"Stingray's" New Localism

My surf hiatus is over. Thanks to some intensive acupuncture, (reluctant) chiro work and an Aaron Rodgers level of injury optimism, I’m surfing again. For those of you not following along at home, there was a stint where I was not surfing. But those days are seemingly over. I’m back. And on my return I noticed some things.

For one, the ocean has been sending us the most pleasant surfing conditions you could dream up. Oh Fall, do we ever love you! It really does remind you what surfing can be after a long gray summer of “just getting wet.”

Riding combo swell waves under blue skies with glassy water at all hours of the day is a real shot of life. Water is chilled but not cold. Air is warm but not hot. Mornings are cool but not freezing. It also coincided with some of the wildest crowd influxes I’ve ever seen. Where did you all come from! Everybody’s surfin’ now. But you’ll be surprised to hear I’m not going to complain about it; I actually want to highlight a new kind of localism I noticed.

Where I surf there is a guy named Scotty, but I think he goes by “Stingray” which is definitely how we’ll refer to him moving forward. I pulled into the lot the other day. There was a little crumble on it. Most guys might say, “Bro, you just missed it” but everyone was kind of eyeing it like they might go back out. It was showing signs of life. Fall is a local surfers summer. I’m telling you: clean afternoon peaks can turn any corporate 4HL lemming into an all-day wettie-wearer. Anyway, Stingray was suiting up and waxing a new board and had a sparkle in his eye.

When we got out there, we found ourselves in a pretty empty lineup (few friends here and there) and 2-to-4 foot peaks. After his first couple I hear, “I LOVE FALL!!” It was Stingray. He went on (to everyone and no one in particular). “Isn’t it cool how they just cup out?” “I just did a full roundhouse!” “This board is SPICY!”

He was truly having a blast. And when it wasn’t his turn, Stingray was your biggest fan. “BAM! WHAM! WWWRRRAAAAPP!!!!” He was so much fun to have around. It was not annoying, his enthusiasm was infectious and I left with a renewed enthusiasm for surfing — supported by the fact that my last wave was my best in months.

Two days later I went down to walk with my wife and daughter to watch the sunset. Down the beach and drifting fast I saw Stingray catching a few before dark. When we returned from our walk he was changing at his car. He saw me and said, “Hey! How was that left you got the other day?! Bad neck, yeah right!” He then proceeded to walk through in Joe Turpel level detail every nuance of my wave as if it was in slow-mo replay. My wife rolled her eyes a bit, but I stood a little taller the rest of the night. It was the second time this week that I'd experienced the rare phenomenon of positive localism: Stingray’s New Localism, pass it on.—Travis Ferré

[Above artwork: Bridget Riley, Over, 1966]