Meanwhile, back at the coast...

Great 'surf' report (below) from the NW this week. We should get about a foot or more of cold pow from this one back in Bend and Bachelor. Fun, but shallow lines on the front-side of the mtn have been good for an hour or two of fun for the last couple days. Hopefully, the coming storm, and subsequent "pineapple express" next week should usher in the beginning of the real snow season soon! from http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/total_forecast/marine.php?marine=PZZ250 .SUN...S WIND 40 TO 50 KT...BECOMING 45 TO 55 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. COMBINED SEAS 16 TO 20 FT IN THE MORNING DOMINANT PERIOD 9 SECONDS THEN BUILDING TO 26 FT IN THE AFTERNOON. RAIN. .SUN NIGHT...S WIND 30 TO 40 KT IN THE EVENING...BECOMING 55 TO 65 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. GUSTS UP TO 80 KT. COMBINED SEAS BUILDING TO 32 TO 36 FT DOMINANT PERIOD 11 SECONDS. RAIN. .MON...S WIND 60 TO 70 KT WITH GUSTS TO 85 KT... EASING TO 45 TO 55 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. COMBINED SEAS 40 TO 45 FT. RAIN. .MON NIGHT...S WIND 35 TO 45 KT. COMBINED SEAS 28 FT. RAIN IN THE EVENING...THEN CHANCE OF SHOWERS AFTER MIDNIGHT. .TUE...SW WIND 25 TO 30 KT. WIND WAVES 6 FT. W SWELL 29 FT. SHOWERS. ..and an update on the evening of 12/3: BUOYS 29 AND 50 ARE ADRIFT AND MAY RUN AGROUND TONIGHT. SEAS PEAKED AT 48 FT AT BUOY 89 BUT HAVE STARTED TO FALL. WILL MAINTAIN THE COASTAL FLOOD WARNING THROUGH MIDNIGHT DUE TO VERY HIGH RIVER FLOWS AND GIVE THE SEAS SOME MORE TIME TO DROP. WILL LIKELY NEED TO GO WITH HIGH SURF WARNING LATER TONIGHT. THERE IS ANOTHER BATCH OF SEAS CLOSE TO 30 FEET THAT REACHES OUR COAST TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT FROM AN OFFSHORE FETCH THAT WILL MAINTAIN RATHER HIGH SEAS INTO AT WEDNESDAY. Power out to over 40,000 around the N. Oregon coast, 130mph gusts, warming temps, and rain. Can anyone say "Pineapple Express"?

Choices, Choices

With some good snow on the ground, I left for a November surf trip to the good 'ol Oregon Coast. After the storm, the typical offshore pattern sets in, and on the trip over, I was greeted with a fresh coat of snow...

But I was on a mission for another type of sliding, as Mt. Bachelor only reported 6" from the storm. Here's a shot from tonite, with some building swell wrapping into the local reefs here.

Plenty to be thankful for here, how about you?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Matt

The rest of the surf shots....

France surf shots are on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shredvids/sets/72157603029925973/ It sure was good to get some surf, and Paris was a wonderful end to the vacation. Great to be back in Bend, OR climbing, biking and waiting on the snow to come for some good POW turns....

Weather comes in, so we are off to Paris...

Good surf while at the coast - This is Hossegor the last day, with a 30 mph wind onshore, and still firing like the wedge. As the weather turned, we headed out to Paris

I was instantly blown away at the many sights and sounds of the city....

Last night we hit Harry's bar,

the oldest cocktail bar in Europe, and guess who they are rallying for?

GO DUCKS!

New job in Biarritz!

F-it, I am taking a job in this Belgian pub - A lifetime's worth of good beer, and a great crew to hang with! Surf's been pretty good, too! Guethery Friday AM

Lafitenia Friday PM!

Finally, one of the strangest lineups I've ever seen - Inside the city of San Sebastian, Spain, this rock wall reform was being worked by some intense locals, RIGHT next to the rocky seawall! Jump in off the wall, line up amongst the locals, and try not to hit the rocks on takeoff - Most were making about 50% of their waves - boards were getting racked into the wall constantly.

First Tracks on the Cone Today - Where the Bloody Hell were You?

Check out my first day on 6" of early season snow, on top of a 2" frozen slushee base. Conditions were NOT bad, considering it's the first real snow for Mt. Bachelor this season. As I rode down from the cone to my car, I noticed that the Pine Marten Lift was being loaded with chairs - I'm sure that must mean that all of that new money from our season passes will convince them to open early..............NOT Youtube "Where the Bloody Hell Are You"

PC vs. Shorties....

Chum, from Sissyfish had a report from last Thursday afternoon, giving us a chance to compare the swell at two spots that like a N-NW wind.

PC was a bit confused, with less swell near the cove

giving up a nice entry into the full brunt of the swell down at gas chambers.

Scott, Scott, Bill and I met up down there and combined quivers,

leaving us well-stocked for the swell. Three sessions in butt-cold water left us driving back within 24 hours salty, tired and happy to get some waves.

I, too, struggled with the water temp, going from an optimistic afternoon session with a 3mm and no hood (brrrrrrrrr.....) to a morning session in the full 5/3, hood, booties and gloves, which always leaves me feeling like I'm trying to surf from the outside of the little box with a crane that you try and pick up stuffed animals with for a quarter. The gloves, especially mess up my ability to push off an into a good wave without feeling somewhat sketchy.

My attempts with surfing with the Hero Cam continue - Coming soon is a short video clip from Thursday's sessions, called too scared to look, because of all the rough footage that ends up peering down into the green deep while I paddle...

clas·si·fied (klăs'ə-fīd') - when the surf is inundated by hordes of "surf lesson" Noobs

After surfing a very busy couple of days on the Oregon coast, I came up with the above "new school definition" of the impact of all the surf schools on the lineup. At my last trip to Short Sands, on a Tuesday, there was more than 100 cars in the lot, and hundreds out enjoying some pretty good surf. The majority were on either softtop beginner boards, or rentals, especially wetsuits with S or M written in sharpie on the front and back. I also caught this story: Surfers cruise into Guinness World Record, which is the ultimate expression of what we used to call B.Y.O.C., or Bring Your Own Crowd, a much frowned upon practice of showing up at a little-known or local break with 10 or 15 of your 'best friends', and taking over the place. It's not all bad to help out folks learning, though. Here's a classic shot of a friend's daughter, on her 'first ever' wave at Short Sands. Sharing the stoke is what the surfing life is all about, to me.