.

• ·       Locals want to keep their beach, ocean, neighborhood clean. This is your opportunity to win a few points by picking up any trash you see laying around. Try not to make a big deal out of and you’ll get even more points. By picking up trash it shows the locals that you care about the area (and you might pass as a local yourself). 
• ·       Don’t bring a crowd with you. It’s ok to bring a friend but don’t bring lots of friends. If you want to bring lots of friends then you should surf at a spot with lots of metered parking.
• ·       Paddle around the impact zone whenever possible. The impact zone is where the waves are breaking and where most of the other surfers are going to be taking off on waves.
• ·       Share waves. That means don’t take off on every wave that comes near you. Let a few go by for others to enjoy. These days it usually a one person per wave sport and there is etiquette involved. Closest person to the peak get the wave, don’t drop in on someone else that has already caught the wave. Sometime there's a line up where you just wait your turn.  In the early days of surfing people shared waves all the time and by shared I mean rode the same wave together. There was a more the merrier attitude from the early 1900’s thru the 1940’s. Something changed somewhere between the 1950’s and 1970’s and it became a one person per wave mentality.
• ·       If you do get snaked (someone drops in front of you on a wave) try not to let it ruin your day. There will always be more waves. If the person who snaked you is a newbie give them some encouragement and some safety tips (like a good local #1) they might not know all the rules of surfing etiquette. Remember all surfers started out not knowing everything. If they are not a newbie then just be careful, that person might just be looking for a reason to fight (and you might be out numbered). If it looks like it might get ugly - leave. There is no shame in walking (or paddling) away from a fight. Plus who wants to surf a spot where it has a crappy vibe. There are waves all over the place. There could be waves breaking just a few yards farther away that might have a happier vibe.
• ·       If you’re still a beginner don’t go off the beaten path yet.  Stick to the areas near operating lifeguard towers and if you can stay a little farther left or right from the main breaks. As a beginner you are at the highest risk of getting hurt by your own board. It can take some time just to learn how and when to paddle out. Then you have to figure out how to stand up on your board and that’s where the addiction to the stoke really starts.
•      Be safe and have fun.

GERRY LOPEZ--THE ALOHA SPIRIT OF SURFING

A few More Days of Surfing...

6-27-12 Wednesday Torrance Beach 1-3’

I decided to head down the street and check out Torrance. I lucked out and found a good parking spot that I managed to squeeze my car into. I know it’s cheesy to say this but I love that turning radius, it’s a million times better than my truck. I did another surf check from the parking lot and it was obviously better than other places. It wasn’t as good as yesterday but it was still doable so I figured I’d go out for a little while. 

Torrance Beach 6-27-12
Photo by Eric Cedeno

I suited up and grabbed my 9’0” longboard and headed down the ramp with my hat on. I figured a hat would cut down the glare a little and it turned out that it did help. There were only four or five others out and most of them had shortboards and had a hard time catching waves. I picked off a few good ones and made the best of the situation. It wasn’t great surf, but it was good practice. I’m looking forward to getting some bigger waves soon and if bigger waves are not around then I’ll be in search of a longer wave. I might have to make a field trip down south to O’fre or Cardiff to catch a longer wave. Maybe next week I’ll do a road trip….

6-26-12 Tuesday Torrance Beach 1-3’

I was hoping to get Sapphire all to myself again, but it just didn’t turn out that way. There was a flock of people out in the water and it was apparent that most of the people out were just learning.  I have to admit that the surf and weather was great for beginners. It just seemed a little too small and crowded for me to join in the chaos. So I headed down to Torrance in hopes of finding some less crowded conditions.  

Torrance Beach 6-26-12
Photo by Eric Cedeno

I guessed wrong. At the end of the Torrance Parking lot was a film crew and cops and a bunch of trailers. Must be shooting a movie or something, but I wasn’t interested in that. Actually I was hoping that all the action was in the parking lot which might leave the surf more open and empty. I guessed wrong again. It was more crowded than other spots.  I just didn’t want to deal with more people so I left and went home.  Maybe tomorrow will be better…

Style Points: The goals of surfing

Here are a few examples of what not to do while surfing:

Style Evolution: Wipeout!

If you are just starting out and still learning the basics of surfing then please surf on small days in safe surroundings. Don't be this guy... 

Some guy learning to surf on the wrong day

If you are just starting out and still learning the basics of surfing then I recommend doing some homework first. Do some research about what it takes to learn how to surfing. Youtube.com is one of the easiest was to get instructional videos for free. Something like this might help you:

Trailer - 110% Surfing Techniques Volume 1

Evicting the entitlement monster is Impossible – Localism

I tend to keep a low profile when I paddle out to surf. I look calm and comfortable as I paddle out, like all locals do, but I’m not a local at all the places I surf. Like most surfers I like the least amount of people out in the water and those good places are getting harder others to find. Actually it’s pretty easy to find an empty break in the South Bay, there are lots of them but some are monitored and enforced by locals so be careful.

