Life in the FAST Lane

"Let's go surfin' now, everybody's learnin' how, come on a safari with me..."

This was our cry at 8 o'clock this morning as six guys from Tenaya awoke to a perfectly sunny, warm January day in San Luis Obispo. (Although we had been planning this trip, we lucked out on the weather - couldn't have asked for better.) Since we didn't have class (MLK's birthday), that put the icing on the cake. I think it was german chocolate. Mmmm. . .

And so we strolled down the hill, boards and gear in hand, to pile on the bus bound for Pismo Beach, CA. This might be quite the trek for you SoCal folks, but being just 20 miles away makes Pismo a prime day trip surf spot. Well we were practically the only ones on the bus this fine Monday morning, which was nice, 'cause the boards took 3 extra seats. Pismo is just minutes away, and the bus is pretty cheap, so this mode of transportation will be used again. . .
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We hopped off at Pismo Pier, just a block from the water, and made a beeline for the beach. Here, Greg and Alex posed for a quick pic. Priceless.

Within minutes we were suited up and ready to thrash that salty beast. I just bought a wetsuit yestarday in anticipation of this trip, so i was all set to face the frigid (50-55 degree) water. Check this bad boy out.

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Wasting no time, Greg, Jeremy . . . hold up a sec. You haven't met Jeremy.
This is Jeremy, or Jeremiah as he prefers to be called. He's a cool kid from Jersey who came to Cal Poly to study Industrial Engineering. He likes to skate a lot, even though its mostly not allowed in SLO. He is wicked awesome at pool, which he loves. He has a table at home that he plays on when he's there. He's learning to surf, and is an all-around great guy.

Anyway, the three of us hit the surf, spending a couple of hours just getting what we could and having a blast. They both are still in the process of learning , so it was slow goings. But they seemed to thouroghly enjoy wiping out just as much as I do. We sure did a lot. I'm gonna be in the same boat once I start learning, which will be soon.

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Soon the three of us were tired, so we paddled in and warmed our bones with our pals, using none other than world famous clam chowder from Splash Cafe. It was de-lish. After this Greg and Jeremy went back out, while I accompanied Alex to a local surf shop to pick up some trunks - he left his in Fresno. He got some new ones and I got a carrying bag for my board. Now I'm stylin'!

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The weather became even better than it had been that morning. It cleared up abit more and got warm and breezy.

I was feeling good and ready for more, so I hit the waves with Greggor and Jerimiah again for a while. When I get out Ross . . . Ross is new too? Sheesh.

This is Ross. He's a CompSci major from San Jose who lives across the hall. He plays pool with the rest of us, and word is he surfs too, with his board that's at home.

Anyway he says that Balex (nickname not a type-o . . . long story), has gone to buy a wetsuit. Not only that, but he's taken Shawn with him. . . you haven't met Shawn either?

Shawn is an engineer from Sacramento who lives on the first floor of Tenaya. He enjoys outdoor sports like paintball and airsoft, as well as video games (flagen).

Anyway, they both bought wetsuits there! Crazy kids. I'm not sure what the motivation was, since I don't think either of them wants to surf, other than boogie boarding. Huh.
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Well by this time we had been at it for more than 5 hours. Thats a lot of waves man! Greg, Jeremy and I were beat, and since we all had homework we decided to catch the next bus back to campus. It was a little late so we had a chance to stand about and dialogue. Once it showed up we all zonked out.

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The day was a total success - we all had a blast and we're gonna do this next weekend as well. More wave time means better skills to show off to the ladies. . .

I can confidently say that this was the best day I've had since I got back in SLO. The feeling of being in the water, swimming and catching some amazing surf - there's nothing like it. It's euphoric.
I think the Beach Boys put it best when they said "Catch a wave - you'll be sittin' on top of the world."

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On a side note, I just wanted to wish a happy birthday (belated) to the Big Dadio, Jim YZguy. Hope you had a good one man!
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Hope you enjoyed this edition of Jimbo's Going SLO
This is Big Kahuna* signing off.

*I've taken to calling myself Big Kahuna because I am a big kahuna, plus it says that on my boogie board. Neat huh? Peace.
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P.S. At the request of Mom, here's me at Pismo being all squinty. The sea was angry that day, my friends, and the sun/flash was bright. Peace