Winter Swell

Got locked out of the pool after I got there 15 minutes late. Was a little miffed at that. I can see having a late policy, but when all of the normal weekend pools are closed and there is only one Sunday practice, it seems more flexibility is in order. Bad SCAQ, bad!

So I drove south and took a look at the waves coming in at the MB Pier. The morning sun was beginning to peek out and there was a swell - possibly in advance of the storm that is rising as I write this. Water temp a cool 59-60 degrees as posted by the lifeguard tower on the pier. That felt about right.

Waves were good, but too many boogie boarders and surfers on the north side of the pier. I thought surfboards were not allowed there. Maybe there is a time limit, like no surfers after 10:00 (if there are swimmers or body boarders in the water too)? Anyway, the waves WERE good, but I kept getting thrown off by boogie boarders with priority, or gave the wave to a rider who looked like he would catch it, only to pull out as the wave got to me (I have to sit more inside).

Is it too much to ask that you actually catch the wave you try for? Wasted waves. I had to get out after about a half hour as it was just too cold and I wasn't getting enough waves.

As a side note, surfers are dangerous. I bet more people would swim in the ocean if they didn't have to contend with surfer competition. Is there an economic term for this? The problem is akin to monopoly. The existing market is skewed to the current participants and the barriers (too few swimmers to push out the surfers and too great risk for most to go it alone) to entry are high. In this case, it also appears that government regulation is either nonexistent or is not enforced.