All rules apply...

- JEwing pic of a real poster Somewhere, USA-

So many sessions with compromises. So many mediocre swells. So many slalom runs through crowded shoulders. So many glares and stares because of backpaddling and lack of etiquette. Today, a day with definite swell, I needed a more satisfying experience. Where to go...

I headed to Opposite Viejo's. Here is a wave with fine form. A birthplace of innovation, a bastion of civility- sometimes maintained through incivility. Waves were sleek and running down the reef in beautiful syncopation. The low tide was helping to open some almond-eyed barrel sections. There were no leashes in the lineup even though the waves were head high and fast. If you didn't make the barrel or fell on a turn, you swam. Good surfers were taking turns in a semi-orderly fashion. I, an interloper by any measure, was graced with many fine waves. I shared a couple of mat waves with Pflex and Tmat. Fish and fin originators were enjoying their earned status in the lineup.

I am grateful that there are still a very few spots like this one- spots where a healthy dose of proud localism and common sense surf etiquette combine in ways that create order and opportunity in the lineup.

Tomorrow, a weekend with swell, I'm off to a less frequented locale, or perhaps just The Drive Through...