"Eddie the Regular", slashing

I couldn’t find parking! It was 5:00 AM on Saturday, and the Ala Moana Beach Park lot was already full.

A solid south swell had rocked the islands for the whole week prior, so I figured that Townie binge burnout coupled with the dwindling swell would leave us with a smallish crowd.

Fortunately, the reason for the crowd was a 8,000 person "fun-run" that started and ended at the Park. I managed to squeeze my car into a stall right near the Ewa-side stoplight, then met the already waiting Jerry.

Our target was Concessions, a popular break in the middle of the park. However, it wasn’t looking all that great in the darkness, so we diverged from our plan and instead headed over to Courts.

Unfortunately, a couple of longboarders already beat us to the punch, and made it out before we did. I was doing alright with my tank, but Jerry had a funboard, which put him at an extreme disadvantage in the peeling surf.

After the crowd increased some more, I decided to make the move to Concessions. Jerry didn’t mind hanging at Courts, but I knew that his tenacity would not allow him to quit. Fortunately, he soon followed my lead, going to a much less competitive environment.

The surf at Concessions was about 1-2’, with some occasional 3 footers (Haw’n). Winds were still a little bit blustery, but it wasn’t bad at all.

In the lineup, everybody knew everybody... except for us, of course. But they were very cool. Most of the guys obviously gorged themselves earlier in the week, so they weren’t aggressive at all.

Good for us. Jerry had never surfed there before, so he had to familiarize himself with the spot. But he managed a few really nice trimming rides. Always paddled back with his infectious smile of stoke.

As for me, I used my log to my advantage, snagging some fun, chest-high waves. On one wave, I got into a nice wedge. I tried stepping back on the tail to stall in a low, arching crouch when the lip splashed on my face. I recovered myself and rode the wave out--big diff in power from the North Shore.

Caught one good wall, maybe a tad overhead. Unfortunately, it closed out pretty quickly and there was someone on the inside, but the few moments of down-the-line speed was quite satisfying.

Whether it's sharing the parking lot or leaving a crowded surf spot, sometimes you gotta concede to score.

Aloha from Paradise,