Our Kind of January

1st - Me (with my hand in the air), Holli's cousin Ashley is the person next to me.

2nd - The start of what I hope to be a long love affair with surfing.

3rd - My beautiful pregnant wife enjoying some sun on the beach.

Hey everybody! Well, as you can see, I tried my hand at surfing today. I loved it. I'm pretty sore right now, but I feel like I did some good things. I was able to get up somewhat consistently by the end of the day. And on a few times, I rode forever it felt like. I stayed pretty much in the white water because I was told to because the waves get really big in the winter. Also, I ventured out a little too far at one point and I started catching a decent wave (by my standards). I knew it was bigger than what I had been doing cause I could feel the board on a pretty steep decline and I thought to myself, "This is going to be awesome," then I felt myself flip over the board and get a few mouthfuls of water. I was gagging for a few seconds after that. After that, my senses told me not to go so far out. But I was content to stay where I was.

I always wondered how it would compare to snowboarding and this is my take on it. First of all, I feel like there's a lot more going on initially when you surf. As you are trying to get up on the board, all the water is swirling around you and your feet aren't strapped to the board. Also, in one swift motion, you have to jump up onto the board using your arms (one foot in front of the other) while at the same time keeping your balance. But once I was up, I felt like it was more easy going than snowboarding because I wasn't worried about catching an edge or anything like that. Also, I think the sense of balance that one has from riding a snowboard helps when riding a surfboard.

The thing that got me the most tired was the paddling. My whole body was so tired and achy by the end, but it was time well spent. I really can't wait to go again.