"the stoke"

post-work post-surf sunset

Montauk, NY

end of June

Last night I was watching "Step into Liquid", one of our favorite surf videos.  Throughout it they talk about the fun and thrill of riding a wave, the energy and the rush that is like no other, what they call "the stoke".  This morning we woke up and headed east to a spot where I knew we would find waves.  Sure enough we arrived to find our spot totally quiet, the first car in the nonexistent lot.  We walked over the dune to eye hefty lines of waist to chest-high waves coming in and went down to set up camp.  The next two hours was the most fun I've had in a long time.  It was the first time we had good sized surf in a little while and I had nothing else on the agenda for the day.  I relaxed and got into the rhythm of the sets as they rolled in.  I dropped into a few waves which were definitely the biggest I had surfed on this new board, the orange board, and it felt fantastic.  It is a sensation like no other, feeling the energy of the ocean and rising to your feet, dropping down the face of a wave to see that beautiful arc of water coming up to greet you, carving back and forth to enjoy every second of that ride.  And it doesn't matter if you are a pro or if you suck, how big the wave is, or where it is.  It's all about being in that moment and that pure bliss that takes over you.  Not about anybody or anything else, it's about being with yourself and loving that experience.  I needed that today, and am so thankful.  Eventually the lot would get filled up and so would the lineup of surfers in the water.  We retreated to a seafood feast on the Napeague stretch and then home to go about the rest of our day off.  Now evening-time I'm still thinking about a few of those waves, with their perfect slope and clean little barrels.  Still grinning ear to ear there is no question, totally stoked.