Gosh darn it. I just spent hours driving up and down the coast looking for a clean, surfable wave suitable for my level and failed miserably. The palms of my hands have small blisters at the base of my fingers, especially the little ones, from gripping the gas handle on my super charged 50cc scooter. I searched and searched but failed my strike mission.
Magic morning rides in South Sumatra
I returned to my little room covered in dust and sweat, tossing my gear everywhere. The only thing I handled delicately was placing the surfboard on top of the cushy board bag; the rest I threw around with complete disregard, and even a little extra force. My water boots went flying, my jacket got thrown over a chair. I peeled my two-piece catsuit off, leaving one part by the bathroom entrance and the other just past it. I might have been a bit too rough with the shower handle, too. My hair got washed and conditioned, and the bar of soap ran all over my body. It was more than dirt I wanted to wash away. It was defeat! Oh, how I hate defeat. I can’t handle it. It messes with me inside, not just my head but my heart.
I'm back at the communal area at the Mandiri Resort, just next door. The girls are here, working on their laptops, plugged into their noise-canceling headsets. I've ordered not one, not two, but three plates of food because I’m so hungry, but also just because.
I’m going to step away from the laptop before I break one of its keys, take a breath, and come right back.
Ok, reset…
Yesterday, I had the best surf session of the trip! It was epic. I paddled out at The Point at 7 am, fully equipped with my scubadiving boots which double as reef shoes. I had my recently repaired 6’10” minigun, magic board with me. I felt solid, confident, well-rested, strong. My friend Valentina would join me any moment.
As I negotiated my way through the white water, duckdiving as needed, I marveled at how perfect the conditions were. The warm, glassy, and transparent water welcomed me to the best day ever.
A friend from Hawaii, headed to Mentawai. We're both here at the same time by coincidence.
I know now to tread lightly when approaching a lineup. Of course, I want to go straight to the peak because, well, I want to be at the front and have first dibs on the bombs, but I have to be respectful and—sneaky.
I saw Maea, a 20-year-old Billabong-sponsored Tahitian surfer, who is visiting on her way home from University in France. She was hanging out in the midsection, and I stopped to say hi and snap a pic of her with my GoPro, which was in its orange floaty, charged, and ready to capture the day's action.
@maea_juventin
After a few minutes of visiting, I laid back on the board and slowly paddled, making sure to make eye contact with others and say my good mornings. Slow paddles, barracuda style. Stealth mode—activated.
The Point wave is a long left, and if you catch it right, you can ride it for a whole minute—a proper leg burner. It takes a while to make it all the way to the peak. It also has many sections, and there are different areas where you can take off, although my favorite is to sit at the peak and a bit outside, waiting for the bombs and trying to read it right so I can surf it all the way to the end.
Finally, after 20 minutes or so of paddling, I made it and propped myself up on the board. My arm and back muscles were screaming by then and were happy for the break.
I have a thing I do between sets that I notice no one else does. I dismount and float around, sometimes diving as far as my leash allows and letting the air inside me bring me up slowly. Or I’ll just chill vertically, with the water level just above my nose, my eyes peeking out looking at the swell. I don’t know why I do it; I just love it. This is where I was when my eyes caught a huge swell heading our way.
I hadn’t been up there for 10 minutes, I tell you, and this wave started coming in my direction. I didn’t want to hog it, but hey, what can I say? I’m a wave magnet; it’s the energy.
There was a surfer going for it who was deeper than me, but we both could tell he was too deep. If he caught this monster, he had a 50/50 chance of making it past the section. No matter, he made the drop with the white water crashing around him. But the little poop didn’t let off, although his expression wasn’t one of complete determination. He was dilly-dallying, and there’s nothing that annoys me more than a dilly-dallier. So I shouted, “Are you going?!” No answer. He was already charging it, I started to paddle for it with my eyes locked on him in case he didn’t catch it.
The worst happened. He let off a half a second after I did (he was clearly gonna get it at the speed he was going and he had priority since he was deeper), and the wave was wasted. It broke ahead of everyone else, and there was nothing left to do but try and duckdive the powerful monster or bail the board and sink as deep as possible so it would pass over them.
The sexy wave waster and I were the only ones left in position, and what happened next was magic.
The second wave of the set was even bigger and a bit deeper, and it was still headed straight at me. Since the other dude had chickened out of the last one, he had no choice but to give it to me.
I heard the rest of the lineup cheer me on, encouraging me to take it, as they scrambled their boards and prepared to duck the second wave coming (there were three other women there, too). I felt how everyone was trying to tell me, “You’re in position, gooooo!” And I went. I paddled towards it to set up perfect, flipped a 180, and charged, charged as if my life depended on it. I screamed my inner mantra, “Tiger Shark Energyyyyyy,” and exhaled all my air on my last two paddles. I started gliding with the bomb, popped up, angled high, and started my drop. Wooooshhhh. I know I’m going fast when my ears make a sound with the vibration. I have outties, and my little ears were singing. At the mid section and in control I started pumping up, staying as high as I could to pass the section and make it a one-minute wave, but alas, it started crumbling ahead, and I flew out of it. Straight up in the air, then curving my body and shooting into the water at an angle, diving deep down, knowing full well I had a missile behind me coming at the same speed, attached to my ankle. If I didn’t go deep, that board could slam into me and break a bone or one of its fins could cut me deep like a knife.
I surfaced to the whole lineup cheering me, and my heart thumping so fast! I couldn’t believe I’d pulled it off—the positioning, the paddle, the pop-up, the drop, the exit—so many factors involved, and none of them went south on me. Thank you, thank you, Universe. What a way to start the surf sesh.
Full commentary mode
I stayed for 4 hours and caught so many more memorable waves. I got a barrel I didn’t come out of and got slammed onto the reef, but I was so excited I didn’t even feel it. I have bruises but no cuts. I caught a couple of 60-second waves and even got a 45-second one on my GoPro. Valentina came out at some point, and we laughed, giggled, and charged. It was epic, just epic.
Flying on a 45 sec wave. I deleted the beginning of it, because I made a very unladylike noise on my final paddle as I entered the wave.
Valentina and I being silly on the wave
I’m loving this surf life, and I’m finally getting good enough that I can play with the big boys, and that is the best feeling for me.
Feeling so blessed, best sesh of the whole trip and one of the best ones of my life
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