flashbacks..
One thing I could never disagree with is when Rasta said, “Trying to explain colour to a blind person and trying to explain surfing, are very similar” in the short film made by Billabong called ‘I surf because…’ The only thing I can ever think of when someone asks me about surfing is this very statement.
Whenever people ask me about surfing, I have flashbacks. Instantaneous flashbacks of my first wave, the early mornings, the wipeouts, the air drops, the sea life I experience when I am in the water, all of my friends I surf with, and how surfing has changed my life. I could explain every moment in detail, but that could take me forever.
I could simply explain the highlights of walking down barefoot down the trail just because surfing barefoot is way better than surfing with wetsuit booties. Or the disagreements my friend Dave and I would get in relating to me initially starting at a 7’ retro-fish and wanting to switch to a shorter board. So I purchased a 6’2” Fish Hybrid which way thinner. The whole time Dave gave me shit saying, “There is no fucking way your going to be able to stand up on that board today”. Well guess what? Not only did I stand up, but I also carved up and down the face of good wave (which is an unexplainable feeling itself). Or I could explain the fun I have while I surf, hoping that Dave’s brother, Frank, took the first wave of the set in so I can take the second in hopes of getting close to him and give him a little taste of the salt from carving next to his face.
It would be easy for me to explain these things when someone asks me about surfing but even though its explained thoroughly and someone may be able to comprehend the words, there is no way to transfer the feeling you get when your standing on top of your board. But once a person gets out there and catches their first wave, I bet you 10 bucks that they’ll be claiming that wave like Andy Irons at Pipe.
