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Got
good surf pics? Send em off to me directly. (See link below) Just make sure they're 650-700 pixels wide. NO bigger NO smaller. In fact if you have any questions about the size, email me first and I'll write back. Start shooting crackie!! Ralph's Pic Of The Week |
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If you want to access the Pic of the week from past weeks click here. Archives |
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August
17th, 2008 For a couple of hours on Friday afternoon I spent my session listening and watching these three little Groms. Or as I called them "A Gaggle of Groms". Every now and then, I'd offer some advice and they seemed to try and take it in as best they could. It's funny to think about their youthful perspective with a chest high wave. To these kids, it was like Pipeline or Chopes. Their eyes bugging out of their heads with each set. They said that they were from Maine and Boston. And
every summer, they spend a week at North Beach in Hampton.
There was one brave kid out of the three, and he was catching all the
waves, while his two friends were freaking. He did have this to say about
the swell on Friday..."I've been waiting all year for this day."
Like I said, it's all in your own personal perspective. Clearly these Groms were out in some of the biggest waves of their lives. It was fun to feed off their energy. Makes you put things into perspective. The three of them chatting like squirrels on Red Bull. And all about the surf and the rides they were getting. While the rest of us jaded "Been there done that" attitudes went by yawning at best. I took something away from that session. Something
we used to call...stoke. Maybe not as miserable as most of us. But getting more and more jaded with each passing year. It's part of our natural progression. From being stoked, to being uptight. Let's face it. Not many of the adults I know who surf have the same stoke as a Grom. Hardly. And I'm including myself. I
get uptight. But, I do get stoked when I'm around the young Groms. It's
hard not to. These kids are surfing for all the right reasons right now.
If they could only hold onto to that stoke when they get older. I just nodded. "Oh...I
guess I should say I'm sorry." He finally says. "Look, you just
have to look both ways to see if someone is coming, or...if someone is
already on the putting green." I felt really good about my analogy. Seeing how I've never played Golf in my life. Later on, I took off on a wave and the same Kayaker was almost going to go, when I yelled out "Fore!" He stopped and looked at me with a big ole grin on his Kayak face. He looked...what's the word? Oh yea, he looked "Stoked." |
I
guess by now you all know that Tropical Storm Fay is coming. And
she could with a little nudge, make it up into our window. And the Lord
knows how much we need that. We all got a little too excited with Bertha,
thinking that hey, this could be that kind of summer. In other words,
the kind of Summer that we pray and dream about. A summer chock full of
tropical storms and hurricanes. Friday and Saturday was dam near tropical. Although that water clarity was a bit funky. That color was a direct result of the rain off. And if I had to guess, it can't be too healthy. I would like to think that you all showered a little longer after those two days. Don't take chances. That water was not very clean. But it sure was fun "Trunking it!" So how many of you are blown away by that Aquatic Freak Michael Phelps? Whoa, can that guy stroke through the water like some kind of fish/dolphin or what? 8 for 8 Gold Medals. Pretty impressive. Surely, we all have some kind of appreciation for our US athletes winning Olympic medals. And to see Phelps whip through the water like a freaking porpoise is just inspiring. Wonder what kind of a surfer he'd be? Clearly he could catch waves with those big hands and feet. I wonder if he's tried it? Be interesting to see. Speaking of Olympics, I wonder when they'll get the technology together to build wave pools to have surfers compete. Not that I'd like to see the sport become more popular, but you have to wonder if they'll ever consider Surfing as an Olympic sport. Can't you just see those 10 yr old Chinese athletes getting Gold medals after they were torn away from their parents at the tender age of three to compete in surfing. "You surf, or we execute your family!" Yessir! Hey sorry mom and dad...I have to surf for our country. How
many of you saw the two big stories of last week? No not the John
Edwards Love Child Scandal. I'm talking about the two bigger stories.
The video taping of the elusive "Chubacara" in Texas
and the Bigfoot press conference. My friends, this is big news.
Police officers videotaped a "Chubacara" running up a
dirt trail in Texas. I guess the Chubacara is some kind
of vampire creature. A well known folklore story in Mexico. Kind
of like our own Bigfoot creature. And I swear, they had a dam press
conference about Bigfoot just a few days after the Chubcara
sighting. Remember
my friends...Surfing heals all wounds.... |
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Yesterday
1900's. Old Orchard Beach in Maine.
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