In a normal year the fall surfing season was one I'd mostly watch on the internet because of work obligations. Knowing that fall is one of the best seasons for surfing on the east coast, it's been frustrating to miss out on surf sessions due to my jam-packed schedule. When waves, winds, and tides didn't align on a weekend, it was nearly impossible for me to find any water time.
Many times I'd see the beginnings of a great surf day as I drove to work at the crack of dawn. Like a jealous lover, I would stalk the surf cams, from work, all day long. I rarely made it home in time to suit up and paddle out before the sun had set. The chances that work-week waves stuck around for a Saturday or Sunday... slim to none. It was a really crappy pattern until the spring time, when the clocks moved forward, and the days became longer.
So now I find myself in new territory with no work obligations and the ability to paddle out anytime that I want. I recently added 113 rides to my 2021 stats, just in the month of September. That's the best wave count for a month since I started using the Apple Watch paired with the Dawn Patrol App. It was a great month, but it did fall short of the 140 ride wave count I got in July 2015 according to my Rip Curl Watch, while living near Horseneck Beach, riding knee-high south swell, with a trip to Costa Rica as a booster. But I'm sitting pretty here this Fall, in the Northeast, with no work obligations and waves on the rise. I should be able to make 100 waves per month a reasonable goal moving forward. I'm halfway through this month with 41 waves, so I think the 100-wave mark is a good range to aim for.
If I can finish strong in 2021, averaging just 65 waves this month and December, I will pass 2020's wave total of 432 documented rides in a year. That would be a solid achievement considering I was home, working remote for most of 2020 (eliminating a daily work commute opened up dawn patrol and before dark sessions). Looking ahead in 2022, with no work obligations competing for my schedule, I should be able to knock the stats out of the park. But, for this year, where I spent most of it working two jobs and dealing with the death of a family member, I still have an opportunity to set some personal records. I can exceed 432 waves, and I can add to my all-time record for waves longer than 100 yards. I'm looking to set the tone for an amazing 2022 surf year. Below are some pics from October and November surf sessions on Nantasket Beach, in no particular order... eventually I'll go in there and clean things up to make things chronological. Hope you're surfing where you are.
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