Marlon's First Surf at Pop's

Marlon and I picked up my old friend Nick in Waikiki and headed out to grab some morning surf. We were originally going to surf Cliffs over at Diamondhead, but when we got there the wind was nuking. We turned around, packed up and went over to Pop's. Side-offshore winds and a fun sized swell made for a great session. Nice swell for Marlon to try Pop's for the first time!!! Nick was having fun - You couldn't have asked for a better set of conditions - ahhhhhh, life in the waters of Hawaii...

Sunday Morning at Pops

I have been fighting a chest cold, but I figured a little surf would do me good - the physical exertion loosened up the phlegm in my chest and I was hacking up green blobs the whole session. Knowing we'd be a few hours, Charlie drove (parking in Waikiki can get expensive quick - carpooling saves resources). Apparently Charlie works with some junior officers (they're all still in the Navy) who doubt he surfs. For those doubters, here he is, early in the morning, surfing in the rain. The forecast called for 4-6' faces. I'd say when we were out it was more like 1-3', with the occasional bigger. This guy on the Naish board was hogging everything. Even after you had already committed to taking a wave, he would decide it was 'his' and paddle for it anyways. Here's Charlie looking like a guilty wave snaker, but in reality he's trying to make the world a safer place (taking out the hoggers). I had my share of wipes. I really like Pops - same wave as Threes, but none of the reef penalties (cuts and dings from going too far). I got back home and napped the rest of Sunday away.

Thursday Morning Dawn Patrol at Pops

Surf session before work. Fun swell from the Southern Hemisphere! Lots of pictures with water droplets flying around - I'll let them do the talking. Fun session!

Walls of Fun on the Dawn Patrol

I forgot how much fun surfing before work can be. It also is the secret to invincibility - nothing that happens in the office can bother you the rest of the day. This left lined up for me nicely. The Uli responded perfectly to every weight shift I made to crank turns up and down the wall. I caught a few others before it was time to go in and get ready for work (changing clothes in the parking lot - man I miss this!!!). The only problem with dawn patrolling is you get really sleepy after lunch (more so than normal). By the way - I also miss naps.

Pops Dawn Patrol with Jimmy

I got up early this morning to go on a dawn patrol with Jimmy. We hit Pops on a low tide and in bound swell from the South. Jimmy was on his new Flight Step-Up board. He caught most of his waves before I did so I didn't get to see him surfing except this one. I figured I was stuck on the inside and was going to get whacked by the white water anyways - might as well take a few pictures of Jimmy on his new board. Low light conditions are always tricky - but these came out nice!