Surfing Tacoma Quivers

November. Suit with hood.


April. New summer board. Suit with no hood.

September. Winter sled.

Wife: you have a problem.
Me: my truck needs new parts.

 

Yeah, I tried explaining why I need more than one board to my chick so I can progress to become a better surfer hahahahaha. All she sees is me spending hahaha

 

Last count I have 6 boards, ranging in size from a 6.0'x19"x2.38" round tail, up to a 7'6" pin tail for the big days. And I'm always looking for more haha.

 

Haha, I'm the opposite, i had a chest zip and missed my back zip. My current is an offset back zip with the big flap between the zipper. Works like a charm. i hate messing with the chest zipper

 

I was going to go with need he didn’t have my size and said it would be March at the earliest. Wanted to support, but not gonna freeze my ass off for months lol

 

I actually bought one but had to send it back. Too small. Now they have my size but I want to support local. From what I heard and saw they were nice though

 

Ive heard good things too, but don't know anything first hand. Guy I emailed with was chill, if they have my size in the future I'll support them.

 

I live in a 1 bedroom apartment. In our living room there are 4 boards over 9ft (too nice to keep outside) and 4 short-ish boards. the patio is stacked with boards and there is usuallly atleast 3 in my truck. my wife doesnt complain anymore. you can win this war

 

I'll try to keep fighting the good fight

 

As of right now all surfing items are to be kept in the garage.

 

9'2" + 7'4". I really want to try a 6'6" to 6'8" egg

 

My three favorite boards are in my dining room. The rest of them, and my plethora of other equipment are in the garage. Marriage is all about compromise haha.

This winter has been somewhat of a disappointment so far, with only a few good days. I'm ready for some really good barrels. The sand bars are good around here, just either too much wind with the swell, or no swell.

 

I've tried just about every wetsuit out there. Here are my experiences:

Oneill - Probably the best of the big brands. Warm and durable.
Xcel - can often get them at a discount (for a reason). Warm at first, but fall apart after a season.
Rip Curl - same as Xcel
Patagonia - Warm, but stiff (and pricey)
Matuse - garbage. No inner lining to help keep you warm. Wind cuts right through the suit. Seams fall apart.
Isurus - similar construction to Matuse except the quality is way better. Wind cuts through the suit, but it's fine during those warm sunny winter afternoons. Not a dawn patrol suit.

Now I wear Japanese made wetsuits. Warm, durable, stretchy, and the quality is top notch. They are definitely pricier than suits from the big brands but they last twice as long, which offsets the cost. There are a bunch of Japanese wetsuit manufacturers, but I've had great luck with Cyber Wetsuits. A 4/3 will run you $600. My last Cyber lasted 5 years of heavy use, which translates to $120/year. Their website is old with outdated ugly designs on display, but their current suits look normal and are amazing!

 

That about jibes with my experience. I used to wear Aleeda suits back on the 80's haha. For me, I'd rather buy a $120 suit a year(then donate it) than try and stretch out a $600 suit for 5 years. I tend to be rough on my stuff, so a wetsuit lasting me 5 years is probably not possible anyways.

 

Anyone see bunker 77?

 

Idk if O'Neil has improved but that was one of my first suits I owned and I ended up hating it and it had started falling apart early. I've loved my ripcurl suit when I was surfing 3-4 times a week. Hadn't gotten wet in over a year and put it on and it still felt great a few months back.

Man it hurts to type that out. I need to get out more before I move east

 

Hung up the boards yesterday. Definitely room for another.

 

I surfed most of my life away(no regerts hah), now that I have 3 kids, 2 of which are prime surf lesson age, I am sharing the stoke with them every weekend and it has re-kindled my fire watching them shred the gnar. I never sold a single one of my boards, so I knew it was a temporary lapse.

 

Which breaks did you dirty down in Mexico? I ask bc I've only surfed Baja Malibu and K38 and neither place gave me any grief. I found those two places gentler than the Trestles rock dance we all have to do. I pack my booties each time for Trestles and Mexico, but I've actually yet to wear them out. I'd like to know for the future where/when I should expect to have to pull them on down in MX.