New Stuff From Stu Kenson

Stu's got other things going on besides the Zapper. Here's a couple of shots from a trip I just made up to the shop. Check 'em out:

Top Photo: Here are a couple in the 10' range. I've paddled and surfed one of Stu's new 10'2"s- the thing went insane! I managed to luck into one of the best lefts of the morning, drove the thing straight down and square off the bottom- not a warble. The diamond tail held and juiced me down the line- his new shapes have speed to burn and yet retain an enormous amount of stability. Check 'em out if you get a chance.

Bottom Photo: Just look at the 10'er next to Stu- don't even start to ask me about what that six channel Byrne is doing there... naked for all to see. Don't even ask me why Allan Byrne stopped by while I was there and chatted with Stu about things I'm not supposed to talk about... don't even ask.

Here's something else I'm not technically supposed to talk about. It's called KookBox. I can tell you this- it's a Joel Tudor/Stu K. collaboration. You're going to see Joel on them soon- boards with designs that are all over the map. And I may just have a couple of semi-authorized photos. Check Back!

New BeachSurf photos click it, kook.

All Photo Issue!

Here's a few I snapped this morning.

Camera Grom disappeared on me so I've had to take the photo/video duties into my own hands- it's been fun but I really can't wait until the boy's back on the beach with his trusty cash can.

Top and Second Photo: Jeff Neu paddled out on his stand up this morning- probably the first time I've seen him off his shortboard in at least five months. The guy hasn't forgotten a thing though- "Pinky" snagged some of the best ones out there.

Third Photo: Spork racing down the line on the Diablo- let's go paddle 3M's!

Photos Four and Five: This kid was schwacking it left and right (well mostly left) I snapped these with hands all jittered up on 7-11's finest arabica- I thought they came out pretty cool though.

Check Back: A visit to Stu Kenson's surf shop and a look at his latest stand up creation- The Stinger.

Surf Ropin' up the Beach: South Swell Lights it Up Down Here!

I'm absolutely toast right now. Just did a three hour wave riding session right down here at the end of the street. Check the photos, these pictures are from last night- now tack on another three feet and stretch those lines another fifty feet and you've got a good representation of what we surfed today.

The predicted south swell just lit up our little beach town. All day long the reports poured in both on the Surf Phone and by email- every bank, every hole and every rip was creating a wedging, left hand, freight train. There were spots throwing barrels and peaks peeling all over town. Best part of it was the water was pushing 68 degrees - another session of bareback trunking it.

Four of us got out on stand up boards: Gabe, Big Chad, Kraig Surplus and me - safe to say we all scored some of our best waves this year. I've got to give Big Chad the Wave of the Day award for paddling his 10'0 Stamps into a macking six foot pier sucking wave. BC dropped in late, came off the bottom and disappeared.

I don't know if he got tubed or just traveled in the pocket but I can say that we're way past riding soft, reforms on glorified longboards. Here was a legitimate, grinding, head high macker being handled by a guy on a 10' board - it was cool to see and from my limited vantage point the line taken was clean. Clean is good.

Here's another sweet deal on a used board. This one is a BK Pro model C4 Waterman 10'0. I've seen this board, it is for all intensive purposes a brand new board. The retail price on this board is in excess of $1500 - this one is for sale for $1000. If I was a few pounds lighter I'd pounce on this one- it's a sweet deal on a hot board. If you're interested, contact Kelly Kraus at Emerald City Surf Shop in Coronado (619-435-6677). Also - if you decide to buy a new board (not the used C4) and you mention this website, Kelly will drop a hundred bucks from your next stand up board purchase. Dude, are you kidding me?

All in a day's work

I checked the surf five different times before I finally scored some fun waves. The morning check was a bust; south wind bringing on the dreaded "morning sickness". And the much anticipated north-westerly swell was an early morning no show. What a bummer.

I finally did get into the water around noon. The wind had finally backed off and there was bit of glass but the tide was too low. On the upside, some lines from were beginning to show and I could tell that if I waited a few more hours it might pay off.

But, the water here in San Diego has jumped up to about 66 degrees (Matt W.'s estimate) which makes it legitimately trunk-able. And there were a few zippers to be grabbed- all in all making it kind of irresistible. I did an hour and a half beach cruise making something from basically nothing, fun but not really satisfying.

The best session of the day was the result of a surprise visit. A friend dropped by to tell me she'd been hired by the beach guards (congratulations Janet!) and, by the way, "have you checked the surf?". It wasn't firing but it was dead glassy, and the tide was rising. We ended up scoring a super fun, wedging little left that ran along a bar before bottoming out in a hole right next to the beach. A sweet little rip had formed in the hole which completed the circuit; ride the left to the beach until the hole killed it and then ride the rip back out to do it all over again. A sweet way to end a hot day at the beach.

Can't wait to see what tomorrow morning will bring- hope you're feeling the same way!


Top Photo: The local crew, every beach and every street end's got their cast of characters.

Middle Photo: The Lopez surf check.

Bottom Photo: Early morning grom attack.

Secrets for the taking

Pull out a map, find an isolated stretch of coast sandwiched between two access points and go find your own waves. Bingo- your own personal secret spot. I can virtually guarantee that if walking, or in our case, paddling into it is required, you won't see a soul. It's yours, take it. Have fun with it. Name it if you want. What's the big problem?

Photo: Kiwi taking a break- ten minutes from downtown SD- not big, but fun and definitely not crowded. My first photo with the new Oly 1030sw.

I've got mine. I'm going to name it too. It's called the Dinosaur. Kiwi and I just pioneered it (or maybe we didn't but I really don't care). It's a three mile paddle down a part of the coast that is essentially in my back yard. I've never surfed it, or for that matter, seen anybody surf it. Why? Because nobody wants it. It's too much work. Guess what? There are waves there. Really fun waves, better waves than you'd expect.

Am I letting the cat out of the bag? Should I be hit with a bolt of lightning for revealing some "secret" spot? I don't think so- here's why: THERE AREN'T ANY SECRET SPOTS. Especially if you live here in Southern California. It's all been done, logged, photographed, posted, published and downloaded. The great thing is that even with all that publicity- they're still not crowded- even here. People just don't want to do the work- even if they know exactly where the spot is and how to get to it.

So find a spot with some paddling miles between it and the nearest parking lot. There's still a ton out there. Make it your secret spot. Just be sure to give it a good name.