Line up?

It took me a long time to move from the white wash to 'out back' and I think that is why it took me so long to committ to surfing proper. The line up, the unknown rules and boys club all made 'out back' seem so intimidating! I finally made my move on Anzac Day, 2006 in the Kiddies Corner at Palm Beach, the stars aligned and I shared a heap of green waves with some little monkeys on shortboards.

I was at the Cove in Cottesloe, WA yesterday sharing a wave with a bunch of 14 year olds that I started to think about the line up. Maybe its because I'm a girl or maybe because I'm such a crap surfer but I've never honestly surfed at a break where there has been any semblance of organisation re who gets what wave (other then the very clear no drop ins), to me it seems to be whoever it the most aggressive or whoever knows the wave the best.

The rules of the line up where crafted in concrete by Surfing WA in the early 90s to control the level of surf rage going on out at popular breaks. The 'rules' which are on display at popular breaks talk about dropping in, snaking, waiting your turn as well as a number of other regularly committed offenses. Of all, snaking - when a surfer paddles around another surfer to sit in the better position to get the wave - seems to be the most regularly committed sin!

The worst offenders seem to be the 14 - 18 year olds who have been surfing since they were knee high and have their local breaks wired. They seem to have no compassion for old farts and just want to get on every wave. Its almost like they believe that their surfing for their life and their future is full off flat spells if they don't get every single wave possible!

I found surfing in Indonesia a real eye opener. The worst localism came from the Aussies who had perched in and set up camp for several weeks! The real locals, the Indos surfing on old boards layered with gaffer tape, treated all newbies no matter what skill level with a respect almost unheard of in the west. Interesting. Maybe it will all become clearer as I progress and start surfing better quality breaks.

25 things about me

This post is not about surfing. I wrote this list two years ago when a friend tagged me in their list on facebook. I never published it.................I finished the remaining two last night and quite liked it..........I felt it was wasted sitting as a draft but I don't think I want to share it somewhere as public as FB. My unread blog seems much better!

Most things haven't changed since 2009 however I am pleased to report I have broken my addiction to crappy American crime shows (11)!

25 things about me.
1. I wish I could speak another language
2. I love lying in my bed at night with the window open and the wind blowing, just listening
3. Learning to surf is one of the hardest (but the best) things I've ever done
4. I wish I played the guitar more then I do
5. I wish I wasn't so obsessed with keeping fit and eating well and could just let go
6. I could easily run a marathon or complete an ironman but the thought of spending a few days in silence really scares me
7. I hate that all the people I love are spread through out the world
8. I am appalled by government (and the general populations) inaction in relation to the environment
9. I can't believe I studied health and physical education as an undergraduate
10. There is nothing better then falling in love with the characters in an amazing book (and there is nothing better then falling in love)
11. I hate that I get sucked into crappy American crime shows in the evening
12. I dream of living in the bush by the sea living off the land
13. Sometimes I feel that I that I am a complete fake and am bullshitting my way through life
14. The one thing I love most in the world is laughing, big, loud, belly laughs that hurt so much
15. Wine, cheese and chocolate are the best
16. I love meeting people who I connect with...........easily and simply
17. I am so cynical about marriage but I really wish I wasn't
18. Animal cruelty is the one thing that really makes me feel helpless
19. I am trying so hard to minimise my impact on the world but I am afraid that it is not enough
20. I wish I could take my feet out of my mouth
21. I pretend to be so tough
22. I find live music and the people that create it so inspiring
23. The sea soothes my soul - el mar, mi alma
24. I want to write and publish the story of my grandparents time in Papua New Guinea in the 50s
25. I hope that I don't see the extinction of the last remaining large mammals in my lifetime