 It helps if you know how the different beaches break on high and low tides so you can pick which direction to go (north or South). I’m not going to tell you where my favorite South Bay secret spots are- that wouldn’t be any fun. Everybody knows that as soon as someone tells someone else about their secret surf spot that next thing you know a million people are there and it gets packed and it turns that once hidden gem into a lump of crap.  

This is what all locals fear:

I hear it all the time:

"This guy thought he owned the waves and he kept dropping in on me so I pushed him off," he said. "When he came up he came at me and it was on." 

I've been surfing here for a long time and I've never seen so many people in the water. There are hundreds and hundreds of people and not enough waves to go around so I reckon it'll get ugly," he said.

Surfers were run over and cut each other off as many riders go for the same wave. Others were run over as they tried to paddle out.

"It's insane, you have to psych yourself up just to paddle out because you know, sooner or later, someone's going to have a go at you."

The more people that paddle out in the same surf beak equates to a higher the risk of injury. It gets even more dangerous as the size of with wave gets bigger.  I personally know someone who lost an eye in a surf accident after getting his lease tangle up with another guy then a set wave hit him and the other guys board took out his eye- for life. I know another guy who broke his neck paddling out on a big day and was brought back to life on the beach (and is still surfing today). If you want to see some nasty things that can happen do a google search for Surf Accident.  

Please give this some thought- Do you really want to cause harm to yourself or to others by surfing in crowded areas? Do you really want to cause harm to yourself or to others on purpose by “protecting” your local surf spot?

Pascal Dattler suffered severe head trauma at on Friday when hit in the head by another surfer's board at a crowded surf spot. Photo: Tweed Daily News

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/surf-helmet-call-after-grommets-skull-crushed-20100113-m5eh.html#ixzz1rfBxxawQ

There is also the risk that the beach will be too crowded with people and swimmers and then become “black balled” (No surfing allowed)…

I probably sound a bit like a local and to be truthful I am a South Bay local. Localism has gotten a bad reputation, and I’ll admit that some of that is well deserved as publicized in Rough Waves, Tougher Beaches Published: January 22, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/sports/othersports/23surfing.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&sq=wolfpak&st=cse&scp=1

Marco Garcia for The New York Times

Kala Alexander, the Wolfpak's enforcer and most notorious member, in May 2008.

By MATT HIGGINS

SUNSET BEACH, Hawaii — They are known as the Wolfpak or simply “the boys.” They use fear and their fists to command respect in the surf along the North Shore of Oahu, a seven-mile stretch of some of the world’s most renowned waves. At the celebrated Banzai Pipeline, they determine which waves go to whom, and punish those who breach their code of respect for local residents and the waves.

Localism has two major divisions; Local #1 (Non-violent) people who go to the same spot all the time and know how the waves break and know the regular people that hang out and surf there. Local #2 (Violent) same Local wave knowledge and they don’t want others (non-locals) to go to that spot and are willing to intimate, beat up, vandalize or use other scare tactics to keep outsider (non-locals) away.

I fall into the first division of localism (non-violent). I’m a peace keeper, I’m out to keep people safe and out of trouble. I’ve helped rescue a few new surfers here and there. In some cases that meant I had to leave to keep myself safe and out of trouble too.

Let’s face it the beaches with the biggest parking lots will obviously have the most surfers out in the water, like El Porto in Manhattan Beach (CA).  Porto also consistently picks up the most swell in the South Bay area.  It also has some of the best surfers battling it out for prime take-off positioning. Short boarders, long boarders, Sup’ers, knee boarders, body boarders, body surfers and the occasional swimmer and converging in the water in front of the paved metered parking lot.

 It’s the same scenario at Manhattan Pier, Hermosa Pier, and the Avenues in Redondo. Easy beach usually access means more people. A longer walk will change things only a little bit. The Cove (Malaga Cove / Bluff Cove) in PV (Palos Verdes) is a little less crowded with Sup’ers, knee boarders, body boarders, body surfers and swimmers. Its watercraft diversity has thinned for two reasons; 1) it’s a long half mile hike from the cliff down to the rocky shore line below and 2) some of the Locals (local #2’s) have been known to make things uncomfortable for non-locals (sometimes verbally sometimes physically). There are lots for really fun surf spots between PV and El Porto. I encourage you to try surfing different spots, and ride different styles of boards. It may give you a new perspective and appreciation for your home breaks.

I have A Modest Proposal when it comes to surf exploration. Become a local (#1) and if you can’t become a local (#1) then please try see the beach or surf spot like you are a local. Here is a list of a few things that have helped me stay under the radar when I’m surfing new spots.

