Nightmares and Dream Waves

There has been a request that I say something about school in my blog, so I just want to say this for now: For the record, I do go to all of my lectures and I do a lot of reading.  My class on politics in the middle east is fascinating.  I'll say more about school later because it's great, but what happens on the weekends is just so much more interesting.  

Only two months down under and I've already been on the national news, but I would much rather have made headlines in a different way.

I was back down at Tim's house for Easter weekend, fishing, surfing, and playing extreme bocce and frisbee.  I love the drone of a 130-hp Yamaha outboard and the salt air blasting my face as we zip around in the Smiths' boat; it reminds me of home.  The difference is that the fish I catch when I'm down at Tim's are really small compared to what dad's catching off Canaveral these days.  But at least I can catch some fish, and Tim's dad Steve is always keen to go out on the bay. Being down at Tim's also means the best hot dogs in the world are right around the corner.  On Friday before fishing, Tim, Emma (his 13-year-old sister) and I had to down to the Koonya store for a delicious lunch.  Tell Willy that he hasn't tasted a hot dog until he's tried one of these.  I also had the best dinner I've had since leaving home at Tim's grandma's house on Friday evening.  I won't go into detail because I could probably write a couple pages on this meal, but let's just say it was incredible and leave it at that.

I guess there's something to say for a variety of experiences.  It's been nonstop fun since I got here, but things change quickly.  I wasn't going to write about this, but I was told that I should. I won't go into much detail, but I think the Saturday before Easter was the hardest day of my life.  That morning Tim and I joked and laughed on the way down to check the surf, having no idea what was about to happen.  We were about to go back and get our boards and wetsuits when we saw three guys paddle out on one board.  The board got away from them and was sucked out to sea by the rip that runs out from the beach in between the two reefs at centrals.  The three men were caught in the rip and we ran down to the beach and dove into the water after them.  Tim and I stuck together, swimming out to the furthest guy first.  I got him in rescue position and started pulling him sideways toward the breaking waves, out of the rip.  Tim reached us after a few seconds and he helped me pull the guy out of the current.  Then he swam for the other two while I swam the guy toward shore.

After making sure he reached the beach safely, I turned back for the other two.  Tim was swimming against the rip and I reached them before he did.  One was already dead.  The other pushed his body to me and swam to shore.  I dragged the body out onto the beach and Tim helped me after making sure the other guy made it to land.  Tim and two girls who were pool lifeguards and happened to be on the beach performed CPR until the paramedics arrived, but there was nothing we could do.  I collapsed on the beach from exhaustion after swimming so hard, and when I recovered I talked to the other two, who were in major shock after the incident.  A helicopter lifted Emyr's body off the remote beach over an hour later.  Tim and I spent the arvo in the Rosebud Police Station filing official reports on what had happened.  I feel terrible for the two guys who lost their friend, and for Emyr's family back in Wales, where he was from.  We did an interview with some news stations the next day to warn people about the dangers of surfing without experience and advise swimmers to stay at public patrolled beaches rather than the remote back beaches.  People keep telling us we did a great job to save the two guys, but the whole thing was just really depressing.  I guess you just never think that any day you could drag a dead guy out of the surf.

So that really put a damper on my whole Easter.  It was really good to be with Tim's family for the weekend- I got chocolate eggs and Emma and Alice both wrote their names in the dust on my car windows, like Doogie and Willy would do back home.  I surfed centrals on Sunday, hardly able to believe that the very place I was riding waves was the site of such a dramatic scene the day before.  Someone had put candles and flowers up on the beach where we had tried so hard to resuscitate Em the day before.  On Monday, we were out in the boat and Tim and I dove in and swam with a pod of dolphins, which was amazing.  One swam circles around Tim and me, playing with us for a few minutes, swimming straight at us and swerving at the last minute.

On Tuesday morning, I headed down to Bells Beach to see the Rip Curl Pro competition and do some surfing.  I talked to Dane Reynolds, Andy Irons, C.J. and Damo Hobgood, and said hi to Kelly Slater.  After the competition ended for the day, I surfed perfect rincon (the reef section of Bells) at head high to a few feet overhead.  The best wave I've ever seen, I think.  The place is legendary, considered one of the best rights in the world when it goes.  Just a year ago, it was one place that I never dreamed I would be surfing.  Bells is something off a poster, a picture in a surf magazine, a video.  It was just so rippable and perfect.  The bowl was perfect, giving me absolutely incredible amounts of speed with plenty of open face for turns.  The high tide pushed the wave all the way up so the inside section was just under the cliff, breaking on the shallow rocks.  The scenery was amazing, and what's more, Aussie superstar Joel Parkinson paddled out right next to me.  I considered dropping in on him just so I could say I snaked Parko, but decided against it.

I spent the night in my car on Point Addis, just south of Bells.  The next morning I woke to an incredible sunrise and headed back to Bells.  This time they had moved the contest to Winki Pop, the next pointbreak, so I paddled out to the Bells Bowl for some 4-5-foot (pushing double overhead) walls with only a couple other guys out.  The wind was offshore and the surf was perfect, and from the lineup I listened to the commentators announcing the surf contest over the loud speakers so I could follow what was happening while I was surfing myself.  The wind turned in the early arvo, so I drove down the coast to Cathedral Rock, a more sheltered point break, where I caught some more amazing waves with only 3 other guys out.  The exit was a little hazardous, dodging rocks sticking out of the water as I wove my way on my surfboard in to the beach.  I slept in my car on Point Addis again on Wednesday night.

Thursday the surf contest was on, and Kelly, Andy, Mick, Taj, Bede, Bobby, and Dane were all in it (I think a few of you actually know who all of those people are).  I witnessed a heat of one of surfing's greatest rivalries: Andy vs. Kelly.  Kelly came out on top in the heat and in the competition.  The day was very cold and windy, typical victorian fall day.  Everybody on the beach was in jackets and beanies with their hands in their pockets until the sun finally came out around noon.

So that's my Easter break.  I'm really glad to have Tim's family to spend some time with but I really miss you guys back home.  Anybody's welcome to come over for a surfing road trip!