• ·       Locals want to keep their beach, ocean, neighborhood clean. This is your opportunity to win a few points by picking up any trash you see laying around. Try not to make a big deal out of and you’ll get even more points. By picking up trash it shows the locals that you care about the area (and you might pass as a local yourself). 
• ·       Don’t bring a crowd with you. It’s ok to bring a friend but don’t bring lots of friends. If you want to bring lots of friends then you should surf at a spot with lots of metered parking.
• ·       Paddle around the impact zone whenever possible. The impact zone is where the waves are breaking and where most of the other surfers are going to be taking off on waves.
• ·       Share waves. That means don’t take off on every wave that comes near you. Let a few go by for others to enjoy. These days it usually a one person per wave sport and there is etiquette involved. Closest person to the peak get the wave, don’t drop in on someone else that has already caught the wave. Sometime there's a line up where you just wait your turn.  In the early days of surfing people shared waves all the time and by shared I mean rode the same wave together. There was a more the merrier attitude from the early 1900’s thru the 1940’s. Something changed somewhere between the 1950’s and 1970’s and it became a one person per wave mentality.
• ·       If you do get snaked (someone drops in front of you on a wave) try not to let it ruin your day. There will always be more waves. If the person who snaked you is a newbie give them some encouragement and some safety tips (like a good local #1) they might not know all the rules of surfing etiquette. Remember all surfers started out not knowing everything. If they are not a newbie then just be careful, that person might just be looking for a reason to fight (and you might be out numbered). If it looks like it might get ugly - leave. There is no shame in walking (or paddling) away from a fight. Plus who wants to surf a spot where it has a crappy vibe. There are waves all over the place. There could be waves breaking just a few yards farther away that might have a happier vibe.
• ·       If you’re still a beginner don’t go off the beaten path yet.  Stick to the areas near operating lifeguard towers and if you can stay a little farther left or right from the main breaks. As a beginner you are at the highest risk of getting hurt by your own board. It can take some time just to learn how and when to paddle out. Then you have to figure out how to stand up on your board and that’s where the addiction to the stoke really starts.
•      Be safe and have fun.

GERRY LOPEZ--THE ALOHA SPIRIT OF SURFING

Back to the beginning...

Eric Cedeno at Knob Hill: Photo by Shell Shott Photography

It was back in the summer of 1990 and I wasn't looking forward to starting the seventh grade when school started up again in the fall.  The Dude opened up his cluttered garage and pulled out a seven foot Gerry Lopez (a classic 70's surfboard) off the rack mounted to the wall. He passed the board to me and told me about a famous surfer- Gerry Lopez. He said that this board was special and to take care of it. It barely fit under my arm when I carried it and it was a few feet taller than I was at the time.  I've always said it's an orange colored board but all my friends still disagree and say it's yellow. It has red lightning bolts on the rails and a single green fin with a hole in it that a was attached to a leash that was probably older than me. I weighed maybe 90 pounds, skinny, but physically fit and really stoked about learning how to surf.  We stripped the ancient blackened wax and put on a fresh coat.  We always used Bubble Gum surf wax back then, a pinkish-orange color that still smells like surfing to me.

The next morning I had the car loaded up by seven and waited patiently for the Dude to get out up so we could go.  We cruised the surf route and met up with every one at Pearl's Point (across the street from Critter's bar in Hermosa beach). All of them had been surfing for many years, and it showed.  There was Marti and Hog, Leis and the Dude and me. They all rode longboards, I rode a seven footer that seemed to work like a longboard to me, since I was only four foot and some inches back then.

The surf was not that big, but for me they always seemed over-head.  We walked to the shore line and I waxed up the Lopez for the hundredth time.  That's when the Dude said, "This is how you surf.  Paddle out. When you see a wave coming,  turn your board towards shore -and paddle real hard.  When you feel the wave pick you up arch your back -bring your knee's up to your chest and stand up, cover your head when you eat it. See ya!" Then he paddled out and was catching waves with the gang.

Eric Cedeno working on the new "Carpe Diem" (Seize the Day)

I paddled out as best I could until I thought I was out far enough, of course I wasn't.  All morning I kept trying to catch a wave on my own or just sit on my board without it flipping over on me. This really scared my mom, since I could not swim very well.  I could tread water for a few seconds, and that was long enough for me to grab onto my leash and get back on my board. Usually I would only surf for an hour or so, mainly due to the fact that I get cold easy.  I would get out, dry off and watch the gang catch waves.

Every weekend for those first few months I would come home with a giant smile on my face and a new cut or bruise on me somewhere from getting banged up by my board. The water started getting cooler and I was getting closer to riding my own wave.  I could catch waves now but I would either pearl-it or eat-it one way or the other. Till the day came.

We all cruised up to El Porto and decided to go out.  The water was getting colder now and I didn't have a wet suit. I paddled out rather quickly, having lots of practice paddling out but not standing up.  I was catching a few but eating it as usual.  Then I saw it and just knew that was the one.  I paddled for it and the guys cheered me on. The wave picked me up and I pushed off my board and stood up hoping I would not pearl like always. I held my breath as my board made its way down the face of the wave. I made that wave and rode it straight in since I did not know how to turn yet. I was so stoked! I was laughing and hooting all the way back to the line up and all the guys congratulated me on my excellent ride. I was hooked.

I'm still hooked today. I still have the Lopez, but it's been retired and hasn't been ridden for a few years now. I recently made up my mind to have a new seven foot Lopez board made, but with a few small changes; Tri fin instead of a single fin, a smoother nose and I wanted to add some art on it. It's got the same familiar rails and flotation. It's like being able to drive your first car again and you already know what to expect from it- lots of fun seizing the day.

Eric Cedeno at El Porto 1-20-12: Photo by Shell Shott Photography